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BUAD 402 - Business and Professional Speaking


Class Information: 3 credit hours - Monday 3:15-5:45

Course Description (From the 1996-1998 catalog) 3 credit hours. A course designed to apply communication theory to solving of business or professional interpersonal problems. Stresses theory of systems adapted to organizational structure, interviewing and conference techniques, and public speaking in professional settings. (Prerequisite: GSCO 201)



Course Objectives

The primary goal of this course will be to apply communication theory to specific exigencies found in a business or professional setting. A general flow for the course will be to focus on interpersonal, group and public communication theories and activities. At the end of this course you should be able to:

1. effectively present an informative report and persuasive sales presentation adhering to the rules of public speaking in the areas of delivery, development and support.
2. prepare a written, workable agenda to assist in conducting a meeting.
3. understand, administer and participate in a dyadic interviewing scenario.
4. participate in a group presentation project, working to establish group cohesion, manage conflict and understand leadership styles.
5. develop a creative and effective visual aid using Microsoft Powerpoint.
6. basically follow Robert's Rules of Order and identify them in action.
7. map the hierarchy and structure of an organization.



Course Policies

Attendance: At the 400 class level, and especially within the context of a business and professional setting, your attendance is expected at each class meeting. In this class, there will be no excused or unexcused absences. However, you will earn points for the class by attending it. This class will meet a total of 14 times during the regular semester. Each session will be worth 5 points and you will receive 5 overall points for class participation. This makes your attendance worth a total of 75 points.

Late Work: No late work will be accepted in this class unless you contact me in advance. If unforeseen circumstances prevent you from being timely, you may call me to make other arrangements. However, all late work will carry a 20% grade reduction. All late speeches/reports must be made up outside of class.

Academic Dishonesty: All scholastic dishonesty is unacceptable. Scholastic dishonesty includes cheating on exams, turning in reports and term papers as one's own when they are not, lying, stealing exams and other work, allowing other students to copy one's work in order to meet a grade requirement for a course, and plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as passing off another's ideas as your own. Copying or summarizing another's ideas in written or oral report must be correctly attributed to the source. Any of these aforementioned offenses warrant academic discipline. First offenders are subject to the discipline of the individual professor and are reported to the Vice President of Student Life. Offenses may be subject to review by the Student Appeals Committee and may be subject to severe penalties. Disciplinary measures may include: re-doing the work, automatic failure of the course, probation, suspension and/or expulsion. (from pp. 16-17, KCC Student Handbook)



Grading Procedure
100- Mock interview session
25- Written agenda
25- Powerpoint slides
100- Informative presentation
100- Meetings report
100- Persuasive presentation
25- Organizational chart
150- Group presentation
20- Presentation outlines
30- Written group report
50- Final examination
75- Attendance/participation
800- Total possible points




Grading Scale

The grading scale for this class is based on the KCC grading scale on p. 24 of the 1996-1998 catalog.

A = 768-800 points
A- = 760-767 points
B+ = 744-759 points
B = 712-743 points
B- = 704-711 points
C+ = 680-703 points
C = 632-679 points
C- = 608-631 points
D+ = 600-607 points
D = 568-599 points
D- = 560-567 points
E = 0-559 points




Assignment Descriptions

1. Mock Interview Session: Two class members will pair up to conduct a mock interview. One half of the grade will be for the interviewer and one half for the interviewee. Each student will participate in both capacities. The interview questions and answers will be based on material we cover in class. The exercise will take the form of an employment interview and should be based on an actual job advertisement.

2. Written Agenda: Using the principles discussed in class, you will prepare an agenda for a fictional meeting. The details of this will be provided on a hand-out you will receive prior to the assignment.

3. Powerpoint Slides: Using the software program "Microsoft Powerpoint," you will create presentation slides for a given presentation topic. The preparation of these slides is designed to be an assignment to familiarize you with the software before you are required to make slides for a visual aid in your informative presentation.

4. Informative Presentation: Taking the form of an informative public speech, this assignment will assume the context is either a conference or particular business meeting. The topic choice will be yours, but should be directly applicable to the course content.

5. Meetings Report: This project will take place as a dyadic or small group project. You will attend a local business or professional meeting held in Carter County and critique the content of the meeting as well as how the meeting was conducted. As evidence of your research, your group will present a short, informal report on your findings.

6. Persuasive Presentation: Taking the form of a persuasive public speech, this assignment is tentatively designed to take the form of a brief sales presentation. Your speech will attempt to persuade the audience for their need to purchase your fictional product.

7. Organizational Chart: Upon discussing the varying aspects of communication and organizational hierarchy in class, you will choose an organization and record their basic organizational leadership structure.

8. Group Presentation: This major assignment will take place on the last class session, but will require work throughout the semester. Your goal will be to identify a campus, local, state or national problem and identify possible solutions. The goal is to combine informative and persuasive elements. Additionally, your group will keep a record of meetings and submit agenda, minutes and a critique of all group members.

9. Presentation outlines and group report: These assignments consist of the paperwork associated with your individual presentations and final group project.

10. Final examination: This final test will be a written means of assessing your breadth and depth of knowledge in the subject matter covered throughout the semester in your class notes.



Tentative Class Schedule

January 19- Introduction; basics of communication in organizations
January 26- Interpersonal and dyadic communication; channels & networking
February 2- Introduction to interviewing; work on mock interviews
February 9- Deliver mock interviews; leadership and management
February 16- Communicating in groups; make group presentation assignment
February 23- Meetings; Robert's Rules of Order; parliamentary procedure
March 2- Agenda assignments due; Powerpoint presentation software
March 9- Public speaking; Introduction to informative presentations
March 16- SPRING BREAK - Enjoy!
March 23- Deliver informative presentations; discuss persuasive presentations
March 30- Oral reports on meetings; conflict resolution
April 6- Deliver persuasive sales presentations
April 13- Organizational communication and structure
April 20- Organizational charts due; final exam review session
April 27- Deliver group problem-solving presentations
May 4- Finals week; meet for final exam



Suggested Links

National Association of Parliamentarians
Association for Business Communication
International Association for Business Communication




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Email: stucker@email.kcc.edu