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UMUC European Division–Term V/99-00

MGMT 503. PLANNING, BUDGETING AND EVALUATION

TENTATIVE COURSE OUTLINE

Class Times: Weekend A: 2/3 and 16/17 June; 7/8 and 21/22 July, 9:00-16:00

Location: Mildenhall-Room TBA

Lecturer: Valerie Mock, Ph.D.

Phone: TBA

e-mail: UMUC_UK@hotmail.com, docmock@hotmail.com

Office Hours: 1/2 hour before and after each class session and other times by appointment

Pre-requisites: none.

Course Credit: 3 semester hours

Bryson, John M.. Strategic Planning for Public and Non-Profit Organizations, revised ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. 1995.

Weiss, Carol. Evaluation, 2nd ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall,1998.

HANDOUTS:

A number of handouts will be used to supplement the texts. Foremost among them are:

Governor's Office for Budget and Planning, "Planning for 'Texas Tomorrow'", Austin, 1992.
Ibid. "Detailed Budget Instructions ...."
"Budgeting and Financial Management", Denhardt, Public Management, 1995.
Charles Lindblom, "The Science of Muddling Through," Public Administration Review, (Spring, 1959) pp. 79-88.
Etizioni, "Mixed Scanning Revisited" pp. 217-230
Peter Peterson, "Will America Grow Up Before It Grows Old" The Atlantic Monthly, May 1996.

Additional handouts will be forthcoming during the term.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course presents a model of strategic planning, examines the relationship of strategic planning to budgeting and to program evaluation in a conceptually integrated system. Considerable attention is paid to the strategic planning process with special emphasis on such critical issues as mission definition, assessment of the impact of forces in the environment, stakeholder analysis, definition of strategic issues, budgeting strategies and processes as well as the role of evaluation. Also addressed are such topics as how organizations make decisions and the role of values in decision making. Additionally, several skills that facilitate strategic planning are introduced and practiced.

GRADING CRITERIA:

Group Research/Application Project (written and oral presentation)	30 points
Case Analysis	10 points
Midterm (including comprehensive question)	25 points
Final (including comprehensive question)	25 points
Class Participation	10 points
TOTAL	100 points

GRADING SCALE:

90-100 points = A

80- 89 points = B

70 -79 points = C

Below 70 points = FA

ASSIGNMENTS

Group Project: Each group will be expected to prepare and present a professional analysis of an organization, making sure to include at least 3/4 of the concepts presented in these texts and class discussion. This analysis will also involve a strategic shift and an implementation plan for that shift. The paper should range from 20-30 single-spaced pages; formatting requirements are described below. The oral presentation should last 20-30 minutes with 10-15 minutes for Q's and A's and be prepared as a government official might argue/present the topic for consideration. The paper should be written as a position paper including all appropriate references, budget, and statistics. In addition, I would like an appendix that details the strategy for presenting the proposal, a discussion of arguments against the proposal that one would expect to hear (including those that might be posed by the media), and proposed answers to these arguments. Students are expected to know their topic well enough to answer questions from the instructor and fellow classmates. Each member of the group will have the opportunity to grade the other members on their level of participation/ effort on the project.

Format of the paper: This paper should average 10 pages plus appropriate references (more if many graphs/charts are used). A minimum of 5 references are required and should follow a consistent, standardly accepted style (APA or MLA). The written paper should be in 12 point type, single-spaced, with 1-inch margins. It should include appropriate charts, statistics, and headings and be stapled in the upper left-hand corner. Paper in plastic jackets will be refused.

Case Analyses: For each case, you are expected to write/present orally the major points of the case, and make recommendations for improving the situation(s). These analyses should reflect the strategic process discussed during class. The general outline for case analysis follows the class schedule. You are expected to prepare one case for class presentation and discussion in partnership with at least one other student in the class.

Midterm/Final: The midterm will consist of short answer essay questions, a comprehensive question, and a take home case. The essay questions will be based on the objectives for this course. The final will be comprehensive and consist of a take home comprehensive question and a case analysis.

Class Participation: Each student will be judged on the quality, not quantity, of participation in class discussions.

COURSE POLICIES/EXPECTATIONS

The following policies apply to this class. These policies are generally reflected in the graduate catalog.

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Regular class attendance is expected. If you should miss a meeting, it is your responsibility to obtain information concerning the material covered and upcoming assignments. If there is a quiz or other assignment due on that class period, previous arrangements should be made with the instructor whenever possible. Please note that those students receiving tuition assistance from the Federal Government must not miss three consecutive class meetings without prior approval, or the education Services Officer (ESO) must be notified by the instructor.

ACADEMIC HONESTY: Students are expected to do their own work. Cheating on tests, plagiarism on written assignments, or any other form of academic dishonesty will result in a "0" for the assignment. Note that a D or an F usually results in at least 60 or 50 points, where violation of academic honesty results in none. See the European Division Catalog for the UMUC policy on academic dishonesty and plagiarism.

ASSIGNMENT/TEST SCHEDULES: Students are expected to hand in all assignments and complete all tests on the days they are due. If a student fails to complete any assignment or test, the resulting grade will be a "0," rather than an "F." Any other assignments will be marked down half a letter grade for each half week the assignment is late. Quizzes cannot be made-up unless the student had an excused absence. Major tests can be made up only if prior arrangements are made with the instructor.

CLASS PREPARATION: Students are expected to come to class prepared. This means they should have read the materials assigned for class for that session and have prepared any pertinent assignments.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

At the end of the class the students should be able to:

Define a strategic planning process that is both rational and consistent with the way people behave in organizations

Identify and define strategic issues

Analyze, interpret and respond to case studies related to strategic issues

Describe the purpose of a mission statement and its internal and external uses and tell how the mission statement impacts an organization.

Discuss the role of managerial values, ethics, and power in the formulation and implementation of strategy

Describe the role of stakeholders in the formulation and implementation of strategy

Describe some of the various elements in the macro-environment that may affect an organization and provide examples of the effects

Describe the concept of the value chain, including the various activities, and provide an example of its use

Describe some of the "tools" or concepts that may be used in strategic analysis

Describe how the major functional areas of your organization may be impacted when implementing strategy

Describe the importance of matching an organization’s leadership, and his/her style and experience with its proposed strategy

Describe where conflict might occur within an organization when implementing strategy and how to minimize its effect

Describe the role of control (or evaluation) in an organization, the various types of control, and what controls should be used in what situations

Plan strategic responses to take advantage, mitigate or resolve the identified strategic issues

Prepare a working budget for proposed implementation of strategic actions

Prepare a plan for evaluating the proposed implementation of strategic actions

In addition to the academic objectives, students are expected to improve their skills in the following areas:

Critical Thinking: Students should improve their ability to analyze real-world situations through: 1) the major project that involves applying strategic planning to a real-world organization, 2) class discussions that challenge critical thinking, and 3) assigned cases. The midterm and final also have comprehensive questions that encourage students to think critically about the concepts of strategic planning.

Writing Skills: Students should improve their writing skills through formal reporting on various assignment problems, and the major project, and on the mid-term and final.

Oral Presentation Skills: Students should improve their presentation skills through their oral reports on their major project, class discussions, and case analyses.

Team-Building Skills: Students should improve their group work skills through group project and group resolution of assigned case analyses.

Computer Skills: Students are expected to improve their computer skills by using word processing, spreadsheets, data bases, and the Internet for the completion of the assignments in this class. The use of e-mail is also encouraged.

LECTURER INFORMATION

Teaching Philosophy–I believe students learn best when learning is fun and applied to real-world situations and when students are involved in the process. Therefore, students are expected to participate in discussions work in groups to resolve in-class exercises assist their fellow students when possible (without doing their work for them) and to ask questions when there is confusion. I believe that every student starts out with an A in the class and through his/her behavior illustrates to me that they are unworthy of an A. As an instructor it is my job to facilitate the learning process, but I can’t do so unless I have feedback as to what may be impeding that process.

Biography–After obtaining a BA from the University of Chicago in Anthropology Dr. Mock worked for IBM for 15 years primarily in the technical writing field as writer, editor, and manager, and second-line manager. Her highest position was as the division’s publications coordinator in the Systems Architecture Department reporting to the General Systems Division Vice President of Manufacturing. She has worked with the IBM 1800MPX System, the 360 and 370 Systems, the System/34, /36, and /38, among others. For several years she was a member of an application development team working in the manufacturing, health, education, and banking industries. After leaving IBM she worked as an consultant to the IBM Corporation, the American Red Cross, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta Management Institute, USAID, Time Systems International, and Zygonic Technologies. As part of her consulting assignments, she has taught management and marketing concepts to students from developing countries who were executives in the local governments and Non-government organizations.

In 1981 she received her MBA from Emory University and completed her Ph.D. at Georgia State University in Management in 1992. Since that time she has been consulting and teaching business courses at Piedmont College in northeast Georgia and at Fort Valley State University in central Georgia. She has worked for Maryland in Europe for three years and is currently the Academic Director for Graduate.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
PLEASE NOTE: STUDENTS ARE EXPECTED TO READ THE ASSIGNMENTS PRIOR TO COMING TO CLASS. At a minimum if you cannot find the time to read all of the assignment scan the chapter and read the chapter summaries. Note all chapter references prior to May 2nd are for the Bryson book; after that the chapter references are for the Weiss text.
Class	Topics:	Activities:
Class 1 June 2 morning	Introduction to course, lecturer, and class members; Why Strategic Planning?; The Strategy Change Cycle	Presentation of course, lecturer, students; Lecture/ discussion of what strategic planning is; formation of groups/discussion of possible organizations; Assignment: Read Chapters 1 and 2
Class 2 June 2 afternoon	Initiating and Agreeing on a Strategic Planning Process; Organizational Mandates and Mission; Political Issues	Lecture(s)/discussion; group exercises; Assignment: Read Chapters 3 and 4
Class 3 June 3 morning	Continued Discussion of the Mandates/Mission; External Environmental Analysis (including the macro environ-ment and stakeholders); Corporate corollaries	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; group exercises; Assignment: Read Chapter 8 and Resources A and E
Class 4 June 3 afternoon	The Internal Environment; SWOT (strengths, weak-nesses, opportunities, threats)	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; group meetings to finalize project selection; Assignment: Read Chapter 5
Class 5 June 16 morning	Identifying Strategic Issues; Defining the Strategic Oppor-tunities; Generating Alterna-tives; Selecting among the Alternatives; Decision-making	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; group exercises; Assignment: Read Chapter 6 and Resources B and C
Class 6 June 16 afternoon	Formulating and Adopting Strategies and Plans to Manage the Issues	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; group meetings; Assignment: Read Chapter 7
Class 7 June 17 morning	Implementing Strategies and Plans; review of Strategy Formulation; Presentation of Case 1 and Case 2	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Assignment: Read Chapter 9 and Resource D; Case 1 and 2 Presentations; Presentation of the mission statement, objectives, and external environment for each group
Class 8 June 17 afternoon	Implementation continued: Leadership; McKinsey’s 7’s + Communication; Conflict; Presentation of Case 3 and Case 4	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Group exercise; Review for Midterm, Assignment: Read Chapter 11; Case 3 and 4 Presentations
Class 9 July 7 morning	Midterm over Bryson book except for Chapters 10 and 12	Midterm including comprehensive question related to materials studied
Class 10 July 7 afternoon	Reassessing and Revising Strategies and Plans; Strategic Management Control (Evaluations and Budgets); Understanding the Program	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Group meetings; Assignment: Read Chapters 10 and 12; Chapter 3 (Weiss)
Class 11 July 8 morning	Budgeting	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Do budgeting exercises; group meetings; Assignment: Read Budgeting Handouts
Class 12 July 8 afternoon	Budgeting continued; Evaluation: What it is; Presentation of Case 5 and Case 6	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; group meetings; Assignment: Read Chapter 1; Case 5 and 6 Presentations
Class 13 July 21 morning	The Purpose of Evaluation; Planning the Evaluation Presentation of Case 7 and Case 8	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Assignment: Read Chapters 2 and 4; Case 7 and 8 Presentations
Class 14 July 21 afternoon	Design of the Evaluation; Extensions of Good Design	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Assignment: Read Chapters 8 and 10
Class 15 July 22 morning	Evaluating with Integrity; Human Subjects in Research; Summary of class concepts	Review/Questions; Lecture(s)/discussion; Assignment: Read Chapter 14; Final
Class 16 July 22 afternoon	Presentation of Group Projects	Project Presentations (20-25 minutes each)

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