Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/302559
45 BizEd May/June 2014 numbers. We have learned that the very act of measurement changes what we measure. As a result, we have seen our students improve progressively throughout the semester. (See the charts at right.) Faculty and coaches began to apply even more comprehensive rubrics to the students' business plans and stockholder reports, using 13 metrics for each. Almost imme- diately, our students' business plans got better, which in turn improved their stockholder reports. Eighty percent of our students met our learning objectives in areas such as business knowledge and teamwork, as well as application, critical think- ing, and interpersonal skills. How- ever, many still lag in quantitative skills, cross-functional knowledge, and complex decision making. To address this discrepancy, we recently added 15-minute computer- based micro-simulations to the cur- riculum to present important but difficult concepts to students. Today, students practice how to improve the value of their businesses via these simulations. They must prop- erly choose the features of given products—like bicycles or comput- ers—to provide the benefits that will most appeal to their consumer base. They complete assignments in which they experiment with ways to reduce inventory and allocate resources. We also are working on creating similar micro-simulations to guide their strategic planning and help them develop an integrated view of the firm. Finally, we have devised a balanced scorecard to keep the students focused on many more measures than market share and profits, which span all functions of their businesses. a critical role in our assessment process. They have a ringside seat on everything the students know, do, and think, and their observa- tions provide a wonderful window into the workings of the students' minds over an extended period of time. In fact, the use of executive coaching has proven so successful for us that we have started con- ducting seminars on this approach with approximately 40 faculty each year from countries such as France, Poland, Slovakia, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, South Africa, Japan, China, Korea, and India. We find that once faculty are well-versed in the pedagogy, they are more comfort- able integrating executive coaches into their own courses. At UT Knoxville, we've seen how executive coaching can trans- form a classroom. Marketplace has become a game-changer for the students. In the beginning, they are like deer in the headlights. Every- thing is new, and the idea of being accountable for their decisions is frightening. By the end, they exude confidence, because they've run simulated businesses and dealt with unrelenting challenges from every direction. At the beginning and end of the course, we survey them on their confidence in making business decisions. On the last day, most students believe they have what it takes to run a successful business. With our enhanced approach to assessment, we have the data to prove they really do. Ernie Cadotte is a professor of market- ing and the Fisher Professor of Innova- tive Learning at the University of Ten- nessee in Knoxville. In 2012–2013, the scores that Marketplace students received on evaluations by their executive coaches rose steadily over the eight simulated financial quarters for their businesses, showing that their understanding and application of management tools grew stronger as the course progressed. 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 3.8 4.0 Q2 Q4 Q3 Q7 Q8 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 3.8 4.0 Q2 Q4 Q3 Q7 Q8 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 3.8 4.0 Q2 Q4 Q3 Q7 Q8 Depth of Understanding Breadth of Understanding Management by the Numbers Data-Driven Improvement We have collected a treasure trove of data that has helped us make significant improvements in our curriculum, boosting student learn- ing and confidence along the way. Our business coaches have played