29 MBA PROGRAM The College of Business initiated a new Applied Capstone course (BUS 591) for the MBA Program this past semester. The course enables students to apply the full body of what they learned to a real-world consulting project. The experience also helps students practice effective communication protocols and learn the roles and norms within a team to effectively address client issues, Dr. Saehwa Hong explained. When in the classroom, Hong teaches the students strategic business concepts that assist in preparing their projects and prompts open-ended questions, so they can brainstorm and troubleshoot various ideas; but the bulk of the class is done in the field. For the field portion, Dr. Hong is assisted by Dr. Gary Chao, chair of the Department of Business, as well as Dr. Therese Maskulka, professor of marketing. The classroom is broken up into groups of three to four students with each group assigned a local business as a client. This semester, the clients were provided by Allentown Economic Development Corporation (AEDC). In return for their participation, students offer recommendations to improve the firm’s performance. The students’ goals are “to analyze the scope of issues, identify potential solutions, and evaluate alternative solutions in order to propose the best solution to implement,” Dr. Saehwa Hong explained. They are also prompted to design their own interview questions to collect market data from their clients. Students learn to create and maintain a Gantt chart, as well as write weekly reports, important skills to help students manage their time, focus on their goals, keep track of processes, and be prepared to manage changing circumstances. “It’s not a textbook of made-up examples,” Tammy Bailey explained, one of the students in the class, “It is a real-life project, and we have to meet the goals, deadlines, and deliverables, so we’re going to have a real impact.” She elaborated that it is also a bit different than being an employee because “we give our recommendations as consultants at the end of the semester, but then that’s the end of it.” The students don’t necessarily see their proposal implemented, but present their recommendations for the client to decide on implementing. “I think it’s definitely a class that needs to be taken; Bailey relayed. “It’s going to look great on a resume for students who have no prior experience.” Responsibility, in regard to decision-making and time management, are prominent factors in the course. Hong explained that this “gives students the perspective of a decision-maker and initiator when analyzing internal and external environments.” “You have deadlines in school,” Bailey explained, “but these are real-life deadlines and if you miss them you have to take responsibility.” She continued, “these responsibilities are not only to your clients, but teammates as well and we are learning the leadership skills of bringing out the best of each other while working together to satisfy the goal.” For instance, Bailey’s group contains a variety of students that have taken an array of different classes such as marketing, data analytics, and ethics in leadership, etc. “The cumulation of what we’ve all learned in various classes taken at Kutztown add a lot of value to what we’re doing in this course,” she explained. The course also works as a networking tool where students can connect with local businesses, learning to communicate with actual companies in a professional manner. Bailey explained that the groups handle a lot of different forms of communication (in-person meetings, emails, text messages, etc.) and with many different people and personalities. Students also meet with a mentor every week who imparts their real-world experiences to the students and helps them maneuver through the various dynamics of the program. Dr. Gary Chao noticed a great overall improvement in student’s presentation skills and how they relay content. In a world where business knowledge can be gained through various sources, “skill needs to be learned and practiced. That is why they have to present their work and engage with the client, their mentors, and groupmates,” he explained. Chao also observed that “the students have become more mature than before.” Next semester, the students will change, but Dr. Chao is already working to find new clients and new challenges with current clients. “We don’t want to repeat the same problem,” he explained. “This semester is a pilot test, and now we need to scaleup.”
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