2025-01-03
A new semester is just around the corner. We're sharing the
the first assignments for those who want to get an early start.
Review our guide on Expectations Management! Please make sure we are all
clear about what we're getting into by reviewing the
guide Is 435 right for me? -
Get started on the first assignments!
Getting these very small tasks out of the way will keep the decks cleared
for more interesting things once the semester arrives.
- Purchase your Clifton Strengths assessment. This skills assessment is
for our exercises on team building and is available for a student discounted
rate from the folks at Gallup:
Clifton Strengths
(The "Top 5" report is adequate for our needs and much less expensive.)
Save and study the PDF reports, which are specific to each person;
place the Signature Themes Report in
your Subversion folder (which you will receive first day of semester.)
- Update your resume. Prepare this as a PDF document.
Please only share details with which you are comfortable. We use the content
later in sorting out talents for teams and projects, and to figure out early who knows how
to follow directions (which is one of the most basic skill sets of our business.)
Place this in a PDF document "resume.pdf" in your repository folder as well.
- Prepare a thoughtful statement of what you want to get out of 435.
Craft this as a Word document, and place it in your Subversion folder as file "goals.docx".
In general we judge more than just the payload of your submissions, so please remember
that evidence of timeliness, preparation and planning always count. Everything you
do reflects on you.
Students on the waitlist should plan to attend the class from day one and
perform the above assignments in anticipation of being admitted to the section.
We only issue repository credentials to enrolled students, so if (and only if) you
are on the waitlist then email the professor with your submissions attached before the
deadlines; this will ensure your work is treated as on-time should you be able to add
the class later. Pro tip: Commit to success from day one.
We rely on workmanship offered in early assignments when making decisions on teaming and
tasking, so consider seriously what we will have to work with.
Overall, exercise of initiative in the interest of quality is rewarded, so pay attention,
demonstrate decent critical thinking skills and focus on success from the start. Do that and
we'll make the semester worth your while. Assignments On the first day of the semester we will email credentials
for access to the class repository (which is one of several ways we will communicate this
semester) to each student registered. Our first assignments (as above) will be
due by SOB on Thursday, January 30th. Teams We will form four-person teams starting the first day of class.
These teams will conduct practice exercises ("scrimmages") early in semester in order to get
used to some of the basics before we tackle the class project. You're free to form these teams
as you like, though don't panic if you don't know anyone else in class since we'll make time
available adjacent to each class in order to meet one another. |