In preparing your talk for Aug. 7, I asked you to consider a business problem of some kind, analyze its communication aspects, and suggest ways in which the companies and/or individuals involved could have achieved a more positive outcome by the application of some of the communication techniques/principles we have discussed and/or ideas of your own creation.
You may use notes but should not read your speech. You will be evaluated on the "10 Do's" of Management Speaking contained in the Oral Presentations chapter of the Management Communication textbook. Five of your classmates (you can pick which) will also fill out feedback sheets for you. After I have had a chance to review the DVD, you will have access to it for your own review.
Please plan on speaking for about 6 minutes, with 2 additional minutes for handling Q & A from the audience. Although you are welcome to use visual aids, please don't make PowerPoint the star of your show (in other words, with you in the corner of a darkened room simply reading PowerPoint lines on the screen.) Many "A" speeches will no doubt make little or no use of visual aids. It's entirely up to you. I am most interested in observing and responding to your presentation skills.
In our coaching session, you will receive a summary of the 10 Do's as well as a summary of the additional tips for professional presenting we have discussed in class.
For the coaching session, you DO NOT have to have your speech completed by any means. Please do come with some kind of topic you can talk about for a few minutes so that we can practice actual presentation behaviors rather than just theorizing about them. (These topics can be simple for the purposes of our coaching session: a favorite restaurant, a favorite movie, a favorite vacation spot, your "ultimate" car/place to live/etc., or any other easy-to-talk-about topic.)
Dress for the Aug. 7 speech should be "corporate casual" rather than something lower on the scale. You may want to use this video clip as part of your portfolio for an eventual job application--hence the request to "look professional" without going to too much trouble.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
Latest, Greatest Information about the Team Paper Due Aug. 7 in Class
Your team topic has already been given to you. If any team is confused about their topic, please contact me. In most cases, you can develop your topic in a problem-solution format (unless you have devised a better way): What is our topic? What are the core problems that arise out of our topic for business people and/or the public? What have others had to say about these problems (your research)? What do we think/feel about these problems (your original thinking)? What conclusions/recommendations can we offer on the basis of all that has been included in the paper? Usually these major points break into typical headings:
I. Introduction
II. The Nature of the Problem(s)
III. Research to Date
IV. Analysis of (or) New Perspectives on the Problem
V. Conclusion, with Recommendations for Best Practices
Obviously you can alter this basic five-part pattern in any way that best suits your topic. It's also a good idea to include within your topic some key words from your topic--for example, I. Introduction: the Common Experience of Workplace Romance.
The paper will be about 10 pages long, not counting any title page, footnotes (which may appear at the bottom of each page or as endnotes at the end of the paper), and bibliography (listing the sources you referenced as well as other books, articles, or websites that might be useful to the reader. You can see the back of the Management Communication book for guides on how to reference these items as well as how to reference anything you have found on the Internet. Please be excruciatingly careful not to plagiarize the ideas or actual words of other people. Always give credit where credit is due.
Although I don't want to grade these papers twice (that is, act as your text editor), i will certainly be glad to sit down with any team to discuss how they have developed their paper and to offer suggestions. This process needs to happen in person, with all team members present. You know my office location (MH 116) and simply need to let me know when you are available to meet. I am on vacation from July 21 through July 31 except for our class on July 24, so meetings might best be scheduled after July 31, i.e., during the week before you turn in the paper.
Most business reports, including yours, will be single-spaced, with double-space between paragraphs. Longer quotations can be indented 10 spaces. Shorter quotations can appear within the running text.
All group members should participate in all aspects of the report creation. In other words, don't let one person do the keyboarding while the other does the research and writing. After the report has been handed in, you will complete an anonymous "monkeysurvey" on-line feedback instrument to describe how your team writing process worked out. This will give you a chance to let me know how work was distributed and carried out by individual group members. I hope that google docs and/or wikis will be helpful in the writing process. You are not required to use either of these technologies. I simply wanted you to know what they were about for future use in your studies and career.
Feel free to use the pronoun "we" in this report. If you have any other questions, please bring them to class on July 24 or email me (bell@usfca.edu). You'll hear back from me quickly.
I. Introduction
II. The Nature of the Problem(s)
III. Research to Date
IV. Analysis of (or) New Perspectives on the Problem
V. Conclusion, with Recommendations for Best Practices
Obviously you can alter this basic five-part pattern in any way that best suits your topic. It's also a good idea to include within your topic some key words from your topic--for example, I. Introduction: the Common Experience of Workplace Romance.
The paper will be about 10 pages long, not counting any title page, footnotes (which may appear at the bottom of each page or as endnotes at the end of the paper), and bibliography (listing the sources you referenced as well as other books, articles, or websites that might be useful to the reader. You can see the back of the Management Communication book for guides on how to reference these items as well as how to reference anything you have found on the Internet. Please be excruciatingly careful not to plagiarize the ideas or actual words of other people. Always give credit where credit is due.
Although I don't want to grade these papers twice (that is, act as your text editor), i will certainly be glad to sit down with any team to discuss how they have developed their paper and to offer suggestions. This process needs to happen in person, with all team members present. You know my office location (MH 116) and simply need to let me know when you are available to meet. I am on vacation from July 21 through July 31 except for our class on July 24, so meetings might best be scheduled after July 31, i.e., during the week before you turn in the paper.
Most business reports, including yours, will be single-spaced, with double-space between paragraphs. Longer quotations can be indented 10 spaces. Shorter quotations can appear within the running text.
All group members should participate in all aspects of the report creation. In other words, don't let one person do the keyboarding while the other does the research and writing. After the report has been handed in, you will complete an anonymous "monkeysurvey" on-line feedback instrument to describe how your team writing process worked out. This will give you a chance to let me know how work was distributed and carried out by individual group members. I hope that google docs and/or wikis will be helpful in the writing process. You are not required to use either of these technologies. I simply wanted you to know what they were about for future use in your studies and career.
Feel free to use the pronoun "we" in this report. If you have any other questions, please bring them to class on July 24 or email me (bell@usfca.edu). You'll hear back from me quickly.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Management Speak
Hi All
Since we're studying communication in the workplace, I thought this BBC News article would be interesting. Jornalist Lucy Kellaway discusses her crusade to end the use of the the term 'going forward' and examines the problem of using "brainlessly upbeat" language in everyday business.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7453584.stm
Also, here is a list the 50 most disliked office jargon phrases sent in from BBC readers:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7457287.stm
Enjoy!
Since we're studying communication in the workplace, I thought this BBC News article would be interesting. Jornalist Lucy Kellaway discusses her crusade to end the use of the the term 'going forward' and examines the problem of using "brainlessly upbeat" language in everyday business.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7453584.stm
Also, here is a list the 50 most disliked office jargon phrases sent in from BBC readers:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7457287.stm
Enjoy!
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Shifting Career
I was just wondering, has any of you in class planned on shifting gear in your career after you all graduate? For example, in my case, I got my undergrad in finance&accounting majors and I had been working in finance industry as an analyst before entering MBA. Recently, I have just been thinking about where I want to end up in a year or so (thanks to Prof. Macpherson' short assignment in class), whether I want to keep pursuing career in finance or doing something else. The idea of starting my own business has intrigued me ever since we had all these great lectures and seminars /visits on thinking as an entrepreneur. The problem is, I have been so comfortable in working in finance so I don't know if giving up career in finance and shifting gear into entrepreneurship will be worth the risk. As you all know, being an entrepreneur involves taking a lot of risks. We've seen the stats and the tour guide at Plug and Play also mentioned about the high rate of failed start-ups. How could you raise enough money to keep the business running? How can you find stable customers who will be willing to purchase your products/services? Those are just scary thoughts for me.
So are any of you in a similar situation like I am? I'm wondering how many of you plan on sticking with your previous kind of job because that's the area you feel most comfortable with (i.e staying in your comfort zone) or wanting to change to something else you 've never been in like going from finance to entrepreneurship in my case ?
After hearing the speaker at the UPS seminar couple weeks ago by Jim Beach, the professor from Georgia State U, I was intrigued hearing his story where he took a bet with his class that he would do importing business from any of the country his class chose. He ended up going to Pakistan trying to find interesting products to sell and he finally found kilim chairs as his choice. He won the bet basically but the thing that caught me was how did it seem so easy for him to just get going and make business in a short period amount of time? I decided to google him and true enough found a simple good article about him. In the article, he gave valuable advices in my opinion that says
"The solid advice to the would-be entrepreneur was to start a low-risk business. It was not about creativity, it was about stealing a good idea and doing it better. Of course it is also important to do something you enjoy. You should build the business with money on hand. Start small and slow as long as you own your own company"
I think those are pretty important lessons that we should start small, low-risk business and found a way to do it better than the rest of the pack. I hope my sharing can be useful to all of us and I look forward to hearing thoughts, advices, sharing from you guys who are as inspired as I am to run a business or willing to change career track.
Thank you.
So are any of you in a similar situation like I am? I'm wondering how many of you plan on sticking with your previous kind of job because that's the area you feel most comfortable with (i.e staying in your comfort zone) or wanting to change to something else you 've never been in like going from finance to entrepreneurship in my case ?
After hearing the speaker at the UPS seminar couple weeks ago by Jim Beach, the professor from Georgia State U, I was intrigued hearing his story where he took a bet with his class that he would do importing business from any of the country his class chose. He ended up going to Pakistan trying to find interesting products to sell and he finally found kilim chairs as his choice. He won the bet basically but the thing that caught me was how did it seem so easy for him to just get going and make business in a short period amount of time? I decided to google him and true enough found a simple good article about him. In the article, he gave valuable advices in my opinion that says
"The solid advice to the would-be entrepreneur was to start a low-risk business. It was not about creativity, it was about stealing a good idea and doing it better. Of course it is also important to do something you enjoy. You should build the business with money on hand. Start small and slow as long as you own your own company"
I think those are pretty important lessons that we should start small, low-risk business and found a way to do it better than the rest of the pack. I hope my sharing can be useful to all of us and I look forward to hearing thoughts, advices, sharing from you guys who are as inspired as I am to run a business or willing to change career track.
Thank you.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Our Generation
Hello Everyone,
Recently we have seen a lot of ways in which technology will impact communication and the business world in general. We saw PlugnPlay where ideas launch, we read books for Customer about Wikinomics and we have seen the newest from Google with online chatting, documents and wikis.
My question to you is where will technology be with when we are our parents age? Will we have Scotty beam us to the next office meeting across the globe like he did in Star Trek? Will we talk to people using holographic images like in Star Wars? Will we skate to work on hover-boards like in Back to Future?
I used to think this stuff was way off, but the more I think about it, I don't think these technologies are out of our league anymore. After all, consider what our parents have seen; a man on the moon, cell phones, and Nintendo to name a few.
What technologies will you be using to communicate when you are 45-50 years old....
T. J.
Recently we have seen a lot of ways in which technology will impact communication and the business world in general. We saw PlugnPlay where ideas launch, we read books for Customer about Wikinomics and we have seen the newest from Google with online chatting, documents and wikis.
My question to you is where will technology be with when we are our parents age? Will we have Scotty beam us to the next office meeting across the globe like he did in Star Trek? Will we talk to people using holographic images like in Star Wars? Will we skate to work on hover-boards like in Back to Future?
I used to think this stuff was way off, but the more I think about it, I don't think these technologies are out of our league anymore. After all, consider what our parents have seen; a man on the moon, cell phones, and Nintendo to name a few.
What technologies will you be using to communicate when you are 45-50 years old....
T. J.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Kinetic Sculptures
Hi Everyone,
Our trip to the exploratotium reminded my of these kinetic sculptures. One guy, Theo Jensen, is famous for making them, but now many engineering schools hold kinetic sculpture competitions and races. Can you believe there isn't a single motor on any of these?
Our trip to the exploratotium reminded my of these kinetic sculptures. One guy, Theo Jensen, is famous for making them, but now many engineering schools hold kinetic sculpture competitions and races. Can you believe there isn't a single motor on any of these?
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Something funny...
Hey guys,
My friend and I were just browsing and looking around youtube for funny commercials. I found this international commercial for dvd players from Thailand. Their known for their super funny commercials. Here is the link... Seriously you wont regret it...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0utqE0o7PTQ
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