Course Description
The focus of this course is on development of employability skills essential for today’s office personnel. Models for analytical thinking, problem-solving, decision-making, teamwork, and conflict resolution will be presented and practiced within the context of current business issues such as multiculturalism, employment equity, harassment, ethics, and productivity. The following office worker skills will be addressed: promoting products and services of the organization, telephone and reception techniques, organization and time management, stress management, self- analysis, self-promotion, and professional development.
Course Content
- Critical Thinking: Problem-solving and Decision-making
- Define the value of analytical and creative thinking.
- Use a model for analytical, creative, and logical problem solving and decision making.
- Use a logical, comprehensive approach to taking action, and assessing any decision.
- Interpersonal Relationships
- Understand and be sensitive to the roles, relationships, and protocols within business environments.
- Recognize the value of and develop skills to cope with human diversity within the business environment.
- Identify and adapt to a variety of communication styles.
- Practice active listening.
- Provide and elicit feedback to ensure accuracy and completeness of any communication.
- Exhibit ability to give and to receive criticism appropriately and to learn from constructive criticism.
- Recognize the positive potential of conflict and develop tactics for managing conflict.
- Team Roles and Participation
- Adapt to and effectively interact with team members throughout the phases of team development.
- Recognize the importance of clearly defining the goals of a team; articulate those goals orally and in writing.
- Identify and carry out the roles and responsibilities assumed by a productive member of a team.
- Set sanctions for the non-compliance of task and relationship standards set by the team.
- Assess one’s own and other team members’ performance as part of a team.
- Demonstrate trustworthiness, commitment, and time management as a team member.
- Use effective communication and conflict resolution skills.
- Self-Development
- Perform self-assessments to ascertain wants, needs, communication style, learning style, strengths and weaknesses, values and interests.
- Set realistic, measurable short- and long-term personal and career goals to support one’s mission statement.
- Identify and exhibit attitudes and behaviours for success in a business environment including positive attitude, cooperation, punctuality, regular attendance, flexibility, sensitivity to differences, networking ethical behavior, submission of quality work, and open communication.
- Describe the importance of and formulate strategies to facilitate life-long learning.
- Assess and articulate one’s own demonstrated employability skills, attitudes, and behaviours.
- Time and Stress Management
- Recognize the value of positive stress.
- Employ appropriate techniques for controlling negative stress.
- Adopt time management tools to reduce stress, to meet deadlines, and to increase productivity by identifying and eliminating time wasters, using new office technologies and systems, prioritizing work, and using calendaring and bring forward systems.
- Develop the ability to say “no” assertively without damaging relationships.
- Client Relations, Telephone Techniques, and Reception
- Participate actively in furthering the goals of a business by knowing and promoting its products/services.
- Judge issues of confidentiality when giving and receiving client or corporate information.
- Greet visitors and make introductions confidently and effectively.
- Give and obtain accurate, helpful, timely information when needed.
- Answer the telephone and record messages accurately.
- Screen telephone calls and visitors using tact and empathy.
- Ethical Behaviour and Decision-Making
- Interpret and apply socially accepted standards of conduct expected in a business setting.
- Use integrity and ethics when making decisions.
Learning Activities
Emphasis throughout this course will be on active learning. Students will work both independently and collaboratively to develop, demonstrate, and practice skills relating to the subject matter. The instructor will use short lectures and modeling to introduce new concepts and behaviours. Videos, speakers, periodicals, case studies, critical analysis, and company profiles related to current, relevant business situations will be incorporated into the course. Role plays will be used to simulate realistic business situations such as promoting business products and services, handling telephone and reception situations, giving and receiving criticism, and resolving conflict. Videos may be used to facilitate self- and peer-assessment.
Means of Assessment
| Assignments, cases, and/or projects |
40 - 60% |
| Presentation(s) |
0 - 10% |
| Test(s) |
0 - 15% |
| Final |
10 - 15% |
| Employability Skills (criteria based) |
10 - 15% |
| Total |
100% |
Learning Outcomes
The learner has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
- Apply analytical thinking to facilitate problem-solving and decision-making;
- Understand the importance of and use of appropriate interpersonal skills;
- Participate as a productive member of a team to reach a defined goal;
- Evaluate his/her self-development and professionalism, then implement strategies for maintenance and/or change;
- Implement time and stress management techniques;
- Develop and apply effective client relation skills, telephone management techniques, and reception skills.
- Adhere to ethically and socially acceptable standards when acting and making decisions.
Textbook Materials
Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students
Reece, Barry L., Rhonda Brandt, and Karen F. Howie, Effective Human Relations: Interpersonal and Organizational Applications, Latest Edition. South-Western Cenage Learning.
Or other textbook and coursepack as determined by the department.