Global Social Impact (GSI) BUAD 104 - Section 14504
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Global Social Impact (GSI) BUAD 104 - Section 14504 Syllabus: Spring 2017 Fridays: 12:00 –1:50 p.m. Room: JFF 240 Professors: Jerry Giaquinta and Joe Nunes Office: JFF 203 Office Phone: 213-740-3611 Office Hours: By appointment E-mail: [email protected] Course Description: The course will be taught by Professor and WBB academic director, Jerry Giaquinta. Students en- rolled in this course will focus their study and work on social impact projects in Brazil that will help society in the greater Rio de Janeiro area. Students’ work will be facilitated by Prof. Gia- quinta, as well as a variety of mentors in Brazil, a team of professionals from Emzingo, a social enterprise that specializes in the development and management of programs involving social im- pact projects. • Emzingo and university faculty will select and scope projects for 7-10 NGOs or Social Entrepreneurs in and around Rio de Janeiro Brazil who are in need of assistance. These are real problems and the hope is to develop real solutions. • Students will work in teams to complete a consulting project for selected field partners. • Students will travel abroad with their team members to meet with and present their findings to the field partners. Why Brazil? Brazil is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population (more than 300 million people). Brazil has the seventh largest economy in the world by nominal GDP (≈ $2.4 trillion), and the seventh largest economy by purchasing power parity (≈ $16,000 per capita). Brazil’s economy is the largest of Latin America and the second largest in the western hemisphere. One in four Brazilian adults is an entrepreneur. Brazilians are benefiting from stable economic growth, relatively low inflation rates and improvements in social wellbeing. Yet, Brazil experiences extreme regional differences, especially in social indicators such as health, infant mortality and nutrition. In 2012, 18 million Brazilians were living on less than $2 per day. The country still battles with inequality and the resulting issues are seen in the health, education, and security sectors. There are plenty of opportunities for USC business students to make a difference in the lives of real people by impacting how Brazilian NGOs and social entrepreneurs run their businesses. Global Social Impact Learning Objectives The goals of this course are multifaceted. They include, but are not limited to: • Developing an international business perspective by understanding the similarities and differences in the business environment across countries and how heterogeneity in the business environment across countries affects international business practices and strategies. • Exposing students to the topics of social entrepreneurship, sustainable development, economics in emerging markets, business, government & society, corporate social responsibility, and private-public sector development through academic coursework taught by faculty from both USC. • Providing students the opportunity to work under the guidance of mentors (experts in the project space) from Brazil. Perhaps the most important business skill in the modern era is working with colleagues from different cultures. • Providing the opportunity for students to work on a consulting project for a local NGO or social enterprise in or around Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. • Providing a cultural immersion travel component along with cross-cultural presentation component whereby students deliver their product to leaders on site in Rio de Janeiro. • Allowing students to understand the ethical issues associated with international and global endeavors. • Helping students appreciate how to develop business strategies and make business decisions in the international and global context. Prerequisites and/or Recommended Preparation: Students must have been admitted to the World Bachelors in Business (WBB) Program or the Global Leadership Program (GLP), and admission to the course will be by application. Course Notes: Technology for long-distance learning will be used to conduct joint sessions with mentors in Brazil on an ad hoc basis depending on the needs of the student teams. During other sessions, students will be expected to work on projects with members of their team. In addition, special concentrated class sessions will take place on the last weekend of January. These sessions include professional training in working cross-culturally and more specifically, applying business techniques to help find solutions to social problems in developing economies. Grading Policies: The grading for GSI will be Credit/No Credit. In order to receive credit for the course, you must pass each of the following requirements, as follows: 1. Class Participation and Attendance (Individual) 2. Memos and/or Quizzes (Individual) 3. Organization Briefing Paper (Group) 4. Final Project & Presentations (Group) Global Social Impact Given that this course is based on experiential learning, attendance and active participation is required in all sessions. In order to receive credit for the course, you must pass all of the above four components of the course requirements. Failing to pass any one of these four components will result in receiving No Credit for the course. For example, failing to pass the class participation and attendance component of the grade will result in receiving No Credit for the course. At the end of the course, you will complete peer evaluations of the members on your team. In order to receive credit for the course, you must contribute fairly to the group assignments. Class Participation and Attendance (Individual) The learning from this course is largely experiential and participation-based. There will be many opportunities to ask questions of speakers and faculty members and engage in discussions with speakers, faculty members, and your fellow students. Those who participate more actively will learn more from the experience. In addition, interactions with guest speakers and participants from our partner institution in Brazil reflect upon the reputation of USC and the Marshall School. Thus, professionalism and high quality participation in meetings and visits is expected at all times. Your participation will be assessed based on 1) attendance and promptness, 2) alertness and active listening, and 3) participation in discussions and quality of questions asked. Attendance and Promptness: As opposed to a traditional course that relies on textbooks, readings, and lecture notes, this course is an experiential-based course. The learning in this class comes largely from the activities that take place during class sessions and the experiences during the international field study trip. Given the experiential and participation-based nature of this course, material cannot be made up outside of class and the trip, and attendance is critical to the learning in this course Attendance at all sessions (the pre-trip class sessions and the visits/activities during the international field study trip) is mandatory. Showing up on time and remaining for the full length of all sessions is expected. Attendance will be taken during each session. If you need to miss a pre-trip class session, you must be excused by your professor in advance, and you are only allowed one excused absence. Missing more than 1 of the Pre-Trip Class Sessions will result in receiving No Credit for the course. Missing any of the visits/activities during the International Field Study Trip will result in receiving No Credit for the course. Absences for medical reasons require a note from a physician. Alertness and Active Listening: Paying full attention at all sessions is expected. Participation in Discussions and Quality of Questions Asked: Participation in discussions in both the classroom sessions and during the visits/activities on the international field study trip is expected of all students. Asking insightful questions of guest speakers, faculty, and fellow students is also expected. In order to participate actively in the course, it is expected that you will come to all sessions well-prepared, having read and thought about assigned material. The quality (not merely quantity) of your participation and questions asked is an important part of your performance in this class. Global Social Impact Memos and/or Quizzes (Individual) Your individual understanding and integration of material from the class sessions will be assessed through memos or quizzes. Quizzes will be given in certain class sessions to test your mastery of the course material. Memos will be submitted after some of the pre-trip class sessions to assess your learning of the course material. Organization Briefing Paper (Group) Each group will prepare a briefing paper related to one of the organizations for which we will do a project and that we will visit during the trip. This briefing paper will include your discussion and analysis of the organization’s situation and important facts and insights about the organization. The briefing papers from all groups will be assembled into a briefing book, which will be distributed to all students in the class before the trip. It is expected that before the trip you will read all briefing papers contained in this briefing book. Hence, students in the class should potentially be able to assist other teams with insights form their own experience and research. When we visit each organization, each of you will already have some basic knowledge about the organization and, therefore, can ask more insightful questions of the speakers. This paper should