4350.Advanced Business Communication

Comet Creed: “As a Comet, I pledge honest, integrity, and service in all that I do.”

Course Number: BCOM 4350
Title: Advanced Business Communication
Term: Fall2016
Contact Information

Instructor: McClain Watson, PhD
Office Location: 4.415 JSOM
Office Hours: Tuesday/Thursday 9 – 10am or by appointment
Office Phone: 972.883.4875

Email (heads up here!)
TBD

Course Prerequisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions
Students in BCOM 4350 must have already passed BCOM 3310.

Course Description
This course builds on BCOM 3311 by helping students work towards mastery of three critical communication competencies: business speaking, professional use of social media/technology in and for work, and the a professional online presence. Students will gain experience engaging in many different kinds of oral communication for business, both individually and in teams.

Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes:

1. Students will demonstrate multi-media career development and job preparedness.
2. Students will construct effective intra-firm communication documents and presentations.
3. Students will construct effective documents and presentations for key external stakeholders.


Required Textbooks and Materials
The required book can be found HERE (you may purchase the hard copy or rent the ebook).  The book is Russell and Munter, Guide to Presentations, 4th edition, 0-13-305836-0.

 Also, there are MANY required readings that can be found on the course schedule OR in the Readings folder in elearning.

Each student will also be required to create a Google account, if you don’t already have one.  You can do this HERE.

Assignments
100pts – Small Talk Journal (4 entries/25pts each)
50pts –   Video Introduction
100pts – Group Reading Presentation (2 presos/50pts each)
150pts – Professional Online Portfolio (aka POP)
150pts – JSOM Senior Showcase preso
50pts – Executive Summary
25pts –  Portfolio Reflection
160pts – Reading Quizzes (10pts each)
785 total possible points

Grading Policy
All work should also demonstrate the same professional and ethical standards expected of you in the workplace, including proofreading and editing carefully all work you submit in this class. Professionalism also means that you use appropriate source citation wherever and whenever necessary so that you avoid violations of copyright and academic honesty – even if those violations are inadvertent.
100-97% = A+ , 97-93 = A , 92-90 = A- , 89-87 = B+ , 86-83 = B , 82-80 = B- , 79-77 = C+ , 76-73 = C , 72-70 = C-Business Communication Center 
You are strongly encouraged to use the BCC located in 12.106.  Visit http://bcc.utdallas.edu/ to make an appointment, find out how to check out a video camera, and learn how to strengthen your speaking and powerpoint design.
Attendance
You get 2 free absences.
Each absence after that = 10 points off your final grade
It is your responsibility to make sure you are counted present in each class.
You may make up 1 quiz IF you notify me no later than 48 hours after missing the class.
Course Policies
Late Work
Deadlines in the professional world are a serious matter. Missed deadlines mean lost contracts, delayed product releases, skyrocketing expenses, and, in some cases, the loss, quite literally, of millions of dollars in revenue. Missed deadlines also compromise professional reputations and careers. Work that does not meet the assignment’s constraints is unprofessional and creates administrative headaches. “I had technical problems’ is not a valid excuse for late work, so plan accordingly.  For these reasons, late or incomplete work is not acceptable in this course EXCEPT in the most extreme and unlikely of circumstances.
Individual Extra Credit
Other than extra credit opportunities offered to the entire class, I do not curve individual items, nor do I offer “extra credit” work or “special consideration” to allow individual students a chance to raise their grade. If a personal situation arises during the semester that may affect your classroom performance, please talk to me sooner rather than later. If you wait until the end of the semester, I won’t be able to help you. I can work with you more easily if you speak to me when the situation arises.
Classroom Citizenship
In keeping with this course’s professional communication mandate, students are expected to use every opportunity in the course to practice communicating in a civil and professional manner.
Technology Requirements
Reliable and frequent internet connectivity is indispensable – not having internet access will make your group projects more difficult and will not serve as a valid excuse for shortcomings. Failure to check your UTD email account, errors in forwarding email, and email bounced from over-quota mailboxes are not acceptable excuses for missing course or project-related email or deadlines.
Classroom and Equipment Use Policies
No laptops may be used in the classroom unless you have cleared it with me first.
Additional policies can be found here: http://coursebook.utdallas.edu/syllabus-policies
These descriptions and timelines are subject to change at the discretion of the Professor.
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