Business Administration, MBA

This Accounting foundations course introduces students to Financial and managerial accounting principles. Some of the topics covered include: Transaction Types, Setting Up Accounts, Recording and Summarizing Transactions, Preparing Reports (Balance Sheets, Income Statements, Statement of Cash Flows), Analyzing Reports (Net Ratio, Quick Ratio, and Return on Investment, Return on Equity, Current Ratio, Activity Ratios), managerial concepts, budgeting, Break-even analysis, activity base costing, job order and process costing.

This course covers accounting fundamentals related to both financial accounting and managerial accounting. Related to financial accounting, the course includes an introduction to the concepts, principles, and procedures pertaining to the preparation, analysis, and interpretation of income statement, retained earnings statement, balance sheet, and cash flows statement for service and merchandising companies with introduction to the measurement of inventory, receivables, liabilities, long-term assets, and stockholders equity. Managers need accounting information for planning, controlling, and effective utilization of the resources available to the company. Related to managerial accounting, the course includes an introduction to the concepts, techniques, and procedures pertaining to the preparation, analysis, and interpretation of accounting information for use by managers for planning, control, and other business decisions with emphasis on product costing, cost analysis, cost volume profit analysis, budgeting, standard costing, performance measurement, relevant costs for non-routine decisions, and analysis of financial statements.

Emphasis on the advanced and emerging issues pertaining to the nature, objectivism and procedures of cost analysis and control; theories of cost allocation; and uses of accounting information for decision making.

Prerequisites: ACCT 3110

Selected advanced topics in current accounting trends. This course will be offered as fits the needs and interests of the student and faculty.

This course emphasizes the use of accounting information to enhance the decision-making skills of managers. Concepts include an overview of the management accounting function within the organization, cost management and cost accumulation systems, planning and control systems, use of historical data in forecasting costs, and the use of accounting information in management decision-making. In addition, students will learn to read, understand and analyze Financial Statements (including Consolidated Financial Statements). Case readings will enhance students' critical thinking, problem solving, communication skills, and awareness of unethical financial reporting cases.

Prerequisites: ACCT 5000

This course teaches students tax preparation and gives them the opportunity to participate in supervised tax preparation through the VITA program.

An introduction to the study of taxation for business entities. This course focuses on federal tax laws and regulations, as they pertain to business entities. Tax forms and software are used to determine the appropriate taxes for various cases. Primary emphasis is on C and S corporations and partnerships. The course includes the basic analysis of planning and compliance of most forms of corporate and partnership organization, operations, mergers and dissolutions. Tax strategies and implications for business decision-making and financial planning are analyzed. Professional ethics involving tax practices are emphasized.

Prerequisites: ACCT 3250

Emphasis on financial reporting topics encountered in current practice. The theory of the firm is explored relative to investing and financing accountability and other issues of business combination and divestiture. Special purpose and variable interest entities and their related reporting and disclosure impact are stressed. Also emphasized are topics related to partnership formation and operation, termination, and liquidation. In addition the course covers accounting aspects related to legal reorganizations and liquidations, accounting for estates and trusts, segment and interim reporting, and the role of the Securities and Exchange Commission in financial reporting. Selected topics in international accounting are introduced. Practice applications with integrated financial, managerial, and income tax accounting cases may be included.

Prerequisites: ACCT 3352

This course covers financial and managerial accounting and reporting for federal, state, and local governments, and non-governmental non-profit organizations such as hospitals and universities. Accounting information systems concepts and auditing of these organizations are also included. Research in governmental accounting is required with presentation.

Prerequisites: ACCT 5000

This course provides an overview of forensic and investigative accounting. Includes an understanding of the nature and development of forensic accounting, fraudulent financial reporting, employee fraud, and how to detect and prevent these accounting crimes. The course will also cover courtroom procedures, litigation management and support, cybercrime management, and business valuations.

Prerequisites: ACCT 3351

Students may use this course to identify and research issues in accounting. Developing the students' professional written communication skills would be an important component of this course. In the alternative, students may participate in professional accounting field work, under the direction of a faculty member, in a public accounting firm, corporate enterprise, or not-for-profit organization. Students will gain relevant practical experience which would build on prior coursework and provide an experiential knowledge base for their remaining graduate coursework.

Foundations of Quantitative Methods (1-0-1) This foundation course provides an introduction to statistical concepts and how to apply them to solve business problems. Some of the topics covered include: Data Relations, Laws of Exponents, Linear, Nonlinear, and Multivariate Functions, Compound Interest, Break-Even Analysis, and Calculus. Students will be required to validate their understanding of the concepts/topics.

Selected advanced topics in current business trends. This course will be offered as fits the needs and interests of the student and faculty.

Individually designed learning program involving field experience in private or public sector. Program of study and student supervision must be approved by the Dean of Business or designee and Director of Business Graduate Program.

Special work arranged in consultation with instructor. Requires approval of the MBA Director

This experiential learning, project based course employs quantitative statistical methods as analytical tools to understand and solve management issues for business decision making. There is extensive use of applied business scenarios to illustrate concepts and computer software for data analysis. The successful student will complete this course with the ability to effectively evaluate and interpret statistical results and provide managerial recommendations based on findings. In addition to heavy analytical skills, the successful student will have gained project, client and data management skills to make decisions under uncertainty.

Prerequisites: BUSA 5000

Economic and analytical tools are used to explore a wide variety of issues for the sports and entertainment industry. In the entertainment industry, this includes a discussion of the economics of various forms of media including movies, cable, and music. Then the economic issues of casinos and amusement parks will be examined. After reviewing these subjects we move to study both professional and collegiate sports events and characteristics.

This course will apply tools, techniques and theories of finance to actual business and investment decisions with consideration to ethical issues. Students will apply tools and techniques to analyze a company's financial position relative to the industry, apply time value of money concepts to business cash flows, evaluate the acceptability of a short-term and long-term financial decision, and understand the relationship between capital structure, risk, and the cost of capital. A variety of pedagogical vehicles will be used including problem solving, case studies, lectures, and projects.

This course describes the field of organizational development and its applications to modern organizations. Focus is placed on the process and practice of organizational development; and the process and tools of planned change and the practitioners who carry out this work.

This course provides a foundational understanding of the tools, techniques, and methodologies available for a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling a project. Various project management methodologies may be introduced, including Agile, Scrum, Waterfall, or PMI/PMBOK. Students will apply project management learning in the context of case studies or group project work.

This course will involve an approximately 10-day trip to another country with focus on the basic principles of management, marketing, supply chain, and international business in the context of global environment. The course and assignments will vary with the country visited. Additional fees will include the cost of travel.

This course focuses on negotiation in the global business setting. It will cover the fundamental negotiation concepts in a multi-cultural environment. Through simulations, cases, videos, and class discussions, students develop an understanding of cross-cultural negotiations and build skills that can be used to make deals and resolve disputes in a global environment. The course will also bring an international perspective to understanding the impact of culture in the most commonly used international and domestic dispute resolution processes (negotiation, mediation and arbitration).

The purpose of this course is to prepare students to become effective leaders within organizational settings by: 1) exposing students to classical and contemporary concepts, principles and practices associated with leadership effectiveness, and 2) guiding students to embark on their own personal leadership development journey through self-assessments, experiential exercises, reflection and feedback. Special emphasis is placed on values and ethics in leadership. Students will identify the core aspects of their own leadership, their strengths and weaknesses, and chart their development plan.

Students will learn about the assessment, design, development, implementation and evaluation of talent and organizational development interventions such as employee training, career development, performance management, coaching, mentoring, succession planning, and organizational development.

Students will be introduced to HR consulting frameworks and methods; simulate consulting project activities and situations using business cases; and connect students with practicing consulting professionals from a variety of firms. Within the context of this course, consulting is viewed broadly and is inclusive of a number of HR practice areas including Strategic HR Consulting, Diversity Consulting, and Organizational Consulting.

Leadership and Organizational Behavior (3-0-3). This course discusses the essential characteristics of successful leaders. Leadership requires effective management of people and a clear understanding of human behavior and social processes. Leaders need to have a good understanding both of themselves and of those whom they will lead. This knowledge of individuals’ perceptions, attitudes, and behavior enables leaders to choose appropriate leadership styles and managerial practices to increase organization effectiveness and positive human outcomes.

The study of the challenges and opportunities of managing people in different countries. The impact of cultural values in the workplace will be examined and how these values influence managerial practices in global organizations.

This course is focused on equipping students with the knowledge and tools necessary to engage in strategic thinking, planning and implementation. Through readings, cases and discussions, students learn various approaches to strategic planning, the strategic planning process, and the leader's role in strategic planning and implementation. Students will apply the strategic planning process to their own leadership culminating in the development of a personal strategic leadership development plan.

This course focuses on creating an understanding of sources of diversity and difference and its effects in organizational setting. Through readings, case studies and self-assessments, students will develop essential knowledge, skills and strategies for leading diversity an inclusion in the workplace. Emphasis will be placed on the leader's role in creating an inclusive workplace and how to leverage that to create competitive advantages for their organizations. Through self-assessments and feedback, students will develop their own plan for improving their capacity to lead for diversity and inclusion.

This course will explore the context of global human resource leadership, including topics on culture, compensation and benefits, global firms and their structures, international assignment, and the political, legal, and regulatory considerations that global organizations face.

This course will examine conflict in a number of different contexts. Students will be prepared to analyze and diagnose conflict in a variety of settings. They will learn the skills and strategies needed to facilitate the management of conflict, with special emphasis on communication abilities, workplace issues, and problem-solving approaches. Students will explore their own leadership negotiation and conflict management styles through self-assessment and feedback, and develop a plan for expanding the tactics and strategies they use in negotiation and conflict management.

Selected advanced topics in current Management trends. This course will be offered as fits the needs and interests of the student and faculty. Course may be repeated for credit if topics are different.

This is a capstone course designed to apply and integrate concepts and analytical tools that students have studied in MBA course work. Students will participate in a competitive business simulation. The emphasis throughout is on developing strategic thinking skills and understanding the fundamentals for achieving competitive advantage in an ethical manner in a dynamic, global business environment.

Prerequisites: ACCT 5200 and FINA 5100 and MKTG 5200 and BUSA 5200

Global Marketing focuses on the international marketing activities of a firm. Students will have the opportunity to apply marketing concepts in international markets. Various exporting and international entry mode strategies will be examined.

In this course students will focus on how technology through digital means provides a framework and tools for managing and analyzing an organization’s virtual presence for marketing purposes. The digital customer journey will be examined along with building both consumer and business relationships and associated social and regulatory issues. Students will be exposed to the ways that firms are utilizing the internet to construct their value chains and create/sustain competitive advantages.

In this course students will develop a theoretical understanding of the internet marketplace. The necessary skills to perform daily digital marketing functions and the ability to improve a firm’s online presence will be developed. Students will practice concepts such as A/B testing, Conversion Rate Optimization, conducting key word research and building marketing strategies.

Prerequisites: MKTG 5110

In this course, students will develop an understanding of Social Media Marketing (SMM) and how it is used by marketers to increase brand awareness, identify key audiences, generate leads and to build meaningful relationships with customers. Students will learn how social media marketing is utilized by business to gain competitive advantages through the creation and distribution of valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and retain clearly-defined audiences.

Prerequisites: MKTG 5111 (may be taken concurrently)

This course is focused on equipping students with the knowledge and tools necessary to engage in personal branding techniques and strategies for designing, enhancing, and promoting their professional image. Through readings, cases and discussions, students learn to devise strategies for managing their professional reputation and begin creating their personal brand. Students will apply marketing strategies to positioning themselves contributing to the development of a personal developmental plan.

Selected advanced topics in current Marketing trends. This course will be offered as fits the needs and interests of the student and faculty. Course may be repeated for credit if topics are different.

A high-level course focusing on the central strategic role that marketing plays in the success of a company. The case method will be used extensively and ethical implications in marketing decision will be explored.

This course will familiarize students with the role of international business in the context of Supply Chain Management. Students will learn about topics such as leveraging resources and capabilities and making strategic alliances and networks in the international context as well as entering foreign markets, trade agreements and emerging markets.

The goals of this course are to develop the common principles of supply-chain management techniques and demonstrate how these ideas have transformed the operating processes of industries in the past decade. The techniques must find new ways to collaborate across organizational boundaries to create new value for the end-customer of the supply-chain. Asset productivity strategies are studied by investigating both inbound materials management/production processes and outbound physical distribution procedures. Case studies will demonstrate the importance of ethical approaches to supply chain innovation in areas such as real-time supply chain visibility, e-commerce, and collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment.

The roles and activities of strategic sourcing and operational purchasing, including importation requirements and practices, will be covered. Students will complete a project in global sourcing.

Selected advanced topics in current Supply Chain trends. This course will be offered as fits the needs and interests of the student and faculty.

This course gives students insights in the strategic role that supply chain management plays in overall corporate competitiveness. Current Supply Chain topics and issues will be covered. Students will work together in small teams to define, research, analyze, and formulate solutions to problems in the supply chain and logistics area.