CLOSED - AD 71001  Solving Information Problems: Wide Bandwidth Thinking
AD71001 Syllabus
As the creation, communication, management, and preservation of information drive social and economic change, decision makers who understand the far reaching effects of digital information technology will be highly valued. How to design and display such technologies is becoming critical. The topical and current readings and policy guidelines for  these ideas lead to the examination of causes and effects of information overload and the need for better information fluency are examined as well as the positive and negative consequences of technological innovation. In this hybrid distance-learning format, students attend six classroom meetings. Distance learning using the BBvista site, email and immersive techniques will be applied.
CLOSED - Spring, Wed, 6:45–8:30, Jan 18–May 2,
Tuition $1980, Professor William O’Keefe

AD 71801  Effective Listening: Techniques & Applications
We spend at least 80 percent of our time in communication situations listening, and only 20 percent of the time speaking. Effective listening is a learned technique, a critical component in the communication process, and a career and personally enhancing dynamic. Course views major listening theories and research including significant components of the learning process: hearing, understanding, remembering, interpreting, evaluating and responding. It also examines the impact of listening filters such as voices, personal biases, gender and culture. Specific listening contexts: non verbal, interpersonal, organizational, health communication and media are explained to better understand how to maximize opportunities. Explores the myth of the “Good Listener”, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses in professional and personal listening skills.
Spring, Tues, 6:45–8:30, Jan 17–May 8,
Tuition $1980, Professors Mattina and Weintraub

AD 71901  Maximizing Intellectual Capital
AD71901 Syllabus
Competitive and globally interconnected climates demand new competencies. Successful organizational leaders know how to tap people’s capacity to learn. They develop a vision for transforming the way people work, learn and interact and understand how patterns developed in one context can be adapted in others. Course explores techniques which expand an organization’s capacity to create the future. It examines adult learning styles, behavior and the drive for success, and explores the impact of decisions that affect career, family and financial security. Presents a variety of frameworks for maximizing personal and professional growth. Readings include A Hope in the Unseen, Suskind; Sari, Pio; Understanding Men's Passages, Sheehy; Life Entrepreneurs, Gergen and Vanourek; Class Matters, NY Times; Disrupting Class, Christensen; Outliers, Gladwell.
Spring, Sat, 9–3:30, Jan 21–Mar 3,
Tuition $1980, James Woods, S.J.

AD 72001  Social Media: Society’s Changing Landscape
AD72001 Syllabus
The advent of social media: online social networks, virtual communities, smart mobs, represents a fundamental and global shift in the way we develop and maintain personal and professional relationships. To better understand our transformative partnership with technology, this course views the meaning of human social behavior, of community, of trust, anonymity, ethics and privacy. It examines social media’s impact on society as a whole: on communication, on business, organizational patterns, family and careers. Integrating theory and practice, students learn to leverage social media tools in business and social organizations, and develop practices to succeed personally and professionally.
Spring, Thurs, 6:45 8:30, Jan 19-May 3,
Tuition $1980, Professor Rob Mancuso

AD 72201  High Performers: New Market Leaders
AD72201 Syllabus
Today’s high profile performers grab attention, headlines and market-place rewards. What makes a “winner”? Changing models of leadership and authority in American culture have crafted new paradigms of high profile performers. Course looks at individuals living and working in contemporary America, the paradox of success and failure, previous models, and personal pathways of leadership that influence new designs. Students can choose to read from among all of or excerpts from Moneyball, Michael Lewis; Jack: Straight from the Gut, Jack Welch; Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson; No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, Goodwin; Soldier: The Life of Colin Powell, DeYoung; A Testament of Hope: Autobiography & Other Writings, King; Personal History, Graham; Ragged Dick, Alger; Future of Success, Reich; Dreams from My Father, Barack Obama; and articles on Oprah Winfrey and others.
Spring, Tues, 6:45–8:30, Jan 17–May 8,
Tuition $1980, Professor Kevin Van Anglen

AD 73101  Overcoming Gender and Generational Barriers in the Workplace
AD73101 Syllabus
To succeed in these times of economic uncertainty, organizations must maximize their human capital. The challenge in today’s workplace, where four generations of men and women work side-by-side, is to build from this diversity a stable core of productive employees. Achieving this requires overcoming gender and generational barriers which impede individual and group performance. Course generational topics include improving intergenerational communications; building cohesive teams; and employing targeted strategies for motivation, rewards, recruitment, and retention. Gender topics include strategies for overcoming male and female conversational style differences; leadership development; the glass ceiling challenge; sexual harassment avoidance;  and the work-life balancing act.
Spring, Thurs, 6:45–8:30, Jan 19–May 3,
Tuition $1980, Professor Terry Byrne

AD 73501  Developing Dynamic and Productive Organizations
AD73501 Syllabus
Dynamic organizational cultures spark innovation and productivity. In an age of increasing globalization, an awareness of personal, systemic and national cultures allows for a broader grasp  of the varied ways individuals and groups of people view work, leadership and  productivity.  This course explores the paradigms and mental models, personal, interpersonal, group and systemic behaviors which weave together to form the culture of an organization.  We explore the types of culture organizations have and how a particular organizational culture impacts productivity. Examining the larger social context with its myriad of contemporary issues (immigration, ecology and sustainability, health, mental health and substance use, etc.) allows us to examine how modern life impacts productivity.
Spring, Wed, 6:45–8:30, Jan 18–May 2,
Tuition $1980, Professor Loretta Butehorn

AD 73601  Accounting Information & Statement Analysis
AD73601 Syllabus
Introduces the use of financial information in organizational decision making. Examines accounting theory and practice; how information is presented and used to provide conclusions about the financial position of an organization. Explains the use of principles of financial management to make operating and capital budgeting decisions and analyze long-term financial alternatives. Topics include financial statements, financial condition analysis, present value, budgeting, and long-term asset and liability decision making. Looks at the influence of the Financial Standards Board (FASB) and the increasing trend of off-balance sheet accounting. Data analysis assigned through the Web. Familiarity with financial accounting needed.
Spring, Thurs, 6:30–9, Jan 19–May 3,
Tuition $1980, Professor Thomas Branca

AD 74101  Imaging: Brands, Personality and Persuasive Communication
In our culture, image is about conveying success. It is what makes us want to buy a brand or vote for a candidate. Course explores the powerful role of imaging, the use of trade marks as a vehicle to convey a corporate image, and how a “marketable personality” (for a product, service, organization or individual) is defined, developed and communicated. Examines strategies for balancing the emotional and rational factors of a message, finding a position with “soul,” and using research to full advantage in relation to image failure and crisis management. A look at how imaging is affected by the exploding world of media and how it influences the corporate bottom line. Video and audio presentations and case studies provide stimulating examples. Students will better understand the imaging process and develop the know-how to evaluate and use it.
Spring, Tues, 6:45–8:30, Jan 17–May 8,
Tuition $1980, Professor Donald Fishman

AD 74601  Continuous Organizational Improvement: A Dynamic Psychosocial Perspective
Designed to identify and explore current strategies and measures that enhance organization productivity within a healthy workplace environment. The course examines the current literature that focuses on workplace productivity in the public, private and non-profit sectors. A look at the changing roles of the game, the melding of the physical and virtual worlds; the evolution from a more vertical hierarchical design into more collaborative, interactive, and horizontal structures, joining with global endeavors. Course is sensitive to cultural dynamics. Discusses new patterns of participation and behavior, examines personal, interpersonal, and group behavior and suggests practical approaches to  responces. A hybrid course utilizing required classroom attendance on January 25, Feruary 8, 22, March 14, 21 and April 11, 25. The other weeks will require monitoring and posting to the virtual classroom on Blackboard Vista 2-3 days each of those on-line weeks to submit work and engage in on-line discussion.
Spring, Wed, 6:45–8:30, Jan 18–May 2,
Tuition $1980, Professor Elisabeth Hiles

AD 74801  Elements of Competitive Performance
AD74801 Syllabus
* NOTE - Class begins on January 26, 2012 *
Unexpected levels of accomplishment motivate and inspire us to best our own performance. Course explores theories of excellence, success, and motivation (principles of self-efficacy, competitiveness, and positive psychology) as well as psychoanalytic, cognitive, and social learning which provide a broad context for understanding enhanced levels of performance. Using athletics as a template, course looks at what is possible in adult life: the positive physical and emotional outcomes of risking and reaching; the impact on overall life balance, personal relationships and professional success; the benefits of increased self-confidence; and the enhanced ability to set goals, focus, manage time, handle stress, compete in other areas of life, and set limits. Offers practical suggestions and strategic designs.
Spring, Thurs, 6:45–8:30, Jan 26–May 3,
Tuition $1980, Professor Cathy Utzschneider

AD 75101  Public Affairs: New Challenges for the
Non-Profit Sector
AD75101 Syllabus
One of every seven jobs in Massachusetts is found in the not-for- profit sector. In many ways, our non-profit higher education and health care institutions define our state's economy and help to create entire industries such as biotechnology, green technology, financial services and consulting services to name but a few. Course explores the emerging public relations, government relations, branding and strategic communication challenges faced by not-for-profit entities such as hospitals, universities, and other non-profit organizations, as they work to promote and protect their brand and reputation. Cases draw on recent crises and management challenges to explore responses in communications, strategic planning, and innovative initiatives designed to advance the non-profit mission and market.
Spring, Mon, 6:45–8:30, Jan 23–May 7,
Tuition $1980, Professor Richard Doherty


AD 75201  Entrepreneurs Without Borders
AD75201 Syllabus
New concepts designed to address the world’s pervasive social ills invite individual response. Social entrepreneurs blur the lines between the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. They have emerged in response to government and philanthropy’s inability to alleviate the world’s social ills such as hunger, poverty, HIV/AIDS, and global warming. Course examines three current models: nonprofits starting for-profit ventures, for-profit companies with a social purpose, and nonprofits that approach social needs in a new and innovative way. Students address such questions as: What does it take to be a social entrepreneur? Who are the leaders? What determines success and failure? Which is the appropriate business model for my idea? What about funding? How are corporations helping? And how does one assess the positive impact of the social venture?
Spring, Mon, 6:45–8:30, Jan 23–May 7,
Tuition $1980, Professor Francis Fallon

CLOSED - AD 75301  Laws of the Workplace
AD75301 Syllabus
This introduction to the rapidly evolving law of the workplace focuses on how the law works in practice today providing important information for employees and managers. Looks at traditional common law such as “Employment At Will” and areas of employment law topics including hiring, promotion and termination, workplace security, privacy and safety, compensation and benefits, immigration, and labor-management relations. Course also covers the various laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, with a focus on federal statutes and regulations as well as the emerging legal issues around Social Media in the workplace.
CLOSED - Spring, Mon, 6:45-8:30, Jan 23-May 7,
Tuition $1980, Professor Katherine Lev