Global/Communications /Business Initiatives Update Bob Doty Cindy Fry Randall Jean Greg Leman Rishi Sriram Advocate Board Update April 28, 2006

Global/Communications /Business Initiatives Update from last BOA meeting: a two-course sequence Instruction Focus on Instruction Implementation Focus on Implementation “Global Business and Communication” “Technology Entrepreneurship” Cindy Fry- Senior Lecturer of Computer Science

Work To Be Done: Approval of the course alternatives – Global Business & Communications (taught in ECS) – Technology Entrepreneurship (taught in HSB) Implementation/Staffing details for new course (Global Bus & Comm)

Major Economic Topics Cash Flow and Equivalence (Present Worth, Future Worth, Uniform Series) Equipment Retirement & Replacement (Depreciation, Book Value, Economic Life, Capitalized Cost) Comparison of Alternatives (Minimum Attractive Rate of Return, Payback Period, Benefit- Cost Ratio, Break-Even Analysis) Dr. Bob Doty, Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Economic Feasibility Study Introduction Background Information Market Study Project Engineering Cost Estimation Estimation of Revenues Financing

Technical Communication Technical communication problems Goals for technical writing and speaking Course effectiveness evaluation Highlight the second course Your questions, feedback, and response to the course Mr. Rishi Sriram, Student Success Specialist

Some Quotes “It isn’t working.” “Engineering without communication is worthless” “I feel like I have to take a lot of time out of my class to teach students to write” Interviews with ECS faculty

Communication Problems Students write like they talk Frequent mistakes in grammar, style, etc. Inability to write clearly and concisely Lack of know-how with writing technical reports Presentations are boring, unclear, and sometimes unprofessional

Course Goals Understand the purpose for technical writing Master specific elements of writing Practice creating technical documentation Understand the subtleties between a poor presentation and a great one

Assessment Project Assess the value of course compared to: – Economics 3308 (engineering economics) – CSS 3308 (technical speaking) – English 3300 (technical writing) Conduct evaluation and data analysis

Second Course in Sequence Technology Entrepreneurship Taught by Dr. Greg Leman – Clinical professor (Ph.D. Chemical Engineering) – Director of University Entrepreneurial Initiative – Hankamer School of Business Builds on the first course – Understanding of business models in global society – More implementation of technical writing and speaking

Conclusion Room for improvement in current courses Addressing issues identified by faculty and constituents Practical and helpful course Assess the effectiveness of course Offer second course to build on the first

Questions, Feedback, Response Our purpose here today is to hear from you!