The Evolution of an Innovative Undergraduate

Transcript:The Evolution of an Innovative Undergraduate:
The Evolution of an Innovative Undergraduate Business Curriculum Presented at the 2015 Western Association of Collegiate Schools of Business Conference Honolulu, Hawaii October 4-6, 2015 Mario Reyes Dean CBE Curriculum in pre-1994 CBE Advisory Board demand Graduates with a broad perspective of how businesses operate— students in the traditional program did not have a systems perspective, or the ability to determine how actions in their functionally organized unit might impact other areas. Graduates with skills/experience in working in self-managed teams Graduates with effective written and oral communication skills The Planning Process Data collection and analysis (1993-94) Focus group sessions with College’s Advisory Board Benchmarking visits to other universities Focus group sessions with students Faculty retreats for discussion Summer 1994 planning session for team Jack Morris (P/OM) Dana Stover (MHR) Steve Pharr (Marketing) Randall Byers (IS, Quantitative Methods) Mario Reyes (Finance and International Business) Planning & Decision Making Integrated Business Curriculum (IBC): 1994-2012 Integrated Business Curriculum (IBC): 1994-2012 17 credit/2 semester cohort program 6 modules based on business decisions and processes Team taught by 5 faculty members- different disciplines Required of all junior-level business and economics majors, thereby providing a common base for all business majors Broad perspective of business; exposure to business disciplines Teambuilding and group dynamics course module and faculty mentoring Team environment in and out of class Formal students presentations and lots of writing assignments All essay/problem exams Close ties to business with Case Firm Program IBC Course Modules: 1994-2012 First Semester Team Building and Group Dynamics (2) Business Systems (4) Product and Process Planning (3) Second Semester Planning and Decision Making (2) Managing the Firm’s Resources (3) Business Operating Decisions (3) For Example: Finance in the IBC The Case Firm Program Adopt a case firm (3 year commitment) Faculty shadowing visits Executive for a day Student team projects Assurance of Learning in the IBC: 1994-2012 Closing the loop: IBC Faculty Summer Camp CBE Faculty Retreat Administration of IBC: 1994-2012 Faculty team formation Faculty recruiting Choose faculty with solid teaching performance Choose faculty who have demonstrated they can work in academic teams or who have been successful in interdisciplinary research Attempt to include SP/IP faculty in each faculty team Faculty teaching load Typical load per year: SA—5 courses; SP/IP—8 courses IBC faculty (steady state): SA faculty 2 sections of IBC + 1; 1 section of IBC + 2 SP/IP faculty 2 sections of IBC + 3; 1 section