Tag: Guest lecturers

Teaching Tip: Expanding OM Class Experiences with Virtual Guest Lecturers

“Much of our work as educators,” writes Faculty Focus, “consists of designing and delivering experiences in which students can develop their understanding and application of concepts and skills in our disciplines.” Given that we have only 15-16 weeks with our students, we need various ways for deepening and expanding these formative experiences in operations management. Visiting experts can be a wonderful way of developing expertise, and leveraging online tools like Skype and Zoom can open up powerful possibilities for learning and conversation. One goal is to shrink the distance between the students and the speakers by pulling back the wizard’s curtain between the “expert” and the student.

Skype and Zoom are both great choices for hosting virtual guest speakers. Fear not technology. Just do some test runs, perhaps with consultation from your tech-support staff.

An interview format can be helpful. For one, it requires little preparation time for your guest. This format also keeps the conversation grounded in student’s questions and learning, and it keeps the tone more informal, which is engaging for students. You can prepare students beforehand by having them develop questions based on the work of the expert. Have them then reflect on the guest’s insights following the visit.

Jay, Chuck, and I are also here to help. We are happy to give virtual guest lectures to your classes on almost any topic–or in a Q&A format. Your choice. As you plan your summer or fall syllabi, just drop one of us an email. I am at brender@rollins.edu. Jay is at jheizer@omniglobal.net. And Chuck is at munson@wsu.edu.

Teaching Tip: Using Guest Lecturers in Your OM Class

potato chipsWhen I was teaching at Rollins College, one of my favorite classroom experiences was bringing in guest lecturers. Philip Crosby, the famous quality guy, lived in Winter Park and showed up every semester for 15 years. Alan Nagle, former CEO of Tupperware, was a regular, as were a number of VPs from Darden, Frito Lay, and Wheeled Coach. Now that I am semi-retired, I give 3-4 guest lectures per semester in other profs’ classes, at schools all over Florida and as far away as Mexico. It is really fun, and I remember the key points in having successful guest speakers: (1) Keep it interesting; (2) Keep it short; (3) Keep it interactive; and (4) Feed them! I will never forget the visits from Tom Rao, at Frito-Lay, who always brought a case of chips to each class. Students would just munch away, totally mesmerized with the free snacks.

So as you face the perpetual challenge of keeping each class session fresh and interactive, I suggest you consider this old idea. Guest lecturers have benefits for your learners and for you. Seeing a new face in front of the room can liven up the class; but there are also deeper pedagogical reasons for using guest lecturers, notes Faculty Focus (Nov.3, 2014). Here are a few to consider. None of us is an expert on everything, so bringing in speakers with proven expertise in a topic provides added credibility to our content. Research has shown that in a course with profound practical applications, such as OM, voices from the field carry as much credibility as we profs provide. Having a guest lecturer also opens your lesson design to new options. For example, you and your guest can work together to field questions or even debate issues. Let students apply their critical thinking to compare points of view.

Guest lecturers, of course, should be treated very well, especially if you want their help in future courses. Provide as much lead-time as possible so they can prepare and so you can share their materials with your students.  Be very clear with guests about the content you want covered, the time (no more than 45 minutes!) and technology available, and the class size and composition. Letters of thanks are always a good idea (with a copy to your Dean or Department Chair).

Teaching Tip: Using Guest Lecturers

Sure it can hurt your self-esteem when teaching evaluations are turned in and several students comment that “the most valuable part of the course” was the guest speakers!  Somehow, executives who visit our classes are viewed as having more expertise then we have.  I guess its only human nature; just like elementary school kids who believe what a teacher tells them more than what their parents say.  I can’t tell you how many times my sons have said I was dead wrong when I helped with their math homework (despite my 3 degrees in math related fields).

          But it is true that guest speakers, when carefully selected, checked out, and given a 45 -50 minutes schedule, can enhance a class.  One of my colleagues at Rollins College has said he has no time for guests in his class. “There is just too much material to cover,” he says.  I disagree.

          Over the years I developed a cadre of 6 -8 excellent guest lecturers.  One is the Frito-Lay VP-Operations for Florida (who always brings a huge box of chips – the students devour them as if they have never eaten before).  One is from Darden (who generously gives out $5 gift cards to Red Lobster and/or Olive Garden).  Another is former CEO of Tupperware, who tells the story of a $90 million OM decision that went very bad.  My favorite speaker while teaching at Rollins was the late Philip Crosby, the well-known author and quality guru.  He never missed a semester and lectured to scores of my classes.  It turns out that even famous people are more than honored to come and lecture in a college.

          Get to know your speakers first, ask to see any Power Points they intend to use for your quick review/input, and thank them every semester with a gift that has the college name on it.