MBA (Research Track)

Business strategy consists of the theories, concepts, and methods top and middle-level managers can use to ensure the profitable and long-term growth of their organizations. Strategy helps general managers (as opposed to functional managers whose responsibilities focus on one function such as finance, production, marketing, human resources, IT, etc.), make better decisions to improve the competitive position of their organization in the long run and create value for its key stakeholders.

Gain a perspective on organizations, both within and outside of the for-profit business world. Strategic analysis and managerial thinking applies to organizations regardless of their activities, for or not-for-profit orientation, governance structure, geographic locations, size, etc. You’ll examine the main theories, concepts, and models of strategic analysis and their role in management practice.

Explore a wide range of economic concepts, theories and analytical techniques and key economic fundamentals. You will learn about the supply and demand model – the fundamental market model where trade-offs and choices are considered by comparing benefits and costs. Product and market structures, including perfectly competitive, monopolistically competitive, oligopolies, and monopolies, are also analyzed at the firm level.

Macroeconomic issues of fiscal and monetary policy are explored at an aggregate level. Finally, you’ll gain an understanding of selected topics in international trade, financial markets, economic growth, and positive and negative externalities.

Many business decisions throughout every level of an organization are based on the information found in the company’s financial statements. Explore how small and large process changes can increase organizational efficiency and profits through analyzing financial statement information. You’ll also examine how decisions made about capital projects, long-term investments, and a company’s risk aversion impact the bottom line.

Examine the skills and characteristics necessary to be an effective leader. You’ll learn how to apply leadership skills during change and in multicultural and diverse environments. The common thread throughout the course will be leading with strong managerial ethics, emotional intelligence, and reflective leadership. You’ll also examine the relationship between contemporary leadership issues and classical leadership theory.

Explore the design and implementation of the best combination of marketing efforts to carry out an organization's strategy in its target markets. You’ll develop an understanding of how an organization can benefit by creating and delivering value to its customers, and stakeholders, and the skills in applying the analytical concepts and tools of marketing to such decisions as segmentation and targeting, branding, pricing, distribution, and promotion.

Modern business is conducted by economic organizations in a highly competitive market environment. Managers often make decisions under severe time pressure without sufficient information. Ethical decision making in business cannot be considered apart from the complexity and uncertainty of actual situations. Therefore, the focus of the course is on ethical questions from the point of view of the practicing manager, with the aim of making ethical decisions that are consistent with effective corporate management.

Develop your understanding of theoretical and practical insights and developments in the fields of business ethics and sustainable business and learn the principles, practices, and ethical concerns/challenges organizations face in their daily operations. You will also gain an understanding of the theoretical basis of business ethics: stakeholder-theory, theories of responsibility and normative ethical theory, as well as intercultural ethics.

Conduct a strategic assessment of the overall global competitive environment and consider how an organization can leverage resources, capabilities, and preferential entry modes to create competitive advantages when entering a foreign market. As part of the final assessment of global strategy, you’ll take part either virtually or in-person in an international trip, visiting one to two foreign locations to experience local business culture. You’ll use theoretical knowledge to assess the strategy of an international organization in an applied cultural context. 

People are an organization’s most valuable resource. The quality of an organization’s talent is perhaps the single most important resource contributing to its profitability and or viability. Leaders and managers within the contemporary organizational context appreciate that a critical source of competitive advantage comes from the effective management of human resources. Product designs or service processes, creative marketing strategies, while critical, are not considered sufficient to deliver sustainable competitive advantage.

Academics, policy makers and practitioners are thus paying greater attention to work force issues. Managing human resources is as much a science as it is an art; it represents the combination of the application of scientific principles and practices, and, the application of personal characteristics. The human resource function exists within the organization in order to support the achievement of the organization’s strategic imperatives.

Learn about effective integrated marketing communication (IMC) strategies for organizations. You’ll be provided with an overview of managing the marketing function, including: 

• segmentation 
• targeting, positioning 
• customer decision-making 
• market and environmental analysis 
• marketing planning strategy. 

Emphasis is placed on understanding the role of advertising and other promotional tools in the IMC program of an organization to achieve effective marketing campaigns based on clear objectives, market segmentation, and target marketing within established time and cost parameters. The development of a promotional program requires an understanding of the overall marketing process, communications theory and processes, marketing communications You’ll also examine the process by which integrated marketing communications programs are planned, developed, executed, and measured. 

Learn about the entrepreneurial process, and gain insight into the entrepreneurial perspective and mindset required to take an initial entry-level idea through the creativity, operating strategies, and funding needed to turn opportunity into reality while focusing on core business practices. An entrepreneur is someone who takes on a venture to create something new that solves a problem, and you will gain an understanding of how to recognize opportunities and act on those possibilities. This process involves establishing an entrepreneurial vision.

Choosing the path of entrepreneurship requires a willingness to take on calculated risks. Many factors drive the growth of entrepreneurship, including employment instability, motivation to create something new, financial factors and free time associated with retirement, as well as the greater acceptance of entrepreneurship as a career choice. You’ll explore the entrepreneurial mindset which helps the entrepreneur view the world as full of possibilities, and in turn, helps them overcome obstacles and achieve their goals.

Equip yourself with a thorough understanding of the advantages and challenges presented by workplace diversity, and suggest techniques to effectively manage and maximize the benefits of diversity. You will be guided through a comprehensive understanding of how to effectively manage diversity based on race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, age, ability, national origin, and intersectionality in organizations as well as issues various groups face, including discrimination. 

You’ll also analyze data in ways that facilitate the development and evaluation of human resource (HR) policies, practices, and strategies. Finally, you’ll gain an in-depth understanding of the human resource management practices that facilitate employee engagement as well as how to conduct a competent workforce survey and use the data to assess and maintain as well as improve employee engagement.

Develop your understanding of research in general and business. You’ll address both academic business research and business consultancy research and examine the concepts and theories underlying research, as well as the practice of research.

This course has an applied focus. Your readings and assignments are designed to identify a feasible research topic and develop a research proposal for academic business or business consultancy research. You will examine how research problems and questions may be identified, and the process of achieving thoughtful, effective, and efficient research design. You will also investigate the importance of the literature review and how it can be carried out for optimal effectiveness in research.

Learn the research methodologies and methods, as well as the techniques of the research process as applied to business, whether as a business consultant or as an academic researcher. You will also study the philosophical and epistemological assumptions underpinning the research approaches and methodologies, as well as their role in determining the design and implementation of the research. Finally, you will also gain an understanding of the ethical aspects of research and consultancy.

Demonstrate your capacity to research a business issue and complete a research project of your choosing. Your research project will involve identifying a research question or problem, reviewing existing literature, designing a research study, collecting and analyzing data, and presenting findings in a research report.

You will be encouraged to think critically and creatively, and to apply your knowledge and skills to real-world problems in business and management. On completion, you will have completed a research project demonstrating your ability to conduct applied research and to communicate research findings effectively.

Continue your learning and development of a research project that you began in Applied Research for Business and Management II. Demonstrate your capacity to research a business issue and complete a research project of your choosing. Your research project will involve identifying a research question or problem, reviewing existing literature, designing a research study, collecting and analyzing data, and presenting findings in a research report.

You will be encouraged to think critically and creatively, and to apply your knowledge and skills to real-world problems in business and management. On completion, you will have completed a research project demonstrating your ability to conduct applied research and to communicate research findings effectively.