Work Plan

SixSmart has developed the following work plan to help navigate and organize the work intensive OMBA 606 seminar. 

Note: Changes may be made to this work plan over the course of the next several months, however any changes to scheduled dates must be made at least a week in advance of the date.

• Team Members
• Company and Country Selection
• Subgroups
• Team Goal
• Guidelines
• Acceptable Behaviors
• Learning Objectives
• Conflict Management Process
• Contact Information
• Assignment Coordinators
• Schedule
• Assignments

• Team Members

  • Bonnie Handy

  • Chris Lim

  • Dayna McKnight

  • Penny (Miriam) Milsom

  • Pam Stokes

  • Joel Vilmenay

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• Company and Country Selection

  • Company: Staples
  • Product Line: Office Supplies
  • Countries: India v. China

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• Subgroups

  • India

    • Dayna McKnight

    • Pam Stokes

    • Joel Vilmenay

  • China

    • Bonnie Handy

    • Chris Lim

    • Penny Milsom

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• Team Goal

Each of the above members not only agree with but are committed to the following goal:

To share knowledge with each other and our fellow classmates in order to further our own education and theirs, keeping in mind the acceptable behaviors, and overall learning objectives as outlined below.

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• Guidelines

  • Communication

    • E-mail will be the primary mode of communication, with paper content, drafts and reviews being sent to team members as Word document attachments.

    • Webtycho Chat Session will be used for initial paper discussions.

    • Team members are encouraged to call each other via contact numbers with questions, comments, etc. as needed.

  • Papers

    • All team members have responsibility for reviewing / editing draft versions of team / subgroup papers for content, flow, compliance with APA, grammatical errors, etc..

    • All team members are encouraged to assist their fellow team members with editing individual papers.

    • All team members are expected to share information they find that might be relevant to another team member's paper.

    • All team members are responsible for meeting the deadlines as identified by the coordinator.

    • All team members are responsible for sending the final version of their individual papers, as a word document, to the webmaster for posting, no later than 10pm on the Sunday evening due date.

  • Coordinators

    • Each coordinator is responsible for setting the schedule on their specific paper, including date and times content / reviews are due, and drafts / finals will be sent.

    • Each coordinator is responsible for guiding the webtycho chat session to determine specific team member assignments.

    • Each coordinator is responsible for consolidating team member contributions into a cohesive draft that is then sent to the team members for review.

    • Each coordinator is responsible for working with individual team members to ensure that due dates are met. Any problems should be handled as outlined by the Conflict Management Process. 

    • Each coordinator is responsible for sending the final paper, as a word document, to the webmaster for posting, no later than 10pm on the Sunday evening due date.

  • Webmaster

    • The webmaster is responsible for the basic set up and maintenance of the SixSmart website.

    • The webmaster will post individual and team papers on the website ensuring that all links are working  correctly.

    • The webmaster is responsible for notifying the team members about any feedback received and coordinating a response if necessary.

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• Acceptable Behaviors

  • Timeliness and punctuality in terms of class deliverables, meetings, and conference calls.

  • Politeness

  • Staying focused on the goals of our team, and remembering that building good relationships is as important as accomplishing our team assignments.

  • Courteous electronic communication

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• Learning Objectives

1. To be able to adequately assess and analyze international and global environments.

2. To learn how companies determine the most viable markets for their products.

3. To be able to embrace disparate social and professional standards for doing business globally. 

4. To learn how to work cooperatively in a multilocation and multiculture team environment.

5. To learn how to communicate effectively through electronic means.

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• Conflict Management Process

In the event there is a conflict among team members, the following conflict resolution process will be utilized.

1. Send an individual e-mail to the person, stating your perceived conflict, how it interferes with the group's goal, and how the problem can be resolved. The person has 24 hours to respond with agreement or alternative solutions.

2. In the event the conflict is not resolved within 48 hours, send group e-mails to each team member. State your perceived conflict and a copy of all correspondence relating to the conflict. All team members must respond with alternative solutions within 24 hours. Keeping in mind other team members' suggestions, the two individuals in conflict should mutually agree on a solution.

3. If the conflict cannot be resolved by e-mail within four days, the group will meet on-line, in the chat room, on the next Sunday evening at 7:00 p.m. EST. The team will determine the specific resolution based on a simple majority vote. In the event no resolution is achieved by the team, Professor Monica Bolesta, Ph.D. will act as a neutral party and will make the final determination.

Keep in mind the following when composing your individual and team e-mails and communications:

	Define the problem - focus on the team goals and key issues. Focus on our statement of agreement listed above. Do not get emotional. Be respectful and understanding of your team members.
	Look for, and remember, what we have in common - We are starting out with a good relationship. We all have the same common goals. We want to learn about marketing, we want to submit quality papers, and we want a good grade. We also want to be successful in a team environment.
	Focus on finding a solution rather than the problem - Try to remove the emotion in order to be fair and impartial. Listen and encourage feedback. It may be helpful if you remember to avoid the following words: attitude, always, never, but, and you.
	Focus on the benefits for the team - Let's make sure that we all benefit from the solutions to the conflicts. We can also benefit from the conflict resolution process.
	Make sure the process is handled in a timely manner - E-mails should be answered within 24 hours (no later than 36 hours). Since a short time is allotted to complete the assignments, the conflict resolution process should last no longer than 1 & 1/2 weeks.
	Reinforce the commitments after you've agreed - These steps (listed above) should produce a positive outcome. Make comments like "I'm glad you brought this up;" "I'm glad we talked;" and mean them.
	Sometimes e-mail communication is too impersonal. When in doubt, pick up the phone and call.

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• Contact Information

See About Us for contact Information 

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• Assignment Coordinators

  • Team Work Plan (W2): Bonnie Handy

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • Team Web Page (creation and updates): Bonnie Handy

  • Team Paper 1 (W2): Dayna Mcknight

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • Individual Papers (W4): Everyone

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • Individual Papers (W8): Everyone

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • Individual Papers (W10): Everyone

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • Subgroup A / B Reports (W11): Pam Stokes & Chris Lim

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

  • End-of-Seminar Project (W12):Joel Vilmenay

    • Schedule

    • Assignment

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• Schedule

• Assignments

  • Team Work Plan (W2)

    The team work plan must contain at a minimum the team goal, expected team behaviors, learning objectives (to be reviewed at the end of the seminar), a conflict management process, and team paper coordinators / schedules. 

   

  • Team Paper 1 (W2)

    Pick a publicly traded company and one of their major product lines, then prepare a profile. The profile should include at a minimum, a discussion of the company's product lines, the scope of the business from a geographical and industry standpoint, strategic plans, competitors and historic performance. 

     

    Pick a pair of countries and discuss the business environment of each.

     

    An explanation of why the company and countries were chosen should be included along with a list of relevant websites and other sources of information.

   

  • Individual Papers (W4)

    Team members pick three of the five topics provided by the Professor. The three topics are then divided among the subgroup and each individual will write a 4-5 page paper discussing the issue in regards to the country of their subgroup. There must be a paper on each issue for each country. The topics include:

    • Tariff barriers

    • Non tariff barriers

    • Intellectual property

    • Product / service standards

    • Anti-competitive practices

   

  • Individual Papers (W8)

    Team members pick three of the four topics provided by the Professor. The three topics are then divided among the subgroup and each individual will write a 4-5 page paper discussing the issue in regards to the country of their subgroup. There must be a paper on each issue for each country. The topics include:

    • Monetary policy

    • Fiscal policy

    • Economic infrastructure

    • Financial markets

   

  • Individual Papers (W10)

    Team members pick three of the five topics provided by the Professor. The three topics are then divided among the subgroup and each individual will write a 4-5 page paper discussing the issue in regards to the country of their subgroup. There must be a paper on each issue for each country. The topics include:

    • Social infrastructure

    • Political / regulatory system

    • Business and workforce culture

    • Dispute resolution

    • Corporate governance

   

  • Subgroup A / B Reports (W11)

    Each subgroup is responsible for assessing the overall business risks involved with creating a market presence in the country of choice. The paper should be 8-10 pages in length and include a summarization of the information provided in the individual papers. The paper must begin with an executive summary.

        

  • End-of-Seminar Project

    A paper not exceeding 15 pages should be prepared by the team summarizing all of the information collected and offering a recommendation in regards to which country would be the best for opening up operations of the company of choice. The paper should include at a minimum:

    • Executive summary

    • Comparative analysis of each issue chosen for the individual papers

    • Recommendation for the preferred country with rationale behind decision and the best market entry vehicle

    • An economic / ecologic lesson derived from the Jacobs' text including why it's important and how it would be applied

    • Evaluation of the learning objectives

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Last modified: January 22, 2003