Course Descriptions

Curriculum is constantly revised to help provide the intellectual foundation, practical skills, and insight to manage national and global business challenges.

CLASS OF 2007

Curriculum

Due to the special nature of the Executive MBA curriculum, all course credits must be taken within the program. However, previous graduate work may be used for elective credit hours with approval. The Executive MBA curriculum is constantly under revision. This continuous improvement approach will give you the tools you need to meet the management challenges of today and to prepare for those you will encounter in the future. As a result, the courses, content and sequence described below are subject to change. Formal course descriptions and university graduate program administrative policies can be found in the UNO graduate catalog.

BSAD 8240 - 2 hrs
Leadership: Development and Perspectives
This course aims to enhance the leadership effectiveness of students in UNO's Executive MBA program by developing executive competencies in problem solving, collaborative behaviors, team work and conflict resolution.

BSAD 8260 - 2 hrs
Accounting: Understanding the Financial Score
This course is designed to enhance students’ understanding of the firm’s economic health, profitability and viability by understanding, interpreting and analyzing their financial statements and disclosures. By understanding how management decisions are reflected in the financial statements, managers should understand how they can improve company performance.

BSAD 8280 - 4 hrs
Management: Stewardship of the Firm Resources
Sustainable competitive advantage, superior organizational results, and strategic impact depend upon the effective utilization of the firm’s human capital. A high-performance work culture results from the design and implementation of systematic, integrated talent management practices. Course participants will discover the important role of senior executive leadership in building the organization’s human capability and learn techniques to enhance their professional contribution to that end. The course further explores the impact of change in both the macro- and micro-environments and the vital role of executives in anticipating and dealing with myriad changes faced by the organization. Succeeding in this turbulent environment requires adaptable, resilient leaders who can respond to the dynamic forces which influence the strategy and operations of an organization. Course participants will learn how to assess the impact of changing conditions and create effective strategies to respond.

BSAD 8360 - 3 hrs
Finance: Managing Financial Resources
Students taking this course will develop effective decision making skills by using financial concepts including time value of money, valuation, portfolio theory, asset pricing and risk and return. Topics covered include: capital budgeting, financial statement analysis, capital structure, financial risk analysis, policy and others.

BSAD 8370 - 1.5 hrs
Part A. Law: Legal Environment of Business
This part of the course will specifically examine the body of substantive law that affects management, including court decisions, statutes (federal and state), traditional ethical theories as they relate to the law, and international problems that exist in the legal environment.

1.5 credit hrs
Part B. Ethics: Personal and Corporate Responsibility
This part of the course will examine the business ethical issues and dilemmas that confront managers. Students will develop the decision making and leadership skills to resolve the ethical issues involved in business management. A framework for understanding the social responsibilities of a business corporation and their strategic impact will be developed.

BSAD 8380 - 2 hrs
Quality: Meeting Customer and Stakeholder Expectations
Students will develop basic skills in analyzing, improving and managing the operations of a firm to support corporate strategies. Topics such as supply chain management and quality management will demonstrate how effective operations can add value and provide a competitive advantage for the firm.

BSAD 8460 - 3 hrs
Executive Development: Leadership and Management Tool Kit
Students will learn to use basic statistical and decision making tools and to interpret the results to solve practical management problems. Areas of focus will include decision analysis, business forecasting and market research. In addition, students will receive instruction on executive communications objectives and techniques and will receive formal evaluation and feedback on selected oral and written presentations they make in other Executive MBA courses.

BSAD 8480 - 3 hrs
Economics: Predicting Behaviors of the Consumer , Business, and the Economy
Students will learn the microeconomic concepts that affect corporate strategy such as demand and supply analysis, production and cost optimization, game theory, entry and exit strategy and others. The course will also cover the basic macroeconomic concepts that affect business decisions such as interest rates, exchange rates, and governmental policies.

BSAD 8490 - 2 hrs
IT: Leveraging Technology for Competitive Advantage
Students will gain a strategic perspective of information technology management, including current trends and best practices, and to understand how technology can be used in competitive positioning. Processes for innovation and R&D spending and new business models will be covered.

BSAD 8560 - 3 hrs
Marketing: Establishing Presence and Demand in the Marketplace
Students will learn how successful businesses match their objectives and resources with opportunities in the marketplace by identifying and measuring consumer needs, determining target markets and deciding which products and services to offer. Strategies for pricing, promoting and distributing products and services to create competitive advantage in domestic and international markets are covered.

BSAD 8570 - 3 hrs
Strategy: Mapping a Road to the Future
This course centers around the theme that a company achieves sustained success if and only if its managers (1) develop, and revise as needed, an action-oriented strategic plan and (2) implement and execute the plan with some proficiency. Students will develop the strategic thinking skills needed to formulate and execute successful strategies for firms/organizations in a variety of industries and dynamic environments.

BSAD 8580 - 2 hrs
Part A: International: Competing in Global Markets
Students will develop an understanding of the evolution of the global political economy and the challenges managers of multinational enterprises face when operating in the global business environment, with potential markets and competitors everywhere. Students will learn to evaluate the risks and returns of global expansion.

1.0 hrs
Part B: Global Management
Students will explore the opportunities and challenges of management in multinational organizations. Students will learn to effectively communicate in international settings by studying how cultural differences can impede communications. Students will also learn how to successfully manage international conflicts and conduct effective cross-border business negotiations.

BSAD 8590 - 3 hrs
Capstone: Consulting for International Business
Students will put into practice the theories, models and skill sets they have developed through their other courses to perform an international consulting project for a corporate sponsor. These projects typically explore the feasibility of expansion into new overseas markets and involve applied field research in the target country. The final product is an extensive consulting report that is then presented to the sponsoring corporate client.

BSAD 8900 - 6 hrs
Electives: Current Business Issues , Opportunities and Challenges
To better satisfy individual professional development needs and interests, Executive MBA students will complete three, highly focused, 2.0 credit hour special topics courses. They may select from a listing of pre-authorized courses. All approved courses will include a required reading list, at least one substantive graded research paper of at least 20 pages, and a one-hour discussion session with the supervising faculty member. Major papers prepared for elective courses will be professionally edited for writing mechanics and style as part of developing and tracking the communications effectiveness of each student. Completion of one special topic course every four months, commencing the second month of the program, is expected. Pre-authorized courses might include a series of courses focusing on Healthcare Systems or Investment Science. They may include individual current topics in business such as: Strategic Leadership; Competitive Intelligence; Negotiations; Sustainable Enterprise; New Venture Planning (Business Plans); Branding Strategies; Global Supply Chain Management; and Collaboration.


Total Program Hours: 42

To be awarded an Executive MBA degree, you must complete the program with a final grade point average of "B" (3.0 our of a possible 4.0) or better. A maximum of two "C" (2.0-2.33) grades are permitted during the program.