Greetings BMGT-364 Students,

Welcome to 'Management & Organization Theory.' Another UM term is underway. My name to all my students and colleagues is Phil. It is my pleasure to help you through BMGT-364 this DE Term 1. (We have an overflow second section of BMGT 364 so don't be confused because my name is not Lucia and I am not in Washington state.) We need to get to know each other better before we start so I have gone first and shared something of myself with you if you follow the link above. Your first assignment is to post a brief biographical sketch in the Web Tycho Class Conference area under the Main Topic designated for Class Biographic Sketches..

During this first week, please share with your small group why you are taking this course and just as importantly, what is it that the other students and I can help you achieve this term. See Week 1 Individual Assignments and Week 1 Group Assignments.

You might think a theory course would be dull, but this one is a real roller coaster, thanks in part to your textbook authors and publisher. Not only do they offer us the theory, but they surround us with the practice of management. I am certain you will benefit from Robbins and Coulter's expansive look at our discipline, how it should be practiced, how it is practiced and how we might improve our approach to management.

We will use three web sites extensively - WebTycho, this site, and the publisher's site (PHLIP/CW - Robbins/Coulter Management, 6/e). So you may find yourself spending a lot of time on the Web. The UMUC course development team has also created on-line course modules to help guide your study. See the Course Content area of our classroom.

That is the first thing about this DE course that are different.

The second, which may not be new to some of you, is that during this term we will be using email and email attachments to supplement and complement WebTycho. Hopefully you are familiar with email protocols; have a look at my guidance for sending emails just to be sure.

We can post formatted text documents to WebTycho that do not have graphics, charts, spreadsheets, etc. embedded in them. However, WebTycho cannot handle files within files (whether connected with visible or invisible links). Thus web pages (.html files) with pictures or other images linked to them will have the links broken if posted to WebTycho. Yes, if you have looked at the Tycho tutorial, you know that certain areas take .html files - but they must be text files only to display properly.

Attachments to email messages are particularly useful for exchanging files which have other files embedded in them such as those produced by MS Office (graphics or spreadsheets within a word processing document, for example). We will from time to time need to pass graphics and formatted narratives to each other. This can be a frustrating process for the uninitiated so please be patient as I confirm that each of us knows how to share complex files via email attachments.

I have posted the course syllabus and various supplemental Guidance files and handouts on this web site. Please read them. The Full Syllabus differs little from my Preview Syllabus for BMGT 364, but it is markedly different from the one you saw when registering for this course. Please follow the links so that you understand the full scope of the course. If you do get lost, see my site overview.

We will spend much of this first week confirming our skill with WebTycho and email procedures, both in general and for Distance Education courses. We will confirm access to each other, get to know new colleagues and establish a routine. I have set the stage for this course in the syllabus; after you read it, I want you to discuss with your assigned small group your special concerns about the subject and state your desires for areas we should emphasize over the next four months. You will control the content and conduct of our exchanges, for I will concentrate first and perhaps principally on those concepts you ask me to cover. I will also ask you to comment on certain topics relevant to our subject during the course.

It is your responsibility to post each assignment on WebTycho on time. Start early. Complete your skill reinforcement projects a week in advance so you have a chance to critically review them for content and quality of ideas. If you just hit the cut-off date early in the course, you have an excellent chance of being late on subsequent assignments. Keep a copy of each assignment just in case. If you cannot meet a deadline, please e-mail, fax or call me for a week's extension prior to the due date. The course is sequenced and timed reasonably as it is, and you can expect that if you are late on an assignment, you will just make it harder for yourself to complete the next portion of the course successfully.

I have a flexible personal schedule and work out of my home. See the contact details on this web site for how and when to get in touch with me.

I am frequently out for short periods (that sometimes become longer than I intended), so if your concern is urgent, and I am not in, leave a message on my "answer phone" (hold on for at least seven rings) or fax me your question. Of course, watch out for my WebTycho or email response to you and continue trying to reach me directly by phone. If your email goes down temporarily, use a friends account to email me or fax me to keep in touch.

Please post in the WebTycho Biographic Sketch Conference for this class your email address, location, and (optional) your telephone number.

Should you be unable to check WebTycho and your email at least once every 48 hours and respond to questions within that same period, please notify me.

If you have a particular worry about your course of study or find yourself in difficult circumstances, contact me right now instead of waiting. (Naturally, should something come up later in the course, get in touch with me at that time.) I want to deal with your concerns now so we can get on with the task at hand - which I view as helping you learn as much as you want to learn. Whether it is difficulty with the study material, finding adequate time or surroundings for your study, personal emergencies - whatever - I am truly here to help you succeed.

I look forward to hearing from you concerning questions asked and points raised above. We shall have an exciting and fruitful term with your help.

Yours Faithfully,

Phil

Revised 29 August 1999

Phil Richardson; prichard@faculty.ed.umuc.edu