assign5
Assignment 5: Learning Journal (8%)
Learning Journal Instructions
It is now time to prepare your last assignment, a Learning Journal, that will make connections between the concepts you are studying and your possible future business career.
Answer the questions to each Journal Entry 1-4 as seen below. Compile your responses in one Word file. Each journal entry should be at least 400, and no more than 500, words. The title page must include your name, ID, course name, assignment name/number (Assignment 5 - Learning Journal) and university name. The report should use Calibri (body) font size 12 and be double-lined spacing. If you use references, create them on a separate page and cite the sources in APA format. When you have completed the questions in all four of the required entries, you will submit the file to your Open Learning Faculty Member.
You will also need to create a short video in which you summarize your responses to the questions in the four Journal Entries in this assignment. Your video should be at least 3 minutes, but no more than 4 minutes, long. You can submit your video as a separate component to Assignment 5 using the Kaltura Video upload system described below. Be sure to check that your video file is properly uploaded.
Note
Please DO NOT attach videos directly in the assignment submission point. Use the Embed Kaltura Media button in the text editor as shown here: Kaltura Video Upload Instructions
Instructions for creating a video:
A. Make a video recording on your smartphone, tablet or PC, laptop or Mac using either a built-in camera, webcam or a separate one and save the video file so you can easily locate it later.
B. If you use a smartphone, then send the video file from your smartphone to your personal or TRU email address so you can retrieve it on your computer or laptop or tablet.
C. Open the file in your email and then save the video file to your desktop, laptop, or whatever device you use to do your course work.
D. Upload the video file so it is added to your Assignment submission using the Kaltura video upload instructions as seen above.
Your completed journal and video will be marked out of a total of 50 marks, allocated as follows:
· Completion of all four journal entries (5 marks)
· Application and explanation of concepts from the course reading (15 marks)
· Use of additional resources: interviews, online research, etc. (15 marks)
· Quality and completeness of video (10 marks)
· Grammar and style of journal entries (5 marks)
Journal Entry Instructions
Entry 1: Career Paths
Complete after doing the reading and activities for Unit 1.
One of the challenges of choosing a career in business is that there are so many different career paths that you can take. So, it’s important to choose a path that will hold your interest now and well into the future. To choose wisely, start by understanding your talents and interests. Do you enjoy working with numbers? Maybe a career in accounting, finance, or economics is right for you. Do you enjoy helping others achieve their career goals? That might lead you to choose a career in Human Resources. Or maybe, you have had part-time work experience in a sales or customer service position. If you enjoyed that work, perhaps it’s the start of a career in marketing.
To prepare this journal entry, complete at least two of the following three activities:
1. Understanding your personality style can be a good start to understanding your strengths and weaknesses. That in turn, can help you focus on your best business career choices. Learn more about your personality style by completing an online personality styles assessment. There are several free sites that you can choose from; a good one is 16personalities.com.
Answer the questions as honestly as possible. Read about the strengths and challenges of your personality style and record both in your journal. What will you do to maximize the strengths of your style and minimize its weaknesses?
2. If you are leaning in a specific business career direction, interview a friend or family member who is already in that career. Be sure to respect your interview subject’s time by making an appointment for a half hour discussion over the phone; you can also do your interview using Skype, WhatsApp, or Zoom. Prepare a list of questions in advance of your interview. For example, you might ask what your subject’s typical day looks like. Or you could ask what they see as their greatest challenge in their current position, or their advice for students who are interested in beginning a career in their field. Ask no more than 10 questions. Write down your subject’s answers and record them in your journal.
3. Do some online research about career opportunities in the field you are interested in. Google the name of the business specialty you are considering, and add the phrase “career paths” to your search. Check at least three sources and record what you learned in your journal.
Entry 2: Entrepreneurship
Complete after doing the reading and activities for Unit 2.
At some point in our lives, many of us have aspirations to own our own business. Has the idea of becoming an entrepreneur ever appealed to you? If you could start your own business, what would it look like? Choose one of the following activities as the focus for your second journal entry.
1. Interview a successful entrepreneur in your community. Try to find one whose business is in a market segment that interests you. Remember to make an appointment for your interview, and prepare no more than 10 questions in advance. Summarize what you learned during your interview in your journal.
2. Research business opportunities in a field you are interested in. Who are the successful companies? Are there any under-served market niches that might become opportunities? What are the barriers for companies who want to enter this market segment? Record your research findings in your journal.
3. Watch the video on Gift ‘n Gab Trading Post, an Indigenous entrepreneurial business and answer the following questions:
c. If you were a marketing consultant to Gift ‘n Gab, what would you recommend to increase the number of travelers stopping at the Trading Post?
c. What additional products and/or services could the Trading Post owners add to increase their revenue and profit?
Entry 3: The Four Management Roles
Complete after doing the reading and activities for Unit 3.
Once you start along your chosen business career track, you may have the opportunity to move from a task-oriented to a management role. This could happen sooner than you think! In Unit 1, you learned about the different business career tracks, and in Journal Entry 1 you began the process of discovering which career track is the best fit for you. Now, in Unit 3, you have learned about the Four Functions of Management (Planning, Organizing, Leading, and Controlling), and you are ready to explore how those functions might play out in the business career track that interests you. Reflect on the connection between Units 1 and 3 and answer the following questions in your journal.
1. How might a manager in your career track (accounting, finance, human resources, marketing, etc.) practice each of the four functions? Be as specific as possible. Apply what you have already learned from your work experience, and from the interviews you may have recorded in Journal Entries 1 and 2.
2. Do some online reading in a credible business publication—preferably one with a Canadian focus. Examples include, the business pages of the Toronto Globe and Mail, and the Financial Post. Find an article that addresses how practicing any one of the four management functions helped a business leader make an important decision in his or her company. Summarize what you learned from the article and record your summary, along with a web link to the article, in your journal.
Entry 4: Final Reflections and Path Forward
Complete after doing the reading and activities for Units 4 and 5.
Congratulations! You have now completed all of the units in the course, and you are ready to reflect on what you have learned and map out the next steps in your future business career. Reflect on your experience throughout the course and record the following in your journal.
1. What are some situations in which the career track you are considering would interact with one or more of the other business functions? For example, if you are considering a career path in marketing, how might the responsibilities of a marketing professional integrate and interrelate with those of professionals in Human Resources or Accounting?
2. What do you consider to be the biggest challenge that a manager might face in trying to practice the four management functions (Planning, Organizing, Leading, Controlling)?
3. What are the five things that you will do in the next six months to show progress in your own business career?
After completing this entry, be sure to review your entries for grammar and style before submitting the document to your Open Learning Faculty Member.
Reflections Video
Create a short video in which you summarize your responses to the questions in the four Journal Entries in this assignment. Your video should be at least 3 minutes, but no more than 4 minutes, long.