Business Acumen Program

B.S. Business Administration Major

 

Effective leadership requires both interpersonal skills and business acumen.  The College of Business and Technology defines Business Acumen as a deep and applicable understanding of how a business achieves its goals and objectives.  A person with strong business acumen is able to understand and explain: How does the business make money? What is a person's individual contribution and role in this? What are the different elements that make a certain action work or not work?


Business Acumen LogoBusiness Acumen is not a single skill, but a much broader set of competencies that require understanding across multiple aspects of business:

Leadership Skills

Market Orientation 

Financial Acumen

Strategic Thinking

Analytical and Logical Thinking

Computing and Technology

 

 



      By graduation, College of Business and Technology (CBT) students seeking a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration degree in the 2019-2020 catalog and later are required to participate in approved Business Acumen events on/off campus or virtual.  Students who began Winthrop as a new student are required to attend eight (8) events and students who transfer to Winthrop are required to attend six (6).    CBA Faculty/Staff will sponsor events on and off campus, live virtual events and pre-recorded events.  All approved Business Acumen events will include the "BAM" logo (shown above).  Some events may also be university approved cultural events.  Types of Business Acumen events:

        • Panel Discussions
        • Corporate Tours (Businesss Expedition Program)
        • Conferences
        • Organization Leadership
        • Seminars
        • Workshops
        • Networking Events (sponsored by a CBT approved organization, i.e. AMA, WUSHRM, NABA)

      In-Person Events (on or off campus, physical or virtual)

      To earn credit for attending an in-person event, you must be present for the entire event. Late attendees will not be counted if arriving more than 15 minutes late from the start time. There will either be a check-in list to write your name and CWID, or there will be a monitor with a card-swipe. 

      Pre-Recorded Events (Blackboard Course)
      To earn credit for viewing a pre-recorded event, a short supplemental quiz is required with a pass rate of 80%.  The pre-recorded videos are located in the My Organization section of your Blackboard.  The course is titled "CBA Business Acumen Program." CBT Business Acumen Program-Blackboard Course Instructions (360kb -pdf)

       

      Students only receive one (1) credit for attending a Business Acumen event unless otherwise stated on the Business Acumen event calendar.  

      Students will not receive additonal credit for attending the same event more than once.

      Business Acumen Calendar - The calendar of events is now available; this list will continue to grow as new events are approved. 

      The purpose of the Business Acumen petition process is to allow students to earn Business Acumen credit for events that are organized outside of Winthrop University and the College of Business Adminsitration in the current or previous semester.  

      Petitions may be submitted by e-mail or in-person to Student Services at 226 Thurmond Building.  

      All petitions are reviewed by the Business Acumen Advisory Committee.  The submission deadline for petitions is according to the BAM Committee meeting schedule (seen on the Home Page for Business Acumen).  

       

      Checklist for Petitions

      1. Completed Business Acumen Petition Form
      2. Proof of Attendance (Examples include: certificate of completion, registration confirmation, or e-mail with survey after completion of the session)
      3. A Well-Written Report (minimum of 250 words; may be longer) - This paper must be typed and should include a discussion on how the event connects to the Business Acumen Competencies:
      1. Leadership Skills
      2. Market Orientation
      3. Financial Acumen
      4. Strategic Thinking
      5. Analytical and Logical Thinking
      6. Computing and Technology

       

      Decision of Petition

      In all cases, once a petition is approved or denied by the Business Acumen Advisory Committee, the decision will be sent to the student by e-mail.  A copy of the approved petition will be kept by CBT Student Services at 226 Thurmond Building.  

       

      Appealing a Business Acumen Petition Decision

      A student reserves the right to appeal a decision made by the Business Acumen Advisory Committee. Students may request to appeal a decision by e-mailing Student Services.  

     

    The College is working to integrate the Business Acumen program and DegreeWorks so students can quickly determine how many Business Acumen credits they have earned.  At this time, students should contact the Student Services office to receive an update. 

     

      How to Apply

      1. Complete the Business Acumen Sponsor Application (Qualtrics Form) 
      2. Sponsors need to submit detailed information for the proposed event including information about event facilitators, field experts, and anyone that may accompany the guest speaker (if applicable).
      3. Sponsors may then send an e-mail to the Student Services representative with any additional materials which may support the request (such as details of the nature of the event or information regarding the participant(s) in the event).  Please attach any flyers of this event if such one exists at the time of submitting the application. 

       

      Event Requirements

      1. A speaker with credentials, reputation, and expertise in the subject area. 
      2. A subject of importance and/or uniqueness in any business field that meets the competencies. 
      3. Events must be open to all business students and not only part of a specific class. 

       

      Notification of Decision

      1. The sponsor will receive notification of the decision from the BAM Advisory Committee: (1) Approved-No Further Information Needed, (2) Need Additional Information, or (3) Not Approved.
      2. If the sponsor feels the decision is invalid, they have the right to appeal the committee's decision. Please reach out to the appropriate contact (listed below) for proper direction to begin the appeal process.  

       

      Approved Business Acumen Events

      1. The Business Acumen Advisory Committee is repsonsible for approving on and off-campus BAM events.  
      2. If approved, the sponsor will receive an e-mail that includes instructions and a copy of the BAM logo to put on all marketing materials.  
      3. The sponsor is responsible for submitting the list of attendees to the listed contact below as soon as posible in order for the students to receive credit.  The information submitted must include the student's name and WU ID number.  

     


    Committee Meeting Dates - Fall 2023

    January 22nd - For events on or after February 2nd
    February 5th - For events on or after February 16th
    February 19th - For events on or after March 11th
    March 18th - For events on or after April 8th

    *Events cannot be on or after Study Day - April 23rd

    If you would like to also apply for Cultural Event credit, here is the link to that process: https://www.winthrop.edu/culturalevents/approval-process.aspx 

     

    Formats for Business Acumen Events

    Live Virtual Events

    Live virtual events may be streamed on Zoom or another university approved virtual events platform such as Blackboard Collaborate or Microsft Teams. You will have the following responsibilities:

    1. They will schedule the event and set up a registration system for students to sign up.  (Instructions for Zoom.)
    2. They will send the registration link to the Director of External Relations to be posted on the CBT Weekly Update and BAM webpage calendar.  
    3. They will monitor student attendance during the event, requiring that students enable their webcams (unless otherwise specified by the host) to receive credit for their attendance.  
    4. They will generate a list of attendees upon conclusion of the event, notifying any attendees whose attendance could not be verified.  
    5. They will send the list of attendees to the Director of External Relations for the processing of Business Acumen credit.  

    Pre-Recorded Events

    Self-created video recordings of events may be shown in Blackboard if supplemented with quizzes.  Event organizers who elect this option will be have the following responsibilities:

    1. They will send the video recording of the event to the Director of External Relations as an MP4 video file.  The video will be posted in the Blackboard course "CBA Business Acumen Program" for students to access.  
    2. They will send a set of at least five (5) video related questions to the Director of External Relations.  A quiz will be created in Blackboard as a supplement to the video.  The Director of External Relations will maintain an updated record of all students who complete a video assignment.  Upon request, an attendance list may be sent to the sponsor of the event.

    In-Person Events

    Events may be held in-person if they meet all of the University guidelines.  For more information, please refer to the Office of University Events webpage. You will have the following responsibilities:

    1. They will be in attendance at the event. 
    2. They will notify immediately of any cancellations or changes involving the event.
    3. They will handle any discipline problems which arise during the event.
    4. They will supervise and limit the crowd to ensure there isn't overcrowding. 
    5. If the sponsor of the event is not willing to assume these responsibilities, another faculty, staff, or graduate assistant must assume the responsibilities.  

 

 


For additional information and questions, contact:

Dean Dr. PN Saksena
saksenapn@winthrop.edu
204 Thurmond Building
803/323-4826