Employers consistently rate communication skills to be central to an employee's success. Echols is teaching one of two sections of Management 471 this semester. A critical component in the role of strategy in business is to serve as a means of communication and coordination, notes Richard M. Weyer, technology licensing officer in Penn State's Intellectual Property Office. Weyer, a 1998 graduate of the Smeal College MBA program, is serving as an instructor teaching the second section of Management 471 this semester. In the courses, students view videotapes of their in-class presentations and later team together with Mary Pelak, instructor of speech communication, for coaching sessions that pinpoint areas for improvement.
Communication skills are vital to a person's success in the workplace.
Pelak guest lectures on business communication in the classes, videotapes student presentations, and meets with students to help them improve their performance on upcoming assignments. Good quality communications supported by fact-based analysis builds a marketing employee's reputation and builds confidence in the employee's capabilities. Pelak points out that upper-level courses, such as Management 471 and Marketing 450W, are built around assignments that simulate the kinds of work students will do after graduation. Integrating courses help students make connections that they otherwise may not recognize, such as the importance of how they present their ideas in the workplace. Barry P. Drake '73 speech communication, agrees wholeheartedly.