Brief Description of Courses

ISM 6508: Web-Based Business Development

This course develops skills for launching and managing electronic technology-based businesses in both entrepreneurial and corporate settings. Topics include evaluating current e-business opportunities, business plan composition, e-business operations, and e-business performance assessment and control.

The Internet and its related information and communication technologies have transformed the economy and the businesses within a very short period of time – with costs of performing many kinds of business operations having plummeted; entire new ways of commercial transactions having emerged; and revolutionary and evolutionary business models having been created. This course aims to examine the impacts of Internet, both as a facilitative or disruptive technology, on the management and creation of businesses. At the end of this course, students are expected to have an in-depth understanding of the following:

• Internet in the business world: Environmental and corporate factors
• Operations, benefits, and challenges of e-business
• Creating and critiquing business plans involving new technologies

Offering:  ISM 6508 is typically offered every spring semester.

Prerequisite(s): Graduate standing; and ISM 6026 or permission of instructor

MAN 6525: Quality Management

This course provides an understanding of the various theories of quality management and the interdisciplinary nature of the field. It engages students in contemporary issues pertaining to the management of quality in services and manufacturing, in international and domestic markets, as well as in the private and public sectors. The conceptual and analytical skills acquired in this course enable students to provide leadership in shaping a culture for quality within an organization and determining the effectiveness of quality initiatives such as Six Sigma, Process Capability, Process Control, and Total Quality Management. With quality underlying every aspect of business, having such training in quality is an asset for any student as it is viewed desirably by businesses. Much of what the student learns will be practitioner-oriented and directly applicable to the real world. Informative readings on quality management and experiential learning exercises complement the text and add to the learning experience in this course.

Offering:  MAN 6525 is typically offered every spring semester.

Prerequisite(s):  Graduate standing; and MAN 3506 or MAN 6501 or permission of instructor

MAN 6581: Project Management

A project mindset has emerged as the dominant framework to do work in organizations around the world today. Projects are used not only to execute strategy through implementation, but are increasingly used to make strategy through improvisation by delivering on a series of innovative experimental projects. This course is designed to help students succeed in this projectized world by providing a strong foundation in managing projects. It will enable students to manage projects more effectively based on developing an analytic perspective on critical issues such as selection, risk, change, teams, and leadership as they relate to projects. The course will provide hands-on training in the use of Microsoft Project to an advanced level for planning and tracking projects including scheduling, resource planning, and earned value analysis. Through simulation and a real world project, students will develop an integrated understanding of project management. The course provides students with the basis on which to build a career in this field and work towards gaining much-sought-after professional certification in project management.

Offering:  MAN 6581 is typically offered every fall semester.

Prerequisite(s):  Graduate standing; and MAN 3506 or MAN 6501 or permission of instructor

MAN 6596:  Supply Chain Management

Logistics and supply chain management is about managing the flows of information and materials along value chains. It is an area of management that represents a great challenge as well as a tremendous source of opportunity. There is a realization today that no company can do any better than its supply chain and logistics system. Supply chain system activities, including communication, inventory management, warehousing, transportation, and facility location, have been performed since the start of commercial activity. Only recently, however, have firms started to focus on logistics and supply chain management as a source of competitive advantage. In this course we will examine the supply chain from the point of view of a general manager. Our goal in this course is to understand how logistical decisions impact the performance of the firm as well as the entire supply chain. The key will be to understand the link between supply chain structures, logistical capabilities, and the firm’s strategies. Through case studies and a multi-week simulation, students will gain practical experience making decisions regarding supply chain management, including forecasting, procurement, distribution systems, transportation, information systems, and pricing, in order to improve a firm’s performance.
Offering:  MAN 6596 is typically offered every fall semester.
Prerequisite(s):  Graduate standing; and MAN 3506 or MAN 6501 or permission of instructor

QMB 6603 Data Analysis for Managers

This course is a foundation course of the MBA curriculum. Students taking this class fall into two categories: students lacking the requisite math (the equivalent of QMB3600) for MBA studies, and students taking the course as an elective. The former subgroup is the majority; students in the latter subgroup are often non-business graduate students. The course exposes students to, and develops their knowledge of, exploratory data analysis, probability theory and distributions, sampling, inferential statistics, and linear regression. Students develop and demonstrate knowledge of statistical functions of office suite spreadsheet software (e.g., Microsoft Excel) and specialized statistical software (e.g., Minitab) functions. Learning opportunities are created in which students employ critical thinking skills to analyze and solve business problems using statistical techniques, and to build multiple regression models using software.

Offering:  QMB 6603 is typically offered every semester.

Prerequisite(s):  Graduate standing