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First-year students learn to solve complex management problems in new Interdisciplinary Management course

Undergraduate students in the Faculty of Management are taking part in a bold new educational venture this fall. It鈥檚 not a startup incubator or a hands-on entrepreneurship project, but it might be just as innovative.

A new first-year course鈥擨nterdisciplinary Management鈥攊s designed to help Bachelor of Management students integrate the broad range of material they鈥檒l be exposed to throughout their undergraduate years. The goal is to lay a solid foundation for solving the complex management problems graduates will see in their future careers.

鈥淭hey get to see how different lenses will help them move forward in a management program and a management career,鈥� says Paulette Skerrett, lecturer and assistant director of the Bachelor of Management program, who also coordinates the course. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just 鈥榩ut your blinders on and move forward鈥�. You have to take in all these perspectives. A management education is relevant to all disciplines and all career paths.鈥�

What makes the course so special? It鈥檚 team-taught twice a week by four professors: Skerrett, who brings the business perspective; Mike Smit, associate professor in the School of Information Management; Tony Walker, assistant professor in the School for Resource and Environmental Studies; and Markus Sharaput, senior instructor and MPA graduate coordinator in the School of Public Administration.

鈥淲e work on the fly, and there鈥檚 quite a bit of improv,鈥� says Walker. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no textbook about this level of interdisciplinary engagement.鈥�

鈥淲e think the management problems that our students are going to face require perspectives from different angles,鈥� explains Smit. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the philosophy of the degree and we wanted an intro course to reflect that philosophy.鈥�

The Bachelor of Management is an interdisciplinary program with participation from all four Faculty of Management schools, including the Rowe School of Business. Interdisciplinary Management is a requirement for students in the Bachelor of Management and Bachelor of Applied Computer Science programs.

The course emphasizes creativity, leadership and innovation, and introduces students to the basics of management and how people and processes vary across disciplines. It explores management issues of planning, organizing, leading and controlling in the for-profit, not-for-profit and public sectors.

鈥淲e found that students were getting these different pieces but weren鈥檛 always seeing the links between them,鈥� says Smit. 鈥淲e wanted to articulate by example that the lens of each of these areas allows you to better see problems and undertake solutions.鈥�

James McNutt (pictured at right) is a third-year student in the Applied Computer Science program and is pursuing his degree while working full-time. 鈥淚鈥檓 really enjoying it, which is one of the reasons I鈥檓 sitting in the front row! The professors don鈥檛 always agree, and I think that鈥檚 amazing. It鈥檚 really interesting how the faculty and even the students have their own take on the material.鈥�

For students, having four professors discussing timely, real-world topics each week means getting four sometimes very different perspectives on a single management issue. 鈥淲e often have different solutions or angles to solve a problem. We don鈥檛 always agree, and the students can see how we would all tackle it,鈥� says Walker.

Sharaput agrees. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of high-level content, and I鈥檓 not sure if the students even realize it. We talk about power and accountability, delegation and authority. It鈥檚 not just that you鈥檝e got a dispute amongst disciplines; you鈥檝e got fundamentally different perspectives on how a problem should be considered.鈥�

鈥淲e even heckle each other at times,鈥� laughs Walker.

Topics so far this semester have included the diplomatic situation between Canada and Saudi Arabia, the plight of right whales, resource scarcity and the size of Metro Transit tickets.

鈥淎 lot of my own assumptions get challenged on a regular basis,鈥� adds Sharaput. 鈥淔or the students to see that happen and get worked out is really useful.鈥�

Students appreciate the teaching team鈥檚 openness to the unexpected. 鈥淭he last thing you want in any course is for a prof to say, 鈥楾his is the way it is,鈥欌�� says James McNutt, 鈥淪o I like that they sometimes challenge each other鈥檚 stances in class. Students don鈥檛 always have the confidence or expertise to do that. Having four different talented professors to offer a range of approaches to an issue is really valuable.鈥�

(L to R): Professors Tony Walker, Markus Sharaput, Paulette Skerret and Mike Smit

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