Ava
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Post by Ava on Oct 5, 2014 13:41:16 GMT -5
What you see below is an extract of my syllabus for a class called Business and Society. The teacher wants us to write about a topic for the mid term. The final paper has to be sort of an extension of the mid-term paper, but it has to take into account how 2 or 3 particular companies dealt with the issue you talked about in your mid term paper. I am lost here. Do you have any ideas for a topic?
This is a 7-10 page paper (double-spaced Times New Roman 12-point font with 1” margins T/B/L/R) that investigates an issue in Business and Society. You must clear this topic with me at least 4 weeks before the paper is due by sending me a one-page summary of the topic and what aspects of the topic you plan on investigating. In the midterm paper you may use background information from our textbook or other readings (in fact you are encouraged to do so), but you need to go beyond those readings to present multiple critical perspectives on the issue. In particular you should use multiple sources of information (at least 6 sources, at least 3 of them NOT from the open Internet).
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 5, 2014 14:02:19 GMT -5
How to overcome client's needs in a unique way?
How small businesses are growing communities?
How large corporations who employ min wage workers are killing the American dream?
The effect on society when their home-grown companies move overseas to save on labor and taxes?
?
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Oct 5, 2014 15:12:11 GMT -5
I like the third one, shasta.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 5, 2014 15:41:28 GMT -5
I would go at this backwards. The teacher said you were encouraged to use the textbook and other readings (I assume class readings) as background.
What have you been reading that interests you? You are being asked to extend one of those topics.
My students make the mistake all the time of coming up with really great research topics that they can't support based on their resources. Don't fall into that trap no matter how much you "like" the topic. For example, the "effect of the minimum wage on the American dream." Has that been done in refereed journals? I'm pretty sure that is what he/she means by not using "open Internet sources." No USA Today or MSN Money articles, no matter how "interesting" you find them.
Find out what is out there and work backwards if you want to be really successful. This isn't for an employer. This is a school grade.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Oct 5, 2014 15:43:33 GMT -5
We have been focusing in cases such as KFC, PETA and the ethical treatment of animals. We have studied the case of Rockefeller and Mother Jones. We are now going through a chapter that talks about the social responsibilities of corporations.
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NastyWoman
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Post by NastyWoman on Oct 5, 2014 16:18:24 GMT -5
Does the subject have to be on business and American society? If not you could also look at the opposite side of the results of off shoring? Or maybe both sides? Has off-shoring to poorer countries raised the standard of living in those countries enough (whatever that may be) to offset the effects on American society? Does it introduce new problems "over there" leading to LT negative effects even if therre is a S/T benefit?
This may be a very interesting subject to you, but I would like to keep Southern Sussana's warning in mind-> whatever subject you chose make sure there is enough published material available for you to work with.
good luck
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 5, 2014 17:01:45 GMT -5
I teach undergrad in a business school, and I would suggest something around ethics.
- Child labor?
- CSR? (Corporate Social Responsibility)
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justme
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Post by justme on Oct 5, 2014 17:06:06 GMT -5
I would go at this backwards. The teacher said you were encouraged to use the textbook and other readings (I assume class readings) as background.
What have you been reading that interests you? You are being asked to extend one of those topics.
My students make the mistake all the time of coming up with really great research topics that they can't support based on their resources. Don't fall into that trap no matter how much you "like" the topic. For example, the "effect of the minimum wage on the American dream." Has that been done in refereed journals? I'm pretty sure that is what he/she means by not using "open Internet sources." No USA Today or MSN Money articles, no matter how "interesting" you find them.
Find out what is out there and work backwards if you want to be really successful. This isn't for an employer. This is a school grade. Also, make sure you can find info about companies that have dealt with it so you can do your final paper. Don't want to shoot yourself in the foot. And, as a rule I stayed away from choosing topics that are highly politicized, too easy for personal judgment to affect things.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 5, 2014 17:07:37 GMT -5
Ava I need to go to bed now but if you are interested in Ethics in Business, I have a boatload of topics I could suggest.
To name just a few:
- Big Pharma - Water - blood diamonds - blood minerals
I'm avoiding the topics of fur and animal testing because I know you are an animal lover. This said, animal testing for cosmetics is an interesting topic, because Europe banned it a year or two ago, but the US hasn't. I wonder why (yes that was sarcastic).
Most people don't know that the mineral used in their cell phones has exactly the same issues as blood diamonds, ie the money from mining often goes to fund civil wars and dictatorships.
There are worldwide safeguards in place for the diamonds (the Kimberley Process), but it doesn't really function that well. (The countries that are not part of the agreement often smuggle diamonds into the countries that are, so the diamonds are effectively "laundered" in the process). As far as I know, no such system exists for the cell phone minerals.
I know that as a grad student you will have to go into FAR more depth than my undergrad students. But if you are interested in any of these topics, I can point you in the right direction / send you some resources to help you get started.
ETA: I'm working long days today and tomorrow but send me a PM if you are interested in any of these topics and I will get back to you. Again, since I teach undergrad, it would just be getting you started / pointing you in the right direction. My students do an Ethics module, but they just do a 15m PPT in groups of 3, and a two-page paper summarizing the issues around their chosen topic (because their issue is learning to synthesize).
Some films you can watch if you are interested in ethics: The Constant Gardener (Big Pharma), Blood Diamond, one of the many recent documentaries on water, or the TED talk called "Demand a Fair Trade Cell Phone".
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Oct 6, 2014 7:39:18 GMT -5
I would go at this backwards. The teacher said you were encouraged to use the textbook and other readings (I assume class readings) as background.
What have you been reading that interests you? You are being asked to extend one of those topics.
My students make the mistake all the time of coming up with really great research topics that they can't support based on their resources. Don't fall into that trap no matter how much you "like" the topic. For example, the "effect of the minimum wage on the American dream." Has that been done in refereed journals? I'm pretty sure that is what he/she means by not using "open Internet sources." No USA Today or MSN Money articles, no matter how "interesting" you find them.
Find out what is out there and work backwards if you want to be really successful. This isn't for an employer. This is a school grade. This is really an excellent suggestion. Choose a topic from journal articles, NOT the popular press. Much of what the press reports is unsubstantiated, and when you go back to the original articles, you see how many times the popular press article is based on something very much out of context (I see this all the time in medical releases, where the journal article does not substantiate what the press says). It also gives you a body of research to work from. There is nothing so frustrating to have a great topic, but little in refereed journals to use. Believe me, this was one of the first reasons why my first thesis topic went belly up.
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hoops902
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Post by hoops902 on Oct 6, 2014 11:34:16 GMT -5
How to overcome client's needs in a unique way? How small businesses are growing communities? How large corporations who employ min wage workers are killing the American dream? The effect on society when their home-grown companies move overseas to save on labor and taxes? ? Interesting topics, but I think FAR too broad to be able to reasonably cover in a short term paper. And I know Ava liked #3, but that's probably not a suitable topic either if only because it quickly turns into an op-ed piece and not a research paper. I think southernsusana hit the nail on the head. You're encouraged to use material from the textbook, what topics does it cover? Pick something fairly specific so that you can thoroughly cover the topic in the space allowed, and steer away from topics likely to turn into opinion pieces (like above, what is the american dream, is there an argument large corporations make the american dream possible by providing jobs, etc).
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Oct 6, 2014 17:42:23 GMT -5
How about the transition from business as a cottage industry to the multinational mega corporation and how that affected society.
Things like:
Women in the work place.
Marriage
Urbanization
Work structure
Work hours
The change in social, marital, and family structure
Employee compensation, the impact on working people's standard of living and the economy
The consumer's access to good and services (this could be addressed in the context of transportation and the distribution of goods and services) (Some good analysis candidates would be Ames Shovel Company/Ames True Temper, Sears, Amazon, Walmart, Microsoft, or Intuit.)
One could even look at how the Hawthorne studies on scientific management affected both business and society.
The requirement that some sources not come from the internet means read a book. Use a resource that isn't on line. The objective here is for kids to learn that they can get information from someplace other than the internet. Heck, a student might even talk to an old timer to learn what work and the business world was like when the old timer was young.
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Angel!
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Post by Angel! on Oct 6, 2014 17:49:44 GMT -5
My first thought is the environment. How/why some companies are going green. I'm specifically thinking about how walmart made huge changes in an effort to be more environmentally friendly, but really for the most part it just helped their bottom line.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 6, 2014 17:49:51 GMT -5
The requirement that some sources not come from the internet means read a book. Use a resource that isn't on line. The objective here is for kids to learn that they can get information from someplace other than the internet. Heck, a student might even talk to an old timer to learn what work and the business world was like when the old timer was young. The way Ava quoted her professor was not from the Open Internet. By that, I figured she meant that she had no problem with using the indexes provided by the school's library. These usually take you to refereed journals, etc.
Books are nice (heck, I am an English teacher), but it takes a long time to get a book published so they are rarely topical enough in certain fields. They work great in 18th century literature, but less so in, say, business.
At least that's what they were teaching in library school a couple of years ago.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Oct 6, 2014 17:56:21 GMT -5
Thanks for all the excellent suggestions. What the professor means by "sources other than the open internet" is not exactly that we have to read a book. He's pointing us in the school library's direction. The library has an excellent website for students, and you can read a lot of content from the comfort of your home.
I know this is a graduate class but the papers are extra work. If you don't do them, you can get a B, if you do the papers you have a shot to a B+ or an A. So while I want to offer him a good paper, I don't want to overdo it because my time and energy are limited.
I think my best bet is something specific such as the evolution of wages and compensation in American society and the social responsibility of corporations towards their employees.
For the second paper I can research the case of Walmart and Costco, to show how different companies deal with the same issue.
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Angel!
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Post by Angel! on Oct 6, 2014 17:57:52 GMT -5
I'm probably lazy, but I would take the B & skip the papers. Assuming you are on track to get a B, if you are on track for a lower grade, then definitely do the paper.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Oct 6, 2014 18:01:32 GMT -5
The requirement that some sources not come from the internet means read a book. Use a resource that isn't on line. The objective here is for kids to learn that they can get information from someplace other than the internet. Heck, a student might even talk to an old timer to learn what work and the business world was like when the old timer was young. The way Ava quoted her professor was not from the Open Internet. By that, I figured she meant that she had no problem with using the indexes provided by the school's library. These usually take you to refereed journals, etc.
Books are nice (heck, I am an English teacher), but it takes a long time to get a book published so they are rarely topical enough in certain fields. They work great in 18th century literature, but less so in, say, business.
At least that's what they were teaching in library school a couple of years ago.
You are probably right. The instructor just wants sources other than Wiki versions of things. However, it doesn't appear that the requirement is an analysis of contemporary issues in business and society. So on-line journals and periodicals may not be the only sources available. And, let's face it. The issues most businesses face are not all that new. They are just todays twist on the issues that businesses have been addressing for centuries (for example, industrial water pollution during the middle ages).
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TheOtherMe
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Post by TheOtherMe on Oct 6, 2014 21:07:21 GMT -5
I was an overachiever and would not just take the B. What if I screw up somewhere else and need the paper?
Have you considered what Golden Parachutes paid to fired executives do to employees and shareholders? I've seen what it has done to some of my friends.
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