A structured, intensive, exploration of seven challenging skills for a lifetime of better communication in work, family, friendship and community settings. Includes exercises and suggested readings.
Material Type: Reading
This book is suitable for an undergraduate or MBA level Financial Accounting course. The authors bring their collective teaching wisdom to bear in this book not by changing "the message"(financial accounting content), but by changing "the messenger" (the way the content is presented). The approach centers around utilizing the Socratic method, or simply put, asking and answering questions. The reason that this approach continues to be glorified after thousands of years is simple - it engages students and stresses understanding over memorization. So this text covers standard topics in a standard sequence, but does so through asking a carefully constructed series of questions along with their individual answers.
Material Type: Textbook
Are you always the quiet one when it comes to group discussion? This unit will help you improve your working relationships with other people in groups of three or more. This unit also deals with project life cycles, project management and the role of the leader.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Reading, Syllabus
Public Speaking: The Virtual Text is a free online public speaking textbook. Chapters appear in PDF format and may be printed in black and white or in color.
Material Type: Textbook
Storytelling: A Way to Introduce and Express Oneself “Storytelling is a tool to express who you are, an avenue to share a memory or experience, a medium to teach values and cultural differences….Storytelling is by far the best to communicate one’s thoughts and tell one’s story” (Keaise, 2014, p. 53). This OER shows how one professor incorporated storytelling into student introductions. Additionally, this exercise was used as part of the pedagogy to teach about human diversity, culture, understanding and acceptance. Storytelling provided an effective foundation for students to connect with classmates, build relationships and develop trust and respect, the foundation behaviors of good human relations. Materials which will be included in the OER are listed below: 1) A brief literature review on storytelling, supporting this exercise;2) A visual diagram and brief description of the storytelling process which includes a dyadic encounter, small group discussions and a large group presentation; 3) Step-by-step instructions on how to integrate storytelling into student introductions; 4) Examples of student introductions; 5) A summary of student perceptions about the storytelling exercise.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
Law, in its simplest form, is used to protect one party from another. For instance, laws protect customers from being exploited by companies. Laws protect companies from other companies. Laws even protect citizens and corporations from the government. However, law is neither perfect nor all encompassing. This course will introduce the student to the laws and ethical standards that managers must abide by in the course of conducting business. Laws and ethics almost always shape a company's decision-making process; a bank cannot charge any interest rate it wants to charge that rate must be appropriate. By the end of this course, the student will have a clear understanding of the legal and ethical environment in which businesses operate. Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to: Identify sources of law in the United States; Describe the function and role of courts in the US legal system; Differentiate litigation from methods of alternative dispute resolution; List the elements of the major torts; List the essential elements of a valid contract; Describe how a contract can fail; Summarize the remedies available for breach of contract; Distinguish between real and personal property; Identify the various interests in real property and how they pass; Identify the requirements to hold various rights under intellectual property laws; Analyze the impact of the digital era on intellectual property rights; Distinguish between at-will employment and contractual employment; Identify laws that generally regulate the employer-employee relationship; Identify criminal acts related to the business world; Define white collar crime; Describe the various forms of business organization; Identify the major laws regulating business in the United States; Identify major ethical concerns in business today. (Business Administration 205)
Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Lecture, Reading, Syllabus, Textbook
The course is an introduction to the preparation and delivery of oral presentations in an extemporaneous style. Emphasis is on ethical research, critical and logical analysis, and organization of informative and persuasive presentations.
Material Type: Full Course
One of a set of toolkits to support student development and personal reflection. Produced by students for students.
Material Type: Interactive, Lecture
This course assists students in developing real world oral communication skills. Capture the dynamics of todayęs business realities and see the benefits of effective communication. Selection of topics, library research, analysis, oral style, use of visual aids, and preparation and delivery of various types of speeches and oral presentations are included. The Internet, e-mail, community interaction, and other practical tools support student learning and increase public speaking skills. Emphasis is placed on principles of cultural diversity. Prerequisite: College-level reading and writing skills.
Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Reading, Syllabus
This is a collection of downloadable video clips on the theme of Conflict, with guiding questions for students. Clips are drawn from the following PBS WIDE ANGLE documentaries: "Greetings from Grozny" (2002), "Ladies First" (2004), "Suicide Bombers" (2004).
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lecture, Primary Source, Teaching/Learning Strategy
David McCandless turns complex data sets (like worldwide military spending, media buzz, Facebook status updates) into beautiful, simple diagrams that tease out unseen patterns and connections. Good design, he suggests, is the best way to navigate information glut -- and it may just change the way we see the world. A quiz, thought provoking question, and links for further study are provided to create a lesson around the 18-minute video. Educators may use the platform to easily "Flip" or create their own lesson for use with their students of any age or level.
Material Type: Lecture
This course will start with the conceptual framework of negotiations as it applies to all areas of negotiation in both the public and private sectors. As the course progresses, you will focus on business negotiation skills and strategies designed to help you maintain healthy business relationships. Specifically, you will learn about the concepts, processes, strategies, and ethical issues related to negotiation as well as appropriate conduct in multicultural business contexts. You will also learn to better understand the theory, processes, and practices of negotiation, conflict resolution, and relationship management so that you can be a more effective negotiator in a wide variety of situations. If you take advantage of the opportunities this course offers, you will be more comfortable and more productive managing negotiations as well as professional and personal relationships.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Full Course, Homework/Assignment, Reading, Syllabus
Fundamentals of Business (2016) is an openly licensed (CC BY NC SA 3.0) textbook designed for use in Virginia Tech’s Pamplin College of Business introductory level business course, MGT1104 Foundations of Business. This work is a project of University Libraries and the Pamplin College of Business, Virginia Tech. A new version of this book was released in August 2018. See http://hdl.handle.net/10919/84848 for more details. If you are an instructor reviewing, adopting, or adapting this textbook, please help us understand a little more about your use by filling out this form http://bit.ly/business-interest See also the faculty sharing portal at: https://www.oercommons.org/groups/fundamentals-of-business-user-group/1379
Material Type: Textbook
Human Resource Management teaches HRM strategies and theories that any manager—not just those in HR—needs to know about recruiting, selecting, training, and compensating people. Most students will be managing people at some point in their careers and not necessarily in a human resource management capacity. As businesses cut back, they may outsource HR duties to outside vendors. Or, in smaller businesses, the HR department is sometimes small or non-existent, and managers from other departments have to perform their own HRM. Therefore, teaching HRM from the perspective of a general manager, in addition to an HR manager, provides more relevance to students' careers and will give them a competitive advantage in the workplace. This text also provides practical applications of theory relevant to today's workplace. You won't find discussions about “posting vacancies on a job board” or “sending memos.” In the real world, HRM leverages technology in every aspect of the job—from online training modules to technology for better managing flex-time workers and telecommuters. Consider how most companies have gone “paperless” with pay stubs by using software. While such technology has made HRM easier, it has also created a new set of challenges. For example, how does a manager actually implement a new pay system? Therefore, it's important for students to understand what kinds of platforms exist in today's workplace to enhance their effectiveness as future managers. The conversational style of Human Resource Management engages students, while the academic rigor of its content provides them with the tools that any manager needs—whether they work in HR or a different department. PLUS it offers an array of supplements that gives them practice creating real HR documents and role-playing real HR scenarios. Add value to your students' education, enhance the relevance of your curriculum, and make your students more employable by adopting this book for your HRM class. Read it now online today!
Material Type: Textbook
The professional world can be full of challenging situations, including conflicting personalities, miscommunication, and cultural differences. In this course, you will learn about typical workplace etiquette protocols, communication standards, and cultural awareness strategies in order to navigate these common obstacles as smoothly as possible.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Full Course, Homework/Assignment, Reading, Syllabus
This course introduces Entrepreneurship and Business Planning. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: analyze the entrepreneurial process through which business ideas are evaluated; identify the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs; demonstrate an awareness of strategies supporting entrepreneurship; distinguish between business ideas and opportunities; write a formalized business plan; write a marketing plan; examine their personal entrepreneurial potentials; know how to finance their business ventures; demonstrate an understanding of team-building dynamics. (Business Administration 305)
Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Homework/Assignment, Lecture, Lecture Notes, Reading, Syllabus, Textbook
This course is designed for the novice who has little or no word processing experience; it provides an introduction to word processing. In it, you will explore word processing skills while also learning to create a basic business letter and a business memo.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Full Course, Homework/Assignment, Reading, Syllabus
This book is an introduction to communication theory — the theory of how humans share, encode, and decode what they know, what they need, and what they expect from each other.
Material Type: Textbook
This course introduces you to the conceptual issues and practical implications of interpersonal communication. The course is designed to provide a holistic and self-contained, although not comprehensive, introduction to the study and practice of communication within interpersonal encounters. In addition, this course focuses specifically on understanding and improving how we communicate in personal relationships including familial, friendship, work and romantic contexts. The guiding instructional philosophy of the course is that learning entails active engagement with and feedback about the targeted skill.
Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Reading, Syllabus
A checklist to be used by students as they work on group projects to make sure they are using good communication skills.
Material Type: Assessment
