Course Syllabus

For a PDF copy of the syllabus: MIS 5303 Design Inquiry and Research SYLLABUS F15 rev1

Design Inquiry and Research

General Information

Global MBA Program

MIS 5303

Credit hours 1.5

Course dates and times:Thursday 8/6 9:00am-1:00pm Alter Hall, Undergrad CommonsThursday 8/20 10:00am-5:00pm Alter Hall, Undergrad Commons

Required Design Challenge classes:

Friday 9/11 8:00am-10:30am TUCC 620

Friday 9/18 9:00am-3:00pm TUCC 620

Course locationSee specific dates.

Instructor Information

Instructor James Moustafellos

Phone 204-4386 (office)

Email jamescm@temple.edu

Office Location 209f Speakman

Office Hours Tuesday and Thursday 11:00-1:00 or by appointment

The preferred method of contact is email

Competency Prerequisites/Co-requisites

Prerequisite Competencies None

Co-requisite Competencies None

Other preparation required or recommended

Course Overview

This course provides a foundation of approaches, skills and working methods to apply throughout the MBA experience. It is less about a distinct subject and more about how to effectively meet the business challenges of a rapidly changing, technologically driven global world.

This course introduces Business Design, a holistic approach to management that combines the analytical strengths of traditional business education with the qualitative research, idea generation and the ability to synthesize information from design education. It is a balance of quantitative and qualitative thinking.

Design Inquiry is a question-based framework to structure this problem solving process to create innovative solutions that are user-centered, socially, culturally and functionally meaningful and economically sustainable.

Below are five behavioral indicators of Design Inquiry that are the course level objectives and outcomes:

Sensory approach to problem solving: Demonstrate an ability to approach complex problem solving experientially by mobilizing all sensory devices of the problem solver.

Think through visual means (diagram, map, draw and produce visual images)
Rely upon tacit knowing
Apply an aesthetic and holistic assessment of alternatives

Open-ended approach to problem solving: Demonstrate an ability to approach complex problem solving through exploration without predisposed solutions

Engage uncertainty and accept risk
Avoid premature closure through iterations
Enjoy improvisation
Embrace change
Discover unexpected outcomes

Empathic approach to problem solving: Demonstrate an ability to approach complex problem through understanding others

Focus on the human side
Empathize with customers
Engage in deep (authentic) listening
Consider hidden stakeholders
Discover unmet needs

Multi-dimensional approach to problem solving: Employ multiple perspectives and productively deal with conflicts and paradox

Entertain multiple alternatives with different models
See the whole
Engage in analytic-synthetic loops
Reconcile conflicting objectives

Making ideas and solutions physical: Translate concepts and ideas into life

Prototype
Role play
Use scenarios
Construct personas

Competency Map

MBA Learning Goal	Competency	Skill	Competency Measurement or Demonstration
Learning Goal	(Primary)Influential Communication [See course level objective 3]	Active listening	Demonstrated through research interviews and the ability to synthesize stakeholder input into narratives that identify contexts of need..
	(Primary)Influential Communication [See course level objective 3]	Written and oral communication	Measured through quality of written narratives of stakeholder interviews and observationsDemonstrated through ability to convey research and ideas to team members and classmates
	(Primary)Influential Communication [See course level objectives 1 and 5]	Visual communication	Measured through the quality of visual representations created to communicate complex relationships, sequences, processes and conceptsDemonstrated through effective use of visual techniques within team process and presentations
	(Primary)Influential Communication [See course level objective 5]	Presentation skills	Demonstrated through team’s ability to construct and convey a logical, complete and compelling story around project proposal
	(Primary) Business Reasoning[See course level objectives 2 and 4]	Identify Sources of Relevant Information and Data for Problem Scenario	Demonstrated through the ability to compile relevant information from multiple, varied and unexpected sources.
	(Primary) Business Reasoning[See course level objectives 2 and 1]	Visualization: Communicating message through imagery	Demonstrated through the use of visual means throughout the design process and the inclusion of effective visual representations in the final proposal
	(Primary) Business Reasoning[See course level objectives 2 and 4]	Draw from Conceptual and Real-World Events to Propose Solutions/Changes to Business Strategies	Demonstrated through how effectively the insights derived from research are translated into innovative proposals
	(Primary) Business Reasoning[See course level objectives 1, 3 and 4]	Articulate Holistic, Multi-Perspective View of Business	Demonstrated through the number of stakeholders considered (including internal, external and hidden stakeholders), the personas developed, and how well their potentially conflicting needs are resolved in the project proposal
Learning Goal	(Secondary) Leadership	Assuming a leadership role in team settings	Measured through peer evaluations
	(Secondary) Identify and Evaluate Business Opportunities	Opportunity recognition and screening	Demonstrated through the identification of unmet stakeholder needs how well they are translated into viable proposals

Teaching Methods

This course uses a studio-based format emphasizing experiential learning through hands-on engagement of ideas and concepts. Readings and lectures are secondary and serve as a backdrop to support hands-on learning. Class sessions include brief presentations, discussions and active learning workshops. Individual work and teamwork combine to allow students to engage projects through personal and collaborative explorations.

Qualitative research based upon ethnography complements the more traditional prioritization of quantitative analysis in management education. Ethnographic research comprises fieldwork, observing people in their natural settings and immersing oneself in the research context. Research methods include: observing, interviewing (descriptive, semi-structured and structured), conducting archival or secondary research, and collecting and reading cultural artifacts. An ethnographic approach to research is an open‑ended emergent learning process that is holistic, flexible, creative, interpretive, iterative and includes discovery.[1]

These skills are essential to achieve the competencies listed above and helpful for many others including: Implementation Management, Cross-Cultural Effectiveness, and Ethical Management.

Course Materials

Required

Required readings are listed in the course schedule.