Curriculum

An analysis of issues, problems, and potential solutions surrounding ethics and diversity patterns in the global business environment. Students will explore a variety of individual and organizational scenarios from a multidisciplinary and multi-stakeholders perspective.

This course develops the understanding of the concepts and methods of qualitative analysis and explores the practical issues related to designing, using, and evaluating the qualitative methodology. Students study the philosophical assumptions underlying qualitative research, apply theory to an observed event, evaluate qualitative research articles and develop a qualitative proposal.

In Corporate Financial Decision-Making and Value Creation, students will build upon their knowledge of managerial finance to measure and manage the risk and value of investment opportunities including venture capital investments, initial public offerings, equity investments, fixed income investments, leveraged buyouts, and mergers and acquisitions. Valuation tools including comparable company analysis, precedent transaction analysis, LBO analysis, relative analysis, and discounted cash flow analysis will be covered. Finally, special emphasis will be placed on using real-world data to estimate and evaluate all of the key components of a valuation opportunity including but not limited to forecasted cash flows, market returns, the risk-free interest rate, and measures of systematic risk in consideration of an organization’s business units and current and future capital structure.

In Quantitative Research and Analysis, students will be introduced to quantitative techniques that will allow them to develop the acumen and instincts necessary to make data-informed decisions and to become a more effective business leader. The course begins with an overview of graphical methods, numerical descriptive methods, and the fundamentals of probability theory including discrete and continuous probability distributions. Inferential methods including hypothesis testing, confidence interval estimation, one sample tests, two sample tests, ANOVA, MANOVA, and Chi-square and nonparametric tests will also be covered. Special emphasis will be placed on sampling, measurement scales, and the evaluation of survey worth. Finally, students will learn how use technology to apply decision theory, regression techniques, time series analysis, and forecasting to real-world problems in business.

Survey Design, Development, and Deployment covers the fundamentals of designing, developing and deploying survey instruments and tools for action research. Methods of survey deployment and analysis, including the use of statistical software packages, are covered. Students will develop and deploy instruments that incorporate a minimum of three different types of measurement questions designed to acquire cognitive, attitudinal, and behavioral data.

Business Operations and Process Improvement teaches students how to identify opportunities to add value along the supply chain, to improve organizational processes to better utilize resources, and to align operations, supply chain, and quality initiatives to obtain competitive advantage. Special emphasis will be placed on process design, mapping, and analysis using performance metrics including efficiency, throughput, and capacity utilization. Students will also be exposed to supply chain management including working with suppliers with different lead times, incorporating flexibility to prevent stock-outs, and estimating demand. Further, job, office, and facility design, inventory management, and resource planning and management will be examined. Finally, continuous process improvement frameworks including Lean Six Sigma, Six Sigma, and the Theory of Constraints (TOC) will be used to improve operations and quality.

Writing for Publication and Presentation is an advanced writing course in which students master the skills to determine the appropriate venue to disseminate research and practice. This course will enable students to critique and write (a) scholarly papers, (b) formal business documents, and (c) technical reports used in business using the appropriate style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago Manual Style). Students will also learn about the various forums for presenting to academic and practitioner audiences and how to distinguish the appropriate presentation medium based on audience and context.

Marketing Research and Analysis applies qualitative and quantitative methods to better understand consumer behavior, to tap into the needs and preferences of an evolving marketplace, and to align firm activities to strategic initiatives using measurable results. Practical considerations in the areas of sampling, qualitative research design, survey construction and analysis, and data analysis and results interpretation will be demonstrated. Special emphasis is placed on modeling customer acquisition, customer retention, customer satisfaction, and the linkage between the attributes of a good or service and the needs and preferences of consumers. Students will learn how to define marketing research questions, how to formulate testable hypotheses, how to test hypotheses using the appropriate research methods, and how to use results to affect positive change in their organizations.

Research Design and Analysis integrates concepts learned in Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research & Analysis. Special emphasis is placed on developing lines of inquiry, constructing the components of a research plan, and applying the research process to real-world problems in business. Students will also explore the merits of different design types including ex post facto, quasi-experimental, experimental, longitudinal, and simple pre- and posttest designs in light of threats to validity including history, contamination, and bias. The relationship between external validity and different sampling strategies including simple random sampling, stratified, systematic, cluster, and multi-stage cluster sampling will also be covered. For all designs discussed in class, students will learn how to use technology to perform measurements, structure data, conduct analysis, and interpret results.

In Practical Econometrics and Decision-Making, students build upon their understanding of important micro and macroeconomic concepts using data and empirical analysis. Simple regression is elaborated upon to handle issues related to include multiple variables, model specification, functional form, measurement error, and violations of the assumptions of regression analysis. A step-by-step approach is used to examine modeling techniques including time series analysis, panel data models, limited dependent variable models, and instrumental variables regression. Special emphasis will be placed on using technology to collect, manage, and analyze data to better understand real-world problems in the areas of applied microeconomics, applied macroeconomics, investment analysis, sports analytics, international trade, and the economics of public policies and social issues.

Contemporary Global Issues, Trade, and Investment covers what organizational decision-makers need to know about trade, industry structure, and investing in the global economy. This course begins with an overview of the drivers of international trade, foreign direct investment, and investments in foreign securities. Special emphasis is placed on hedging the risks associated with doing international business using forward-looking financial instruments including forward contracts, currency futures, currency options, and currency swaps. Topics in international finance including the balance of payments, exchange rate systems, parity relationships, and global money and banking are also covered. Finally, contemporary economic issues surrounding economic development, the role of the government in the global economy, and dealing with financial crises will be studied from the perspective of decision-makers doing business in a complex global environment.

Business Strategy, Simulation, and Integration focuses on further developing the ability of students to define, synthesize, and evaluate business decisions in a complex global environment. Special emphasis will be placed on executing a simulated organization’s strategy in light of its vision, values, and mission in a constantly changing marketplace. Special emphasis will also be placed on the integration of all of the functional areas of business including marketing, leadership, operations, finance, and human resource management in the presence of constraints imposed by the external environment such as the level of competition, product life cycle, industry life cycle, government regulation, and trade policy and politics. Finally, students will assess organizational performance using a balanced scorecard that measures return on equity, asset management, financial risk, human resource management, and accumulated wealth.

Prerequisite: The successful completion of at least 33 credit hours in the DBA Program.

This course is designed to allow the student to work on their peer-reviewed publication, conference presentation, or work-based project. Students may re-enroll in 9300 if their peer-reviewed publication, presentation, or work-based project requires additional time. Students must successfully complete a minimum of three semesters of 9300 and must make at least two unique selections (students may not publish three articles, make three presentations, or complete three work-based projects) to satisfy Program requirements.

Prerequisites: DBA 8350 Research Design and Analysis and DBA 8340 Writing for Publication and Presentation.