Course Schedule for Summer 2020

MPS HR Capstone

The HRM Capstone is the culminating experience of the Georgetown Master’s in HRM program. It represents a crowning achievement as a capstone does in architecture, and provides students with an opportunity to apply the HR knowledge, skills and competencies gained from all their coursework to complex real-world organizational challenges. Through the culminating experience, students complete unique and original projects that make a creative contribution that advances an organization or the HR profession. This contribution may take the form of a consulting engagement with a partner organization or an applied research project. Depending on the nature of your project, you may work individually or on a small team — under the guidance of an expert advisor. Your semester-long project may be broad-based or focused on a specialized area of HR, and requires you to demonstrate mastery of the seven program learning outcomes: creative & critical thinking, global competence, ethical reasoning and values, applied problem solving, information literacy, technological competence, and communication. Note: This course is a core requirement for the MPS degree. A grade of “B” or higher is needed to pass this course.

MPS HR Capstone

The HRM Capstone is the culminating experience of the Georgetown Master’s in HRM program. It represents a crowning achievement as a capstone does in architecture, and provides students with an opportunity to apply the HR knowledge, skills and competencies gained from all their coursework to complex real-world organizational challenges. Through the culminating experience, students complete unique and original projects that make a creative contribution that advances an organization or the HR profession. This contribution may take the form of a consulting engagement with a partner organization or an applied research project. Depending on the nature of your project, you may work individually or on a small team — under the guidance of an expert advisor. Your semester-long project may be broad-based or focused on a specialized area of HR, and requires you to demonstrate mastery of the seven program learning outcomes: creative & critical thinking, global competence, ethical reasoning and values, applied problem solving, information literacy, technological competence, and communication. Note: This course is a core requirement for the MPS degree. A grade of “B” or higher is needed to pass this course.

Note: Course is a core requirement for the MPS degree. A grade of "B" or higher is needed to pass this course. This course meets online.

Consulting Skills in Human Capital

The world of work is changing at an unprecedented pace and scale. As organizations struggle to cope with the challenges posed by rapid technological advancements, workforce demographic shifts, the transformation of work and employment relationships, and other disruptive trends, HR has been propelled to center stage. Technical HR knowledge is not enough for HR professionals partnering with business leaders to navigate these complexities. They need well-honed consulting skills to get the job done. This course provides a structured approach to delivering high-impact consulting services — from evaluating business challenges, to designing HR solutions, implementing and supporting HR solutions, leading change, and building client relationships. Through case studies and experiential exercises, you will explore field-tested tools and learn techniques for effective internal and external consulting. The course ends with specially designed consulting scenarios that will help you apply newly acquired knowledge and skills, challenge your thinking, and develop your confidence as a human capital consultant.

Note: This course meets online.

Creating and Maintaining High-Performance Organizations

Across industries and geographies, rising customer and employee expectations, and unprecedented technological disruptions are rewriting the management playbook. These emerging trends have propelled sustained high performance to the top of the corporate agenda, and present forward-thinking HR professionals with an opportunity to help drive business performance. This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills required to support the achievement of business objectives, institutionalize a culture of high performance, and build leadership capabilities to meet future business needs. Blending theory and practice, the course takes a holistic view of the organization, and provides best practices for creating productive cultures and teams, as well as a variety of evidence-based tools and techniques for executing actionable HR strategies. Through real-world case studies, team-based learning, and action learning projects, you will develop the competencies needed to turn great strategy into great performance by leveraging talent, culture, and organization design.

Creating and Maintaining High-Performance Organizations

Across industries and geographies, rising customer and employee expectations, and unprecedented technological disruptions are rewriting the management playbook. These emerging trends have propelled sustained high performance to the top of the corporate agenda, and present forward-thinking HR professionals with an opportunity to help drive business performance. This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills required to support the achievement of business objectives, institutionalize a culture of high performance, and build leadership capabilities to meet future business needs. Blending theory and practice, the course takes a holistic view of the organization, and provides best practices for creating productive cultures and teams, as well as a variety of evidence-based tools and techniques for executing actionable HR strategies. Through real-world case studies, team-based learning, and action learning projects, you will develop the competencies needed to turn great strategy into great performance by leveraging talent, culture, and organization design.

Note: This course meets online.

Foundations of HR

People management really matters. In the twenty-first century talent economy, the evidence consistently and overwhelmingly shows that effective HR practices promote employee well-being and drive organizational performance. Forward-thinking organizations and managers must therefore put people at the center of strategy execution, and manage them carefully and purposefully in every stage of the HR life cycle — from recruitment, to onboarding, talent development, retention and off-boarding. Blending theory and practice, this course examines the latest trends and best practices in the key functional areas of HR: talent acquisition and management, learning and development, total rewards management, and employment relations and the law. You will explore the roles and responsibilities of HR professionals and line managers in implementing HR policies and practices that align with business outcomes and meet employees’ changing needs. Through real-world case studies, application exercises and group projects, you will acquire the foundational HR knowledge and skills for building competitive advantage through people.

Graduate Internships in HR

The HRM Internship Program is designed to help students leverage the knowledge, skills and competencies gained from their coursework to solve real-world problems. It has a developmental focus, and provides a unique opportunity for students to explore their career interests, develop industry-specific knowledge, and build professional networks. Students undertaking an internship are expected to demonstrate proficiency on at least five of the seven HRM program learning outcomes: creative & critical thinking; applied problem solving; communication; ethical reasoning and values; information literacy; technological competence; and global competence. The goal is for students to identify gaps in their HR knowledge and competencies, and create an individual development plan to bridge these gaps prior to completing their degree program. Under the guidance of their internship advisor and host organization supervisor, students will work on a broad-based or specialized HR project that is mutually beneficial to them and their partner organizations.

Note: This course meets online. This course requires at least 20 hours of applied experience outside of scheduled class time and requires department approval for registration.

Learning and Development

In our increasingly dynamic and digital world, the skills and capabilities that employees need to succeed are changing rapidly. Learning and Development (L&D;) is no longer a luxury, with business leaders looking to HR professionals to upskill and reskill employees in the most cost-efficient and time-effective manner as they executive their organizational strategy. This course focuses on the most important theoretical and practical factors in designing and implementing outcome-based L&D; programs, from needs assessment, to learning and transfer of training, program design, and evaluating learning impact. You will also explore learner-centered traditional and technology-based training methods, and proven frameworks for developing career growth. Modeling rigorous instructional design strategies, the course provides a set of practical tools and actionable techniques that will help you build a solid foundation in L&D.; You will gain the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to take on the skills challenge, as well as future learning and talent development challenges.

Research Process and Methodology

As scientific research output on human resources management continues to grow rapidly, there is wide acceptance of the need for HR professionals to embrace evidence-based practice. This requires using the best available scientific evidence, as well as systematically gathering organizational facts, data, indicators, and metrics. Exploring the fundamentals of research methods and data analysis, this course is designed to help you become a more sophisticated consumer and producer of research. As a consumer, the course will equip you with the skills to make informed, critical, and cautious use of published research. A central focus of the course is preparing you to produce high-quality research. You will learn how to formulate research questions, design research projects, and collect, analyze and interpret data using qualitative and quantitative methods. Employing a learning-by-doing approach, you will develop your research and analytical skills, and gain the foundational knowledge and skills to leverage HR research and analytics for effective problem-solving and decision-making.

Research Process and Methodology

As scientific research output on human resources management continues to grow rapidly, there is wide acceptance of the need for HR professionals to embrace evidence-based practice. This requires using the best available scientific evidence, as well as systematically gathering organizational facts, data, indicators, and metrics. Exploring the fundamentals of research methods and data analysis, this course is designed to help you become a more sophisticated consumer and producer of research. As a consumer, the course will equip you with the skills to make informed, critical, and cautious use of published research. A central focus of the course is preparing you to produce high-quality research. You will learn how to formulate research questions, design research projects, and collect, analyze and interpret data using qualitative and quantitative methods. Employing a learning-by-doing approach, you will develop your research and analytical skills, and gain the foundational knowledge and skills to leverage HR research and analytics for effective problem-solving and decision-making.

Note: This course meets online.

Strategic Human Capital Development

Human capital is the most valuable resource for organizations in the knowledge-based economy. To gain a competitive advantage, organizations need to provide their employees with the opportunity and tools to advance their knowledge, skills and competencies as they build their short- and long-term careers. This requires a strategically-integrated approach to human capital development (HCD) that is aligned to an organization’s culture, business needs, and customers’ requirements. Blending theory with practice, this advanced course explores the intersection of strategy, human capital management, and organization development. You will learn evidence-based methods, techniques, and frameworks for aligning HCD programs with your organization’s business needs, as well as best practices for designing performance management, succession management, and leadership development programs. Through interactive discussions, case studies, applied and reflection exercises, you will gain the skills and confidence to perform the transformational role expected of strategic HCD practitioners – leveraging human capital to improve employee productivity and maximize organizational performance.

Note: This course meets online.

Theory & Practice of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Understanding and making differences matter has become a strategic imperative with rapidly changing workforce demographics and increasing global interconnectedness. As a result, the study and practice of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), which are based on the social and normative construction of differences, have taken on heightened importance. This course explores contemporary and emerging DEI trends and challenges, and the theoretical underpinnings of the field of DEI in the American and global historical context. It provides foundational theories, models, and concepts required to develop effective diversity and inclusion strategies and programs. Practitioner values, ethics, agency and competencies are closely examined throughout the course, to help you understand the critical role of diversity and HR professionals in building a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. Through case studies, portfolio coaching, and a variety of experiential exercises, you will learn the fundamentals of DEI and develop the knowledge and skills required to help organizations leverage diversity for competitive advantage.

Workplace Ethics

There seems to be a never-ending cycle of corporate scandals — employee mistreatment, accounting fraud, insider trading, bribery and corruption, among other types of misconduct — prompting debates about the role and effectiveness of HR in creating an ethical workplace culture. Unquestionably, HR professionals are uniquely positioned to identify, prevent and correct ethics scandals due to their outsize role in hiring, training and evaluating employees. This course will prepare you to act as an ethical agent. Combining theory with practice, you will learn how individual and collective values, belief systems, and moral philosophies impact individual and organizational actions. You will also explore critical factors that shape ethical decision-making and workplace ethics, from leadership styles, to gender and generational differences, and how to embed social responsibility, corporate governance, and sustainability into workplace practices. Through experiential exercises, case studies, and group projects, you will learn evidence-based tools and strategies to navigate common ethical landmines. Note: Core requirement for MPS-HRM degree. Minimum grade required is “B” to continue eligibility toward graduation. This course meets online.

Note: Core requirement of the MPS degree. A grade of "B" or higher is needed to pass. This course meets online.