BUSINESS LEADERSHIP AND HUMAN VALUES (BLHV)
2 Credits
BU.131.601.32
May 28, 2024 – July 25, 2024
SUMMER 2024
ONLINE
SYNCHRONOUS SESSIONS
https://jhucarey.zoom.us/my/lindsaythompsonzoom
WEEK 1
Wednesday, May 29, 2024
8-9 PM
WEEK 3
Wednesdsay, June 12, 2024
8-9 PM
WEEK 6
Wednesday, July 3, 2024
8-9 PM
Instructor
Lindsay J Thompson, PhD
Contact Information
410-935-3709
Office Hours
Before and after synchronous sessions and by appointment.
Teaching Assistant
Grace Clark, PhD
Required Text and Learning Materials
The Leadership Labyrinth: Values for a Livable Future, Thompson, L. (2022). Dubuque: Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. ISBN 979-8-7657-4563-2.
The Leadership Labyrinth is a course manual available for purchase with a free e-reader app to download directly from Kendall-Hunt Publishing: The Leadership Labyrinth: Values For a Livable Future | Higher Education (kendallhunt.com).
Based on the Johns Hopkins seminar model, Business Leadership and Human Values (BLHV) is a highly interactive series of thematic conversations about leadership and values in diverse social contexts of business, professions, and society. There is a lot of active reading and communication in this course!
You are expected to read at least one mainstream business news source regularly. You should reference your business news sources in class participation, online discussions, and written assignments that demonstrate your thoughtful understanding and interpretation of current ethical issues in business and society. Be sure that your electronic access to Canvas, libraries, and other Johns Hopkins websites is activated from your devices and working effectively. You will find a navigation link to JHU Sheridan Libraries e-reserves is on the left margin menu on the Canvas course site home page.
Recommended business news sources:
Asia Pacific Business
Asia Pacific Business Review
Asian Wall Street Journal
Business and Financial Times (Ghana)
Bloomberg Business Week
Business Wire Latin America
European Business Forum : EBF
Fast Company
Financial Times
Forbes
Wall Street Journal
Course Description and Overview
BLHV is focused on the challenge of activating your best self in a world of moral uncertainty and complexity. The BLHV learning model draws on the arts and sciences of values with content and practices designed to cultivate moral understanding and expertise by engaging your brain in activities that are distinctly different from the work of quantitative, analytical thinking and problem solving.
You should log into the Canvas course site before the first class to review the themes and explore the learning theory underlying the design and implementation of the course. The documents on constructive learning and transformational learning are especially valuable in preparing for a highly interactive course requiring initiative, critical reflection, and collaboration engaging with ethical questions and moral challenges.
Prerequisite(s)
None
Active Learning Objectives
This course is designed for you to activate your best self by building and refining your toolkit of knowledge, skills, and practices as a conscientious leader:
Foster your personal moral intelligence and wellbeing.
Think and communicate effectively about values and ethics.
Lead purposeful conversations about values and ethics.
Foster human values as the moral foundation of leadership and value creation.
Develop and justify an action plan to manage an ethical challenge.
Throughout the BLHV Seminar you will explore the architecture of human values and behavioral ethics from various dimensions: personal, organizational, societal, cultural, and cross-cultural. The BLHV Seminar is an opportunity for you to cultivate skills and dispositions of self-awareness, critical thinking, collaborative inquiry, dialogue, discernment, and decision-making that will foster your effectiveness as a conscientious leader in every aspect of your life. For a complete list of the Carey Business School’s general learning goals and objectives, visit the Carey website.
Navigating the Course
To do well in this course, it is important to become familiar with Canvas. The details of assignments and readings are in the Canvas modules. Start with the Canvas home page links labeled “Welcome” and “First Steps,” follow the instructions, and then move on to Module 1.
Course Policies: Attendance, Participation, and Communications
You are expected to attend and participate actively in all scheduled class sessions and activities; failure to attend class will jeopardize your performance and achievement of course objectives. You are required to participate actively in building a peer learning and practice community. Rather than learning about values, the BLHV Seminar engages and challenges you to anchor value creation in human values. Whatever your career goals, the experience of discussing and debating ideas and values with your classmates will challenge you to envision business leadership as a moral trust others place in you to manage assets, solve problems, seize opportunities, and lead people in creating and monetizing sustainable value.
The Canvas Q&A Discussion Board
This is where to submit your questions regarding course navigation, course content, course assignments, and other related queries. This format will allow you to see the questions your classmates have already asked, as well as the answers that have been provided. Your instructor and/or Teaching Assistant (TA) will monitor the discussion board. If you have an urgent or personal question (such as grades), please email your instructor directly. Otherwise, please use the Q&A discussion board.
BLHV Canvas Teams
The BLHV Seminar is organized in small teams to engage you in collaborative small group peer learning. Regular practice in purposeful conversations about current issues and incidents invites you to clarify and refine your skill in thinking and communicating about values and ethics. Teamwork is an essential part of your work in this course and represents a major portion of your grade.
You can locate your assigned BLHV Team by clicking on “People” in the left margin menu of the Canvas course site. On the top of the “People” page you will find your BLHV Team. Be sure to connect with your team before the first class.
Assignments
Your grade for the course will be based on your performance in two areas: 1) Weekly class engagement and 2) Major assignments for your Personal Best Portfolio.
Weekly Interactive Class Engagement (40% of your grade)
You will not succeed in BLHV on autopilot. You must participate actively and consistently every week to fulfill your individual responsibility for creating a vibrant, dynamic learning community of practice in thinking and communicating purposefully about values and ethics. Showing up and participating as your “best self” is important for learning and for your grade. Your consistent, interactive class engagement will be monitored and evaluated throughout the course:
Canvas Discussion Board BLHV Team Conversations: Every week, both the quantity and quality of your contributions to the discussion board count. Monologues are not discussions – discussions are interactive! Begin early in the week with a real conversation that demonstrates your original thoughts and your attentive response to your teammates’ thoughts.
Sync Session Activities: Your presence and participation count. Sync sessions are an opportunity to practice interactive listening and speaking in real time with classmates and the teaching team.
Your discussion board and sync session performance is an opportunity to improve proficiency in your ability to:
Explore, analyze, evaluate, and resolve morally challenging “live case” issues, incidents, scenarios, and issues: Read each week’s live case and draw from current events or your own experience to identify concrete examples for discussion of how this challenge is manifested in business, society, and professional life and what actions should be taken to resolve it.
Understand and discuss ideas and values with a thoughtful point of view: Read, question, challenge, and express your views on the theme narrative and “Deep Dive” material. Clarify and enrich your point of view with independent inquiry and research.
Activate your best self: Explore, reflect, and apply weekly theme content and live case conversations to clarify and refine your goals, values, and practices as a conscientious leader.
Personal Best Portfolio (60% of your grade)
Using the Pecha Kucha format, you will create a portfolio of two stories that demonstrate key elements of your “personal best” achievements in the course: 1) The Moral Compass, and 2) The Live Case Action Plan. The Personal Best Portfolio demonstrates how you are using the BLHV course intentionally and strategically as a platform for activating your best self to build a successful life and career.
The Personal Best Portfolio includes two separate deliverables:
DUE WEEK 4: The Moral Compass. This part of your Personal Best Portfolio defines the core values, principles, and practices of your Moral Compass based on your personal experience, wisdom traditions, and interpretation and discussions of course material. Instructions for completing the Moral Compass deliverable are in Canvas Assignments. Be sure to pay careful attention to the Moral Compass grading rubrics! NOTE: With several weeks to work on this assignment, there will be no time extensions granted for any reason.
DUE WEEK 7: Live Case Action Plan. This part of your Personal Best Portfolio demonstrates your ability to respond effectively to a moral challenge. Instructions for completing the Moral Challenge Action Plan deliverable are in Canvas Assignments. Be sure to pay careful attention to the Moral Challenge Action grading rubrics! NOTE: With several weeks to work on this assignment, there will be no time extensions granted for any reason.
Please read further details of each assignment posted on Canvas.
ASSIGNMENT
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
POINTS
Class Engagement (4 points + 8 bonus points per week)
Canvas weekly BLHV Team Conversations
Bonus leadership points (instructor discretion)
1, 2, 3, 4, 5
40
32
8
Moral Compass Pecha Kucha
1, 2, 4
30
Live Case Action Plan
2, 5
30
100
Grading
The grade of A is reserved for those who demonstrate extraordinary performance as determined by the instructor. The grade of A- is awarded only for excellent performance. Grades of B+ and B are awarded for proficient performance. Grades of B-, C+, C, and C- are awarded for adequate but substandard performance. The grades of D+, D, and D- are not awarded at the graduate level. The grade of F indicates the student’s failure to satisfactorily complete the course work. For Core/Foundation courses, the grade point average of the class should not exceed 3.35. For Elective courses, the grade point average should not exceed 3.45.
Grading Rubrics
The BLHV Seminar is designed to foster personal integrity and commitment to values. Proficient performance (B or above) underlies the rubrics attached to specific assignments and requires that you:
Demonstrate authentic personal commitment to exploring and fostering human values as the moral anchor of personal integrity, leadership, and value creation.
Demonstrate consistent, active engagement.
Prepare thoroughly and participate actively in the Canvas BLHV Team discussion board and other required learning activities. Thoughtful, collaborative conversations evolve over time, so you should plan to begin reading the assigned material and posting your comments early each week. This is especially important for the Canvas BLHV Team Conversations. A big "monologue dump" at the end of the week will not earn high points.
Complete all deliverables fully, in proper format, and on time. There is no exception to this rule. The assignments for the course are posted in advance to enable timely completion.
Work effectively with others. It is likely that you will work with the same BLHV Team for the entire course.
Policy for Timely Assignments
Assignments are due on the designated dates and times as posted by the instructor. There are no “do-overs” for assignments after they are submitted. Instructors will not review and comment on major assignments prior to submission.
The first post for weekly Canvas BLHV Team Conversations is due on Wednesdays in Weeks 2-8. (More time is allowed for Week 1.) The penalty for late first posts is 1 point.
The Moral Compass and the Moral Case Brief will incur the following penalties for late submission:
< 24 hours late (less than 1 day): 1 point
24-48 hours late (1-2 days:) 3 points
>48 hours (more than 2 days): The assignment will not be accepted and will be graded as 0 (zero).
In extraordinarily rare circumstances instructors may consider adjusting these policies.
Course Calendar
The course calendar is available on Canvas. Instructors reserve the right to alter course content and/or adjust the pace to accommodate class progress. You are responsible for keeping up with all adjustments to the course calendar. See the specific due dates and times for assignments in Canvas weekly modules.
Carey Business School Policies and General Information
Canvas Site
A Canvas course site is set up for this course. Each student is expected to check the site throughout the semester as Canvas will be the primary venue for outside classroom communications between the instructors and the students. Students can access the course site at Canvas.jhu.edu.
Technical Support
24/7 technical support for questions regarding Zoom, Canvas, and other technical issues is available. Please refer to the Carey Canvas Support information box (located within Canvas’s My Institution tab) for contact information and other details.
Students with Disabilities - Accommodations and Accessibility
Johns Hopkins University values diversity and inclusion. We are committed to providing welcoming, equitable, and accessible educational experiences for all students. Students with disabilities (including those with psychological conditions, medical conditions, and temporary disabilities) can request accommodation for this course by providing an Accommodation Letter issued by Student Disability Services. Please request accommodation for this course as early as possible to provide time for effective communication and arrangements. For further information or to start the process of requesting accommodation, please contact Student Disability Services at the Carey Business School.
Academic Ethics Policy
Carey expects graduates to be innovative business leaders and exemplary global citizens. The Carey community believes that honesty, integrity, and community responsibility are qualities inherent in an exemplary citizen. The Academic Ethics Policy (AEP)'s objective is to create an environment of trust and respect among all Carey academic community members and hold Carey students accountable to the highest standards of academic integrity and excellence.
Every Carey student, faculty member, and staff member is responsible for familiarizing themselves with the AEP and its procedures. Failure to become acquainted with this information will not excuse any student, faculty, or staff from the responsibility to abide by the AEP. Please contact the Office of Student Affairs if you have any questions. For the full policy, please visit the Academic Ethics Policy webpage.
Student Conduct Code
The fundamental purpose of the Johns Hopkins University’s regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community as well as to promote the orderly operation of the University and to safeguard its property and facilities. Please contact the Office of Student Affairs if you have any questions regarding this policy. For the full policy, please visit the Student Conduct Code webpage.
Policy on Generative AI
Generative AI is allowed for the Moral Compass and Moral Challenge Case Brief.
Academic integrity is a cornerstone of the Carey Business School. Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT are widely available, and these technologies present many exciting opportunities in the classroom. In this course, you may use generative AI tools on the two major assignments, but you must disclose how you used it in the Honor Statement for each of these assignments. You are not allowed to use AI tools for the weekly team discussions. There will be serious consequences if undisclosed or unauthorized use of generative AI is discovered.
Student Conduct Code
The fundamental purpose of the Johns Hopkins University’s regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community as well as to promote the orderly operation of the University and to safeguard its property and facilities. Please contact the Office of Student Affairs if you have any questions regarding this policy. For the full policy, please visit the Student Conduct Code webpage.
Hybrid and Remote-Live Classes
Carey is committed to maintaining our standard of excellence in all forms of instruction. To that end, we have developed policies and procedures for classes offered in hybrid and remote-live formats. These policies will govern all courses occurring in these formats, and all students are expected to familiarize themselves with and adhere to these policies.
Student Success Center
The Student Success Center offers core writing and quantitative course help. For more information, visit the Student Success Center webpage.
Other Important Policies and Services
Students are encouraged to consult the Student Handbook and Academic Catalog and Student Services and Resources for information regarding other policies and services.
Copyright Statement
Unless explicitly allowed by the instructor, course materials, class discussions, and examinations are created for and expected to be used by class participants only. The recording and rebroadcasting of such material, by any means, is forbidden. Violations are subject to sanctions under the Academic Ethics Policy.
