Master of Business Administration - General Online

In an environment in which a large portion of income of U.S. firms is earned in foreign markets, foreign competitors increase their market share in the United States, and national economies have become interdependent in the global market, most marketing strategies become international in scope. This course is designed to investigate the implications of the global market for U.S. companies and how it affects their marketing strategies as they are competing in markets around the world. Attention will be focused on problems such as identifying and evaluating opportunities in overseas markets, developing and adapting marketing strategies in relation to specific national market needs and constraints.

The focus of this course is on the specific problems encountered by those concerned with finance in companies with substantial international involvement—it is the international equivalent of a corporate finance course. The course content is especially designed for students aspiring for careers in international business, including those who will be responsible for the financial management of large and small corporations, international trading companies, or banks whose customers include business firms affected by international markets.

This course takes a cross-cultural and functional perspective in international management. Managerial functions are discussed in a cross-cultural setting of an international operation. Emphasis is placed on the importance of cross-cultural differences and the challenges of working in a diverse work environment where people may not share the same basic values and assumptions.

This course covers the determinants of foreign direct investment, the economic questions concerning the operations of multinational enterprise, and the impact of multinational firms on national economies and international economic relations. Emphasis is placed on the general economic analysis of these issues.

This course offers the study of international relations and its relation to international economics and international business. Sometimes referred to as “political economy” the course requires the analysis of both the way in which politics shapes the economy, and of the way in which the economy shapes politics. Considering the limitations of the conventional division of domestic and international politics and economics, the course investigates how the domestic politics of the world’s leading economic and military powers have wide-ranging effects on the domestic political economies of other nations.

This course investigates the theories, institutions, and processes associated with international trade. The course examines the theoretical constructs necessary to understand the issues and problems that a business involved with international trade must face. The course also explores various mechanisms, such as import and export procedures and regulations that create today’s global systems for managing the exchange of goods, services, and labor between countries.

This course serves as an overview of the issues, practices, and responsibilities facing the healthcare administrator. The course investigates each of the important aspects of healthcare administration and introduces students to the topics which constantly challenge health care executives. Areas covered include hospital and physician reimbursement, managed care, multi-provider systems, integrated health systems, business ventures in health care, and stakeholder management. This is a course providing the application of organizational management techniques to health care institutions.

This course serves as an overview of the issues, practices, and responsibilities facing the healthcare administrator. The course investigates each of the important aspects of healthcare administration and introduces students to the topics which constantly challenge health care executives. Areas covered include hospital and physician reimbursement, managed care, multi-provider systems, integrated health systems, business ventures in health care, and stakeholder management. This is a course providing the application of organizational management techniques to health care institutions.

This course will review the American legal system, including its courts, its statutes, and its common law, in order to provide the health care manager with a basic understanding of the number of significant ways in which legal mandates apply to one’s institution. A number of different areas of law will be studied, each selected for its influence on the management of health care institutions and health care providers. Legal cases will be examined, including significant court opinions, in order to bring students to a basic understanding of the manner in which their actions will be judged by our country’s legal systems.

This course provides students with an overview of the areas of public involvement which affect the organization's ability to attract, serve, and generate the support of the community in which it is embedded. These include the marketing of the services and programs provided by the institution, the use of positive forms of publicity, and the generation of activities designed to foster a positive relationship with the individuals, organizations, and governments on which the institution depends.

This course will examine the social organization of the vast health care system in the United States today, emphasizing such topics as health expenditures and rising costs, equity in health services, financing health care, insurance (including HMOs), delivery of health care services, discrimination in health care delivery, social legislation, and the social implication of new health care technologies.

This course focuses on a wide range of policies including equity in health care delivery (e.g., how to provide care for the elderly, the poor, the homeless, those with cancer, AIDS, those chemically dependent, and other life threatening illnesses), proposals for cost control, regulation of safety, insurance, and the distribution of medical resources.

As the general foundation course for the nonprofit concentration, this course focuses on management and administrative issues relating to nonprofit organization. Administrative structure and other subjects related to the difference between nonprofit and for-profit organizations will be addressed. Subjects covered include constituencies, boards strategic planning, marketing, financial management, human resources, volunteer management, and resource development. This course is designed to provide the student with a clear understanding of the most important management issues in the nonprofit sector and to provide the student with a firm foundation in nonprofit administrative concepts and theories. The student will learn to appreciate the difference between the for-profit and nonprofit organization and related management techniques and issues specific to the nonprofit organization as compared to the for-profit or public sector.

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to a variety of fund raising methods, provide the context in which these methods might be used, and provide an understanding of how fundraising operates within public and not-for-profit organizations. The course is directed at students pursuing a management career in the not for-profit section as well as other graduate students interested in fundraising within public and nonprofit organization.

With the increase in the sense of social responsibility in society has come a corresponding increase in the number of nonprofit organizations and in the volume of their activities. Approximately one third of the volume of business in the United States is conducted by governmental units and charitable organizations. As such organizations play an increasingly significant role, accounting for these organizations is receiving more and more attention. For example, a Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), similar to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), has been proposed. This body would be responsible for establishing accounting standards for state and local governmental units. Accounting for other nonprofit organizations, such as churches and hospitals, is also receiving attention by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and other professional accounting groups. The accounting systems for all nonprofit organizations must provide financial data to internal management for use in planning and controlling operations, and to external parties, such as taxpayers and donors, for use in determining the effectiveness of operations. Thus, the focus of this course is both management control and financial accounting for nonprofit organizations.

This course is designed to provide an overview of governance issues as well as basic contract, labor, and tax law issues within the area of nonprofit corporation law. Ethics in nonprofits is included with specific emphasis directed towards self-dealing, fiduciary responsibility, and human resource management. Legal issues covered include a variety of legal problems that nonprofit executive directors or their staff are likely to face, including board organization and management problems.

Nonprofit marketing has become a major, legitimate field of study. Today, nonprofit organizations actively employ marketing techniques, including advertising, personal selling, public relations, and product design to reach their goals. This course is designed to study the marketing strategies used by organizations in education, the arts, social services, libraries, and public services. Through case studies and practical examples the student will be introduced to the special needs of the nonprofit sector and the process for solving marketing problems, as well as the tools and techniques to make effective marketing decisions in specific areas (3 credits).

This course explores social entrepreneurship by investigating such questions as: Who are social entrepreneurs? How does social entrepreneurship differ from traditional business entrepreneurship? Can the impact of social entrepreneurship be assessed? In exploring these issues, two foundational elements emerge as critical components in a working understanding of the nature of social entrepreneurship in today’s society: who are social entrepreneurs, and what does it take to be successful?

This provides a summary or overview of three of the core subjects associated with a program of study in Business: Accounting, Finance and Economics. The course provides a comprehensive review of the foundational material associated with an undergraduate business degree program. The three leveling courses ensure that students are leveled to the program of study as they start the MBA degree program. This course is completed by entering MBA students holding a bachelor's degree in a non-business field.

This provides a summary or overview of three of the core subjects associated with a program of study in Management, Human Resources Management and Business Law. The course provides a comprehensive review of the foundational material associated with an undergraduate business degree program. The three leveling courses ensure that students are leveled to the program of study as they start the MBA degree program. This course is completed by entering MBA students holding a bachelor's degree in a non-business field.

This provides a summary or overview of two of the core subjects associated with a program of study in Business: Marketing and the Management of Information Systems. The course provides a comprehensive review of the foundational material associated with an undergraduate business degree program. The three leveling courses ensure that students are leveled to the program of study as they start the MBA degree program. This course is completed by entering MBA students holding a bachelor's degree in a non-business field.

Data Analysis and Modeling is an exciting field in today’s dynamic, competitive world. Business managers deal with large amounts of data and information. A unifying element of the course is the use of Excel to perform various analyses in a spread sheet environment. In this course, students develop skills in using Excel to examine and report data. Students will be able to make strategic decisions using various concepts, methods, and quantitative tools in the field of data analysis and modeling.

In a globalized era, management executives need to understand the role of operations function and its impact on competitiveness. This course provides an understanding of manufacturing and service operations and their role in the organization. Students will learn how organizations effectively organize and manage the resources in producing goods or services that satisfy customer requirements. In addition, this course focuses on informed decision making using specific analytical tools. The course covers topics such a process flow analysis, project management, supply chain management, capacity planning, facilities location, total quality management, materials management, scheduling and quality control, manufacturing and service strategy, inventory management and forecasting.

This course is intended as a capstone course in the MBA program, integrating the various courses in the curriculum as the learning accomplished through the core courses and the electives in the student’s area of concentration are applied to the process of strategy formation and case review. As students study the process of strategic management, they will focus on the tasks of crafting, implementing, and executing an organization’s strategy. Strategy is grounded in the array of competitive moves and business approaches management depends on to produce successful performance. The study of strategy, then, considers management’s game plan for strengthening the organization’s position, pleasing its customers, and achieving performance targets. Students will learn how managers devise strategies to guide how the company’s business will be conducted and to help them make reasoned, cohesive choices among alternative courses of action.

This course is intended as a vehicle for producing students who will be comfortable and effective in a worldwide marketplace. Today, all students—even those who will never have an overseas assignment—need to be knowledgeable about the global economy. Students must develop cultural literacy in international business. As a business professional they must be able to talk knowledgeably with a visiting executive from a French multinational corporation, or understand and analyze the impact on themselves and their firm of trade negotiations with Japan, devaluation of the Mexican peso, economic growth in China or Brazil, or the collapse of a British bank. It is the purpose of this course to provide such a foundation for future managers who must function in a global competitive environment (3 credits).