SUNY OSWEGO

Department of Communication Studies 

COM 211

STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

3 Credit Hours

Fall 2024 

Rm. 119 Mahar Hall

Course #91492 Section 800

Tues/Thurs 9:35 – 10:55AM

Final Exam: Thursday, December 12,  2024, 8-10AM

Course #91486 Section 82F

Tues/Thurs 11:10AM – 12:30PM

Final Exam: Tuesday,  December 10, 2024, 10:30AM-12:30PM

 

Professor: Jim Dunagan Office Hours: Tuesday/Thursday 8am – 9:30am
Email: jdunagan@oswego.edu Office Phone: 315-312-5449
Office: Mahar 105E Mailbox: Communication Studies Office in Lanigan Hall 

REQUIRED TEXT

We will be using an online text that is provided at no cost to you. You can find the text here:

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-oswego-businesscommunicationmgrs2/

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Recognizing that it is imperative for business leaders to have superior communication abilities, Strategic Communication in Business is designed to improve students’ ability to communicate effectively and develop professional skills and behaviors. Through the exposure to communication principles and skills, students learn how to evaluate communication situations and audiences, and determine the most effective way to relay impactful messages. This interactive course improves students’ abilities to gather, organize, and evaluate content, as they learn to create and deliver strategic oral, visual, and written materials that are common in the business world. Through collaborative work activities, students practice interpersonal, time management and team-building skills that are critical for future success.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

  • Evaluate various communication situations and audiences to determine the most effective way to communicate messages.
  • Complete library database research using appropriate and reliable resources to develop effective oral and written pieces.
  • Develop written documents that are grammatically correct and appropriate for business application.
  • Develop dynamic presentation skills that require extemporaneous methods of delivery, and, in some instances, effective use of visual aids including presentation software.
  • Analyze and critique oral and written work.
  • Develop effective interpersonal communication skills and teamwork skills.
  • Use college resources such as Experience-Based Education and Career Services.

COURSE SCHEDULE

The course schedule is provided in a separate document and is also available on the Professor Dunagan website. The schedule is subject to change.

METHODS OF INSTRUCTION

  • Class discussion, student interpretation/reaction to work, review video projects
  • Learning module content delivered via Common Ground Scholar learning environment
  • In-class presentations
  • Team projects

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

  • Attendance in-class, participation and professional conduct
  • Complete all Scholar learning module updates including assessments, satisfy contribution requirements
  • Final exam
  • Graded speeches, including required components
  • Team assignments, including final team presentation and written report

POLICIES

Strategic Communication in Business is an essential element to your training as a future business professional.  My job will be to help you successfully complete COM 211 which will aid your development as a business professional. A good deal of your work in this class will be done via what’s called “asynchronous” content (online only), thanks to a new tool called Common Ground Scholar. It is an online learning community which we will start working with right away.

Attendance–This class is considered “in-person instruction,” which means attendance every class session is required. As such, 150 points, or 15% of your total grade, is based on attendance and participation. You will earn points each week based on being present in class and involved in class discussions and other activities – 12 points each week beginning with Week 2 for a total of 144 points. You will earn the additional 12 points for having no unexcused absences over the semester. While I do expect you to attend all class sessions, I also know that life often interferes with our best-laid plans. If there is a situation that keeps you from attending class, you will find me both understanding and fair in my dealings with you, provided you keep me informed.  Read more about how excused and unexcused absences are treated below.

  • Excused absences will be permitted if I am notified in advance for an appropriate reason (illness, personal/family issues, etc.) Doing work for another class or some related reason will not be excused.  If you are excused from class attendance, you will still receive attendance points for that day, but you will not earn participation points. An excused absence also does not relieve you of any other class responsibilities. A maximum of two excused absences will be permitted. Student athletes with permission from their team to miss class for games/events will be given excused absences for those occasions. If you face serious life/family/health difficulties that are impacting your attendance, please let me know and I will help you to figure out what to do.
  • Unexcused absences are simply any absences that are not excused. Unexcused absences receive no points for attendance or participation for each instance. Those absences will also result in a zero for any work done in class that day. Multiple unexcused absences will have a damaging effect on your final grade. See below:
    • Two unexcused absences        24 points – about 2 ½ % of final grade
    • Four unexcused absences       36 points – about 3 ½ % of final grade
    • Five unexcused absences        42 points – over 4% of final grade
    • Six unexcused absences          48 points – nearly 5% of final grade
  • In addition, six unexcused absences will require a mandatory meeting with me to avoid getting a failing final grade for the class. In this meeting, we will address issues related to your absences. Eight unexcused absences will automatically result in a failing final grade.

Participation – Class participation is crucial in our work together. It is often my best indication that you understand the concepts that we are talking about. There will be in-class discussions I will initiate with you. I will also ask each of you to speak to the class twice about the content you create in Scholar. In addition, everyone will complete video activities over the semester using a fun tool called “Flip.” They will appear about every three weeks for a total of five. You will be expected to complete three of them with the extra two optional and for extra credit.

Punctuality – Being on time means being in the classroom when class begins. While I am aware of the difficulties of the short interval of time between classes, this is your responsibility to manage. I reserve the right to treat chronic tardiness as unexcused absences. Please do your part by being on time and to let me know if something will cause you to be late.

Deadlines – As a rule, I do not like deadlines. I find them somewhat arbitrary and unnecessary for students able to manage their workloads. However, they are useful for students who struggle with time management. So, there will be deadlines established when necessary and I will retain discretion as to whether or not I will consider any such work as “late.” You will be expected to keep up with the weekly updates from Scholar and to complete the required activities. Since Scholar is not designed to be particularly deadline-friendly, you should also periodically meet with me in a 1-on-1 session to review your Scholar progress.

Technology – Since our class work requires that you have a mobile device, so I am asking you to bring your laptop to each class meeting. You may also use a phone or tablet if you prefer. However, please limit any device use to classroom activity.  If you have a pressing need to call or text someone, please leave the classroom so as not to distract your fellow classmates.

Communication – In the event that you need to email me, please use ONLY your oswego.edu email account and in the subject line include “COM 211.”  I will do my best to respond to you in a timely fashion, but don’t assume I have forgotten about you if it’s less than 24 hours after sending me a message.

Scholar – Common Ground Scholar will be the principal learning environment for this class. Please visit my Professor Dunagan website for help with creating a Scholar user account and then joining our class community, which is called “COM 211 Fall 2024 Strategic Communication for Business.” We’ll spend a significant amount of time during the first week in class making sure everyone understands how it works and how you will contribute to it. Please let me know if you are having any specific problems related to Scholar or Scholar activities. The importance of participating in Scholar activities throughout the semester cannot be understated. A failure to join the class Scholar community and complete any of the required work will result in a failing grade in the course.

Brightspace – We won’t be using Brightspace for a lot in this class, but it will be where you can keep track of your grade progress (exclusive of Scholar). In addition, various individual and team/group assignments you will complete will be submitted to Brightpace.

Grading – You will have constant and real-time access to your grade progress during the course on Brightspace.  You can track your completion of in-class activities like Scholar update presentations, attendance, and discussion participation. You’ll also be able to monitor your progress in Scholar via the Analytics module.  As you complete Scholar activities, you will be assessed a score based on the individual metrics of each activity. It’s a bit complicated but it will make sense as we progress through the semester. My goal for each of you is to encourage you to do your best possible work, which will include getting feedback from me and fellow students. It’s part of a proven effort that improves your quality of work, and in turn, your grade.  In any case, please remember that I will always be happy to work with you on succeeding in this class. That said, it is ultimately your responsibility to make sure you have received credit for the work you have done, which means monitoring your grades in Brightspace and the Analytics tool in Scholar. I will always be happy to make sure your grades are correct, but I will not be making such changes as a result of last-minute requests at the end of the semester. Once a final deadline for requesting changes has been established and communicated to you (which will be done well in advance), NO REQUESTS FOR GRADE CHANGES WILL BE CONSIDERED. Grades for this course will be determined based on the table below:

Requirement Total Points

 
“Ready for Scholar” activities (watch videos, join group, complete first update) 50
5 video activities (minimum of 3 @10 points, extra credit for more) 30
 Minimum of 2 Scholar update presentations @ 10 points each 20
Ethical Moment presentation (20 points), Impromptu speech (10 points), Informative Speech (20 points)  50
4 Group/Team assignments @ 25 points each 100
Attendance and Participation 150
Team Final Presentation 75
Team Final Paper/Report 125
Scholar Analytics, based on “ideal” score of 80 250
Final Exam 150
Total Points 1000

Grading Breakdown: 1000  – 930 = A; 929 – 900 = A-; 899 – 870 = B+; 869 – 830 = B; 829 – 800 = B-; 799 – 770 = C+; 769 – 730 = C; 729 – 700 = C-; 699 – 650 = D; 649 – 0 = E

COLLEGE POLICY ON INTELLECTUAL INTEGRITY

SUNY Oswego is committed to Intellectual Integrity. Any form of intellectual dishonesty is a serious concern and therefore prohibited. Student guidelines and the university’s Academic Integrity Policy can be found at https://www.oswego.edu/intellectual-integrity/key-points-students.

In addition, the rise in awareness and popularity of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools is a fluid and ongoing matter of some importance. While there are some legitimate benefits in using AI tools, there are also dangers that relate to student academic integrity. For the purposes of this class, any student-created content developed using any AI tools will be considered academically dishonest and in violation of the SUNY Oswego Academic Integrity Policy.

 

CLERY ACT/TITLE IX REPORTING STATEMENT

SUNY Oswego is committed to enhancing the safety and security of the campus for all its members. In support of this, faculty may be required to report their knowledge of certain crimes or harassment. Reportable incidents include harassment on the basis of sex or gender prohibited by Title IX and crimes covered by the Clery Act. For more information about Title IX protections, go to https://www.oswego.edu/title-ix/ or contact the Title IX Coordinator, 405 Culkin Hall, 315-312-5604, titleix@oswego.edu. For more information about the Clery Act and campus reporting, go to the University Police annual report: https://www.oswego.edu/police/annual-report.

COMMUNICATION STUDIES DEPARTMENT WRITING STATEMENT:

Writing is essential to critical thinking, which is an important component of a liberal arts education. The Department of Communication Studies shares a commitment to writing and expects quality professional and academic writing from our students. Your grade in this course will reflect the quality of your writing.

DISABILITY SUPPORT SERVICES

If you have a disabling condition, which may interfere with your ability to successfully complete this course, please contact the Office of Disability Services.