Courses Taught

BA 575 – Capstone Bus Case (2)
A team-based project course that requires students to analyze an actual business problem from a firm or nonprofit organization. B A 575 Capstone Business Case (4)The Capstone Business Case course is designed to allow second-year MBA students the chance to integrate the knowledge they have gained to date in the program. True business problems are not narrow, functional area problems; rather they require teams of people to come together to jointly solve a problem that extends across many areas. For example, to assess the commercial viability for a new product requires contributions from economics, marketing, supply chain, finance, strategy, and corporate innovation. The more opportunities students have to work on real cross-functional problems, the better prepared they will be to solve them once they are actually on the job. In addition, working on a team and having to present the results gives students the ability to practice communication, teamwork, and leadership skills that are vital to success on the job.

MGMT 301 – Basic Mgmt Concept (3)
MGMT 301 exposes undergraduate students to the fundamental principles and basic concepts of management, with emphasis on organizational design, management processes, leadership, motivation, and managing teams and individuals in a global business environment. Understanding these principles and concepts is extremely important for students preparing for and entering the business profession. Managers plan, organize, lead, and control. These functions provide a foundation for MGMT 301 and are included in all course topics and modules. Typical modules include: An Overview of Management; Strategy and Structure; Organizational Behavior; and Group/Organizational Dynamics.The overview of management focuses on the manager's role and function, decision making, ethics, and managerial oversight. Topics covered in a strategy and structure module will include culture, environmental influences, strategy, organizational structure, globalization, and innovation. Organizational Behavior focuses on how decision making is influenced by various stakeholders who have formal and informal authority and control in a business. What motivates individuals and who are leaders in an organization is discussed along with group dynamics. Understanding team processes, conflict, adaptation to change, and various levels of group and one-on-one communication is important and will be covered by reviewing traditional management strategies and structures along with discussions on current and evolving management issues.Students may earn credit towards graduation for only one of the following; BA 304, MGMT 301, MGMT 301H, or MGMT 301W.

MGMT 397 – Special Topics (Variable)
Formal courses given infrequently to explore, in depth, a comparatively narrow subject which may be topical or of special interest.

MGMT 497 – Special Topics (Variable)

MGMT 885 – MGMT CONSULTING METHODS (3)
MGMT 885 explores the methods and tools commonly used in the practice of management consulting. This course is intended for students interested in working in this field or working in organizations that hire management consultants. It is organized into the following topical areas:Management Consulting as a Discipline ¿ In this area, students learn how management consulting fits into the overall business marketplace and why/how firms engage management consultants as a resource.Tools, Methods, and Practices for Managing the Engagement ¿ In this area, students learn methods and practices commonly used to manage a project/engagement in a management consulting context. This area covers topics related to understanding the overall life cycle of a consulting engagement, as well as tools and techniques used to manage scope, time, people, finances, risks, and overall activity on a consulting project.Tools, Methods, and Practices for Research and Information Gathering ¿ In this area, students explore tools and techniques used by management consultants to conduct both secondary and primary research as means for investigation and learning.Tools, Methods, and Practices for Analysis and Solution Generation ¿ In this area, students learn tools, frameworks, and methodologies commonly used by management consultants to assess a client¿s needs, to analyze information, to generate potential solutions, and to evaluate potential solutions in a given context.Tools, Methods, and Practices for Change Management ¿ In this area, students learn theories, models, and frameworks related to overcoming barriers to change and to implementing change within a business organization.Tools, Methods, and Practices for Client Communication ¿ In this area, students learn tools and techniques used by management consultants to communicate with their client in order to effectively manage an engagement, to influence stakeholders, and to enhance impact of their work.

MGMT 215 – Entr Mindset (3)
This course provides the opportunity to learn to think like an entrepreneur in the broader context of social entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship, creative problem solving, opportunity recognition, and innovation. MGMT 215 Entrepreneurial Mindset (3) An entrepreneurial mindset can be applied to different situations such as social entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship, creative problem solving, opportunity recognition, technology management, innovation and career development, etc. The skills and attributes of an entrepreneurial mindset can be used to expand career options and career paths for students in any major. Students will develop self-efficacy, leadership, recognition of new opportunities, resourcefulness, creativity and comfort with ambiguity. Further, this course will help students develop an appreciation for mistakes and failure as valuable learning opportunities. Through experiential exercises and problem based learning the student will be afforded the opportunity to study, apply and absorb an entrepreneurial mindset as an approach to viewing the world, to recognizing opportunities and to developing novel solutions. After taking this course the student, regardless of a student's major or college, will have a greater understanding of how to apply entrepreneurial thinking to problems and adopt entrepreneurial solutions to those problems to transform them from problems into opportunities.

BA 497 – Special Topics (3)
Formal courses given infrequently to explore, in depth, a comparatively narrow subject which may be topical or of special interest.

PSU 006 – Bus 1st-Yr Smr (1)
Facilitate student's adjustment to the high expectations, demanding workload, increased academic liberties, and other aspects of the transition to college life. PSU 006 First Year Seminar in Business Administration (1-3 credits) This course is designed to assist students in examining several areas of the college transition: awareness of self and others; career exploration; majors offered in the Smeal College; and current issues in business. The skills learned in this course will be presented as life-long skills, applicable in the university setting and the corporate environment. The nature of the course requires cooperation, participation, and interaction. This course facilitates learning through experience, lectures and class discussion.The course contains assignments dealing with: 1). Leadership 2). Ethics 3). Celebrating Diversity 4). Diversity in the Workplace 5). Community Service 6). Major and Career Exploration 7). Time Management and Goal Setting 8). Business Case Study

MGMT 296 – Indep Studies (Variable)
Creative projects, including research and design, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

MGMT 496 – Indep Studies (Variable)
Creative projects, including research and design, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

BA 596 – Individual Studies (Variable)

BA 836 – Global Immersion (1)
Exploration of the opportunities and the challenges of doing business in another economic region. B A 536 Global Immersion (2)Global Immersion is designed around a visit to another economic region. In the past. MBA students have visited such countries as Belgium, Brazil, Chile, China, Czech Republic, France, Ireland, Turkey, and Singapore. In each country, students visit both local and multinational businesses to understand how a business gets established and run in another country; students also meet with industry and government officials to get their perspectives on the economic policies of the country. Each Immersion is coordinated by a faculty leader who plans the visit so as to appeal to a wide range of student interests.

MGMT 355 – Lead and Chg in Org (3)
This course focuses on concerns with understanding yourself as a leader in organizations-especially organizations undergoing change.

MGMT 480 – BUS TRNSFRM CNSULT (3)
This course provides key issues, concepts, and methodologies associated with business transformation and management consulting. Students will explore the professional services industry, industry best practices, and a variety of client contexts where advisory services are needed. Additionally, students will learn common consulting methods and how to apply them in client organizations. A consulting-oriented solution development lifecycle is used as the organizing framework of the course. The primary phases of this framework include: client qualification/validation, problem identification, data gathering, requirements definition, project planning, solution design, solution development, solution implementation, and client relationship management. Students will learn to how to identify and define organization problems, highlight pain points, map work flows, explore business models, investigate strategic alignment, develop recommendations, present business cases, and prototype solutions. The course will also enable students to learn how to advise clients and present key points and recommendations in a direct, clear, and compelling manner.Course objectives are to provide students with consultative methods, skills, and tools essential to facilitating organizational change. The course is designed around real-world problems and projects involving organizational assessment, solution development, and implementation planning. In this course, each student will be assigned to a consulting team. Each consulting team will be assigned to work with a corporate client to address a real-world business problem. Students will learn how to work proactively with key stakeholders to identify and understand the choices, risks, and benefits of particular solution alternatives, prepare project proposals, develop a plan to support the needed changes, and assess the effectiveness of business transformation efforts. Depending on the project, the recommended solution may be prototyped or fully developed during the course.

MGMT 597 – Special Topics (2)
Creative projects, including nonthesis research, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

BA 597 – Special Topics (2)
Formal courses given on a topical or special interest subject which may be offered infrequently.

B A 497A – Applied Professional Experience for Sapphires (3)
The Sapphire Professional Experience (APEX) is a capstone practicum experience in which teams of four or five Sapphire students work with a sponsoring organization to address a current business challenge facing that organization. In doing so, students are

B A 575 – Capstone Business Case (4)
A team-based project course that requires students to analyze an actual business problem from a firm or nonprofit organization.

BA 497A – **Special Topics** (3)

B A 596 – Individual Studies (Variable)
Creative projects, including nonthesis research, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.