Course Descriptions: MBA Core
First Fall Term
ACTG 612: FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING
This course is an introduction to accounting, the language of business. An understanding of how financial accounting information is prepared and reported is one of the fundamental building blocks of a business education. This course is designed to assist you in developing an understanding of financial accounting concepts and techniques so you can be an effective and informed user of financial statement information. In this course students will learn to apply accounting rules to reflect underlying economic transactions; understand how differences in measurement rules affect financial statements; understand how manager judgment influences financial statements, and analyze financial statements to make business decisions.
DSC 612: QUALITATIVE METHODS FOR MANAGERS
This course aims to achieve a level of understanding of statistical inference that enables students to be intelligent consumers of statistical analyses, able to apply some of the more useful analytic techniques including the modeling of relationships among variables and an introduction to classification. Specifically we will cover statistical sampling, estimation, hypothesis testing, and regression (simple, multiple, and logistic).
FIN 612: FUNDAMENTALS OF FINANCE
This MBA core course examines the basic principles of finance theory and applies the principles to important decisions facing a corporate manager. The focus of the course is on valuation and how various types of decisions potentially affect the value of a company. The course covers the fundamentals of evaluating investment opportunities, the relation between risk and required return, and the notion of market efficiency. The ways that markets ascertain value and allocate capital are compared to how a firm allocates capital to projects or initiatives. Key decisions faced by corporate managers that are covered include capital structure and mix, dividend policy, corporate cash management; cost of capital evaluation; project analysis and valuation; internal versus external financing; and evaluating and managing a business’s financial risks. By the end of the course, you should be able to value stocks and bonds using discounted cash flow techniques; identify the relevant incremental cash flows of an investment opportunity; estimate the required rate of return or cost of capital; and evaluate whether an investment opportunity adds value to a business.
MGMT 612: MANAGING INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS
Course content is based upon behavioral science concepts and research findings directed toward the understanding of human behavior in various social contexts. Specific objectives of the course include developing an understanding of the design of organizations and their internal systems for achieving performance; the nature of team dynamics and group decision-making, and their influence on organizational performance; and individual cognitive and leadership styles and their impact on group and organizational processes.
MKTG 612: MARKET ANALYSIS AND MARKETING MANAGEMENT
This course introduces the concept of marketing, factors that influence marketing management, and the role of marketing in society and business. The class will address the benefits of market analysis, target customer identification, and development of marketing-mix strategies structured to deliver superior customer value and optimize organizational performance. The objective is to develop skills and knowledge in the areas of consumer behavior, market segmentation, targeting, positioning, product, services, price, place, promotion, and strategic marketing with a sustainable, ethical and socially responsible approach.
First Winter Term
DSC 613: OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
This course is designed to address the key operations management issues in manufacturing and service organizations that have strategic as well as tactical implications. Students learn to understand the role of operations management in the overall business strategy of the firm; the strategic and tactical linkages between operations function and other functional areas of the firm; and the application of operations management policies and techniques to manufacturing as well as service sector firms. In addition, the course aims to identify and evaluate comparative approaches to operations management in an international context, as well as a range of tools appropriate for analysis of operating systems of the firm.
FIN 613: MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS
The subject of this course addresses competition between businesses operating in typical U.S. product markets. This course has three objectives: (1) to solidify understanding of fundamental tools of economic analysis so that these tools can be used; (2) to develop the role of industry structure and the impact structure tends to have on competitive strategy and profitability; (3) to begin to build skills in competitive analysis, which entails formation of marketing, production, channel, investment, and pricing strategies based on the way competitive forces appear to work themselves out in the market. The concepts covered, which are relevant to managerial decision making, include demand and supply analysis; optimal decision making using marginal analysis; production theory; decision making under perfect competition, monopoly, and monopolistic competition; externalities and public goods; game theory; and moral hazard.
BE 607: BUSINESS LAW FOUNDATIONS
This course familiarizes students with the U.S. legal system, its procedures, and its basic substantive rules, as well as basic international law. it helps students understand more fully the legal issues they will encounter in business, as private individuals, and members of society.
First Spring Term
MGMT 614: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
The purpose of this course is to explore the organization as a whole and its interactions with its environment. Students will gain an understanding of critical contingency issues the organization faces in the environment and how it must manage these contingencies through its structure and strategy to gain competitive advantages. The focus will be on diagnosing and assessing organization situations and to show how large and small firms can be more effective and efficient not only in todays world but in tomorrow's as well.
Second Fall Term
BA 610: BUSINESS LEADERSHIP AND ETHICS
Effective leadership and ethics are two sides of the same coin, whether in business, politics, or your personal affairs. That's why we made this course the culmination of the required core. Regardless of your chosen track, you and all your classmates will come together once more in your last term to take this course.
Course Descriptions: Track Required and Recommended
The following courses are required or recommended courses for one of the tracks or serve as free electives. They may be taken in either the first or second year, subject to prerequisites and course load tolerance.
Accounting
ACTG 540: AUDITING CONCEPTS
The audit environment, examinations of financial statements, and the audit process. Includes professional standards, audit sampling, and the audit profession.
ACTG 550: ADVANCED FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING
Accounting for equity, financial accounting, and reporting for corporate consolidation.
ACTG 570: INTRODUCTION TO FEDERAL TAXATION
Federal income tax law covering primarily the taxation of individuals. Introduction to tax planning.
ACTG 610: DEVELOPING THE BUSINESS PROFESSIONAL SEMINARS
These two one-credit seminars cover topics essential for an accounting professional to be aware of but not covered in the academic courses. Activities/topics covered vary from term to term and year to year depending upon but typically include choosing appropriate attire by occasion, resume development and interview preparation, team building exercises including a ropes course, attendance at a variety of professional events, lectures on topics such including client confidentiality, proper communication etiquette, employee legal rights and managing your career path. Typically one of the seminars focuses on an emerging area for accountants, such as corporate responsibility reports, where there is significant engagement with professionals and practice of etiquette and communication skills.
ACTG 610: TAXATION OF PASS-THROUGH ENTITIES
This is an introduction to the taxation of pass-through entities--S corporations and partnerships (including limited liability companies)--as they form, operate, and dissolve. In addition, the course develops an understanding of the tax research process, including the hierarchy of research authority, issue identification/framing of “the question(s)”, identification and evaluation of relevant authoritative materials, and presentation of findings.
ACTG 610: INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTING
Exposes students to the international aspects of accounting and financial management so that they can know how to use information from foreign financial statements to make decisions, be familiar with measurement and disclosure issues, and understand the international convergence of financial reporting. It addresses intermediate and advanced financial reporting topics, including the financial (U.S. GAAP) and tax consequences of cross-border transactions; developing an understanding of non-GAAP accounting standards and their implications for financial statement analysis, such as translations and the treatment of foreign currency transactions and exchange risk; and understanding the implications of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on U.S. companies. Students apply these concepts through cases and a financial statement project.
ACTG 610: MANAGERIAL ACCOUNTING
Studies how accounting information is both determined and then used in organizations to make planning and control decisions. This introductory course focuses on three primary areas. The first segment of the course is focused on manufacturing environments and how both product and operating cost are determined, calculated and reported. Further within this segment, costs are separated based on both their nature (fixed vs. variable), and then using those categorizations, cost functions are derived to provide cost estimates for the future. The second segment of the course is focused on cash budgeting and how these budgets can be extrapolated to accrual accounting statements (income statements and balance sheets). Using the "bottom up" approach at budgeting provides a more fundamental understanding for the differences between cash and accrual accounting. Further, this segment provides the class with the ability to form their own cash budgets, which is a necessary skill for managers within most corporate/entrepreneurial environments. In addition to cash budgeting, standard costing is presented in order to show how budgets are used as a control/motivational tool to access managerial performance and activity. The third segment of the course is focused on managerial decision making. The segment begins with the differences between variable-based vs. traditional absorption based income statements. Once the decision making model is established, students are shown how this new approach at looking at financial information is used to make both short- and long-term decisions. The contribution margin model explores decisions/information, such as break even, operating leverage, outsourcing, contraction, and optimal product mix.
ACTG 617: TAXATION OF BUSINESS
Covers the basic structure of federal tax law as it applies to corporations and shareholders; tax and economic consequences of the creation, operation and liquidation of a corporation; tax and economic consequences of withdrawals, payments or distributions of assets from corporations; tax and economic consequences of a reorganization; reasons for and rules regarding consolidated tax returns; and theory and application of accounting for corporate income taxes under financial accounting rules.
ACTG 618: TAXES AND BUSINESS STRATEGY
Focuses on the importance of tax considerations in making business decisions. Objectives for the course are to develop and apply a theoretical tax-planning framework that considers implications of a transaction on all parties, all explicit and implicit taxes, and all costs necessary to implement any tax plans. Among topics considered in the framework are how taxes are accounted for, the organizational form of the entity, the importance of tax planning, and nontax costs. After understanding the framework, the course applies these concepts to specific decision contexts, such as compensation plans, multinational tax planning, and mergers and acquisitions. At the conclusion of the class, students should be able to apply a framework to future decisions dealing with taxes, even as tax laws themselves continue to change.
ACTG 620: ENTREPRENEURIAL ACCOUNTING
Examines the selection of a company's legal organizational structure; compensation strategies for small-business owners; cash-flow budgeting, management, and forecasting; and financial statement analysis. Students apply the concepts in case studies and an applied project. The class material uses frameworks and tools learned in ACTG 612 Financial Accounting and ACTG 631 Financial Statement Analysis.
ACTG 625: FINANCIAL REPORTING
Addresses two primary objectives. The first is to provide students with the technical knowledge necessary to understand the financial reporting system and the numbers produced by that system. The second is to provide students with an understanding of the context within which the financial statement numbers are used. Focused attention will be placed on issues in revenue recognition, receivables, leases, pensions, investments, income taxes, and cash flows. IFRS and U.S. GAAP comparisons are integrated into the course as well. The last section of the course spends time reviewing research linking financial reporting numbers to executive compensation. This course is user-focused rather than preparer-focused, and thus it is essential for any student who has an interest in a career in which financial statement information is an important ingredient to decisions.
ACTG 630: ACCOUNTING MEASUREMENT AND DISCLOSURE
Focuses on what problems public reporting of information solves, what problems it creates, and how these problems can be mitigated. The foundation of both why we have publicly available financial reporting and the problems that result from such public reporting is the concept of information asymmetry. Along the way, the course discusses fair-value accounting vs. historical cost reserve-recognition accounting; earnings quality and management; principles- vs. rules-based accounting; and the role and functioning of the Securities Exchange Commission and other accounting regulatory bodies.
ACTG 631: FINANCIAL STATEMENT ANALYSIS
Part of business analysis, financial statement analysis encompasses the evaluation of a company's past performance and risk, as well as prediction of future performance and risk. Such analysis may be useful for financial decisions related to equity valuation, debt valuation, credit risk assessment, and so forth. This course is designed to give preparers and users of financial information a framework for business analysis and valuation using financial statement data. Students apply this framework to a variety of business decisions. The course covers many of the techniques commonly used to analyze financial statements, including disclosure analysis, financial ratios, cash-flow analysis, forecasting, and valuation methods. At the end of the course students have an understanding of how business events are reflected in financial statements; literacy in reading 10-K's and 10-Q's; a working knowledge of the residual income valuation model; experience in applying asset pricing and valuation theories to business decisions. The course assumes a basic working knowledge of accounting, finance, economics and business strategy. Through cases, valuation software, and analysis projects, the course integrates key concepts from each of these areas for application to financial decision-making.
ACTG 642: ADVANCED ASSURANCE SERVICES
With a focus on advanced auditing and by approaching auditing from a case method, this course covers new trends toward assurance services. It considers professional roles in auditing, auditing standards, risk assessment, enterprise risk management, internal controls, and broader roles for the auditor in oversight, governance, and accountability.
ACTG 662: STRATEGIC COST MANAGEMENT
An advanced graduate class melding strategic issues, mathematical models, and management accounting, this course gives students a thorough understanding how cost information supports the creation and implementation of corporate strategies. The course uses many cases and emphasizes decision making in a complex and ambiguous environment. Specific topics covered are customer profitability analysis, value chain and activity-based management, costs of quality, environmental cost management, the theory of constraints and capacity decisions, transfer pricing, and evaluating performance via the balanced scorecard. Students explore the topics both from the view of applied use of these concepts and also academic research.
ACTG 665: DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS
Use of technology to create effective decision support systems. Understanding how systems can be created to supply information to managers.
Business Environment
BE 510: LAW FOR MANAGERS
Examines key legal subjects that govern business transactions and relationships that all business owners and managers, as well as private persons, engage in--some on an almost daily basis. Topics include contract law for purchasing, selling, financing, and insuring services, goods and real property, as well as company formation and governance and personal estate planning through wills and trusts. Through this course of study students gain practical knowledge and skills for more successfully managing companies, advising clients, and conducting their personal commercial affairs.
Decision Sciences
DSC 533: INFORMATION ANALYSIS FOR MANAGERIAL DECISIONS
Teaches techniques to develop information to manage risk and improve decisions. These techniques include data-driven approaches for discovering business trends and strategic opportunities, including techniques for data mining and analyzing empirical data.
DSC 544: BUSINESS DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
Covers techniques for structuring and storing business data, focusing primarily on relational database theory with applied skills for business users, including data warehouses, reporting, and normalization.
DSC 566: PROJECT AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT MODELS
Frameworks and solutions for managing complex projects and operations; implementing optimal strategies for producing profitable new products and services in the competitive global business environment.
DSC 577: SUPPLY-CHAIN OPERATIONS AND INFORMATION
Strategic and tactical issues pertaining to the distribution and delivery of products and services. Methodologies and systems for designing, tracking, and managing complex global operations.
DSC 588: E-BUSINESS
Fundamental principles of electronic business; effect of e-business on business strategies, processes, customers, and suppliers; assessing the impact of e-business technologies on firm performance.
DSC 635: APPLIED REGRESSION ANALYSIS
Theory and application of least-squares regression including model selection and diagnostics. Emphasis on managerial applications and decision-making.
Finance
FIN 462/562: DERIVATIVE MARKETS AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
Derivatives are some of the world’s most liquid and largest securities, playing a role in many investment portfolios. Their use has fundamentally changed asset and liability management. This course is intended to provide an understanding of various risks that corporations face, practical aspects of how these risks are managed, and the tools and instruments that are available to deal with them. The class looks at the role of the derivatives in risk management and uses and pricing of derivatives along with options, futures, swaps, and value-at-risk. By the end of the course, students understand the intuition and mechanics of equity derivatives, assess the values and risks of derivatives, comprehend innovations in derivative markets, and appreciate how these tools can assist managers’ ability to make better decisions. (The renumbering of this class is pending faculty approval.)
FIN 608: COMMERCIAL BANKING
This course is designed to provide students with an understanding of the complex issues facing today’s commercial bank management, in particular the measurement and management of risks within commercial banking. The class starts with a brief history of the development of the financial services industry and discuss the interaction of banking policies with regulatory and shareholder interests. It then moves into a study of the banking operational processes, risks and policies, linking this to how bank performance is analyzed by both internal and external organizations. The class culminates in an examination of financial and non-financial credit and business risks that are considered in the credit analysis policies and processes of commercial banks. At the end of this course students should appreciate the complexity of managing a commercial bank and understand future issues affecting the outlook of the industry. In addition, students should have an introduction to the credit analysis function in banks. This will provide preparation so that students may pursue credit and loan careers in banking, or be better prepared when they go to a bank in the future seeking financing for the companies where they work.
FIN 608: WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Private wealth management is a growing business around the world and there is increased demand for professionals who can work with clients to assess and plan needs on a holistic basis. The best wealth managers know how to discern the needs and aspirations of clients, integrate these into a plan that reflects not only investment preferences, but also insurance, estate planning, taxes, retirement, benefits, and gift giving/philanthropy considerations. This course starts by providing an overview of the wealth life cycle from accumulation through preservation and distribution. In this section students will come to understand how financial decisions are made by clients. The second part of the class will then take this knowledge and show how to shape this into an appropriate investment and wealth planning strategy for different clients based on their risk tolerances, tax situation, liabilities, and timing. The third part of the class addresses the types of wealth management plans and benchmarking of performance that successful firms do with their clients. Finally the class will discuss how wealth management practices can be built successfully on the basis of strong client management and marketing. The class will cover briefly the processes within institutional clients, the majority of the material will deal with wealth management from the perspective of an individual.
FIN 609: EMERGING MARKET INVESTMENT FUND
Finding market opportunities in emerging markets presents investors and managers with issues not just of understanding capital market behaviors but also of firm valuation. Students will research and present the risks and uncertainties in these markets alongside the potential for value creation. The Emerging Markets Investment Fund gives students the opportunity to manage an actual fund of emerging market equities, evaluate stock performance, examine future earnings and valuation, benchmark performance, and present results to investment professionals. This class is open to all graduate students. It acts as the Strategic Planning Project (SPP) for MBA students who are pursuing the investment management/capital markets career track within the SAC.
FIN 609: STRATEGIC PLANNING PROJECT
Strategic Planning Project courses part of the experiential learning that characterizes the Oregon MBA. Student teams are paired up with companies pursuing opportunities for growth or facing obstacles to growth that have a corporate finance or investment management issue. Under the guidance of faculty advisors, team facilitators, and outside consultants, students apply classroom lessons and learn what can't be taught in the classroom. Students work with company management, conduct research and analyze findings, and present their conclusions to senior management. The majority of student time takes place on campus, but students should expect that some travel may be required. This course spans multiple terms--typically fall and winter of the second year.
FIN610: REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT AND FINANCE
This course addresses the importance of real estate with a focus on financing and investment issues enabling students to distinguish the value of real estate from other assets. The course starts with developing a working knowledge of the characteristics of income-producing properties from various real estate categories, then moves into the evaluation of existing income-producing properties to establish a basis for analyzing real estate markets and individual property investments. Emphasis is placed on the characteristics that make the valuation of and investment in real property different, including cash flow uncertainties, debt sources and tax features. The course covers the process of purchasing income-producing real estate and considers financing strategies including capital structure choices for construction and permanent financing. Finally, the class provides an overview of how debt structuring, REITs, and securitization of real estate assets and liabilities have changed, so that students can appreciate the complexity and risks of analyzing and structuring mortgages and real estate deals.
FIN610: IMPACT INVESTING
Institutions globally are experimenting with new forms of "impact" investment designed to generate both market rate returns and positive social and environmental impact. The idea of using profit-seeking investment for this dual purpose is moving from the periphery of activist investors to the core of mainstream financial institutions. This course explores the progress of and challenges to this trend from the vantage point of institutional money managers. The 5-week course will examine several impact investment asset categories. Each week, leaders in each of these asset groups will join the class and discuss their fund, their investment strategies & the impact component of their strategy in that asset category. The class requires a group project to create a financial vehicle (e.g. investment firm, fund or instrument) capable of fitting within an asset allocation of institutional investor portfolios (public equities, fixed income, hard assets, private equities, alternative assets, etc) while delivering social/environmental impact.
FIN 610: CORPORATE FINANCE AND VALUATION
Introduces students to fundamental issues that arise in corporate financial decision making and valuation of businesses. The primary goal of this course is to provide a basic understanding of corporate finance and the complexities of these decisions. The topics covered include cash flow budgeting, financing policy (encompassing both the financing mid and cash payout policy), business valuation, financial distress, and mergers and acquisitions. Students study the tenets of different valuation techniques, see how they are applied, and learn how to decide which method is appropriate for specific decisions. By the end of the term, students should be able to perform a net present value analysis of a proposed investment project or an acquisition; assess the appropriateness of a firm’s capital structure and dividend policies; and value a business.
FIN 663: INTERNATIONAL FINANCE AND INVESTMENT
Intended to foster an understanding of the financial management decisions that firms face in the international environment. A key focus of the course is to ensure that students understand determinants of exchange rate and how to analyze corporate exposure to exchange rate risk. Some of the topics discussed in the course are globalization and the on going free trade debate; balance of payment fundamentals, such as capital flows; country debt and exchange rate fluctuations; foreign exchange rate risk and hedging; international capital budgeting; and barriers to international capital flows.
FIN 667: FIXED INCOME SECURITIES
Provides an understanding of the interest rate risk that corporations face, practical aspects of how these risks are managed, and the tools and instruments that are available to deal with them. The class looks at fixed income securities and their derivatives, their valuation, and the hedging and management of interest rate risk. Students develop tools to explore the theoretical, empirical, and institutional aspects of fixed-income securities and their derivatives, as well as develop an appreciation for how these tools may apply to managerial decisions in other contexts. (This new class is pending faculty approval.)
FIN 671: ADVANCED FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Application of financial principles to problems of valuation, capital budgeting, and financial policy.
FIN 673: ADVANCED TOPICS IN CORPORATE FINANCE
A case-based course that fosters a deeper understanding of the financial decisions that firms face in the real world by building on the fundamental principles of corporate finance. Cases are used to demonstrate how finance theory is applied to today’s corporate finance decisions. Some of the topics discussed in the course are the impact of dividend policy on firm value; capital structure; real options; managerial incentives; mergers and acquisitions; and corporate governance. Cases are used to motivate discussion on the topics. FIN 673 covers topics not covered in FIN 610, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and managerial incentives. Some areas covered in FIN 610 are covered in more depth in FIN 673, such as dividend policy and capital structure. (This new class is pending faculty approval.)
FIN 683: INVESTMENTS
Follows FIN 610, which covers the traditional investment topics of portfolio theory, market efficiency, and the capital asset pricing model. This course builds on this foundation by focusing on major types of investments, particularly equity and fixed income markets. The course may also consider mutual funds and options, stocks, and bonds. In order to develop a way of thinking about framing investment decisions, the measuring of risk and the relation between risk, expected return, and security analysis are key themes. Students also broadly consider informational efficiency in financial markets--in other words, the extent to which financial assets are or are not correctly priced. Topics include capital asset pricing vs. arbitrage pricing theory and risk sources vs. risk return.
Management
MGMT 607: SEMINAR IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP
First year MBA students with a entrepreneurship focus will enroll in a 1 credit E Seminar class. This class is designed as a speaker series but will also include opportunities to visit off campus entrepreneurial firms through trips to Seattle, Bend and Portland. The fall and winter term seminars will focus on idea generation opportunity recognition and feasibility analysis. The spring term seminar will serve as the basis for introducing the LCE's Asia Study Tour which occurs prior the fall term of the second year.
MGMT 609: STRATEGIC PLANNING PROJECT
Strategic Planning Project courses part of the experiential learning that characterizes the Oregon MBA. Student teams are paired up with Northwest companies pursuing opportunities for growth or facing obstacles to growth. Under the guidance of faculty advisors, team facilitators, and outside consultants, students apply classroom lessons and learn what can't be taught in the classroom as they research the company, analyze their findings, and present their conclusions to senior management. For more information visit the SPP web site.
MGMT 609: VENTURE STARTUP I/II
Most students who enroll in these two courses participate in one or more of a number of national and international business plan competitions during Winter and Spring terms. Others use the course as a platform for launching a venture through traditional financing options. Prerequisite is successful completion of New Venture Planning, participation in the Venture Quest internal business plan competition, and Instructor's consent.
MGMT 610: TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION
In this course we will focus on innovation as a strategic process. Students will explore the dynamics of technological innovation, technology strategy formulation, and strategy implementation. The course utilizes a combination of reading and case materials, class discussion, and student projects to provide students with knowledge and skills to assess, formulate, and implement technology strategy.
MGMT 610: INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY
Industrial ecology represents a systems approach to the design and manufacture of products (and delivery of services) with minimized ecological impact. It breaks from traditional corporate environmental management approaches by looking beyond the boundaries of individual facilities and firms to consider the industrial metabolism within supply chains, industrial clusters, and geographic regions.
MGMT 610: LIFE CYCLE ENGINEERING AND REVERSE LOGISTICS
MGMT 610: SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
The purpose of this course is to bring together students from varied backgrounds to appreciate how economic activity impacts the natural environment, to understand the evolution and role of institutions that influence corporate environmental behavior and to learn how a firm can manage its way to better environmental performance.
MGMT 610: RECOGNIZING BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
This course introduces the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, which empowers individuals to confront what others see as insurmountable problems and to seek opportunity through technological and business solutions. This course is designed to be valuable for all MBA students who seek to understand the entrepreneurial process.
MGMT 620: MANAGING GLOBAL BUSINESS
To some globalization represents a threat. To others it represents an opportunity. In either case, managers must be prepared to work effectively with people and companies from highly divergent cultural backgrounds if they are to succeed in an increasingly competitive global business environment. This course examines the challenges of working and managing across cultures. Taking a comparative approach, students examine how basic organization and management processes can differ across borders, as well as various management strategies for accommodating these differences. Culture and cultural differences represents the starting point for our analyses. Implications for global managers represent the conclusion. Emphasis is also given to developing the global management skills necessary to survive and succeed in the new global economy.
MGMT 623: NEGOTIATION
Covers negotiation theory, including distributive and integrative bargaining techniques, economic complements, game theory, and alternative dispute resolution. Extensive in-class negotiation simulations are part of the course.
MGMT 625: NEW VENTURE PLANNING
Student teams identify and research a business opportunity, developing and presenting a professional start-up business plan that includes market, competitor, cash-flow, and financial analyses.
Marketing
MKTG 610: NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
Students will gain knowledge and experience of the process of identifying issues relating to the challenges of product planning, strategy and implementation. The course will expose students to actual business situations relating to brand and product management and enable students to make a more positive and immediate impact on the organizations they join upon completion of their MBA.
MKTG 660: MARKETING RESEARCH
Marketing research as a tool for decision-making. Planning research projects; design, measurement, experimental and nonexperimental techniques, analysis and interpretation of data; reporting research results.
MKTG 665: MARKETING STRATEGY
Relationship between marketing and other functional areas of a business. Emphasis on case analysis as a means of acquiring both planning and operational skills.
Sports Business
SBUS 609: STRATEGIC PLANNING PROJECT
Strategic Planning Project courses part of the experiential learning that characterizes the Oregon MBA. Student teams are paired up with Northwest companies pursuing opportunities for growth or facing obstacles to growth. Under the guidance of faculty advisors, team facilitators, and outside consultants, students apply classroom lessons and learn what can't be taught in the classroom as they research the company, analyze their findings, and present their conclusions to senior management. For more information visit the SPP web site.
SBUS 610: SPORTS PRODUCTS
Strategic and tactical issues associated with the design, manufacturing, costing, licensing, and merchandising of sports products.
SBUS 650: SPORTS MARKETING
Examines essentials of effective sports marketing. Includes product or property development, legal aspects, segmentation , pricing, and communication channels (e.g., broadcast media).
SBUS 652: SPONSORSHIP
Detailed consideration of the relation between sports, law, and corporate sponsorship programs. Focuses on alignment marketing issues, strategic communication through sponsorship, sponsor value, and sponsorship valuation.
SBUS 653: LEGAL ASPECTS OF SPORTS BUSINESS
Examines social responsibility and legal concepts in sports management including constitutional regulatory powers, individual participation rights, drug testing, antitrust, labor rights, intellectual property rights, sponsorships, product and event liability.