Courses:

Management Communication is intended to help you think strategically about communication and to aid you in improving your writing, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills within a managerial setting.  We will look at a range of successful practices and guidelines that have been derived from both research and experience, give you the opportunity to practice your skills, and provide you with feedback to help you strengthen them.  Typically, we will use a workshop format that relies heavily on discussion and in-class exercises.  Where possible, assignments in 15.280 build upon materials covered in the Organizational Processes (15.311) team projects or in required CDO activities, to help you hone your communication skills in the context of these activities.

Because so much of the class will be "hands-on" and because feedback is so important to improving writing and speaking, I expect that you will attend class and provide your fellow students with clear, honest, concrete, and sensitive feedback.  Your class participation grade will reflect attendance as well as the quality of your contributions to class.

Required:

• Mary Munter, Guide to Managerial Communication, 5th Edition
• One 1/2" VHS videotape
• Course packet

Optional:

• Gene Zelazny, Say It With Presentations
• Joseph Williams, Style:  Toward Clarity and Grace
  

Writing assignments are due as indicated on assignment sheets and should use standard business formats (including single spacing within paragraphs and double spacing between them).  Please proofread and print out final versions for submission unless otherwise indicated.  To guard against losses or recording errors, keep copies of the papers you turn in and retain all the graded assignments that are returned to you throughout the semester.

All papers must be handed in on time.  Late assignments will be penalized.  No assignments will be accepted more than one week after the due date.

Most of your oral presentations will take place outside class time in lab sessions with a few other students and your professor or TA.  You will sign up for a lab session for each of the two oral assignments.  If you miss a scheduled oral presentation without advance consultation, you will receive a score of zero for that assignment.

You must buy a 1/2" VHS videotape and bring it along to both of your presentations.  The tapes are for you to view later, alone or with your instructor.  Based on viewing your tape, you will write a formal evaluation of your first presentation (see assignment), and a final self-assessment of your progress in written and oral communication at the end of the course.

Except in the case of group assignments, all written assignments should be your own work.  You may (and in some cases you will be required to) have fellow students read a draft of your assignment and give you reactions, note problems, or make general suggestions.  Such "peer editors" may not, however, actually rewrite your work for you.

Professional conduct is built upon the idea of mutual respect. Such conduct entails (but is not necessarily limited to):

• Attending the class. Core classes are required for a reason, and each class benefits from the attendance and participation of all students. Your grade for participation will be affected by absences. You should sit in the appropriate seat, if relevant, and display a legible name card at all times.
• Arriving on time. Late arrivals are disruptive to both lectures and class discussion, and show disrespect to those who are on time. Class starts 5 minutes after the hour or half hour.
• Minimizing disruptions. All cell phones and pagers should be turned off during class. You should not leave and re-enter the class. You should avoid engaging in side conversations after class has begun.
• Focusing on the class. While you may take notes on laptops, do not use laptop computers or hand-held devices for other tasks while in class. Activities such as net surfing, day trading, and answering email is very impolite and disruptive both to neighbors and the class.
• Being prepared for class. You should be ready to discuss any assigned readings and to answer any assigned questions for each day's class, including being ready to open a case assigned for that day.
• Respect. You should act respectfully toward all class participants.

Class participation grading reflects student adherence to these principles; students gain credit for contributing valuable insights and students lose credit if they fail to adhere to any of the above guidelines.

Each major assignment will be graded on a 10-point scale with the assignments weighted as follows:

The final grade will be assigned on the basis of a curve.