Don Daake

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais , Illinois

Taking it to the field!

I’ll admit- this is going to be a rather strange introduction

but stay with me….

Introduction Christmas in Chicago….

You’ll remember the cry of the Ancient MarinerWater, water everywhere and not a

drop to drink!

In the large commercial city this has becomeChristmas, Christmas, everywhere

and not a Christ to be found!

Faith “deintegrated”from the commercial world Having spent a great deal of time in Chicago this past

Christmas season..

I was struck that among the tinsel, ornate decorations, large trees, Santa and his reindeer, and thousands of shoppers, that Jesus is virtually impossible to find in the modern big-city commercial environment.

This is “not a woe unto us” paper rather a call to reintegrate Christ into Business

Businesses attempts to Keep Christ in his proper place! One can stop in at the Fourth Presbyterian Church, St.

Peters Catholic Church, and various other churches and hear the good news, but in reality we are

confronted by the absolute secularization of the commercial world.

Current state of affairs? By and large, not only has American business

neglected the “technicality” of Christmas being a sacred holiday celebrating Christ’s birth, but many large enterprises seem to have deliberately purged any mention and visibility of Jesus from the enterprise.

But the good news is… Before we despair too much…

Many Christians are active in their faith in the business environment even though at times they are not very visible.

We need to demonstrate to our students, whenever possible, that there are opportunities in the field to make the message and values of Christ known

Overview of paper Chronicles the development and refinement over eight

years of a new approach to teaching Business Policy and Strategy at the undergraduate level.

At the core of this approach is the “living case” study.

12-15 field visits to businesses, nonprofits, government organizations

Now there is particular emphasis on several examples of faith in the business

Experience as a teacher

In 1908, Henri Fayol asked, “Is there a better way to learn to manage other than by experience?”

Experience is hard to come by, especially at the undergraduate level.

Effectiveness of internship programs (Carson & Fisher, 2006)

Internship programs are generally limited to one or two businesses and often are at the entry level.

…more later on this

Most of education is University Centered not Business Centered What is written about management education, puts

the university at the center of the educational universe.

It is usually all about what happens within the confines of its ivy walls.

What little interaction there is between practicing mangers and academics is mostly done in an academic setting.

Students expectations Phillips and Phillips (2002) argue that students not

only expect an education that is relevant to their career, but also appreciate this approach and evaluate these courses higher.

Policy & Strategy Policy and Strategy staple offering of business

programs for over 30 years in most business schools.

One of the original intentions was to encourage and/or force integration into a comprehensive whole.

We contend objectives for the course varies by professors, their experience, type of institution, years teaching, etc.

At Christian institutions we add the

faith dimension

Some of the most important objectives of capstone courses

Understand the comprehensive nature of business and business challenges

Understand how a particular function contributes to the overall business

Learn key concepts and develop skills in using tools of analysis from the field of strategic management

Updating students about to enter the work force with the latest real world issues

Build and reinforce team-based skillsdemanded by businesses today

Many different approaches to teaching the capstone course:

Traditional lecture/case analysis

Supplementing the course with current literature such as Harvard Business Review, Business Week, and Fortune, Christianity 9 to 5

Simulations and business games Guest speakers

Use of a limited number of short, localized tours

Limitations with current approaches Most case studies are somewhat outdated even in

new books

For example, even 2012 copyrighted books carry cases most of which were written with 2010 or earlier data

Use of even “new” cases usually requires considerable updating and revision

In the case of Christian speakers they are terrific but not immersed in their day to day environment

Limitations with current approaches Utilizing current literature and guest speakers can be

helpful, but this still lacks the realism.

Field visits, are difficult to do given the normal school year scheduling.

For institutions located in small communities, the quality and variety available are often very limited.

Limitations with current approaches Many students have heard the entire lingo about JIT,

lean manufacturing, program planning, globalization, strategy formulation and implementation, sustainability, CSR, etc.,

But often question whether these things are really used in the “real world” – Deere example

Limitations with current approaches Many of our students end up in careers in non-

business environments such as non-profit institutions, government, or other types of service organizations

And/or will sit on Community Boards

Most traditional strategy textbooks and courses do not adequately cover these quasi-business organizations.

Limitations with current approaches Relationship building is an important aspect of

Olivet’s mission.

Given other institutional responsibilities, it is difficult to develop the more personal relationships that both our students and we desire.

Experiential Education For the last 30-40 years, adult education literature has

emphasized the importance of hands-on experience-based learning.

Much of what has been learned in the adult education field also applies to these young adults.

Experiential Education

Kolb’s (1984) landmark work suggests that experiential learning proceeds through 4 modes including:

concrete experience;

abstract conceptualization;

reflective observation;

active experimentation;

Experiential Education Approach we have take engages in at least the first

three stages, whereas conventional classroom techniques or even the use of case studies may not be as effective.

Experiential Education-same true for professors Professors who have attended academic

conferences that build in faculty field trips as part of the conference, can testify years later to the value that we have personally gained through these trips.

Saturn (Tennessee)

Micron (Boise)

Walker Manufacturing (Virginia)

NBA Mavericks (Dallas)

Boeing (Seattle)

Wal-Mart HQ (Bentonville)

Rolls Royce Power Systems (Mt Vernon, OH)

One of the most significant changes from 2004-2012 has been

Over a period of time, we have found strong Christians in several of the organizations, who are not only willing, but anxious to share their faith in the work environment.

Most of us likely bring Christian business people into our classrooms as guest speakers.

Without in anyway discounting the efficacy of those encounters……

People in context

There is something very powerful and unique about a Christian business person sharing their faith in the “natural” environment and demonstrating that Christ is found in their business.

Advent of our program Idea originated from 10 weeks European IBI program

in 2003- I went over for 7 weeks & was in 10 countries

Observed the power of structured field visits

Nokia; Daimler Benz; Deere; European Central Bank; British Parliament, etc.

Great experience but beyond reach of most of our students – from $12,000 then to now about $18,000

Advent of our program Decided to develop a “domestic” version of the

course- allow 12-15 visits

Our course for 3 credits costs $1200 tuition + $375 travel fee. Allow more participation

Take advantage of being near Chicago and northern Illinois businesses & organizations

Initially team-taught with a colleague- Dr. Gary Koch

The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-CURRICULM 4 Week Summer Format

12-15 hours lecture time

Extensive readings and “take home quizzes” over material

Pre-visit briefings & presentations

Corporate visits & formal briefing reports

De-briefing on return trips and follow-up lectures

Comprehensive written applied exam

The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-CURRICULM

We did not do textbook case studies rather our field trips were designed to be “living” case studies.

We deliberately scheduled tours and experiences to broaden our students’ perspective on businesses and other organizations,

Build group coherence and sharpen their analytical and observation skills.

The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-FIELD VISITS-A Sampling

Caterpillar at Aurora

Deere and Company-Moline, Illinois

Celebration Dinner Cruise-Mississippi River

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Chicago Mercantile Exchange

Chicago Architectural Foundation River Cruise

The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-FIELD VISITS

U.S. Cellular Field (Chicago White Sox)

Hamburger University and the Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s

Good’s Furniture

City of Ottawa (Illinois), Ottawa Chamber of Commerce, Ottawa Economic Development

The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-FIELD VISITS

State Farm Operations Center

Cigna Call Center

Baker & Taylor- book distributor

Whitey’s Ice Cream

YMCA

Daily Journal

Alcoa

Matrix of integrated topicsSee paper for more details

DEERE & Company-Topics Covered

JIT & lean manufacturing

Advanced manufacturing techniques/Quality

Downsizing and corporate re-alignment

Globalization

Labor relations

Heavy emphasis of faith in workplace

Corporate culture

Career planning

Good’s FurnitureKewanee, Illinois

Small business innovation

Marketing and advertising

Competitive advantage and distinctive competence

Economic development

Caterpillar, Aurora Illinois Inventory control

Advanced manufacturing techniques including robotics CAD/CAD

Materials management

Logistics

Competitive advantage

Globalization

Labor relations

Employee loyalty

Caterpillar, Aurora Illinois Strategic alliances

Corporate culture

Training and development

Financial analysis

Career planning

Energy management

The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s &Hamburger University

High performance customer service

Marketing

Information systems management

Overview of the hospitality industry

Corporate culture

Training and development

Strategic partnerships

Whitey’s Ice cream Very innovative

Run with ethical principles

Small business that knows its limits

To franchise or not to franchise?

Give back to the community

Loyal employees

www.whiteysicecream.com

OKWU October 11 2011

Alcoa One of largest rolling mills in the world

Gives real meaning to “Capital Intensive”

Importance Health & safety- working environment

Working with Unions and Labor Relations

Customers as Strategic Partners

PGM True example of faith ministry

Serve 700+ men/women per night

Do not take any government funds

World famous broadcast- 6000+ times a week played

Serving the least of my brethren

Different meaning of success

Consider serving on boards of non-profit ministries

OKWU October 11 2011

Tradeoffs Given the intensity of the course, we

meet in the classroom 2 days a week for 2 hours

Use most classroom time in a lecture/discussion format

Then meet 2-3 days a week for field trips.

Students were charged an additional $350 travel fee beyond tuition.

Given the nature of the course we had to be creative in student evaluation

What We Learned From This Experience

Team teaching is fun, interesting and good for both students and faculty

Businesses are willing to support these types of programs and are impressed that we are doing this

You have got to be extremely flexible and “go with the flow”in this type of program

What We Learned From This Experience

Students must be prepared before the visits- by student led research

The briefing reports are absolutely critical

Follow-up class discussion and integration provides very strong learning leverage

What We Learned From This Experience This approach to Policy and

Strategy breaks lots of conventional rules but the testimonies from the students encourage us to continue the course

Travel and intense experiences like this build community and will be remembered and valued for years to come

Students must understand the value of field visits and their on-site behavior

What We Learned From This Experience The field-based approach can be especially

effective in a faith-integration approach.

From briefing reports, to testimonies, to seeing real business people live out their faith, this has now become a more deliberate and important objective of the program.

What We Learned From This Experience

Above all, this course is an integrative experience that not only covers traditional strategy topics, but emphasizes larger issues like economic development, community responsibility, historical context, industry context, social and economic justice and Christian faith.

What We Learned From This Experience

If Christ is to be put back into society and Christmas (as reflected in the opening

lamentation), business and commerce must LEAD THE WAY!

Students expectations We have not found any strategy courses in

literature designed around field trips with the exception of International travel experiences

Many, our students have told us, “It is the best course they have had at the university.”

Every fall- The question is: to teach or not to teach next summer. Why I did for a ninth year in the summer of 2012! Student feedback is so good- even many years later

Business and industry support!

Contacts become long time friends and associates

Helps the university in many other ways

Doing others a favor by letting them do you a favor!

It continues to be fun and make me a much better professor– more current, informed, relevant

I actually get paid to have this much fun!