Innovative way to Teach Business Policy through Filed Trips

1. Don Daake
Olivet Nazarene University
Bourbonnais , Illinois
ddaake@olivet.edu

2. Taking it to the
field!

3. I’ll admit- this is going to be a
rather strange introduction
but stay with me….

4. Introduction
 Christmas in Chicago….

5. You’ll remember the cry of the
Ancient Mariner
“Water, water everywhere and not a
drop to drink!”

6. In the large commercial city this
has become
Christmas, Christmas, everywhere
and not a Christ to be found!

7. Faith “deintegrated”from the
commercial world
 Having spent a great deal of time in Chicago this past
Christmas season..
 I was struck that among the tinsel, ornate decorations,
large trees, Santa and his reindeer, and thousands of
shoppers, that Jesus is virtually impossible to find
in the modern big-city commercial environment.
 This is “not a woe unto us” paper, rather a call to
reintegrate Christ into Business

8. Businesses attempt to Keep
Christ in his proper place!
 One can stop in at the Fourth Presbyterian Church, St.
Peters Catholic Church, and various other churches
and hear the good news, but in reality we are
confronted by the absolute secularization of the
Commercial World.

9. Current state of affairs?
 By and large, not only has American business
neglected the “technicality” of Christmas being a
sacred holiday celebrating Christ’s birth, but many
large enterprises seem to have deliberately purged
any mention and visibility of Jesus from the
enterprise.

10. But the good news is…
 Before we despair too much…
 Many Christians are active in their faith in the
business environment even though at times they are
not very visible.
 We need to demonstrate to our students, whenever
possible, that there are opportunities in the field to
make the message and values of Christ known

11. Overview of paper
 Chronicles the development and refinement over eight
years of a new approach to teaching Business Policy
and Strategy at the undergraduate level.
 At the core of this approach is the “living case” study.
 12-15 field visits to businesses, nonprofits, government
organizations
 Now there is particular emphasis on several
examples of faith in the business

12. Experience as a teacher
 In 1908, Henri Fayol asked, “Is there a better way to
learn to manage other than by experience?”
 Experience is hard to come by, especially at the
undergraduate level.
 Effectiveness of internship programs (Carson & Fisher,
2006)
 Internship programs are generally limited to one or
two businesses and often are at the entry level.
 …more later on this

13. Most of education is University
Centered not Business Centered
 What is written about management education, puts
the university at the center of the educational
universe.
 It is usually all about what happens within the
confines of its ivy walls.
 What little interaction there is between practicing
managers and academics is mostly done in an
academic setting.

14. Students expectations
 Phillips and Phillips (2002) argue that students not
only expect an education that is relevant to their
career, but also appreciate this approach and
evaluate these courses higher.

15. Policy & Strategy
 Policy and Strategy has been a staple offering of
business programs for over 40 years in most business
schools.
 One of the original intentions was to encourage
and/or force integration into a comprehensive
whole.
 Objectives for the course varies by professors, their
experience, type of institution, years teaching, etc.
 At Christian institutions we add the
faith dimension, hopefully!

16. Some of the most important objectives of
capstone courses
 Understand the comprehensive nature
of business and business challenges
 Understand how a particular function
contributes to the overall business
 Learn key concepts and develop skills
in using tools of analysis from the field
of strategic management
 Updating students about to enter the
work force with the latest real world
issues
 Build and reinforce team-based skills
demanded by
businesses today

17. Many different approaches to teaching
the capstone course:
 Traditional lecture/case analysis
 Supplementing the course with current
literature such as Harvard Business Review,
Business Week, and Fortune, Christianity 9
to 5
 Simulations and business games
 Guest speakers
 Use of a limited number of short, localized
tours

18. Limitations with current approaches
 Most case studies are somewhat outdated even in
new books
 For example, even 2012 copyrighted books carry cases
most of which were written with 2010 or earlier data
 Use of even “new” cases usually requires considerable
updating and revision
 In the case of Christian speakers they are terrific but
not immersed in their day to day environment

19. Limitations with current approaches
 Utilizing current literature and guest speakers can be
helpful, but this still lacks the realism.
 Field visits, are difficult to do given the normal
school year scheduling.
 For institutions located in small communities, the
quality and variety available are often very limited.

20. Limitations with current approaches
 Many students have heard the entire lingo about JIT,
lean manufacturing, program planning, globalization,
strategy formulation and implementation,
sustainability, CSR, etc.
 But often question whether these things are really used
in the “real world” – Deere example

21. Limitations with current approaches
 Many of our students end up in careers in non-
business environments such as non-profit
institutions, government, or other types of service
organizations
 And/or will sit on Community Boards
 Most traditional strategy textbooks and courses do not
adequately cover these quasi-business organizations.

22. Limitations with current approaches
 Relationship building is an important aspect of
Olivet’s mission.
 Given other institutional responsibilities, it is difficult
to develop the more personal relationships that both
our students and we desire.

23. Experiential Education
 For the last 30-40 years, adult education literature has
emphasized the importance of hands-on experiencebased learning.
 Much of what has been learned in the adult education
field also applies to these young adults.

24. Experiential Education
 Kolb’s (1984) landmark work suggests that experiential
learning proceeds through 4 modes including:
 concrete experience;
 abstract conceptualization;
 reflective observation;
 active experimentation.

25. Experiential Education
 Approach we have take engages in at least the first
three stages, whereas conventional classroom
techniques or even the use of case studies may not be
as effective.

26. Experiential Education-same true
for professors
 Professors who have attended academic
conferences that build in faculty field trips as part
of the conference, can testify years later to the
value that we have personally gained through
these trips.
 Saturn (Tennessee)
 Micron (Boise)
 Walker Manufacturing (Virginia)
 NBA Mavericks (Dallas)
 Boeing (Seattle)
 Wal-Mart HQ (Bentonville)
 Rolls Royce Power Systems (Mt Vernon, OH)

27. One of the most significant changes from 20042012 has been
 Over a period of time, we have found strong
Christians in several of the organizations, who are not
only willing, but anxious to share their faith in the
work environment.
 Most of us likely bring Christian business people into
our classrooms as guest speakers.
 Without in anyway discounting the efficacy of those
encounters……

28. People in context
 There is something very powerful and unique
about a Christian business person sharing their
faith in the “natural” environment and
demonstrating that Christ is found in their
business.

29. Advent of our program
 Idea originated from 10 weeks European IBI program
in 2003- I went over for 7 weeks & was in 10 countries
 Observed the power of structured field visits
 Nokia; Daimler Benz; Deere; European Central Bank;
British Parliament, etc.
 Great experience but beyond reach of most of our
students – from $12,000 then to now about $18,000

30. Advent of our program
 Decided to develop a “domestic” version of the
course- allow 12-15 visits
 Our course for 3 credits costs $1200 tuition + $375
travel fee. Allow more participation
 Take advantage of being near Chicago and northern
Illinois businesses & organizations
 Initially team-taught with a colleague- Dr. Gary Koch

31. The Nuts and Bolts of the ProgramCURRICULM
 4 Week Summer Format
 12-15 hours lecture time
 Extensive readings and “take home quizzes” over
material
 Pre-visit briefings & presentations
 Corporate visits & formal briefing reports
 De-briefing on return trips and follow-up lectures
 Comprehensive written applied exam

32. The Nuts and Bolts of the ProgramCURRICULM
 We did not do textbook case studies
rather our field trips were designed to be
“living” case studies.
 We deliberately scheduled tours and
experiences to broaden our students’
perspective on businesses and other
organizations,
 Build group coherence and sharpen their
analytical and observation skills.

33. The Nuts and Bolts of the Program-FIELD
VISITS-A Sampling
Caterpillar at Aurora
Deere and Company-Moline,
Illinois
Celebration Dinner CruiseMississippi River
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
Chicago Mercantile Exchange
Chicago Architectural
Foundation River Cruise

34. The Nuts and Bolts of the ProgramFIELD VISITS
U.S. Cellular Field (Chicago
White Sox)
Hamburger University and the
Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s
Good’s Furniture
City of Ottawa (Illinois),
Ottawa Chamber of Commerce,
Ottawa Economic
Development

35. The Nuts and Bolts of the ProgramFIELD VISITS
State Farm Operations Center
Cigna Call Center
Baker & Taylor- book
distributor
Whitey’s Ice Cream
YMCA
Daily Journal
Alcoa

36. Matrix of integrated topics
See paper for more details

43. DEERE & Company-Topics Covered
 JIT & lean manufacturing
 Advanced manufacturing






techniques/Quality
Downsizing and corporate realignment
Globalization
Labor relations
Heavy emphasis of faith in
workplace
Corporate culture
Career planning

44. Good’s Furniture
Kewanee, Illinois
 Small business
innovation
 Marketing and
advertising
 Competitive
advantage and
distinctive
competence
 Economic
development

45. Caterpillar, Aurora Illinois
 Inventory control
 Advanced manufacturing techniques
including robotics CAD/CAD
 Materials management
 Logistics
 Competitive advantage
 Globalization
 Labor relations
 Employee loyalty

46. Caterpillar, Aurora Illinois
 Strategic alliances
 Corporate culture
 Training and development
 Financial analysis
 Career planning
 Energy management

47. The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s &
Hamburger University
 High performance






customer service
Marketing
Information systems
management
Overview of the
hospitality industry
Corporate culture
Training and
development
Strategic partnerships

48. Whitey’s Ice cream
 Very innovative
 Run with ethical principles
 Small business that knows its limits
 To franchise or not to franchise?
 Give back to the community
 Loyal employees
 www.whiteysicecream.com
OKWU October 11 2011

49. Alcoa
 One of largest rolling mills in the world
 Gives real meaning to “Capital Intensive”
 Importance Health & safety- working environment
 Working with Unions and Labor Relations
 Customers as Strategic Partners

50. PGM
 True example of faith ministry
 Serve 700+ men/women per night
 Do not take any government funds
 World famous broadcast- 6000+ times a week
played
 Serving the least of my brethren
 Different meaning of success
 Consider serving on boards of non-profit
ministries
OKWU October 11 2011

51. Tradeoffs
 Given the intensity of the course, we




meet in the classroom 2 days a week
for 2 hours
Use most classroom time in a
lecture/discussion format
Then meet 2-3 days a week for field
trips.
Students were charged an additional
$350 travel fee beyond tuition.
Given the nature of the course we had
to be creative in student evaluation

52. What We Learned From This
Experience
 Team teaching is fun,
interesting and good for both
students and faculty
 Businesses are willing to
support these types of
programs and are impressed
that we are doing this
 You have got to be extremely
flexible and “go with the flow”
in this type of program

53. What We Learned From This
Experience
 Students must be prepared before the
visits- by student led research
 The briefing reports are absolutely
critical
 Follow-up class discussion and
integration provides very strong
learning leverage

54. What We Learned From This
Experience
 This approach to Policy and
Strategy breaks lots of
conventional rules but the
testimonies from the students
encourage us to continue the
course
 Travel and intense experiences
like this build community and
will be remembered and
valued for years to come
 Students must understand the
value of field visits and their
on-site behavior

55. What We Learned From This
Experience
 The field-based approach can be especially
effective in a faith-integration approach.
 From briefing reports, to testimonies, to seeing real
business people live out their faith, this has now
become a more deliberate and important objective of
the program.

56. What We Learned From This
Experience
 Above all, this course is an integrative experience
that not only covers traditional strategy topics,
but emphasizes larger issues like economic
development, community responsibility,
historical context, industry context, social and
economic justice and Christian faith.

57. What We Learned From This
Experience
 If Christ is to be put back into society and
Christmas (as reflected in the opening
lamentation), business and commerce must
LEAD THE WAY!

58. Students expectations
 We have not found any strategy courses in
literature designed around field trips with the
exception of International travel experiences
 Many of our students have told us, “It is the best
course they have had at the university.”

59. Every fall- The question is: to teach or not to
teach next summer. Why I did for a ninth year in
the summer of 2012!
 Student feedback is so good- even many years later
 Business and industry support!
 Contacts become long time friends and associates
 Helps the university in many other ways
 Doing others a favor by letting them do you a favor!
 It continues to be fun and make me a much better
professor– more current, informed, relevant
 I actually get paid to have this much fun!