DMM-624-1 Syllabus

Course Name		Organizational Risk and Crisis Management
Course Number		DMM-624
Credit Hours		Lecture-Lab-Total – (3-0-3)
Semester & Year		Spring, 2009
Day & Time		On Line
Location		On Line
School & Department		School of Science & Health, Disaster Medicine & Management Program
Professor		Harvey B. Lermack
Office Location		Gibbs Hall and Online
Facilitator Telephone		215-951-2818
Professor’s E-mail		lermackh@philau.edu
Office Hours		By appointment
Required Materials		1. Harvard Business School Readings (Instructions to obtain these readings directly from HBSP will be provided.) ü Nohria, Nitin. (1995) Note on Organization Structure. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. ü Watkins, Michael D. and Max H. Bazerman. (2003) Predictable Surprises: The Disasters You Should Have Seen Coming. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. 2. Merna, Tony and Faisal F. Al-Thani (2008). Corporate Risk Management, Second Edition. West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. (ISBN: 978-0-470-51833-5) 3. Abkowitz, Mark D. (2008). Operational Risk Management. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. (ISBN: 978-0-470-25698-5) 4. Lermack, Harvey B. ERM in Action. Risk Management Magazine, May 2008, Page 51. (Retrieve this from Course Documents page). 5. Select readings and cases. I will either provide these directly to you, or I will provide instructions on how to acquire them. Professor’s Web Site – You may access my university web site at http://faculty.philau.edu/lermackh . At the Risk Management section, you will find some additional materials and publications, along with a page of web links that may be useful to you.
Evaluation		Weekly Discussions (10): 50 points (5 points each) Phone Chats Participation: 10 points Case Submission 1: 15 points Case Submission 2: 25 points Total: 100 points
	Grading Scale		A= 93-100; A- = 90-92; B+ = 87-89; B = 83-86; B- = 80-82; C+ =77-79; C = 73-76; C- = 70-72; F = < 70
	Weekly Discussion Postings		A significant part of your grade (50%) will be based on your active engagement in the weekly Discussion Boards. Your original discussion for each question should consist of at least three substantial paragraphs. Then, please respond meaningfully to at least three other members’ postings. I recognize that, due to work and other responsibilities, you may choose to do much of the course work on weekends. In order to ensure that everyone has a chance to participate, I ask that, at least initially, you adhere to the following schedule. We can review this as we go; if you would prefer to change the schedule, please let me know. ü Initial posting – Please provide your initial posting by midnight on Saturday evening. For example, during week one, which begins on February 16, please provide your initial posting by the end of the day on Saturday, February 21. That will permit everyone plenty of time on Sunday, and early in the following week, to reply. ü Responses and ongoing postings – We will continue the discussion thread into the following week. Responses and ongoing postings will be ended on the following Wednesday. In the above example, responses and ongoing postings will continue until the end of the day (midnight) on Wednesday, February 25. As active participation and interaction is critical to the success of this course, habitual late postings may result in a 10% penalty.
	Phone Chats		We will conduct at least 3 telephone discussions during the semester - to review previous work; and to plan for, and respond to questions about, upcoming assignments. Initially, I have scheduled these for Wednesday evenings. However, due to differences in time zones, and work responsibilities, that may not be the most convenient time for everyone. Therefore, I will poll the group early in the semester to ensure that as many people can attend as many discussions as possible.

Cases	You will create a case study focusing on risk management at your own organization. (Note: If you cannot use your own organization for some reason, please contact me immediately. If you plan to use another organization (e.g. your previous employer, I must approve the organization during the first week of the course). The structure of the case will be in the COURSE DOCUMENTS section of the course. In general, the assignments will include: § Assignment 1 – Analysis of your organization – its industry, vision and mission, objectives, and how it obtains and uses funding. § Assignment 2 – Identification and assessment of the key risks threatening attainment of your organization’s objectives, with your recommendations on how they should best be addressed; along with a single page executive summary for the entire project. Late assignments will be penalized 10%. Papers will not be accepted more than one week late.
Academic Integrity	Academic Dishonesty such as cheating on an examination or plagiarism will result in the grade of “F” for the course, and may also result in further disciplinary action such as referral to the University Student Conduct Committee and possible program or university dismissal as outlined at the Philadelphia University www.philau.edu/learning and the DM&M Student Manual.
Course Description	DMM-624-1-08FLGR: Organizational Risk and Crisis Management (3-0-3) This course examines key concepts in the understanding and management of risk in an organizational environment. Aspects or risk evolution, tools and techniques, project vulnerabilities, uncertainty, modeling and risk software are included.
Learning Objectives	This course introduces the concepts of Enterprise-wide Risk Management (ERM), as they are applied in both the corporate and non-business worlds. While many ERM techniques have been utilized for the past twenty years (or more), attention has accelerated since the turn of the century, due in large part to the impacts of the corporate scandals of that time; bursting of the dot.com bubble; and the events of September 11, 2001. This has recently accelerated due to the recent global economic dislocations; as well as the increased emphasis by regulatory bodies, stakeholders in the corporate governance process, and the debt-rating agencies. After completion of this course you will be able to: 1. Define the nature and sources of enterprise-wide risks as they apply to all types of organizations 2. Understand the application of risk management techniques at both the enterprise and project levels 3. Review in-depth examples of man-made, terrorist, and natural disasters; and study how appropriate risk management techniques could have (or did) help to prevent or mitigate the disasters 4. Describe the role of those responsible for implementing and monitoring a risk management program, including the Chief Risk Officer and other senior managers 5. Explain the nature of the key risks at your organization, as they apply to attainment of the long term objectives, using the risk identification, assessment, and management tools
Gutman Library	The home page of the Gutman Library provides students with a variety of information resources, including databases and research guides. Librarians are available online and in person at the information desk to help students with research. Online students have access to all of the search features. www.philau.edu/library
The Learning and Advising Center	The Learning and Advising Center provides one-on-one tutoring assistance for writing, study strategies, test taking, and specific Philadelphia University courses. To make a tutoring appointment, students should stop by the Learning and Advising Center in Haggar Hall or call (215) 951-2799. Academic resources, including information on citation and documentation, note taking, and study strategies are available on the Center’s website. www.philau.edu/learning
Technology assistance	For assistance with technology issues, students should contact the Technology Help Desk at (215) 951-4648 or send an email to helpdesk@philau.edu . General-purpose computing facilities are available in Search Hall and Gutman Library. http://www.philau.edu/OIT/
Digital Media Resources	As a totally online course, the material for this course will be found in Blackboard with numerous links to additional online resources and organizations. Certain materials will be placed as .pdf or doc files to ensure access by all students. Extensive use of group activities and online meetings will enhance the active learning of the students.

Module / Week Of	Topic	Assignment
Module 1 February 16	Course Introduction and objectives Student and teacher introductions and expectations Organizations and Organizational Structure	Retrieve and read the Case Outline document from the Course Documents tab. Read Menna Chapter 1. Read Abkowitz, page 1-8. Acquire and read “Note On Organizational Structure” from Harvard Business School Press. Select the organization that you will study. (If possible, it should be your own organization. If for some reason that is not possible, select one for which there is easily available information, and send me a message immediately indicating why you wish to study that organization. In any case, you must study an actual organization). Throughout this syllabus, we will refer to it as “Your Company,” whether or not it is for-profit or not-for-profit, or governmental or other. Discussion Board Week 1: § Introduce yourself to the other participants and present some facts of interest about your background. § Discuss your expectations for the course. § Give a brief background of the organization for whom you are employed, and the industry within which it operates. Referring to this week’s HBSP reading, discuss how the organization is structured and organized, and why it is in that manner. § Briefly describe the sources and uses of funds at your organization – that is, how do they get money, and how do they use it? How do you think this is linked to the organizational long-term objectives?
Module 2 February 23	Concepts of Risk and Uncertainty Sources and Types of Risk Describe Your Case Topic	Read Menna Chapter 2. Retrieve and read the document “ERM in Action” from the Course Documents tab. Research Your Company, including its background, business, and financial information. If it is publicly held, obtain the 10-k document from their web site, or from the EDGAR website at www.sec.gov . Discussion Board Week 2: § Refer to the table on page 52 of “ERM in Action.” Describe Your Company’s Key Strategic Objectives, Industry and Stage of Development, Competitive Landscape and Scope of Competition, and Organizational Culture. § What are some of the most significant risks that you foresee to Your Company, and to attainment of its long-term objectives (refer to Table 2.2)? § Briefly discuss your understanding of how Your Company uses risk management tools and techniques to help attain its objectives.
Module 3 March 2	Evolution of Risk Management and the Risk Management Process Man Made Disasters – Exxon Valdez	Read Menna Chapter 3. Read Abkowitz page 9-10, and Chapter 5, “Exxon Valdez.” Discussion Board Week 3: § What were the root causes of the Exxon Valdez incident? Could this disaster have been prevented or mitigated if an effective risk management process were in place at Exxon? How? § What do you think were the impacts of this incident on Exxon’s attainment of their long-term Strategic, Financial, Marketing, and Operational objectives? § How did the organizational culture, and resultant behaviors, help lead to or exacerbate this incident?
Module 4 March 9	Risk Management at the Enterprise Level	Read Menna Chapter 7. Read Menna Chapter 17- Case Study 4, “Development of a Typical Risk Statement to Shareholders.” Discussion Board Week 4: § Does Your Company have a formal risk management department, or other risk management processes? Who serves as the Chief Risk Officer? What are the risk-related roles of senior management, and of the governance body (e.g. Board of Directors, Board of Trustees, legislative or regulatory body?) § How does Your Company communicate about its risks, and about risk management, to employees and other stakeholders?
Module 5 March 16	Risk Management Success Stories – UAL 232	Acquire and read “Predictable Surprises: The Disasters You Should Have Seen Coming” from Harvard Business School Press. Read Abkowitz, p. 235 and Chapter 17, “United Airlines Flight 232.” Spend this week working on your initial case submission, which is due next week. There will be no discussion board this week.
Module 6 March 23	Man Made Disasters – Challenger and Columbia Assignment 1 Due	Read Abkowitz, Chapter 6, “Challenger and Columbia: Deja Vu.” Forward Case Assignment One to me via email, as a Word document attachment, no later than midnight on Sunday, March 29. Discussion Board Week 6: § Compare and contrast the story of United Airlines Flight 232, with the situations surrounding the Challenger and Columbia disasters. What implications do the organizational, behavioral, and training issues have for safety, risk management, and emergency preparedness programs at Your Company? How do you think enterprises can become “learning organizations?” § Related to Assignment 1 - What are the most important things you have learned about Your Company related to the risks it faces in the future? At this point, what do you think are the top 3 risks / opportunities to attaining its long-term objectives? Note: At your option, you may choose to share a copy of your paper with other students; however, please also post a concise summary of the key points that may be helpful to other students.
Module 7 March 30	Risk Management at Project Level Man Made Disasters – Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse	Read Menna Chapter 9. Read Abkowitz Chapter 2, “Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse.” Discussion Board Week 7: § How could project level risk management tools and techniques have helped to avoid the walkway collapse? Whose responsibility was it to ensure proper project management protocols were followed, and what were the organizational and behavioral issues that led to their failure? What lessons can we take from this incident?
Module 8 April 6	Risk Management Tools and Techniques	Read Menna Chapter 4. Read Menna Chapter 16 - Case Study 3, “Development of Risk Registers.” Discussion Board Week 8: § Refer to Menna Chapter 2, Table 2.2; Menna Chapter 16; and the case situations we have discussed throughout the semester. Begin to consider these as the bases for the risk registers you will develop for Assignment 2. Which are the 5 or 10 most significant long term risks to Your Company, and why? What are their impacts on attainment of the long-term objectives?
Module 9 April 13	Risk Management at Corporate, Strategic Business and Project Levels Terrorist Attacks – London Transit Bombings	Read Menna Chapter 10. Read Abkowitz p. 83-84, and Chapter 11, “London Transit Bombings.” Discussion Board Week 9: § Do you think this type of situation is likely to occur in your area? What lessons can you take from the way that the London officials handled this situation? How can the risk management tools we have studied by employed by officials to plan for such an eventuality in any transit network?
Module 10 April 20	Risk Management and Corporate Governance Natural Disasters - Tsunami	Read Menna Chapter 11. Read Abkowitz p. 165-166, and Chapter 15, “Sumatra-Andaman Tsunami.” Discussion Board Week 10: § There has been an enormous amount of information in the press during the past 6 months about the relationship between corporate governance and the way risks have been handled in the financial and other sectors. Referring to Chapter 11, select a risk-related topic and explain how appropriate Enterprise Risk Management processes and controls could have helped to avoid the situation. (As an example – Consider that Merrill Lynch had to allow itself to be acquired by Bank of America in order to survive.) I would like this week’s to be a free-format board for open discussion, applying the concepts learned this semester to the current corporate landscape, so you may approach this discussion in any way you like.
Module 11 April 27	Assignment 2 Due	Read Abkowitz p. 258-271. Forward Case Assignment Two to me via email, as a Word document attachment, no later than midnight on Sunday, May 3. Discussion Board Week 11: § Related to Assignment 2 - What are the most important things you have learned about Your Company related to the risks it faces in the future? At this point, what do you think are the top 3 risks / opportunities to attaining its long-term objectives? How does this differ from your discussion in Week 6? Note: Please post your Executive Summary; that will serve as an easily digestible summary of your paper. At your option, you may also choose to share a copy of your paper with other students.
Module 12 May 4	Course Evaluation	Discussion Board Week 12: Note: Please complete all postings to this board no later than May 8, the last day of the course. § What are the most important things you have learned about Enterprise Risk Management from this course, and how do you intend to use that information? § What were your most and least favorite aspects of this course, from a learning viewpoint? § What recommendations do you have to improve the course next time?