Course Catalog

ENTREPRENEURIAL OPTIONS (BA3015)

The course Entrepreneurial Options provides highly customized paths for a variety of business contexts, including new ventures, franchises, corporate ventures, socially responsible companies, and family-controlled enterprises. Students are expected to critically assess the readings, to have the ability to work in groups, and to present ideas orally and written in English.

START UP: NEW BUSINESS FEASIBILITY (BA3021)

This course takes students step by step through the practical core of entrepreneurship. Students learn design thinking, how to identify a problem or void in the marketplace, and then build a business to solve it. By creating a customer-driven feasibility study students acquire the knowledge necessary to analyze a business idea. Students will develop market research to evaluate customer and business needs. Students gain a practical tool set that will allow them to look at their next entrepreneurial endeavor objectively.

ENTREPRENEURIAL FINANCE (BA3023)

This course covers the basics of understanding a major threat starting a new enterprise and developing it: financing the venture. Sound knowledge of who, what, when, where, why, and how to obtain financing necessary to launch and develop a venture is crucial. This knowledge is built in the course using the life cycle approach, as every stage in a firm has specific finance demands.

HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (BA3030)

Offers a systematic analysis of human resource concepts and practices designed
to enhance organizational objectives and employee goals. Studies various aspects
of the employment relationship: job design, staffing, employee training and
development, diversity management, performance evaluation, compensation and
salary administration, employee and labor relations, and collective bargaining.
Examines contemporary and emerging human resource systems and models found in
the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

MARKET RESEARCH (BA3040)

Market Research is essential to any student of Marketing. This course offers a comprehensive, applied approach to understanding and designing market research. The course methodology balances the fundamental quantitative methodologies and theoretical structures with practical applications of qualitative techniques to help students become more familiar with the discipline and be able to understand research methods and design, and to be able implement their own research projects.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR (BA3044)

Consumer behavior lies at the crossroads of marketing, psychology, economics and anthropology. We employ theories developed in these fields to help predict how consumers will respond to various marketing stimuli. We examine the impact of purchase involvement on consumer decision making; the various kinds of decision models used by consumers; and the influence of attitude, culture, demographics, emotions, learning, memory, motivation, personality and perception on our behavior as consumers. Consumer behavior attempts to understand the consumption activities of individuals as opposed to markets.

INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL MARKETS (BA3050)

Following an introduction to the International Monetary System and Foreign Exchange Markets, students explore spot and spot-forward arbitrage. They also engage in a FX trading competition using a demo platform. Once students absorb the essentials of financial derivatives (options, futures and swaps), we move to the practical application of these tools. Hedging theories and a basic tool-kit assist students in completing more complex FX and interest rate hedging exercises and case studies. Each semester we explore selected topics, such as Private Equity or the Regulation of the Futures Market, in collaboration with guest speakers.

DISASTERS MANAGEMENT (BA3055)

The major purpose of this course is to identify common threads through different major disasters throughout the world and from this examination draw lessons learnt that ought to be applied to limit their recurrence and mitigate the human and financial pain they spawn. The key question posed and framework for study: How are the myriad technical, emotional, economic, legal, public policy, financial, communications, ethics and international relations issues that necessarily arise in disasters best handled? Once posed we will develop an analytical framework for the implementation of the practical action in disaster prevention, mitigation and remediation.

OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT (BA3070)

This course is designed to introduce students to the strategic importance of various operations decisions (process and plant layout, capacity planning, job design, forecasting, quality control, inventory and supply chain management). We take both a theoretical and practical approach, beginning with a brief review of the fundamental purpose of management. We explore the strategic role of operations, study some of the problems and challenges that managers face and examine the theories and strategic tools available to tackle these issues. We take this a little further by analyzing how managerial philosophy, attitudes toward work, technology and culture can affect successful implementation of an operations strategy.

LEGAL ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS (BA3075)

Students will examine the legal process and the legal environment within which business must operate, as well as the interrelationship of government and business. Students develop an understanding of the methods by which legal decisions are formulated as they affect both individual rights and business transactions.