An essay around 1,000 words on any leadership topic of your choosing.  You may choose something we have talked about (or will cover later in the semester), or any other leadership topic of your choosing.  The essay must speak to leadership broadly, and demonstrate it’s applicability in a business setting.  

course name: THE C-SUITE PERSPECTIVE: LEADERSHIP AND INTEGRATED MARKETING 

Leadership Essay

An essay on any leadership topic of your choosing. You may choose something we have talked about (or will cover later in the semester), or any other leadership topic of your choosing. The essay must speak to leadership broadly, and demonstrate its applicability in a business setting.

Example topics: To get your thinking started here are some examples of topics you might write about (but feel free to pick your own, originality is important): How to overcome barriers to organizational change; What makes a great organizational vision; The characteristics of great leadership; Was Steve Jobs a great leader; Opening the Johari Window; Innovation as a driver of leadership; Leadership in an era of complexity; The trouble with CMOs; Integrity and profit; Perspective on the Business Roundtable commitment to stakeholders; Can leadership be learned or is it an innate quyality.

Well developed thesis: Make sure that in addition to a meaningful topic, you develop a clear thesis that is well defined and focussed. Take a point of view and write convincingly about it.

Research: This essay will not require intense research, but make sure you bring at least three perspetives to bear, and plan to cite at least three sources. These can include materials from our classwork, or chapters in our books that we have not used. You also can use a journal, or even business publications like the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, etc.

Length: The essay must be approximately 1,000 words. In general, I believe that a written document should be the length required to convey your thoughts. But since this will be a graded assignment, I am asking you to stick to the guideline. Your grade will be penalized if you deviate from the expectation by more than 20% in either direction (no less than 800 words, and no more than 1,200).

Grammer: Yes, grammer will count. Please check your work before submitting it.

Originality: Please make sure your ideas are your own, and give credit to other authors when you refer to them.

Points: This assignment represents 25% of the class grade, or 25 points to scale.

Grading rubric:
see below

Grading Rubric

Points

Level

Multiple Criteria

25

Exemplary

· The topic and thesis are well defined and focused
· Documentation is complete and error free, with clear citations
· There is a comprehensive review of the literature and there are at least 3 sources from class material, peer reviewed journals, or business news publications
· There is a fully developed and compelling presentation of ideas, with evidence to support
· Writing is clear and persuasive; no grammar issues
· Length is approximately 1,000 words, and no less than 800 or more than 1,200 (not too long, or too short)

20

Advanced

· The topic and thesis are well defined and focused
· Documentation is thorough and largely error free, with clear citations
· There is an extensive review of the literature and there are at least 3 sources from class material, peer reviewed journals, or business news publications
· There is a well-developed presentation of ideas, with evidence to support
· Writing is clear and persuasive; only minor grammar issues
· Length is either too short or too long (less than 800, or more than 1,200)

15

Adequate

· The topic and thesis are generally well defined
· Documentation is generally present but may be lacking in a few cases or there are some errors
· There is a literature review but it is limited in scope / includes only one or two sources from class material, peer reviewed journals, or business news publications
· Development of ideas is generally sound but sometimes lacking in evidence
· Writing is understandable; some grammar issues
· Length is either much too short or much too long (less than 600, or more than 1,400)

10

Beginner

· The topic and thesis are vague and not well defined
· Documentation is either lacking or error-ridden
· The literature review is very limited or there are no credible sources
· Ideas are poorly developed
· Writing is confusing or unclear; numerous grammar issues
· Length is either below 500 words or over 1,500 words