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48 BizEd MARCH | APRIL 2015 cial coverage. Schools could counter this disadvantage by embedding and evaluating learning goals in the course to make certain students acquire the requisite knowledge of HRM. DELIVERING HRM SKILLS Once administrators decide how to integrate HRM content into the curricu- lum, they must determine how to deliver it. One option is to offer modules on key topics such as performance coaching, communication, conflict management, internal consulting, interviewing, feedback, negotiation, and teamwork. Depending on how much time or money they want to invest, schools can create these modules internally or use pre-ex- isting ones available from vendors such as Skillsoft, MindLeaders, and NetCom Learning. Such learning modules can be delivered in the classroom, online, or through a hybrid format. At the University of Tennessee- Chattanooga, we recently proposed a modular HR skills-based course that covers feedback/coaching, teamwork, and leadership skills. The three-credit course is divided evenly among the three skills, and each section can be taught by a different faculty member who special- izes in that skill. I plan to teach the first module on feedback and coaching and incorporate many hands-on application exercis- es, lab simulations, and role-playing activities. I'll also incorporate reus- able learning objects, which are short, self-contained, web-based learning units that include content, practice, and assessments. In addition, I will admin- ister frequent skills tests to evaluate student learning. Currently the course is an elective, and we anticipate that many HRM majors as well as general manage- ment majors will be interested in it. We originally developed the module as a one-week intercession course to nurture students who had enrolled in summer school, although some campus administrators aren't sure how to sched- ule such a compressed and creatively timed course. Long-term, my desire would be for such a course to become a required part of the business curriculum. CHAMPIONING CHANGE As we have learned at my school, substantive curricular changes won't happen quickly and will always entail politically motivated starts and stops. Therefore, faculty champions need to be patient, courageous, and well-in- formed as they overcome resistance and entrenched bureaucracy, deal with faculty turf battles, and continually point out the importance of HRM in the workplace. But when champions exhibit these traits, they can accomplish a great deal. For example, at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, the business school first launched a three-credit OB/ HRM course that later evolved into two separate two-credit courses. More recently, UWO expanded each of these courses into three-credit classes; in this format, each content area receives its due focus and faculty course loads can be maintained smoothly. All of these classes are required for all business ma- jors. Therefore, in this case, combining HRM and OB was a short-term option that ultimately led to a standalone HRM course—although the process took 22 years. While faculty champions some- times must battle to get HRM into the core curriculum, I believe it's a noble fight. Because HRM has be- come decentralized across organi- zations, business leaders across all disciplines need to understand how to manage human resources. Managers in every functional area of the firm share responsibility for dealing with employees. If business graduates are going to succeed in the contemporary workplace, all of them must be ex- posed to human capital management. That's a point made extremely clear by Maggie Carrington, vice president of human resources for CBL & Associates, which owns and manages shopping malls across the U.S. In today's work environment, she points out, it's critical for managers to mitigate risk, and man- agers who don't have a full understand- ing of HRM are inadequately prepared to deal with certain potential hazards. Managers also must understand HRM, she says, "so that they're truly able to capitalize on what is essentially an or- ganization's last remaining competitive edge: its people." Lisa A. Burke-Smalley is a professor of management and UC Foundation Pro- fessor in the College of Business at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga. ADDITIONAL MATERIALS The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) offers a number of resources for educators. These include overview materials for graduate and undergraduate courses, which are available for a fee, as well as the National SHRM white paper "Executive Briefing—Moving HR into the Business Core: Critical Information & Creative Ideas" by Lisa Burke-Smalley and Barbara L. Rau. Contact academics@shrm.org for more information. Additional resources— such as cases, lectures, and experiential exercises—are available at shrm.org/Education/ hreducation and merlot.org. More information about covering human resource management in the classroom can be found in "Making HR part of the core business curriculum: A case study," a working paper by Dale Feinauer, E. Alan Hartman, and Barbara Rau. Those interested in reading the study can contact Rau at rau@uwosh.edu.