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MGT 203:

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Lecture 1-2: Introduction

Course description(1)

designed to introduce students to arange of business skills includinginterpersonal, oral and writtencommunication, time management,problem solving using creativity andlateral thinking and informationgathering. It provides an opportunity forthem to practise these skills at anintroductory level.


Through the introduction to ideas onlearning theory and the development ofthe Personal Portfolio students areencouraged to attempt to understandtheir own learning experience and are

also introduced to the skills of analysisand self evaluation.


The importance of developing skills as apreparation for business is emphasisedand students are given advise onpreparing for the job seeking processand career development.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The aims of this course are to enable student to:

introduce students a range of personal and

interpersonal skills provide opportunities for students to practice some

of them

inform students of the importance of these skills ina business context

assist students in making considered option andcareer choices

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Successful students will be able to:

retrieve, use, analyse and evaluate secondary data from the library anda range of other sources including from websites

design a poster, 3D model or artifact to be displayed in the presentation

analyse and evaluate their Personal Development Portfolio with theresults of a range of Ps ychometric instruments on learning styles andstrategies, personality and behaviour

produce a personal SWOT/ SWAIN analysis and identify and evaluatepossible personal learning strategies

prepare and rehearse material for group presentation to be presented infront of the peers

communicate effectively verbally by making an effective presentationto their peers

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STUDENT EVALUATION

Students are required to include a bibliography for

every assignment. 100% Coursework:

70% Individual Assignment and

30% Group Assignment (15% Research project

report of 2,500 words with the appendices and

references, 15% group presentation with visual

aids for public exhibition).

REFERENCES

Cameron, S. 2002. Business StudentsHandbook. 2nd ed., Prentice-Hall

Other appropriate references and websites.

Business skills

Interpersonal skills

Communication skills

Presentation skills

Time management skills

Research skills

Information gathering skills

Creativity skills

Report and essay writing skills

Problem solving skills

The individuals perceptual set

The world as we see it is not a good starting

point for developing an understanding of the

world we live in

Each of us has a personal and unique version of

what is out there and our own place in it.

We each have our own perceptual world, which

is an image, a map or a picture of our

environment

What you can do

You have a wonderful opportunity to attain the skillsand knowledge to further your life ambitions Be proactive

Be reactive Be professional

Remember you are training to be future business leaders

Be responsible

Be respectful

Keep a balance between your studies and your leisure

Join in

Keep us informed

E.g. If you are ill or for any other reason that affects youpersonally or studies

The individuals perceptual set

The world as we see it is not a good starting

point for developing an understanding of the

world we live in Each of us has a personal and unique version of

what is out there and our own place in it.

We each have our own perceptual world, which

is an image, a map or a picture of our

environment

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So, Challenge

Whatever you hear

Whatever you read

Whatever I say

always

WHY

WHY

WHY

WHY

WHY

Research skills

Formulating a research topicHow to go about the research

Questionnaire design

Basic data analysis

How to present data

How to write

Management reports

Essays

Issues

Plagiarism

Harvard referencing

Proof reading

Spell-checking

Written Reports

The three main purposes of report writing:

1 to describe

2 to record

3 to persuade

Clear Report Writing

Institute of Chemical Engineers

Text Survey Result (of 1535 submissions)

Version preferred:

H 46% F 9%

Y 18% B 8%

R 16% T 3%


Version H direct verbs; mainly active;

- minimum of special language

- sentences of varied length;

mainly short, not complex;

- 3 paragraphs.

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Version T verbs mainly passive;- roundabout and woolly;

- excessive use of special words;

- sentences long and involved;

- 1 paragraph.


It is conventional tomake reports objective and

avoid the use of the first person.

However, this tends to lead to the continual

use of the passive tense

which is dull.


Passive vs active verbs:

It was observed by Brown and White(1988) that

Brown and White (1988) observed that


Passive v active verbs:

The temperature is dependant on

The temperature depends on...


Some features normally found in a good report:

Good signposting by the use of headings and layout so the reader isnot lost amongst the paragraphs,

A concise summary so the reader can find out what the report is allabout without having to read the main body,

A style that communicates appropriately with the audience,

A substantial information content to make reading worthwhile,

Good diagrams that aid understanding and are attractive,

Recommendations that are valid and without bias,

References that enable readers to check do their own in-depth research.

Clear report writing

A comparison of writing styles used for technical reports:

Preferred texts have Direct verbs, mainly active

Sentences with varied length, but mainly short,

Frequent paragraphs.

Difficult to read Verbs mainly passive,

Sentences long and involved,

Excessive use of special vocabulary.

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Checking the readability of written

communications -1

Gunnings Fog Index

1. Count the number of words of 3+ syllables

2. Count the number of sentences

3. Divide the number of 3+ syllable words

by the number of sentences


communications - 2

Interpretation of Fog Score:

2-3 a reasonable average for business writing

4-5 a rather heavy use of long words

6+ typical of much academic and technical

writing


communications - 3

One possible way of improving the letter:

Dear Sirs,

I am sorry to say that we have lost the statementand summary enclosed with your cheque for1000 sent on 26th July.

Since we need these particulars for tax purposes, Ishould be grateful if you would send us a copywhen making the next payment due on 30th

November.

Yours faithfully,

Effective written communications

Convey the necessary message accurately,

Project the image of the writer appropriate to the situation.

Three stages are involved in developing an effective written

communication:

1. Preparing to write,

2. Writing,

3. Reviewing what has been written

DRAFTING(www.io.com/-hcexres/textbook/twroughs.html)

Personal/management

development

FITness and the secret of the universe

Responsibility

Ethics Balance

Fearlessness

Awareness

Leads to:

Greater efficiency

Stress management strategies

Learning styles

We all have different ways of learning

Teachers have different ways of teaching

How do we cope with the misfit between

the two?

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Communication

Your ability to communicate in both awritten and oral manner will to a large

extent how successful you are:

At university

At work and

socially

Presentations

You will all be required to provide apresentation to the teaching team and

your peers.

Yes it might seem scary

We will help you to de-scare it

Creativity and problem solving

The issues affecting groups and

teams in the creative process

How you can overcome the issues

Group processes

In organisations, people spend mostof their time in groups

Groups are the fundamental building

blocks of organisations

There are however issues whichinhibit group productivity

What you shoulddo!

Check the module ISAP sites often

Attend lectures that you are assigned to

Coursework(1)

You MUST attend lectures/tutorials

You will be put into groups

4 or 5 people in a group

For the first of two assignments

Assignment one

A RESEARCH PROJECT supported by,

A GROUP PRESENTATION

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Coursework(2)

Individual Assignment (70%)

Assignment 1: Study Plan (20%)

Assignment 2: Career Plan (30%)

Assignment 3: Mock Interview (20%)

Refer to the individual uploaded assignment

component.

Documents

200809MGT20300004