Business Administration — Course Information

In order to enroll in MBA courses, students must be matriculated in the program. MBA courses award three credits and meet once per week for three class hours. In the listings below, a prefix identifies each course according to the following code: MBA AF (Accounting and Finance), MBAMGT (Management), MBAMKT (Marketing), MBAMS (Management Science and Information Systems), MBAACM (Analysis and Communication for Managers).

Accounting and Finance Courses

MBA AF 601 (CORE)
Economics for Managers

Introduces the student to economic principles of particular interest to the firm manager. The course is divided roughly into two parts that deal with macroeconomic and microeconomic issues. In the macro section such key aggregates as gross domestic product, unemployment rate, inflation rate, and balance of payments, which are of importance to the firm manager, are discussed. Discussions focus on a critical examination of how these aggregates are measured and determined in various competing theoretical models. The theory discussed here then serves as an analytical tool in understanding and evaluating economic policies related to such current economic issues as unemployment, inflation, and trade imbalances. In the micro section, emphasis is given to a) the theory of markets, how prices and quantities are determined in markets and factors that affect these prices and quantities; and b) how firms compete in different market environments. Besides concentrating on the theory, special attention is given to how the concepts covered are applied to real-world microeconomic problems.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 600.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 603 (FIN)
Massachusetts in the Global Economy

This course has four goals. It seeks to provide students with 1) an understanding of the evolving business structure of Massachusetts and its place in U.S. and world goods and service industries; 2) an introduction to country and regional analysis, especially macro-economic analysis and social and organizational analysis, as they pertain to understanding customer-markets, competitors, and comparative investment locations; 3) an introduction to major global economic, technological, and political trends, including changing demographics and regulation, technological “creative destruction,” emerging markets, and transitions to capitalism; and 4) an introduction and overview of industry analysis, focusing on key Massachusetts industries, including financial services and banking, health care products and services, and computer hardware and software. The course involves intensive student research projects and team presentations.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 610 (CORE)
Accounting for Managers

Instructs students in the fundamentals of financial and managerial accounting. The financial accounting component presents techniques used to measure business transactions, preparation of financial statements, recording and valuation of assets, owners’ equity, revenue, cost, and expenses. The managerial accounting component deals with techniques for management decision-making, planning, and control.
Prerequisites: MBAMS 600 and MBA AF 601.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 611 (ACC)
Intermediate Accounting

This course acquaints students with financial accounting theory. Particular emphasis is given to the relationship between theory and such practical problems as the limitations of traditional financial statements and asset and current liability items. Students acquire an understanding of issues unique to corporations and complete the study of the balance sheet by examining long-term debt and equity items.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 612 (ACC)
Cost Accounting

Examines the use of cost accounting as a means of providing quantitative information for managerial decision-making and control. Emphasizes analysis of cost behavior, cost-volume-profit relationships, budgeting, and performance measurement.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 613 (ACC)
Federal Tax Planning

Introduces the concepts of gross income recognition, deductions, tax credits, and the income tax effects of property transactions, with emphasis on managerial decision-making and planning. These concepts are incorporated into discussion of alternative forms of business organization and the tax implications of each.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 614 (ACC)
Financial and Managerial Auditing

The objective of this course is to make students aware of, and develop working skills in, the techniques of financial and managerial auditing, and to help them develop judgment in using audit information. Topics include stewardship and the need for auditing; audit evidence and analytical techniques for sampling and drawing inferences; organizational issues in auditing; techniques and methods of managerial and strategic audits and audit reporting.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 615 (ACC)
International Accounting

This course examines the international dimensions of financial accounting and analysis; the environmental influence of specific countries on international accounting standards and their related impact on financial reporting; and disclosure and analysis worldwide. Specific attention is given to inflation accounting, foreign currency transactions, the translation of foreign financial statements, and the status of international accounting standards.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610. MBA AF 611 is recommended, though not required.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 616
Financial Statement Analysis/Advanced Accounting

This course provides a framework for financial statement analysis. The course teaches students to understand how financial statements are generated by focusing on FASB principles. The course also encourages students to research current changes within the accounting framework and to understand how to use the framework to interpret company financial statements. Issues of ethics will also be incorporated into the course.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610. MBA AF 611 is recommended, though not required.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 617 (ACC)
Management Accounting and Control

This course is designed to introduce students to the important role management accounting can play in helping managers make informed decisions. In particular, the course emphasizes modern theories of product cost, performance measurement, and management control systems. It uses cases to describe real-world problems and to illustrate such concepts as activity-based cost systems, productivity measurement, and total quality.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 618 (ACC)
Accounting Information Systems

This course examines information systems used for managerial decision making and external reporting, with specific emphasis on assuring systematic control over accounting information and on the reliability of that information. Computer and telecommunication systems are changing the way companies and not-for-profit organizations do business. As information becomes a competitive tool, line managers are encouraged to get more involved in decision making. Further, as communication between companies and investors continues to shift from lagged formal reports (i.e., financial statements) to tailored, on-line reports, the importance of computer-based accounting systems will increase.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 620 (CORE)
Financial Management

This course is intended to provide the student with a sound understanding and appreciation of the principles of corporate finance. The course covers the theory and practice of financial decision making by managers and describes how financial theory can be used to address practical problems and to illuminate institutional aspects of the financial world. Topics include the time value of money, capital budgeting, financial statement analysis, asset valuation, portfolio theory, capital structure, dividend policy, long-term financing, and issues of corporate control. The course enables students to develop the skills and intellectual framework for addressing a variety of financial problems.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 621 (FIN)
Advanced Corporate Finance

This course is a natural extension of MBA AF 620, the core financial management course. It builds on the principles and concepts developed there and introduces such new topics as real options, convertible securities, lending, mergers, and acquisitions.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 622 (FIN)
Global Portfolio Investment Management

The aim of this course is to explore portfolio investment management, i.e., the management of wealth in the form of readily marketable securities, in a global context. The focus is on extensions of investment theory and practice to a multi-country field of portfolio choice. Of special concern are variables and constraints that modify concepts and practices useful in the domestic US market. These include the problems of investing in a world of many currencies, differential economic growth, divergent institutional and legal environments, differing national accounting systems, and national valuation norms and practices. The course is of special interest to students preparing for possible careers in brokerage houses; in pension and mutual fund management; and as financial planners.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 623 (FIN)
Financial Modeling

This course introduces the principles and techniques for building financial models, especially in an uncertainty framework. Topics covered include decision support systems, risk analysis, portfolio theory, and capital budgeting under uncertainty. The course integrates financial, accounting, and statistical concepts and techniques to construct financial models and to perform analyses using popular software applications, as well as emphasizing the application of financial modeling techniques in identifying and implementing business solutions. The course will be of special interest to students seeking more hands-on experience in constructing financial models and more in-depth knowledge in financial software.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 624 (FIN)
Managing Mutual Funds

This course discusses issues related to the financial management of mutual funds. It covers such unique aspects of mutual funds as their role in the financial markets; the impact on mutual funds of technology and regulatory systems; different types of mutual funds; security valuation; portfolio models; international diversification related to funds; and asset valuation and custodial services. The course is conducted through a combination of lectures and case analyses.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 625 (FIN)
Derivative Securities

Derivative securities are securities such as futures contracts and call options whose value is determined by the value of some other underlying variable. Derivative securities have become an essential tool used in both corporate risk management and portfolio management. This course explores the institutional details of the various markets in which derivatives trade. It introduces the theories which govern the pricing of futures, options, and swap contracts. Practical methods of implementing derivatives-related strategies for hedging risks and gaining specified portfolio exposures are covered, as well as methods used to evaluate the outcomes of these strategies.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 626 (FIN)
International Financial Management

This course describes the body of knowledge, attitudes, and skills required of financial decision-makers operating in a global setting. The phenomenal rise in importance of multinational business finance and concomitant issues is explored in light of recent theoretical and empirical research. Specific topics include foreign exchange risk management, financing decisions in the long and short run, currency translation, accounting, and taxation.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 627 (FIN)
Health System Financial Management

This course addresses the financial management theory, techniques, and issues applicable to public and private health organizations. Specific topics include budgeting, capital formation, cost finding, reimbursement alternatives, financial analysis, and performance evaluation. The course also evaluates contemporary policy issues affecting the health care administrator.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 628 (FIN)
Portfolio Analysis and Investment Management

This course provides the student with an understanding of capital market securities, operations, valuation, and investment techniques. Specifically, the course covers definitions of various investment vehicles, operation of the NYSE and NASDAQ markets, portfolio theory (CAPM and APT), valuation of stocks and bonds, and investor capital allocation decisions—including discussions of mutual fund selection.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBA AF 629 (FIN)
Managing Financial Institutions

This course focuses on the financial management of financial institutions and covers the management of liquidity, loan portfolio, and capital, as well as overall asset-liability management in depository type institutions. The course also discusses the strategic implications for such institutions of changing financial and regulatory environment. The course is oriented toward managerial decision-making in the changing environment facing these institutions. The course is conducted through the analysis of cases and through discussions of the kinds of issues that affect decisions.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 620.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

Management and Marketing Courses

Management Courses

MBAMGT 650 (CORE)
Organizational Analysis and Skills

This course focuses on the organization of the future, identifying its characteristics and exploring the strategic design and political and cultural implications for working in and managing such an organization. It examines the impact of the new organization on the roles and careers of individual managers, the functioning of groups, the processes that exist within organizations, the relationships of organizations with their environments, and the learning and change practices needed to enhance global performance. First-semester MBA students are introduced to a variety of skills that they will be called upon to use throughout their MBA experience (case analysis, analytical writing, self-awareness, team-building, oral communication).
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 651 (MGT)
Personnel Management and Human Resources Planning

This course familiarizes students with concepts of human resources management and the principles of planning and forecasting for human resources needs. Issues to be addressed include career planning and internal labor market analysis, equal employment opportunity and affirmative action practices. Students examine job design and pay systems, methods of personnel selection and training, issues of productivity and hours of work, the effect of government regulations on working conditions, and personnel administration.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 650.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 652 (MGT)
Labor-Management Relations and the Collective Bargaining Process

This course familiarizes students with the practice of labor-management relations in the United States. The nature of labor-management conflict, the development of the US labor movement, and a comparison to other Western labor movements provide the theoretical and historical framework needed to assess the effectiveness of current practice and trends in the development of new practices and institutions. The major areas of study are the tactics and strategies of management and union representatives and the legal and economic constraints on their behavior in the organization of unions, contract negotiation, and contract administration and interpretation.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 650.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 653 (MGT)
Organizational Diagnosis and Change

This course focuses on the theory, research, and techniques of organizational diagnosis and change. Students learn how to engage in systematic structural and behavioral analyses and to design effective strategies for intervention and change.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 650.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 660 (CORE)
Business and Its Environment

This course looks at the relationship of business to the external environment and considers business in relation to legal, social, political, and economic systems, focusing in particular on the impact of governmental regulation on business. The course also addresses the functioning of the US business enterprise in the context of the international business environment. Finally, through an examination of the role of ethics in management decision-making, the course explores how business organizations can operate effectively and responsibly in the context of the external environment.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 664 (MGT)
The Legal Environment of Business

This course seeks to help students broaden their understanding of our legal and regulatory system and how it affects them as business managers. Businesses have become increasingly subject to laws and regulations. Legal and regulatory provisions pervade such aspects of business as the sale of securities; marketing practices; product liability; and business relationships with employees, customers, and other interested parties. This course assists students in developing their ability to meet the legal and regulatory demands and responsibilities of contemporary business.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 665 (MGT)
International and Comparative Management

This course introduces students to the perspectives and dimensions of management and organizations in settings that span national boundaries. Course materials stress the nature, structure, dynamics, and problems faced by international and multinational organizations. Adaptive and competitive strategic behaviors of firms working in cross-national environments are analyzed, as well as the array of economic, socio-cultural, and political determinants of managerial behavior in these settings.
Prerequisites: MBAMGT 650 and MBAMGT 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 667 (MGT)
Entrepreneurship

This course sensitizes students to the entrepreneurial process from the conception of an idea to the creation of a new venture. The course provides conceptual frameworks, tools, and techniques to understand different aspects of entrepreneurial process and helps students evaluate the entrepreneurial career for themselves. Students learn about assessing business opportunities, developing a business plan, understanding various ways of mobilizing resources, creating different forms of new ventures, and building a top management team for the growth of the venture.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670. MBA AF 620 is recommended, but not required.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 668 (MGT)
Real Estate and Local Economic Development

This course introduces students to the field of urban economic development in the context of real estate development. Students will explore the principles of economic development, focusing on the role of real estate developers, companies, community organizations, and government agencies in the decline and revitalization of neighborhoods, cities, and regions. They will be exposed to diverse issues involved in economic development, with particular emphasis on practical aspects. Topics to be covered in this course include opportunity and impact assessments, stakeholder analysis, and project management. A combination of lectures, site visits, case studies, and group projects will help students to gain an appreciation of the role of real estate in urban economic development and develop the skills required to lead and assess development projects.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 671 (MGT)
Introduction to Environmental Management

This course gives students an understanding of current environmental issues as they relate to managerial decision-making. The issues are examined from the worldwide perspectives of business and society. The course focuses on issues of waste and recycling, air quality (including ozone depletion, global warming, and acid rain), water quality, resource management, biodiversity, and sustainable economic growth.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 675 (MGT)
Managing in the Global Economy

This course provides students with the opportunity to acquire an in-depth conceptual and operational understanding of a group of countries, with the purpose of acquiring the technical skills necessary to enter, network, structure, manage, and eventually exit effectively from a foreign environment.
Prerequisites: MBA AF 601 and MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 677 (MGT)
International Perspectives on Business and Government

This course focuses on the conduct of business and the practice of government with respect to business. For business, the course explores differences in managerial practice and the cultural norms and values which help shape them, considering specifically management decision-making patterns, recruitment and promotion practices, and labor-management relations. For government, the course considers the main kinds of politico-economic systems within which managers operate, and how these affect industrial policy, planning, and labor-management relations.
Prerequisites: MBAMGT 650 and 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 678 (MGT)  
Environmental Management: Implementation Issues

This course is intended to introduce students to the issues companies encounter when trying to implement sound environmental practices through their organizations. Issues to be discussed fall in the functional areas of accounting, finance (e.g. full cost accounting concepts, information systems), the value and structure of environmental management systems (including ISO 14001), operations management (process redesign and pollution prevention), marketing (incorporating “green” considerations into product design and promotion), organizational design, and strategic management (strategic advantages and sustainable operations). The course also includes an identification of the “green consumer” and an assessment of consumer attitudes and buying behavior toward environmental issues. Students gain an appreciation of the difficulties in implementing “green” considerations into all of the functional areas listed above.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 671.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 680 (MGT)
Management of Health Organizations

Explores the roles of the health systems manager as planner, organizer, leader, and integrator of health programs. Particular attention is given to how these roles differ from industry’s roles, as well as to the special demands made of the manager in a health systems organization.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 650.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 681 (MGT)
The Health System and Public Policy

Examines the interface of government, health, and the private sector. This course explores the various roles government plays as promoter, regulator, and buyer of health services.
Prerequisite: MBAMGT 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 685 (MGT)
Global Industry and Competitive Analysis

Examines techniques of industry and competitive analysis and ways of applying these techniques to gain a better understanding of industry trends and company strategies in sectors of significant importance to the regional economy.
Prerequisites: MBAMGT 650 and 660.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMGT 689 (CORE)
Strategic Management

Considers the diverse situations typically confronted by upper-level management and strategies for managing these situations, using knowledge acquired through study of the MBA Core. These strategies are based on an analysis of the internal conditions of the firm and the constraints and opportunities afforded by the external environment. Students learn to develop strategy implementation plans that provide detailed descriptions of appropriate executive action.
Prerequisite: This course is to be taken in the student’s final semester of study.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

Marketing Courses

MBAMKT 670 (CORE)
Marketing Management

This course focuses on the strategic decisions necessary to match organizational resources with market opportunities. Students learn to analyze market opportunities, to develop marketing plans and marketing mix strategies, and to manage implementation and control of the marketing plan.
Prerequisite: MBA AF 610.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 672 (MKT)
Services Marketing

This course examines what differentiates services marketing from the marketing of products. Special attention is given to the unusually intricate coordination of planning and interaction that the marketing of services requires among the traditional management functions of marketing, operations, human resources, and finance.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 673 (MKT)
Marketing Communications

This course helps students develop an integrated communications strategy, blending individual external elements such as advertising, personal selling, sales promotion (including direct marketing and trade shows), and publicity with internal communications. The course is managerial in nature and provides the student with the necessary ability to analyze, plan, implement, and control marketing communications programs.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 674 (MKT)
International Marketing

This course introduces the student to a systematic treatment of marketing on a global scale. Topics include the world market environment and its characteristics; identifying opportunities; and the development, implementation, and control of multinational marketing programs.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 675 (MKT)
Business to Business Marketing

This course examines the strategic and tactical issues of marketing business products and services. Special focus is laid on high technology and other areas in which markets are fragmenting, life cycles are accelerating, and pressures for cost containment are increasing while margins are decreasing.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 676 (MKT)  
Computer-Assisted Market Analysis and Planning

This course provides students with state-of-the-art, practical, computer-assisted approaches to such current marketing issues as segmentation and targeting, market measurement, strategic marketing analysis and planning, product positioning, new product development, advertising and promotion planning and budgeting, pricing and distribution strategy, customer satisfaction, and post-purchase management. The computer-assisted approaches include choice-based segmentation, attribute/similarity based perceptual mapping, multi-dimensional scaling, product portfolio, conjoint analysis, new product diffusion, advertising response, market/sales response, and pricing. This course emphasizes active participation. Each approach entails software implementation and a business case whose resolution can be enhanced through the use of the software.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 677 (MKT)
Internet Marketing

The contemporary environment requires more demonstrated cost effectiveness from every marketing program than ever before. Meanwhile the customer demands quality, value, service, and quick delivery. The primary way to resolve these potentially conflicting mandates is through information-driven relationship marketing programs. This course examines the customer database as the key element in marketing programs of this type. It considers strategic implications in both business and consumer markets, for both products and services. It pays special attention to the role of interactive media, including the Internet. It aims to develop a reasonable level of technical sophistication in terms of what information technology can and cannot accomplish, but it does not involve hands-on computer applications.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMKT 679 (MKT)
Export Development and Foreign Sourcing

This course introduces techniques and procedures for conducting international operations and trade. The course focuses on operations, government agencies, import/export channel networks, pricing, and the evaluation of international opportunities. It is designed for students who are considering the formation or acquisition of their own international enterprise and who view exporting as a necessary activity. Since international business is a two-way street, the course also raises the issue of foreign buying and importing.
Prerequisite: MBAMKT 670.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

Management Science and Information Systems Courses

The following course is required for all students in the program. Those who have not completed it or its equivalent before they are admitted to the program must take it as one of their first three courses.

MBAMS 600 (CORE)
Mathematical Analysis for Managers

This course provides the mathematical skills and applications necessary to pursue graduate study in the College of Management. Topics include a review of basic algebra; graphing; linear, polynomial, exponential, and logarithmic functions; functions of several variables; systems of linear equations; probability; differentiation and integration.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 630 (CORE)
Statistical Analysis for Managers

Acquaints students with statistical techniques used in management decision-making and develops their ability to characterize management problems that can be solved by such techniques. Topics include descriptive statistics, probability distributions, sampling, estimation, hypothesis testing, simple and multiple regression and correlation, chi square testing, analysis of variance, and decision theory. Students make use of computers and appropriate software to apply what they are learning.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 600.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 635 (CORE)
Operations Management

This course familiarizes students with the analysis, planning, and control of operations and operating resources in both production and service organizations. Topics covered include product design and process selection, capacity planning, location and layout decisions, and inventory control. Analytical techniques used in system design and operations planning and control problems are also discussed. Students make use of computers and appropriate software to apply what they are learning.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 630.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 636 (OPM)
Forecasting

This course considers the major approaches to forecasting sales or customer volume in business applications. The forecasting activity is an essential prelude to decisions involving planning and budgeting, staffing, scheduling, and inventory management. The subject is important in both service sector and production organizations. Topics include time series methods, causal methods, treatment of seasonal effects, trend effects, the business cycle and combinations of forecasts.
Prerequisites: MBAMS 635 and 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 638 (OPM)
Management Decision Models

Using the framework of 1) data, 2) models, and 3) decisions, this course familiarizes the student with the systematic use of data and models in decision making. The student acquires an appreciation of management science approaches to solving problems in business or government, public or private, and profit or not-for-profit sectors. Examples of problems from various sectors and from various functional areas are discussed. Students gather data about these problems, develop models, and explore solutions using computer-based analysis and managerial judgment. In addition, “what if” analyses are used to determine the sensitivity of model solutions to uncertainties in data inputs. The course is computer-based, using many of the advanced features on Excel and/or other software packages.
Prerequisites: MBAMS 635 and 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 639 (OPM)
Quality Management

This course addresses the issues of managing for quality, in both service systems producing intangible goods and manufacturing systems producing tangible goods. It explores concepts of total quality management, including continuous process improvement, business process design, bench marking, and organizational change. It also includes statistical quality control techniques and discussion of quality in information systems.
Prerequisites: MBAMS 635 and 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 640 (CORE)
Computers and Information Processing Systems

This course examines the role of information technology (IT) in supporting an organization’s operations, strategy, and change efforts. The course offers a comprehensive review of modern information technology architectures covering current approaches to the organization and management of computer technology, telecommunications, data organization, and information system applications. Major emphasis is given to the critical role that computer technology and information systems methodology play in the re-design of business processes under different organizational settings. The course makes extensive use of case scenarios to describe and to research further some issues involved in the planning, development, and implementation of streamlined organizational processes and information system applications. Some modules may involve the hands-on use of personal computers.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 645 (MIS)
Systems Analysis and Design

This course covers recent approaches to the analysis and design of computer-based information systems, including hands-on use of Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools for real-world problem-solving. The changing role of the systems analyst in today’s organizations is examined. This course critically analyzes systems development methodologies, including life cycle, prototyping, evolutionary, and participative models; discusses effective diagramming and notational techniques now available to define and document functional requirements; and examines current methods used to test and evaluate the accuracy, completeness, and usability of documented requirements and convert them into efficient system design. Participants discuss the concept of quality as applied to information systems as well as the role of information systems in managing quality within the organization.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 646 (MIS)
Database Management Systems

This course examines the goals and objectives of integrated databases in today’s competitive world and discusses data as a resource for total quality management. It critically examines database modeling techniques and design methods and reviews the nature of database management software. Data analysis techniques and supporting modeling tools are applied in individual and group projects. Database management systems are used extensively in both mainframe and microcomputer environments.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 647 (MIS)
Information Technology for Quality and Competitive Management

This course exposes students to the concepts and frameworks required to manage information technology (IT) towards strategic goals. Discussions include the characteristics of new technologies such as groupware, client/server, Internet, intranets, and high band width communication networks. The course develops linkages between strategic goals and technology characteristics and considers the impact of these technologies on organizations, ranging from small, entrepreneurial companies to large corporations. Topics include developing a technology strategy for a firm, creating technology-based alliances, managing a technology portfolio, and exploiting the potential of electronic commerce to re-engineer the value chain in an industry. Cases focus on companies that have succeeded as a result of imaginative use of IT and those that have failed as a result of inability to exploit IT. No IT background is presumed.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 649 (MIS)
Computer Networks for Management

Communication networks are changing the way businesses are organized in areas such as the retailing, brokerage, automotive, and banking industries. The objective of the course is to familiarize students with the rapidly evolving technology in the areas of data, video, and voice communication. The course studies managerial issues relating to the use and management of advanced technology. Students learn how to exploit the technology for business purposes such as producing innovative services, improving quality, reducing cost, and providing real-time customer service. The course helps develop an ability to manage technologies such as ISDN, advanced intelligent networks, multimedia, fiber optics, and virtual networks towards goals such as growth and portability.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 650 (MIS)
Object-Oriented Information Systems

This course reviews systems development principles with an object orientation as they relate to the analysis and design of database applications, knowledge base systems, and object-oriented programming. The C++ programming language is used extensively to illustrate such characteristic properties of current object-oriented programming techniques as encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAMS 651 (MIS)
Project Management

The pervasive nature of information systems and information technology (IS/IT) now influences most operational and managerial facets of modern organizations. Project management of the planning, designing, and implementation of information systems to meet corporate goals and objectives is an essential management process that can determine the success or failure of IS/IT projects. Topics include software development, life cycle models and paradigms, software cost estimation, project planning and risk analysis, work breakdown structure, project execution and control, project scheduling activities, automated project management tools, CASE tool and objective-oriented applications, software maintenance and reuse, and software capability maturity models.
Prerequisite: MBAMS 640.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

Analysis and Communication for Managers Courses

MBAACM 681 (ACM)
Analytical Writing in Management

This course prepares the management graduate student for advanced writing in other MBA courses, and for effective writing in management. Topics include key ingredients in effective managerial writing; writing as a managerial problem; interpreting and reporting quantitative information; and representative managerial writing situations (e.g., feasibility reports, policy recommendations, research reports).
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

MBAACM 682 (ACM)
Oral Communication for Managers

This course helps students improve their oral communication skills. Its purpose is to improve 1) students’ organizational effectiveness as managers, and 2) students’ personal effectiveness as speakers. Course topics include the communication process, communicating in organizations, the substance of oral communication (argument and persuasion), and the form of communication (organization and delivery).
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits

Independent Study and Special Topics Courses

MBAACM, MBA AF, MBAMGT, MBAMS, MBAMKT 696
Independent Study

Independent study credit is granted only for academic work not normally offered in advanced courses. A student must find a faculty sponsor for his or her independent study project and then file a proposal for the project in the MBA Office. The proposal should be signed by both the student and the faculty sponsor.
Hrs by arrangement, 3 Credits

MBAACM, MBA AF, MBAMGT, MBAMS, MBAMKT 697
Special Topics

This course addresses a specific topic in a particular discipline. Courses under this title are offered as one-time supplements to a given department’s curriculum.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits