thinkPhD

I am almost finished with chapters 19-23 in the Wren’s “The History of Management Thought”, the text for MGT 5031.  I have about 20 pages to go.

I really enjoyed reading the first half of this book, but this last part is not as interesting. Unfortunately, I am not gathering as much information as I read as I did in the first two parts.

I am puzzling over this final paper. I have read some of the discussion boards to see what others are writing but I have not found “my” subject yet.

Here is how I read the text…..I have several pads of the small colored 2″ x 1.5″ sticky notes with me as I read. When I come across a section that is relevant to my paper, or that gives me some insight that I believe will assist me with my paper, I put a sticky note on the page. My book usually ends up with about 50 sticky notes sticking out of the side. If the sticky note is holding my page, it goes at the top. If the sticky note is relevant to my paper, it goes on the side. If it marks a page that I need to re-read or define a term or if I discover something that I don’t understand completely, I put the sticky note sticking out the bottom of the book. The various colors also mean things to me. This system certainly may not work for you, but it does for me!

Here is my Wren book – See the sticky notes?

Assignment #3 (Modern and Future Management)

For your third and final assignment, select an industry that has emerged within the past 5 to 20 years.  Discuss the industry’s current management, challenges, and opportunities.  Offer your own thoughts on where you think this industry will continue to evolve in terms of its business management.

Hmmmm, 5 to 20 years. My son is 21 and my daughter is 22 so I am focusing on industries that have “emerged” during my motherhood lifespan.

I know of quite a few industries that have come and gone (disco dancing, stack heels, bad hair …….), but I need to find one that will have academic writings on its management, challenges and opportunities. The most obvious (to me) is cell phones and internet access, but I want this paper to pack some punch and do not want to choose the obvious.

The countdown is 26 days to finish this course……

Perhaps you are reading this blog because you are interested in my Ph.D. journey at NCU. 

Maybe you are curious about returning to grad school because you are considering it yourself.

Or, you are reading this blog because you believe in education.

Like I do.  

I have written previously about Teach for America, an organization that my daughter is associated with as a recruiter. I am pleased to direct you to the Dateline NBC website for a set of wonderful articles about Teach for America.

Correspondent Hoda Kotb reports on “The Education of Ms. Groves,” the story of a new Teach for America teacher, Monica Groves, and her experiences at Jean Childs Middle School in Atlanta. She began the job thinking that she was the teacher, and soon found out that she was the one who had a lesson to learn.

Dateline NBC will air this report on Saturday here in our local market. Be sure to watch this program to learn more about Teach for America.

Check out the Newsweek article, “15 Ideas to Recharge America“, and the essay by Wendy Kopp,  President and founder of Teach for America. If you are interested in learning more about Teach for America visit their website. If you would like to contribute, click here.

One day, all children in this nation

will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.  

Do you believe?

I do.

As you may recall, I have been working on Assignment #2 in Dr. Crake’s MGT 5031 History of Management Theory: 

For your second assignment, select an industry that has undergone significant change in terms of organizational understanding, people management, complexity, and use of scientific theory in management. Generally, these are industries or businesses that radically evolved during the first half of the 20th century. Describe the changes that occurred to the business or industry in terms of its evolution in management.

I struggled to find an industry that I could discuss that would capture the salient points of the assignment, yet give me a platform to analyze how scientific management changed the industry.

Here is the abstract for my paper:

“The Forging of Scientific Management in the Steel Industry”:

Radically evolved during the first half of the 20th century, the steel industry has undergone significant change in terms of organizational understanding, people management, complexity, and use of scientific theory in management. As the subject of Frederick W. Taylor’s initial studies of time management, division of labor and the elimination of wasted motion, steel became the poster child of scientific management.  Nonetheless, the industry suffered through waves of rapid growth and union dissatisfaction. At its peak, it was the largest industry in the world with a budget of global dimensions and its business practices influenced a nation’s views on the relationship between labor and management.

OK…OK so now you want to know how I did??? (theatrical pause for effect)….

Here is an excerpt of the feedback I received:

Excellent work Cindy!  You have provided a very well developed discussion of the history and development of the Steel industry, together with an excellent discussion of the evolution of management in that industry, during the industrial revolution.  Excellent analysis of scientific management principles as applied in the industry.  Well structured with a good introduction and excellent conclusion.  Very well written and well presented.  Excellent use of examples throughout to illustrate your discussion and argument.  Very well researched.  Great work! 

I am so happy! I spent hours and hours on this paper and I am thrilled with the results!

But of course it wasn’t all fun and games….once again, I had tech issues trying to turn in a paper.

I use dial up service to access the internet. As I was posting assignment #2, the service kept hanging up or stalling. Finally, I could see the file on the assignment tab. I wrote a little note to Dr. Crake, and he responded that he received 4 copies of my assignment. I know he was scratching his head on that one, trying to figure out why in the world I would send him 4 copies!

So…does this mean that I have 4 x the points on this assignment??? LOL

This week Eric started a new Yahoo group and if you are an NCU learner, you will want to check this out. Remember, this group is strictly for learners and you must verify enrollment. The group has really grown – we already have 19 members in just a few days!

Click to join nculearner

The Associated Press reported last night that all of the 11 Egyptian exchange students who did not show up for class at Montana State University have been located. There has been an ongoing manhunt since July 29, when the 17 students arrived in New York. The students were arrested in various locations around the country: Minneapolis, MN, Manville, NJ, Dundalk, MD, Chicago, IL, Des Moines, IA, and Richmond, VA.

MSU contacted Homeland Security when some of the students failed to arrive for a month-long class. All of the students were late for the program; 6 were two days late, which according to MSU is not unusual.

The school has posted a FAQ review here. It is interesting to note that:

The 32-day program includes English as a Second Language classes plus lectures on various cultural topics, including U.S. and Montana history. In addition to academic work, the program includes a number of recreational activities, including a trip to Yellowstone National Park and white-water rafting.

The students clearly took advantage of loose security and the good graces of MSU. In the past, exchange programs have been good for higher ed and valuable for the students involved. These students went through orientation and signed their visas; surely they knew that the policies for temporary international visitors. It is unclear if the students intended to remain in the USA illegally.

But it is clear that these students deliberately chose to break the rules.

The University has decided to terminate the program with Mansoura University in Egypt.

Today I was asked to be the Lead Faculty Area Chair for our University of Phoenix campus. I am so excited! I was surprised when I was asked to fill out the form yesterday which listed ten questions about our campus, such as “What are the biggest areas for improvement with our current faculty body. Explain your reasoning” and “How do you feel you have contributed to the campus in your current capacity?”

I will have the opportunity to assist with training sessions and developing “best practices” for our campus. I am pleased and honored to have been selected for this post.

I called and talked to my academic counselor, Rita, about which course to choose next. She was very helpful as we discussed the various Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration specializations:

Applied Computer Science

Business Quantitative Methods

Computer and Information Security

Criminal Justice

Electronic Commerce

Financial Management

Health Care Administration

Homeland Security

Human Resources Management

International Business

Management

Management Information Systems

Management of Engineering and Technology

Marketing

Organizational Leadership

Public Administration

Sports Management and Leadership

I had a number of credits to transfer to the program and so very soon I must make a decision as to which specialization to follow. Right now, I am considering Management, Organizational Leadership, Marketing, Financial Management or Business Quantitative Methods.

My original plan included working on a topic that was related to my current employment working in the seconds field. I have been trying to figure out which one of the specializations that it fits in! Of course, I do not have to choose something related, I should choose something that I enjoy or have some prior knowledge or work experience. I will take another look at the courses that are offered; perhaps I can narrow down to two specializations and choose a course that is in both of them.

I am continuing to work on assignment #2, reading and researching the topic. I am struggling with finalizing the “best” industry that fits the requirements for the paper. Unfortunately, I have not had many “blocks” of time to devote to the project, just a bit here and there. I have this paper and one more to write before the end of the class on 09/23/06.

I am also thinking about the next class to take. I have not yet decided on a specialization, but I am certainly looking into each one. I plan to call my academic advisor this week to discuss the selection of my next course. I am thinking about MGT5005 Business Organization and Management or perhaps MGT5019 Ethics in Business. The ethics class is not a required course (unless I go into the Management specialization), but it may give me the required ethics course to teach the new Org Beh class at the school where I am an instructor. But then again, shouldn’t I work on getting the required courses completed first?  

There are a number of organizations working under the guise of higher education that are not truly academic institutions. Be very careful when you begin your search for a degree plan. Make sure that you research the school and its accreditation. Regardless of what is stated on the school’s website, do your own investigation.  

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) website has an excellent article about degree mills found here. Be sure to read this article to protect yourself from unscrupulous degree mills.

CHEA is an excellent place to start your search. The site has a searchable database of colleges and universities. For example, I clicked “Databases and Directories” and then “Database of Institutions and Programs Accredited by Recognized United States Accrediting Organizations.” I clicked “I agree” to the terms and conditions, then inserted “Northcentral University” and “Arizona”, using “Any Accreditor” as the search term. The result is returned as:  

Institutional Accreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA-HLC), The Higher Learning Commission.

When you click the link to the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the address and name of the Executive Director is offered. You can contact the Association for addition information about their accreditation, or check out the website, The Higher Learning Commission.

Don’t be fooled by degree mills offering “degrees for sale.”

Be an informed consumer. Make the right choice.