Teaching management and business communication to future IT experts Patrizia Poščić, Assistant Professor Danijela Subotić, Teaching Assistant Department of Informatics, University of Rijeka Radmile Matejčić 2, Rijeka, Croatia

The presentation is about Teaching management and business communication skills and techniques to graduate (master) students at the Department of Informatics Management and Leadership course Business Communication course 2

Management and Leadership The course is held on the second year of graduate (master) program The course consists of theoretical lectures and practical exercises 3

Management and Leadership In the lectures students can learn: –Organization Theory –Entrepreneurship and Competition –Planning –Strategic, Tactical and Operational Management –Human Resource Management and Performance monitoring –Total Quality Management –SWOT analysis 4

Management and Leadership In the lectures students can learn: –Crysis Management (methods to solve problems) –Decision-making process, deciding factors and team decision- making –Use of information systems as a basis for decision-making and management –Project Management and IT Support –Safety and risks –Time Management –Virtual organizations 5

Management and Leadership In the practical exercises students can learn: –Game Theory –Strategic Planning –Time Management –HRM software analysis –Motivation and Creativity 6

Management and Leadership (exercises) Game theory deals with situations of conflict between two or more participants and focuses on strategic interactive decision-making The goal of game theory is not to win, but to find an optimal strategy that will maximize payoff/profit Game theory is based on mathematical principles – students can develop systematic way of thinking and approaching to problem solving Students can learn to collect information in order to plan and strategize their behavior and to consider all perspectives and possible outcomes of specific situaction, in order to make a better decision 7

Management and Leadership (exercises) Prisoners dilemma Market monopoly 8 PorećiPriznati Poreći Priznati

Management and Leadership Strategic planning - development of a strategic plan for the period 3-5 years Vision, mission, values, SWOT analysis, general and specific goals, priorities, influences, teamwork IT support to strategic planning and execution – MS Project (project plan and gantogram, objectives and activities tree, activity implementation table, cost-benefit analysis, monitoring table) 9

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Management and Leadership (exercises) Human resource management (HRM) software analysis Next academic year – practical exercises in some open-source ERP software (OpenERP, WebERP,...) 11

Business Communication The course is also held on the second year of graduate (master) program The course consists of theoretical lectures (mostly online) and practical exercises (organized in a form of mini-workshops) The emphasis is on practical exercises during which students can practice and adopt various communication skills 12

Business Communication In the lectures students can learn: –Effective communication: Components and process. Types of communication. Communication barriers. Cultural influences. –Verbal Communication: Language. Meaning. Clarity of expression. Formality of language. –Nonverbal communication: Types of nonverbal communication. Functions. Nonverbal expressiveness and sensitivity. Discrepancy between verbal and nonverbal communication. Self-presentation. –Teamwork 13

Business Communication In the lectures students can learn: –Communication skills: Listening. The importance of listening. Components. Active listening techniques. Conflict and Negotiation. Types of conflict. Causes of conflict. The consequences of the conflict. Conflict resolution. Assertiveness. What is assertiveness? Specific techniques of assertive behavior. Public communication: The purpose of speech. Organizing speech. The presentation speech. 14

Business Communication In the practical exercises (workshops) students can learn: –Verbal and Nonverbal Communication –Business Correspondence –Conducting and Participating in Meetings –Job Interviews –Telephone Communication –Presentation and Promotion - Public Appearances –Sales skills and Negotiation –Marketing Practices 15

Business Communication (exercises) All students except one leave the classrom until they are called in. One student that is left in the classroom has to read the given story, and narrate it to the first student that comes back, then the second student has to narrate the story that he heard to the third student, etc. The goal of this exercise is to demonstrate how little we listen, and how easy is to loose information in a conversation 16

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Conclusion Introduce students to business theory and practice Emphasis on the relationship between business and technology IT in support of business communication and management 20

Thank You for your attention!