The CEO Wants What?: A Business Simulation to Develop Effective Technical Oral Communication Skills in Undergraduate Accounting Students

• In Event: Reception with Effective Learning Strategies Displays
  In Poster Session: Poster 4

Abstract

Soft skills, dominate workplace needs (McNamara, 2009, p. 25). In a recent research study, “[o]ver 90% of respondents indicated that oral communication skills, teamwork, professionalism, written communication skills, and problem solving were ‘very important’ for job success” (Campana & Peterson, 2013, p. 60). In fact, effective oral communication was ranked as the most important skill, with written communication, teamwork, ethical decision-making, critical thinking and the ability to apply knowledge following closely in level of importance (Hart Research Associates, 2015).

While research leaves no question that soft skills, including oral communication, matter, employer-related research has also noted that these skills are lacking among college graduates. For example, only 28% of employers find recent college graduates to be “well prepared” in the area of oral communication (Hart Research Associates, 2015, p. 12). These results reveal a fundamental gap between the outcomes of a college education and needs of employers.

Part of the issue in college students’ lack of workforce preparation may stem from traditional lecture and assessment through written exam methods doing little to prepare them for their future dynamic workplaces. Students must be ready for cross-disciplinary and cross-functional projects and assignments in the work place (Geithner & Menzel, 2016, p. 230). Moreover, it is not enough for students to simply know and understand the facts. Kolb (2014) argues that a student’s education must be holistic and focused on developing the whole person. Social and emotional skills must be developed along with cognitive knowledge in order to enhance the student’s ability to effectively communicate information in relevant settings (p. 217). Inadequate teaching methods is a probable factor in the dearth of graduates equipped with soft skills necessitated by employers, such as effective oral communication of technical information.

In sum, the corporate need for effective technical oral communication abilities and the current lack of preparedness among college graduates calls for the identification of a teaching strategy to better prepare accounting students. This poster will discuss the use of a group-based business meeting simulations in upper level undergraduate accounting courses as a method to advance the oral communication of technical content. Specifically, the poster describes both the protocol for the activity and the outcomes of research on whether it enhanced participants’ ability to effectively communicate solutions, and support for those solutions, in a business meeting environment.

Author

• Rodney Sauder, Messiah College