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TOPICS FOR THESE ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE DETERMINED AS THE COURSE PROGRESSES.

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THE NATURE OF A THREADED DISCUSSION.

This task will involve a threaded discussion on a case or topic assigned to your group. [Scroll down to see your group assignment.] A threaded discussion is a computer registered discussion, which allows students to make contributions to the task assigned to the group. It is somewhat like a "chat room" except that the participants do not have to be on line at the same time. You can either make a comment which starts a new thread or you can reply to a previous comment that continues the thread. The purpose of a threaded discussion is to keep the issues discussed in the course material before the minds of the students and to develop new insights and skills of reflective analysis related to the issues discussed in class.

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GENERAL EXPECTATIONS OF THE THREADED DISCUSSION.

1. Students will will be automatically identified when they make their contribution to the discussion.
2. Comments need not be lengthy but they should be substantive. "I agree with X." is not a very helpful comment unless some explanation of the reason for the agreement is given.
3. Students will contribute only to the group to which they are assigned. See below for group assignments.
4. Please note that the discussions are time-limited; this means that you may contribute to the discussion only during the time period designated for the discussion.
5. Students will be expected to make three HEALTHY ["Healthy" = 2 decent size paragraphs.] comments to each threaded discussion. Each contribution is worth 10 points with a total of 30 points for each threaded discussion. Do try to make one or two comments early in the discussion period so that others will have something to which to respond.
6. Remember that even though this assignment is password protected, hackers are always a possibility and they might be able to read what you say. This includes someone from Bangladesh, or the Vatican, or your parents, or your physician, or your boss, or your sixth grade teacher. Speak honestly but not offensively.
7. Contributions will be judged on the quality of the comments and the way they help to move the discussion forward.
8. In working with your cases or assignments, you will want to incorporate the topics, which we are discussing in the class periods into the discussion of the case or assignment on an on-going basis.
9. Remember that this is supposed to be a discussion. This means that there should be some interaction among the participants. Do not just sit in front of you computer and make 3 comments in a row --- this does not constitute participation in a discussion.
10. Be challenging to everyone in the group --- as well as to me!

Let me know immediately if you have any problems making contributions to the threaded discussions.

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THE TOOL BEING USED FOR THREADED DISCUSSIONS IN THIS COURSE IS "QUICKPLACE." THE ADDRESS IS <http://quickplace.udayton.edu/mba659_ulrich>  THIS TOOL DOES NOT WORK WITH MAC COMPUTERS AND REQUIRES MS INTERNET EXPLORER FOR A BROWSER.

YOUR USERNAME AND PASSWORD ARE THE SAME USERNAME AND PASSWORD YOU USE TO CHECK YOUR LOTUS NOTES MAIL THROUGH THE INTERNET. IF YOU NEED HELP IN REMEMBERING THEM OR HAVE OTHER DIFFICULTIES WITH QUICKPLACE, CALL THE HELP DESK AT 229-3888

GUIDELINES FOR MAKING A CONTRIBUTION TO THE THREADED DISCUSSION.

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GROUP ASSIGNMENTS.

There will be six rounds of threaded discussions throughout the term. Each threaded discussion will be worth a maximum of  thirty (30) points --- ten (10) points for each contribution. To contribute to your group's threaded discussion, consult the table below to find your group assignment. Then CLICK HERE to go to Quickplace to make your contribution after you have read the guidelines in the table above for accessing the appropriate group's page.

Please note that the composition of the groups changes with each round of threaded discussions. [Membership in the groups is the result of random selection.]
Links to the discussion groups will be connected (and disconnected) at the appropriate times.

 

TD1 -Group 1 BURNS AND THE RELATIONSHIP OF NEEDS, VALUES, AND CONFLICT IN LEADERSHIP Bertke, Branham, Carter (Beth), Fredrick, Johnson, Matthews, Nyhuis, Schramm, Tyler, Whalen [Discussion runs from 01/26 through 02/02]	TD1 - Group 2 BURNS AND THE RELATIONSHIP OF NEEDS, VALUES, AND CONFLICT IN LEADERSHIP Carter (Brendan), Grover, Maruzewski, Moore, Morasch, Mugford, Wetzel, Whitehead, Yoder  [Discussion runs from 01/26 through 02/02 ]
TD2 - Group 3 THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF INTEGRITY: ELIOT SPITZER AS A CASE IN POINT Branham, Carter (Brenden), Grover, Maruszewski, Mugford, Nyhuis, Schramm, Tyler, Whalen, Yoder [Discussion runs from 02/07 through 02/15]	TD2 - Group 4 THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF INTEGRITY: ELIOT SPITZER AS A CASE IN POINT Bertke, Carter (Beth), Fredrick, Johnson, Matthews, Moore, Morasch, Wetzel, Whitehead [Discussion runs from 02/07 through 02/15]
TD3 - Group 5 SEX AND DRUG SCANDAL Carter (Beth), Matthews, Moore, Moresch, Schramm, Tyler, Wetzel, Whitehead, Yoder [Discussion runs from 02/25 through 03/05]	TD3 - Group 6a [please note group number] SEX AND DRUG SCANDAL Bertke, Braham, Carter (Brenden), Fredrick, Grover, Johnson, Maruszewski, Mugford, Nyhuis, Whalen Discussion runs from 02/25 through 03/05]
TD4&5 - Group 7 LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RESOURCES - GROUP HEALTHCARE Branham, Carter (Beth), Fredrick, Grover, Johnson, Matthews, Mugford, Schramm, Wetzel, Whitehead [Discussion runs from 03/23 through 04/05]	TD4&5 - Group 8 LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RESOURCES -GROUP HEALTHCARE Bertke, Carter (Brenden) Maruszewski, Moore, Morasch, Nyhuis, Tyler, Whalen, Yoder [Discussion runs from 03/23 through 04/5]
TD4&5 - Group 7 LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RESOURCES - GROUP HEALTHCARE Branham, Carter (Beth), Fredrick, Grover, Johnson, Matthews, Mugford, Schramm, Wetzel, Whitehead [Discussion runs from 03/23 through 04/05]	TD4&5 - Group 8 LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RESOURCES - GROUP HEALTHCARE Bertke, Carter (Brenden) Maruszewski, Moore, Morasch, Nyhuis, Tyler, Whalen, Yoder [Discussion runs from 03/23 through 04/05]
TD 6 - Group 11 No TD here. 30 Points Awarded by Default. [Discussion Cancelled]	TD 6 - Group 12 No TD here. 30 Points Awarded by Default. [Discussion Cancelled]

 

LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RESOURCES - GROUP HEALTHCARE

THE PROBLEM: One of the most serious charges leveled against Hillary Clinton's Healthcare Reform Package in 1992 was that she did not seriously discuss the proposal with healthcare professionals. Without that consultation, her plan was doomed to failure. In the 2008 Presidential campaign there has been a great deal of discussion about healthcare --- "universal" insurance and/or government subsidized insurance. President Obama is committed to some form (yet to be determined) of healthcare of all Americans --- and, apparently, illegal immigrants as well. One of the suggestions he has made is that workers can either choose participation in their employee benefits healthcare package or opt out of the employee benefits package and choose government sponsored healthcare.  Keep in mind that healthcare professionals MUST by included in discussions of any of those packages. In 2008 the AMA generated a Proposal for Health Care Reform. The website for this material is http://voicefortheuninsured.org The AMA links below break the material into parts (there may be a bit of repetition here) so that busy students can look at the material piece by piece. Keep in mind that the AMA does not really represent ALL physicians; only about 50% of physicians belong to the AMA. But this Proposal will be your consultation with healthcare professionals. TASK: Imagine that you have been appointed Vice-President for Human Resources in a large corporation. Your task is to design a healthcare benefit package that is both beneficial for the employees and realistic in terms of cost. In this Leadership role you will have to draw upon much about Leadership that we have discussed in this course. This will include values, responsibilities, and beneficence in addition to many other issues. Remember that you cannot promise employees EVERYTHING. That was part of Clinton's problem. Her approach promised everything with no cost attached. I suspect that people will expect the same thing from President Obama. As a Leader you will have to figure out the "parameters of the possible." And you need to take into account the reflections of the AMA, which are provided in the links below. DYNAMICS: Because of the rather extensive nature of this task, the requirements of this task will be modified. It will be considered TD4 and TD5. It will run for 2 weeks March 23 - April 4. You will have to make six (6) posts, since it is a combination of two TDs. Spread your posts over the whole period and remember that each post should be ROBUST. I do not expect groups to come up with a common plan --- I am more interested in your individual reflections on developing a plan with lots of interaction as you develop your reflections. Because of the structure of this TD assignment, the TD (4&5 together) will be worth 60 points.

The AMA Proposal for Reform.     AMA Overview of the AMA Reform Proposal.     AMA Strategies to Address Rising Health Care Costs.     AMA Protecting High-Risk Patients.     AMA Individual Responsibility for Health Care Insurance.     AMA How Tax Credits or Vouchers Would Affect Households.     AMA How Government Currently Helps People Buy Health Insurance.     AMA Administrative Costs of Health Care Coverage.

REMEMBER THAT THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A DISCUSSION SO YOU SHOULD NOT JUST SIT AT YOUR COMPUTER AND MAKE A SERIES OF COMMENTS AT THE SAME TIME. SPACE YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS OVER THE PERIOD OF THE DISCUSSIONS.

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