Instructor: Daniel W. Skubik, PhD JD
Voice: 909.343.4288 / Fax: 909.343.4437
E-Mail: dskubik@calbaptist.edu

Comparative Management

IDS 460 (OM)

Mar 2 - Apr 20
Tuesdays, 5:00pm-10:30pm*

Required Texts

• Sonja Sackmann (ed.), Cultural Complexity in Organizations: Inherent Contrasts and Contradictions (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1997) [available in bookstore]
• Photocopy pack of essays [to be distributed in class]
• Web pages will be referenced throughout the term, contents of which you also will be responsible.

Strongly recommended but not required:    Larry Moore & P. Devereauz (eds.), Human Resource Management on the Pacific Rim: Institutions, Practices, and Attitudes (NY:Walter de Gruyter, 1995) [available in bookstore]

Class Schedule

Mar 2	Introduction to course and the study of comparative management Read essay #1 by Parker from Photocopy pack
Mar 9	Camelot & Korea Read Sackmann, 107-132 & 51-71      Quiz #1 [parallel reading in HRM, 217-242]
Mar 16	Slovenia & Turkey Read Sackmann, 72-102; and Photocopy essays #2a & #2f by Berger [parallel reading in HRM, 31-60]
Mar 23	H-P & Japanese in UK Read Sackmann, 187-206 & 228-251      Quiz #2 [parallel reading in HRM, 119-150 & 319-347]
Mar 30	Women in Management Read Sackmann, 209-227; and WSJ article, Low Ceiling
Apr 6	Ethnic Diversity Read Sackmann, 297-339; and Photocopy essay #2d by Copeland      Quiz #3
Apr 13	Combining Theory with Practice Read Photocopy essays #2b by Shriver, #2c by Murphy, #2e by Bakke [required parallel reading in HRM, 351-379 -- photocopy will be supplied if you have not purchased the text]
Apr 20	Final Exam

Assessment & Grading Scale

Quizzes = 45% of final grade (3 x 15%)	90 - 100 = A
Final Exam = 45%	80 - 89 = B
Discussion/Participation = 10%	70 - 79 = C
Attendance: You must attend at least 5 full class sessions to pass the course.	60 - 69 = D
	0 - 59 = F

Quizzes

Three (3) quizzes will be given during the term on the dates noted, covering material from the immediately previous and current class sessions. Format is objective, comprising multiple choice, true/false, matching, and short answer questions. Each quiz is worth 15% of your final course grade. Quizzes are closed book, closed notes.

Final Exam

One exam will be given during the term and is scheduled for the last night of class. The exam is cumulative, and will be structured like the quizzes, with the addition of one essay question requiring thoughtful application of our studies to a real-world problem. The exam is worth 45% of your final course grade.

The exam is closed book, open notes. Meaning of open notes: You are permitted to bring 1 (one) 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper with notes written on it for use during the exam. The notes may be in your own handwriting, or produced by a computer printer, of any size writing or font, front and back, without regard for margins.

Attendance & Discussion/Participation

Attendance: You must attend at least five (5) full sessions in order to receive a passing grade for this course. Four (4) or more absences, whether excused or unexcused, will earn an automatic F. This may seem draconian, but our time together is too short and intensive. If you cannot commit to the class schedule, you should drop this course and seek an alternative. [N.B. You are counted absent if you (a) fail to come to class on any scheduled night, or (b) fail to arrive within 75 minutes of the start time.]

Although speaking in class, publicly putting and defending a position, can be daunting, you are strongly encouraged to learn to think through your own and others' experiences and insights within the context our discussions. In short, you are encouraged to demonstrate your internalization of our material for application in the real world. In this context, you are not being evaluated for reaching "right" conclusions, but for demonstrating your facility in forming arguments for any conclusions put, given the material we will cover in class.

To give direct incentive to so engage, 10% of your mark for the course will be comprised of my assessment of your classroom participation. The point is not to create undue angst, but to determine your active engagement with the material in the context of the class.

Caveat

This syllabus is composed in good faith, with a schedule of readings, quizzes, homework and discussions which will guide us throughout the term. Still, the instructor reserves the right to make adjustments to this schedule as deemed necessary for the overall enterprise of the class. Any changes will be communicated as far in advance as feasible, and you are responsible for knowing if and when any changes have been made.

Make-Ups

Final Exam : you must arrange to take a make-up before the final class session

Quizzes : you are permitted to make-up only one missed quiz and must arrange to take a make-up before the quiz date

Make-Ups will be arranged only on good evidence of unavoidable absence from class (e.g. a specific doctor's note for illness or employer-arranged out-of-town business trip).

* N.B. The start time of 5:00pm indicates the time I will be available on site for office hours, i.e. the time you are welcome but not required to come to talk about course material, homework and other matters about the class. Instructional time begins at 6:00pm, the time you are expected to be in class and ready for the evening's work.