Course Exam—ADMN 232

ADMN 232 (Introduction to Management) is a three-credit introductory business and administrative studies course that translates management theory into effective management practice by examining what managers do and how they do it. The course presents theories of management applicable to the public and private sectors and then reconciles these theories with current practice. ADMN 232 has no prerequisites, as it is recommended as a suitable point of entry to the Bachelor of Management and the Bachelor of Commerce degree programs. This course has a Challenge for Credit option if students are interested.

Introduction to Management is made up of four sections containing fifteen lessons, two assignments (worth 15% each), a midterm examination (for 35%), and a final examination (for the remaining 35%). The fifteen lessons within this course cover several interesting topics surrounding business, such as leadership, motivation, leading teams, management, control, planning, decision making, ethics, and much more. In order for students to receive credit for ADMN 233, they must achieve a minimum grade of fifty percent on both the midterm and final examinations, and a minimum overall course grade of D (50 percent).

Dr. Alex Kondra has been working at Athabasca University for seventeen years. Alongside this course, he coordinates HRMT 322 (Employment Law) and RIBL 687 (International Business: Understanding and Managing Legal Risks), and coaches for undergraduate case competitions.

If you would like to learn more in-depth information about HRMT 322 (Employment Law), read my previous Course Exam article.

Dr. Kondra provides a brief introduction, stating “I earned a PhD in Business Administration (with a major in Industrial Relations, and a minor in Organizational Analysis, Economics and Statistics) from the University of Alberta in 1995.  I previously taught at Acadia University and was a faculty member while Acadia rolled out the first all-laptop environment in Canada.  I have served at Athabasca University as the acting Vice President Academic, Dean of the Faculty of Business, and Executive Director of the Centre for Innovative Management, acting Associate Vice President Academic, acting Director of the School of Business, and program director for AU’s undergraduate business programs. I am currently the MBA program director as well as an Associate Professor, teaching in areas of organizational theory and human resources.”

When asked to describe the course to students, Dr. Kondra explains that ADMN 232 “is a survey course of a broad number of topics that will be useful to an entry level manager.  It tends to focus on the soft skills and organizational skills required in management.”

As for the structure of the course, he states that “There are two written assignments with a twelve hundred word limit. There is also a mid-term and final examination. They each have seventy multiple-choice questions and students will need to choose six of eight short answer questions to answer.”

He continues by providing some advice for students, stating “The material is not overly hard in most cases but as a survey course there are a lot of concepts to cover. Use the publisher’s web site to practice for your exams.  Use the Write Site if you are unsure of your writing. They are very helpful.”

Dr. Alex Kondra believes students will take away “A broad understanding of the day to day management of people and organizations.”

As for what he believes students find the most difficult, he states “The volume of material is significant. Also, for many people this is their first essay type assignment in a long time.  People struggle as a result.”

Whether ADMN 232 is a degree or program requirement of yours, or if the content discussed above sounds like it would be of interest to you, this course will have you learning a lot of interesting material surrounding the topic of management.