Syllabus for Managing Technology in Turbulent Times(SU19)

uws.instructure.com/courses/169355/assignments/syllabus

Course Information

This course is offered collaboratively through the UW MBA Consortium. Campus specificcourse information is listed below:

UW-Eau Claire: MBA 778 – Managing Technology in Turbulent TimesUW-Oshkosh: MBA 769UW-LaCrosse: MBA 700

Credit Hours: 2.0Course Term: Summer 2019Delivery Mode: Online

Instructor Information

Name: Suresh ChalasaniHome Campus: UW-ParksideEmail: chalasan@uwp.edu

Course Description

The intent of this course it to show the synergy that exists between the introduction oftechnologies into an organization and the shift in management strategy and decisionmaking that is essential to receive full value from the technology investment. While MISmanagement is generally responsible for the technology acquisition and operatingdecisions, functional management needs to understand the application, impact, andvalue of the various technologies to their operating units. The course will include topicsthat look at managerial, organizational, strategic aspects of technology.

Managing technology during turbulent times takes into account:

1. The rapid pace of change found with all technologies and the impact of thiscontinual change on organizations.

2. The demand for more comprehensive information from both customers andsuppliers, pressuring information systems and managers to meet and exceedexpectations.

3. The need to justify technology expenditures in terms of increased efficiencies,better customer service or improved profits.

The current economy is unlike the economy at any other time. While the economicexpansion is nearly a decade old, there is significant uncertainty in every sector due toboth worsening economic conditions in developing markets and political winds both inthe US and worldwide. Businesses are facing tremendous challenges to survive and bemore competitive in the global economy. Often the mantra for businesses is to beincreasingly more productive or perish altogether. The pressure to perform at thehighest level is demanding that businesses incorporate technology into businessprocesses in a smart and cost-effective manner. It is technology coupled with strategythat can effectively transform a business from the depths of recession to the heights ofglobal leadership.

For businesses to understand and use technology in today's world is a complexchallenge, in part because technology is continuously evolving. While most businessesrely on well-established technologies for their normal operations, they cannot ignoreemerging technologies that may transform business models. With limited businessinvestment, firms need to decide wisely:

what role traditional and emerging technologies play in the company's technologystrategy, which emerging technologies, if any, they need to invest in, andhow to effectively use technology in reducing costs while maintaining their corebusiness products and services.

For example, new technologies such as the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) aretransforming the business supply chains. Similarly, social media technologies areplaying a significant role from product advertisements to customer engagement. You asa manager may sometimes need to understand and evaluate an emerging technology.At times you may need to initiate and manage a technology project that is challengingin its core and risky in its outcomes. This course is intended to give you some of theknowledge, tools and techniques to manage technology in the current businessenvironment. I will share some of my experiences in this area during the discussions.Please note that none has all the answers to the complex problem of managingtechnology.

Welcome, keep an open mind, be inquisitive, and enjoy the course and your fellowstudents. My goal is to have you look beyond the obvious, explore technology andmanagement issues, gain a better understanding of the application of technologies,and leave the course with knowledge that will be useful in your careers.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, you should be able to:

Perceive multiple variables in a problematic situation and distinguish between therelevant and extraneous dataConduct a line of inquiry and analysis using logical thinking and research withprimary and secondary sourcesEvaluate computer and communications technologies to achieve organizationalgoalsDesign approaches to implement new technologiesExplain the concepts for the identification and assessment of emergingtechnologiesApply project initiation and project management techniques for organizationalprojectsEvaluate the computer, data and network security in the organization and designprocesses to enhance security

Required Course Materials

There are no required textbooks for this course. Course materials are included asdocuments or links to external sources as part of readings section in each unit. Eachstudent is expected to read every week (as specified in the unit reading materials).These additional reading materials include published research papers and white papersfrom various sources.  

Course Topical Outline

Unit Descriptions

Unit 1 introduces the role of information systems in business functions and discussesapproaches to integrate technologies with business functions. It presents an overviewof some of the traditional technologies and how technologies are used in differentbusiness disciplines.

New technologies are a major source of turbulence in any organization. Unit 2discusses strategies for organizations to deal with new technologies by using examplesof new technologies for advertising.

Unit 3 presents an overview of different wireless technologies in the enterprise and forsupply chains. To keep up with competitors and effectively interface with tradingpartners, wireless technologies are a necessity in these times. Unit 3 also provides anin-depth study of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, and discussesconcepts behind a successful enterprise wireless strategy.

Effective project management is a necessity for the success of IT projects in anyeconomic environment. Unit 4 discusses project initiation and project managementand concepts such as project risk management.

Unit 5 discusses concepts behind assessing markets for new technologies andcommercialization strategies for new technologies. This unit discusses cloud computingand related technologies.

Security breaches are a common cause of concern for businesses. Unit 6 presents datasecurity aspects and provides a series of steps for developing an enterprise-levelsecurity strategy.

Many businesses have a need for saving tremendous amounts of data. Unit 7 discussesdata centers and provides an overview of different types of ERP (Enterprise ResourcePlanning) systems.  

Unit Learning Outcomes

Unit 1

Managerial: Explain the role of technologies in functional areas of business.Applied: Apply technologies to accomplish example business tasks.Managerial: Discuss how technologies assist in achieving organizational goals

Unit 2

Managerial: Explain the role of technologies such as social media in engagingcustomers. 

Applied: Apply technical tools to analyze social media data.

Managerial: Describe how technologies such as IoT and Social Mediatransforming businesses.

Unit 3

Managerial: Analyze the role of wireless technologies in the enterprise.Applied: Compare and contrast new technologies such as RFID with thetraditional technologies in the supply chains.Managerial: Arrive at a wireless technology strategy at the enterprise level.

Applied: Utilize data from wireless technologies to address questions related toproduct movement in the supply chain.

Unit 4

Managerial: Explain how projects are initiated in organizations.Managerial: Identify project requirements.Managerial: Apply economic feasibility techniques for project selection.Applied: Apply Critical Path Method to arrive at project completion time.Applied: Analyze project budget performance using cost metrics.

Unit 5

Managerial: Analyze business, technological, and economic dimensions ofSoftware as a Service (SaaS) & Cloud Computing.Managerial: Determine the applicability of SaaS and Cloud Computing toorganizations.Managerial: Apply Day and Schoemaker's theoretical framework based onchanges in customers, competitors, and complementary assets to cloudcomputing and SaaS.Applied: Determine suitable cloud technologies for organization's applications.

Unit 6

Discuss technologies available for data security.Develop processes for minimizing security breaches and dealing with securitybreaches.Construct a security policy for the enterprise.

Unit 7

Explain the technological designs for data centers and ERP systems.Apply concepts related to data center consolidation (physical, virtual and siteconsolidation).Critique the emerging trends in data centers such as green data centers and co-located data centers.

Assignments and Activities

The above learning outcomes are assessed using discussions, discussion summaries,unit assignments, and case studies. You may also be required to construct Excelspreadsheets and process diagrams using tools such as Microsoft Visio. There are nomidterms or final examinations for this course.

Unit coursework may include one or more of the following learning activities:

1. Written management briefings (unit assignments) discussing technical ormanagement issues

2. Responses to specific discussion questions relevant to the weekly study topic3. Review and summarize  discussion comments.4. Solutions and action plans developed on the basis of a case study5. Analysis of business data by constructing spreadsheets and using spreadsheet

techniques6. Construction of process and data models for business functions using tools such

as Microsoft Visio. 

All submitted written work should be in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Visio.

A primary method of assessment is evaluation of written deliverables.

A case study assignment will be evaluated for clarity, content, and construction. Whatthis means is that while there may be no right answer, there is a right way to approachthe problem-solving process. The first task is to determine the critical issues of the case,which will drive all the data gathering and analysis. Technologies employ specificnomenclature, and your work will be evaluated on how well it uses the terms andlanguage properly. Finally, logical analysis and presentation, along with effective writing,round out the case evaluation criteria.

Unit assignments will be evaluated for content, logic of presentation, and clarity ofwriting. The objective is to condense a great deal of technical information into a two-page report, make it meaningful, yet keep it simple enough so that the novice canunderstand it.

Course grading will be based on a total of 1,000 points, allocated as follows:

Item and Description Max. Points

Personal Introduction 20

Discussions: Initial Postings 40 each (280 total)

Discussions: Follow-up Postings 20 each(140 total)

Discussions: Summaries (no summaries required for units 4 and 6) 20 each(100 total)

Assignment #1 (Unit Assignment) 60

Assignment #2 (Unit Assignment) 60

Assignment #3 (Unit Assignment) 60

Assignment #4 (Case Study Paper) 80

Assignment #5 (Unit Assignment) 60

Assignment #6 (Case Study Paper) 80

Assignment #7 (Unit Assignment) 60

TOTAL MAXIMUM POINTS 1000

Final Letter Grades Scale

For UW-Eau Claire and Consortium Students:

Student Total Points Range Letter Grade

951-1000 A

901-950 A-

851-900 B+

801-850 B

751-800 B-

701-750 C+

651-700 C

601-650 C-

551-600 D+

501-550 D

451-500 D-

At or below 450 F

For UW-Oshkosh Students:

Student Total Points Range Letter Grade

951-1000 A

901-950 A-

851-900 B+

801-850 B

751-800  B- 

701-750 C+

651-700 C

At or below 650 F

For UW-La Crosse Students:

Student Total Points Range Letter Grade

951-1000 A

851-950 AB

801-850 B

701-800 BC

601-700 C

501-600 D

At or below 600 F

For UW-Parkside Students:

Student Total Points Range Letter Grade

951-1000 A

901-950 A-

851-900 B+

801-850 B

751-800 B-

701-750 C+

651-700 C

601-650 C-

At or below 600 F

Consortium's Excused Absence Policy

An absence will be considered excused or authorized according to the followinginstitutional policies:

If your absence falls into the excused absence category, please contact me as soon aspossible. I may request that you provide documentation, and I may need time to makealternative assessments available to you.

Late Work Policy

Assignments that are turned in late will have points deducted as follows:

1 to 3 days late, deduct 10 percent of available points4 to 7 days late, deduct 30 percent of available pointsMore than 7 days late, deduct 50 percent of available points

Please note that discussion postings (including initial messages, follow-up messages,and discussion summaries) need to be submitted by the deadline and credit may notbe given for late work on discussions.

If you have a business problem, illness, business trip, or domestic situation,arrangements should be made and approvals granted before the due date if the lateassignment is to receive full credit.

Academic Conduct

To foster a productive learning environment, all students are required to accept andadhere to the Student Code of Conduct agreement in order to participate in this course.

Academic Integrity Policy

All class materials are the intellectual property of the instructor and may not be sharedoutside of this course (e.g., to commercial "study sites") without my permission.

Unless I specify otherwise, all work that you turn in to me should be an individual effort.The sentence structure, wording, and content for your assignments and discussionsmust be your original work. Academically dishonest behaviors include (but may not belimited to) the following:

Intentionally or unintentionally presenting someone else’s ideas or words as yourown, either as a direct quote or paraphrased or summarized material, without theproper citation. You can cite your sources in APA format.Submitting work that is identical to or so similar to that of another’s in itswording, sentence structure, and content that it cannot be considered original.Plagiarizing yourself by submitting work for evaluation in this course that waspreviously graded or otherwise evaluated in another course. You can cite yourprevious work. If you want to use your previous work, contact me first.Making up data or citations.Helping someone else engage in academically dishonest behavior, includingposting course materials online.Violating copyright laws. In some cases, citing a source is not sufficient; you alsohave to obtain permission from the original source for the materials you use.Likewise, if you use any materials from this course outside this course, you may

need permission to use them (e.g., in your company’s training manuals,publications, or style guides).Any form of academic dishonesty will result in a grade of "0" for the assignmentand will follow the student academic disciplinary procedures as established bythe UW System Board of Regents (UWS Chapter 14 (Links to an external site.)).

Accommodation for Students with Disabilities

In order to ensure that all of our students have equitable access to our online coursematerials, we strive to meet the guidelines set by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act,which requires the public to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals withdisabilities when posting web-based materials. Canvas is compliant with W3C's WebAccessibility Initiative (Links to an external site.) and with Section 508 (Links to anexternal site.) guidelines. Additionally, Canvas was certified as a substantiallyconformant LMS (Links to an external site.) by WebAIM, a third party authority in webaccessibility. If you find that course materials are not posted in a format that meetsyour needs, or you need testing accommodations, please contact Online CourseSupport at 1-715-836-6020 or email BIZHelp@uwec.edu and we will work with you tofind a reasonable accommodation.

Course Summary:

Mon Jun 17,2019 Calendar

EventComplete the Student Code ofConduct

12am

Assignment 1.6 | Introductions due by11:59pm

Wed Jun 19,2019 Assignment 1.7 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jun 21, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 1 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Sun Jun 23,2019 Assignment 1.8 | Discussion Summary due by 11:59pm

Mon Jun 24,2019 Assignment 1.9 | Unit Assignment due by 11:59pm

Wed Jun 26,2019 Assignment 2.7 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jun 28, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 2 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Sun Jun 30,2019 Assignment 2.8 | Discussion Summary due by 11:59pm

Mon Jul 1, 2019

Assignment 2.9 | Unit Assignment due by 11:59pm

Wed Jul 3, 2019

Assignment 3.6 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jul 5, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 3 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Sun Jul 7, 2019

Assignment 3.7 | Discussion Summary due by 11:59pm

Mon Jul 8, 2019

Page Midterm Course Evaluation to do: 11:59pm

Assignment 3.8 | Unit Assignment due by 11:59pm

Wed Jul 10,2019 Assignment 4.7 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jul 12, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 4 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Sun Jul 14,2019 Assignment 4.8 | Case Study Paper due by 11:59pm

Wed Jul 17,2019 Assignment 5.4 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jul 19, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 5 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Sun Jul 21,2019 Assignment 5.5 | Discussion Summary due by 11:59pm

Mon Jul 22,2019 Assignment 5.6 | Unit Assignment due by 11:59pm

Wed Jul 24,2019 Assignment 6.6 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Jul 26, 2019

Calendar Event Unit 6 Follow-Up Discussion Postings Due 12am

Mon Jul 29,2019 Assignment 6.7 | Case Study Paper due by 11:59pm

Wed Jul 31,2019 Assignment 7.6 | Discussion due by 11:59pm

Fri Aug 2, 2019

Sun Aug 4,2019 Assignment 7.7 | Discussion Summary due by 11:59pm

Mon Aug 5,2019 Assignment 7.8 | Unit Assignment due by 11:59pm

Assignment Final Letter Grade