Welcome to the CAO teaching resource page. Please feel free to download any element below. Write me and let me know what you learn as you try out your own ideas. Also, I would love to add your resources to this page -- email me and I'll add it .

This syllabus is for a summer course. It includes a description of the class structure, my grading scheme, the student role, and my expectations. The second file is a teaching schedule that shows how my class evolves from a professor-directed to student-directed environment.

Please note that I have intentionally framed this class to evolve into a flat organization that lends itself to highly functional, positive dynamics. I want students to understand how it looks and feels to be part of a highly functional, democratic system.  My hope is that they can develop a deep understanding of what a 'positive' organization looks like in practice, so that they can aim to replicate it in their future experiences. 

These documents provide examples of team assignments. Thanks to Jason Kanov ([email protected]) for helping me to refine my framing of these responsibilities. I have tried to title the assignments in a way that elevates the students' vision around how they are making a contribution to the class.  Contact Jason for his approach.

If you have any feedback or suggestions, I would love to hear it! 

I require all students to compile a record of their service and participation in the class. The point of this exercise is to encourage students to start thinking about how their actions may affect and help others in the class. 

Regular feedback is one of the critical features of a CAO design. At least three times each term, students provide feedback to teammates using this form. This version was developed by a student team during the fall semester of 2013. The reader may note that I grade the quality of the feedback delivered, rather than the evaluations each student receives.

Roger Putzel, Emeritus Professor at St. Michael's College, provided me with my introduction to CAO. He has a truly radical CAO design called XB: Experience-Base for Managers that he has used for 30 years to teach introductory management and organizational behavior. Roger is always eager to mentor new CAO users!

Read a brief description of XB here. 
Email Roger here