Curriculum Overview

This course focuses on understanding the interplay of group, inter-group, and organizational factors on the performance of multifunctional teams in technology-based organizations. The course integrates theory and research on multifunctional teams with the skills necessary for effectively managing them. Topics covered include managing decision-making and conflict in multifunctional teams, managing the team’s boundary and inter-group relations, organizational designs that support working cross-functionally, and measuring and rewarding team performance. Cases are used to illustrate the problems of working cross-functionally. Individuals are given feedback on their team management skills.

This course focuses on the methodology involved in developing and writing an effective marketing plan. It covers how to obtain the information that is needed and how to write a rigorous marketing plan for a product or service. The course details the steps needed to perform a market opportunity analysis (MOA), and explores how to develop market-based strategies and tactics to capitalize on the identified opportunities.

This course presents concepts regarding the collection, processing and reporting of financial information in a technology-based business. Managerial accounting and cost accounting, and their uses and limitations, will be discussed. Use of financial statements, budgets, and cost estimates in management decision-making will be emphasized. The impact of the risk and uncertainty associated with financial decisions will be illustrated via case studies.

Financial manager’s functions; liquidity vs. profitability; financial planning; capital budgeting; management of long-term funds, money, and capital markets;, debt and equity; management of assets, cash, and accounts receivable; and inventory and fixed assets.

This course deals with the theory and methods associated with design thinking, a problem-solving protocol that spurs innovation and solves complex problems. Design thinking involves a unique form of inquiry which goes well beyond product and service design. Students will develop an appreciation for design and develop skills for studying design systems. These concepts and methods have wide applicability as they can be used to design organizations of people, information structures, compensation systems as well as the entire consumer experience. Applying these approaches can often create entirely new systems that are more useful and usable. The logic of this approach can sometimes solve "wicked problems" which have defied previous solutions.

This course introduces managers to the essence of business economics — the theories, concepts and ideas that form the economist’s tool kit encompassing both the microeconomic and macroeconomic environments. Microeconomic topics include demand and supply, elasticity, consumer choice, production, cost, profit maximization, market structure, and game theory while the Macroeconomic topics will be GDP, inflation, unemployment, aggregate demand, aggregate supply, fiscal and monetary policies. In addition the basic concepts in international trade and finance will be discussed.

This course discusses the technology strategy process and develops skills, methodologies, and critical thinking in order to achieve technological competitive advantage. Subjects covered include technology life-cycles, type and characteristics of RD&E project portfolio selection, and an overview of successful development strategies. Case studies will be used to build competence and confidence in the concepts.

This course focuses on the major elements of the strategic management model, including mission, external and global environment, company profile, strategic analysis and choice, long- and short-term objectives; action plans/tactics, policies, restructuring, reengineering, strategic control, and continuous process improvement (CPI). Student teams analyze and formulate strategies for companies they select.

This course focuses on corporate venturing and entrepreneurship. Business and financial issues associated with starting and buying an entrepreneurial, high-technology business are addressed. Subjects covered include a discussion of previous corporate ventures, critical success factors, and an international perspective on corporate venturing. Lessons learned from new technology start-ups will be discussed, along with an evaluation of the decision processes used by venture capitalists. The final project is the development of a venture plan for the student’s company. Over half of the business plans receive funding. Startup funding on previous projects has ranged from $50,000 to $1,000,000,000.

This course covers the general area of management of operations, both manufacturing and non-manufacturing. The focus of the course is on productivity and total quality management. Topics include quality control and quality management, systems of inventory control, work and materials scheduling, and process management.