Module 1: Business, Government and Society-The Economic Context of Business

Topic 1:   What is business?

Students will become familiar with concept of business as relationships with stakeholders--investors, employees, customers, suppliers, community, public etc.

Topic 2:   Expectations of business and the business person.

Students will become familiar with the interaction of law, ethics and business. They will also become familiar with sources of law, types of regulation and types of enforcement that impacts business.  

Topic: 3   Forms, organizations, fundamentals and language of business

Students will become familiar with the various forms of business--partnership, corporation, parent, subsidiaries, etc.   They will also become familiar with structuresand divisions within companies such as departmental functions, division of labor, management hierarchy and requisite perspectives or expectations.   They will also understand their responsibility as an agent of a company.

Topic 4:   Economic context of business.

Students will become familiar with the impact business has on the economy.

Topic 5:   Global Context of Business.

Students will become familiar with the link between business in the US and the world including international business relationships through contracts, sales, labor.

Module 2:   Legal and Ethical Issues

Topic 1:   How to minimize legal and ethical risk in business

Students will understand how to assess business circumstances to identify legal and ethical risks.  

Topic 2:   Sources of law including how to research and understand laws.

Topic 3   Dispute Resolution including an anatomy of a lawsuit.

Topic 4:   Understanding Tort Liability

Students will become familiar with the most common causes of action that impact business, including negligence and products liability.

Topic 5: Understanding and Drafting Contracts.

Students will become familiar with what creates contractual liability and how to understand and draft a simple sales contract.

Topic 6.   Employment

Subtopic a:   Understanding the employment relationship.

Students will become familiar with the concepts of employment at will, a union relationship and just cause for discharge.

Subtopic b:   Employment forms:

Students will become aware of employment forms   such as an application, performance evaluations, personnel file, an employment handbook etc.

Subtopic c:   Understanding significant employment laws--labor, discrimination, medical leave, etc.

Students will become aware of the most significant employment laws and whaat they require of business.

Subtopic d:   Governmental agencies that regulate employment:   EEOC, MDCR, OSHA, etc.

Students will become aware of governmental agencies that regulate business relative to employment.

Module 3: Managing Self and Others

Topic 1: Understanding the Human Resource (HR) Function

Subtopic a: What is Strategic HR Management?

Subtopic b: Key roles and activities of the HR function

Topic 2: The Manager's Role in HR Activities

Subtopic a: Motivating through job design: KSAs and person-job fit

Subtopic b: Motivation through goal setting: Performance appraisal

Topic 3: Management of Self and Others

Subtopic a: Time and stress management

Subtopic b: Project management

Topic 4: Effective Communication

Subtopic a: Assertive Communication

Subtopic b: Memo and Letter Examples

Module 4: Working in Teams and Running Meetings

Topic 1: Lessons from Experience                               

Subtopic a: Three basic skills to be an effective team member.

Subtopic b: How are teams made most effective?

Topic 2: Team Decision Making and Meetings

Topic 3: Why Teams Get Stuck and to Get Unstuck                              

Conclusion

Module 5: Computer Skills for Business

Topic 1: How does information technology fit into business?

This topic is covered by lecture with power point presentation.   The lecture covers topics such as Information Technology (IT) and Business, Why businesses need to manage IT, IT and productivity, IT and business processes,   Data Communications and Computer Networks, Types of Information Systems.

Topic 2:   Spreadsheet Technology

A very short lecture is used to introduce Spreadsheet Technology.   That will be followed by class room activity.   The lecture is intended only to introduce the technology; class room activities will take most of the allotted time.

Classroom activity: An introduction to spreadsheet and hands-on exercise using the computer classroom will be covered. Students will add, modify, manipulate, save and print the example spread sheet.

Topic 3:   Database Technology

A very short lecture is used to introduce Database Technology.    That will be followed by class room activity.   The lecture is intended only to introduce the technology; class room activities will take most of the allotted time.

Class room activity: An introduction to database and hands-on exercise using the computer room will be covered.   We will use Microsoft Access for this exercise.   The student will use one of the general templates (Assets Tracking) for creating and manipulating a database.    The student will use the wizard to create and save the database.   After that, each student will enter data about their assets to populate the database tables.   Then, each student uses the generated database to track, summarize, modify, save and print tabulations of his/hers assets.

Topic 4: Power Point Presentation Technology

Under this heading we will cover power point technology. A very short lecture with power point presentation is used to introduce this topic. That will be followed by class room activity which will take most of the allotted time.

Class room activity: An introduction to power point and hands-on exercise using Microsoft PowerPoint. The student will save a presentation, add delete and change a slide, do a slide show and print slides.

Module 6: Interpersonal Skills & Presentations

Topic 1: Effective Listening and Feedback

Subtopic a: Effective Listening

Subtopic b: Person-Focused Feedback and Assertive Communication

Topic 2: Presentations

Subtopic a: Organizing the Presentation

Subtopic b: Oral Presentation Message Delivery

Subtopic c: Effective Visual Aids

Conclusion

Module 7: Accounting Basics and Budgeting

Topic 1: What is accounting information?

Subtopic a: Balance Sheet and Accounting Equation

What does a company do to increase assets (ie make a profit?)

Subtopic b: Measuring Profit:   The Income Statement

How these two major financial statements are used in business:

Link between balance sheet and income statement.

Anaylze impact of transactions on balance sheet and income statement

Subtopic c: Compilation of Financial Statements

The Accounting System and Internal Control: Describe steps of familiar transaction as it goes through accounting system and how are assets protected in processing?

Topic 2: How is accounting information used in business?

Subtopic a: External Users of Accounting Information

Methods of Communication and Reliability

Review financial statements and auditor's report at website of company

Subtopic b: Internal Users of Financial Information

Budget Development, informed decision making, taxes

List important business decisions requiring accounting information

Topic 3: Overview of Accounting

Subtopic a: Functional Areas of Accounting

Financial, Managerial, Information Systems, Audit and Tax accounting

Consider impact or interaction of some area of accounting with your employment or business experience

Subtopic b: Accounting across organizations and industries

Nonprofit accounting and regulated industries

Module 8: Assessing the Financial Strength of a Business

Topic 1: Methods of Evaluating Financial Strength

Review list of economic and financial indicators - describe impact on performance of specific industries or companies

Topic 2: Publicly Available Financial Information*

Sources of Information

Identify a company of interest and search for information relevant to company

Topic 3: Evaluating a company as a potential investment or employer

Specific performance measures

Calculate specific ratios from a financial statement and review audit report of selected company

Module 9: Producing a Product, providing a service

Topic 1: Why do new products get created and how do they get developed?

Steps of product development: Product ideas, Screening, Concept testing, Business analysis, Prototype development, Product testing and marketing, Commercialization.

Topic 2: How do you produce a product or provide a service at the most efficient level with the best quality?

The following topics will be covered in a lecture format using power point presentation.The lecture will introduce the students to the major topics and terminology used in Operations and Production Management:. Operations planning, Capacity planning, Location planning, Layout planning, Quality planning, and Methods planning. Operations scheduling: Scheduling goods operations and Scheduling service operations. Operations Control: Materials management and Tools for operations process control.

Topic 3: How do you continue to improve?

We will cover the topic of quality control in a lecture format using power point presentation.   The following subtopics will be discussed.

Quality control: The productivity-quality connection, Total quality management, Tools for total quality management, Trends in productivity and quality management.

Module 10:   Basic Product and Services Marketing

Topic 1: What is Marketing?

Subtopic a:   Careers in Marketing

Subtopic b: The Marketing Concept

Topic 2: The Marketing Mix

Subtopic a:   Product Strategies

Subtopic b:   Pricing Strategies

Subtopic c: Distribution and Promotion Strategies

Module 11: Personal Selling Skills

Topic 1: What is Selling?

Selling as a Career vs. Using Selling Techniques to Launch a Career

Topic 2: Using Selling Techniques Effectively

Subtopic a: Why do People Buy?

Subtopic b:   Understanding Social Styles

Subtopic c: The Communications Process

Subtopic d:   The Personal Selling Process

Subtopic e:   Elements of a Great Sales Presentation

Module 12: Entrepreneurship

Topic 1: Understanding Entrepreneurship

Subtopic a: What is entrepreneurship?

Subtopic b: Who are entrepreneurs?

Topic 2: The Idea (Evaluating and researching the idea)

Topic 3: Developing a Business Plan

Topic 4: Money Matters  

Subtopic a: Finding money for your business

Subtopic b: Managing Cash

CONCLUSION

Module 13: Strategic Management

Topic 1: Understanding the Strategic Management Process:

Strategic Leadership, Strategy Process

Topic 2: SWOT Analysis

Subtopic a: External analysis and the 5 Forces model

Subtopic b: Internal resources and value chain analysis

Topic 3: Crafting Strategy            

Subtopic a: Levels of strategy

Subtopic b: Competitive strategy for performance

Subtopic c: Introduction to corporate strategy

CONCLUSION

Module 14: Personal Finance

Topic 1: Personal Financial Planning

Subtopic a:   Long Range and Short Range Goals

Subtopic b: Savings Vehicles*

Subtopic c: Using credit to meet financial goals

Topic 2: Building Wealth

Topic 3:   Taxes

Module 15: Developing as a Leader

Topic 1: Your Leadership Style

Topic 2: Coaching and Mentoring

Topic 3: Corporate Vision

Topic 4: Effective Decision Making/Downsides of Poor Decision Making

Conclusion

Module 16: Interviewing Skills, Business Etiquette & Resume Writing

Topic 1: Interviewing

Subtopic a: Behavioral interviewing

Subtopic b:   Preparing for the Interview

Topic 2: Business Etiquette: Dress and Professional Language

Topic 3: Resume Writing