Professional Development Experience

READING ASSIGNMENT

The following are suggested activities to consider for your professional development activities. There may be other opportunities in your area, but whether you choose one of the suggested activities or find something on your own, your instructor must approve your choices before you begin.

Attend a Local Chamber of Commerce Meeting

A local Chamber of Commerce meeting is a good place to meet people and to see what’s going on in business in your area. You can Google the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Web site or contact your local Chamber of Commerce for its meeting schedule. Spend some time navigating through the local Chamber’s Web site to familiarize yourself with their mission and/or vision statement, officers, members, and activities. Typically, local Chamber of Commerce Web sites provide information that’s valuable to the local members.

Rather than just showing up at a meeting, first call the local Chamber and speak with the staff. Tell them that you’re completing a coursework assignment and would like a mentor, if available—someone willing to introduce you to Chamber members and assist you in learning more about the organization. Doing so will enhance the quality of your experience and afford greater success in both networking and maintaining your connection with new contacts.

Attend a Guest-Speaker Event at a College or University

Every college and university presents outside speakers to enrich their students’ education and to attract local leaders and community members to the campus. Look for a college or university event in your area that’s related to business, economics, or public-policy issues. Events are often publicized in newspapers and on the institution’s Web site. You may wish to call the university’s business department to ask if any public events are coming up or contact several institutions and ask to be placed on their mailing lists to receive e-mail or printed notices for these opportunities.

Attend an Institute of Management Accountants Chapter Meeting

The membership of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) includes professionals in accounting, finance, and information technology. The vast majority of those attending will be Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) and Certified Management Accountants (CMAs). However, the CMA exam, unlike the CPA exam, tests all business disciplines, so you also may find attorneys and real estate brokers at these meetings. Membership in each group will vary.

Begin planning to attend a local meeting by reviewing the IMA Web site. You should be able to locate a nearby IMA chapter on this Web site; if not, send an e-mail asking for the nearest group. Once you make contact, ask if they’ll recommend a mentor to introduce you to chapter members and improve the quality of your networking experience.

Professional Development Planning Tools and Forms

The following is a summary of your professional development (PD) planning tools and submission requirements. Check each step to help you organize and complete your assignments for this part of your capstone project.

1. Professional Development (PD)—What Counts

Read the “What Counts” requirements and the section on self-evaluation and planning before you choose your PD activities. Then discuss your ideas with your instructor and make sure you have approval for the activities before you attend.

2. Self-Evaluation and Planning Framework

Use the criteria to plan your intended PD activities and to evaluate their value after you complete them. If you’re not satisfied with the potential value of one or both of them, look further to find a more worthwhile experience. For instance, you may live in a small town and learn that your local Chamber of Commerce or business professionals’ organization has a very small membership and isn’t very active. You might decide to call an organization in a larger community or a nearby city to make arrangements to attend their meeting instead. On the other hand, if you plan to work in your small town, the local group might be a better choice, since any contacts you make through networking will be more helpful you once you’re working.

3. Professional Development Sessions Essays

During or immediately after an event, make notes on the people you’ve heard speak, your mentor, and others you’ve been introduced to. Answer the questions and note the relationship of each aspect of your experience to your area of interest. Also note important points and new ideas that were part of the presentation or meeting discussion.

4. Writing Guidelines

See the writing guidelines in the “Submitting Your Work” section at the end of this book.

5. Sessions Summary

Log the time you spend in planning, attending, and reporting on your PD sessions.

Professional Development Activities: What Does and Doesn’t Count

To clarify what kind of activities are acceptable as professional development activities for your assignments, use the guidelines that follow.

What Doesn’t Count

The following activities do not qualify as valid experiences for your professional-development assignment:

• Staff meetings at work with your present employer— these are required as part of your current employment and don’t contribute to the development of new PD skills or experiences.

• Mentoring others—the PD experience should represent a new or novel experience and be directed by others.

• Time spent reading a book, an activity that’s not interactive or directed by others.

• Renewal courses for current position or certifications, which are generally part of employment requirements.

What Does Count

The following activities do qualify as valid experiences for your professional-development assignment:

• PD activities outside of or beyond the minimums required by your current employer

• Workshops, seminars, or meetings held by local professional societies, including the American Marketing Association, American Management Association, Institute of Management Accountants, Society of Certified Public Accountants, or others closely linked to your area of interest and associated with your degree program

• PD activities requiring involvement and exposure to the local community, such as a local Chamber of Commerce meeting where the agenda includes the approval process for new or local businesses; a local, significant college or university seminar; a conference or presentation by relevant guest speakers

• Other PD activities approved by your instructor

Self-Evaluation and Planning Framework

Use the following criteria to evaluate your proposed professional development activities. Make sure your plan meets each standard in relation to your area of interest or specialization. If an activity doesn’t meet the criteria, continue searching until you find one that does.

Make sure each activity meets the following criteria:

• It’s relevant to your area of interest.

• It provides significant interaction with business professionals.

• It has potential to improve your future achievement in business.

• It offers a significant opportunity for learning.

• It provides an opportunity to integrate what you’ve learned in your business and writing courses.

Your Professional Development Sessions Essays

You must complete one essay for each PD event you attend. Essays will be graded according to the guidelines provided. Essays that don’t meet minimum criteria may, at the instructor’s discretion, be returned to the student for revision.

Note: Read the project submission instructions at the end of this book before beginning your session essays.

Each essay should be well written and should describe your activity and present your opinion on the applicability of your new knowledge and PD experience. Each PD experience will be unique, depending on your interests, expectations, and results.

Make sure you answer the following questions:

• What were the educational benefits of the PD experience?

• Did you meet people who work in your area of interest? If so, how do you plan to stay in contact with them?

• Were you able to use your education and prior coursework experiences to identify any theoretical or methodological strengths or weaknesses in the materials presented for your PD experience?

• How will you apply the PD experience to your future professional goals and objectives?

Writing Guidelines

Briefly describe the content of the session (fewer than 750 words, typed, double-spaced). Include a description of how you prepared for your PD session, what you expected prior to participating in it, and how this compared with your actual PD experience. Where possible, reflect on how your session relates to the coursework you’ve completed.

Refer to the “Submitting Your Work” section at the end of this section for details on submission requirements for the Professional Development Project.

Grading Criteria

Your assignments will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

Content

80 percent

Written Communication

10 percent

Format

10 percent

Here’s a brief explanation of each of these points.

Content

The student:

• Fulfills each assignment completely, answering all questions and fully addressing the topics and issues presented

• Writes answers in complete sentences and well-developed paragraphs

• Supports his or her judgment by citing specific information from coursework, textbooks, or other appropriate references, using correct APA or MLA guidelines for citations and references

• Stays focused on the assigned issues

• Writes in his or her own words and uses quotation marks to indicate direct quotations

Written Communication

The student:

• Addresses each section in complete paragraphs that include an introduction, a complete answer or explanation for each issue, and a conclusion.

• Uses correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure

• Provides clear organization (for example, uses words like first, however, on the other hand, and so on, consequently, since, next, and when)

• Makes sure the paper contains no typographical errors

Format

The paper is double-spaced and typed in font size 12.

It includes the student’s:

• Name and complete mailing address

• Student number

• Course title and number (Senior Capstone: Business, BUS 450)

• Correct research project number for each submission: Professional Development Seminar 50089400

Sessions Summary

In addition to writing your summary or report, you must log the time you spend on preparation, event attendance, and writing the report. Record your PD activity hours on a separate page and send it to your instructor with your reports. Use the information below to create your time log.

Professional Development Session Summary

Senior Capstone: Business

Include a separate “sessions summary” page when you send your PD activity reports to the school. Record a PD activity summary for each of your two required experiences using the following guidelines:

Your name and student number

Event information and contact hours Include the name of the activity and attach a copy of the agenda or flyer, if available

Date and time of session

Names of instructors and/or presenters (include titles and credentials)

Preparation hours Preparation date(s) and number of hours spent planning

Activity hours Event start time and end (subtract break time from total hours)

Reflection/summary hours Time spent on your summary report preparation, including date(s) and hours

TOTAL TIME SPENT ON ACTIVITY