A+B. Intro_SJ.1 - University of Maryland University College

AMBA 604 Technology and Operations
Management (6)
This course explores the latest information technologies that
enable an organization to operate around the world and aro u n d
the clock. To maintain an organization’s competitiveness, managers
need the tools—such as statistical process control, decision
t rees, fore c a s t i n g techniques, expert systems, and organizational
b e n c h m a rking—to quickly and effectively acquire and analyze
information. This i n vo l ves taking advantage of changes in techn
o l o g y, monitoring customer and competitor behavior, and
analyzing their own organization’s processes. Because short e n e d
p roduct life cycles make managing new projects a critical task,
e f f e c t i ve project management concludes the course. Topics include
information systems, quality control, forecasting, operations
management, and project management.
AMBA 605 The Economics of Management Decisions (6)
The economic environment of an organization defines the thre a t s
to its surv i val and the opportunities for its future success. T h i s
seminar applies the concept of economic decision making to a
wide range of management decisions. The global economy is
continually undergoing changes. Of special significance is the
e volution of financial markets in response to rapidly expanding
worldwide investment opportunities. This seminar prov i d e s
insight into these issues. Im p o rtant valuation themes discussed in
this seminar include the valuation of intellectual pro p e rty and the
valuation of businesses as a whole for the purpose of merger or
acquisition. In c re a s i n g l y, managers are re s t ructuring financial information,
as well as supplementing it with nonfinancial information,
to better analyze the economic performance of their organizations.
Se veral important techniques in this area of performance measurement
are discussed: economic value added, the balanced score c a rd ,
and open-book management. Cost management remains an essential
topic within eve ry organization; in this re g a rd, activity-based
c o s ting is discussed. Howe ve r, there is a growing concern that too
much attention to cost overlooks the key objective of eve ry organization,
which is to increase the value it provides to the customer.
T h e re f o re, an organization’s performance is analyzed from the pers
p e c t i ve of the theory of constraints. This seminar is divided into
four modules: historical perspective on managerial decision making,
valuation issues, performance measurement issues, and cost
management issues.
AMBA 606 Organizations and the Ex t e rnal En v i ronment (6)
This seminar focuses on the various types of business organizations
and the public re g u l a t o ry environments that shape organizational
decisions. Emphasis is placed on the framew o rk of re l e vant laws,
re g u l a t o ry stru c t u res, and public policies at local, state, national,
and international levels that define the inner workings of business
activities. The impact of law, regulation, and technology on corporate
decision making will be key focus points in this seminar.
Systems thinking, critical thinking, ethics and social re s p o n s i b i l i t y,
the impact of technology on management, the future of organizations,
and global challenges are linked with the seminar’s critical
f e a t u res. In c reased student knowledge of and comfort with the
n a t u re of external business environments is a seminar goal. To p i c
a reas include business and antitrust law, corporate gove r n a n c e ,
re g u l a t o ry environments, international trade, macroeconomic
p o l i c y, and technology innovation.
AMBA 607 Strategic Management (6)
Strategy is concerned with value creation and invo l ves defining
the scope of a firm’s business operations, its corporate strategy,
and determining how it will compete in its selected business(es),
its business strategy. The seminar addresses the challenges of formulating
and implementing strategy in both single-business and
multibusiness firms, from the perspectives of their top-level decision
makers. It focuses on the overall firm, integrates concepts
f rom functional areas of management, and explores the pro b l e m
of the firm’s strategic direction with respect to its external competi
t i ve environment and internal re s o u rces and capabilities. To p i c
a reas include different perspectives on strategy, analytical models
and framew o rks in strategy formulation, building and sustaining
c o m p e t i t i ve advantage, growth and international strategies, strategy
implementation, and strategy in the new economy or corporate
g ove r n a n c e .
AMBA 607A Strategic Management (3)
This course covers the content in the first seven weeks of AMBA
607. Students who have re c e i ved approval to transfer 3 credits of
graduate business coursew o rk from an accredited university are
eligible to take AMBA 607A.
| 120 | 2003–2004 Graduate Catalog