Faculty
Shontarius D. Aikens
Gladys Antonio
Jiani Jiang
Albert Kagan
Robert L. Mayo
Faith W. Ngunjiri
Odile J. Streed
Leann K. Wolff
The major in business offers 5 concentrations: agribusiness, economics, finance, management, and marketing. Students must take supporting and foundation classes prior to enrolling in upper-division courses (300 and 400 level). Permission may be granted by the instructor for students to concurrently take one foundation or supporting class with upper-division courses.
The minor is not available to students majoring in accounting, business, finance or international business in the Offutt School of Business. With permission, students who have discontinued a major from the Offutt School of Business may substitute courses with prefixes of BUS, IBUS, BUSN or ACCT to satisfy the requirements of the minor.
Courses
An examination of both microeconomics and macroeconomics. Develops the laws of supply and demand and applies them to the study of the global economy, national economy and individual markets. Examines political economy, which is the debate over the proper role of government in the economic order and economic policy positions of different schools of economic thought. This course can also count towards the Global Studies Program.
Organizational Management is a required course for the business minor. It is designed to provide a foundational knowledge of the management field and to help students develop their personal, interpersonal, and managerial skills. This development is fostered through skill assessment, learning, analysis, practice, and application. This course will not count towards a business major.
This course will focus on ethics and leadership within a variety of organizations (corporations, small business, government, non-profit, religious). Topics include ethical issues, corporate social responsibility, legal considerations, philosophical approaches, ethical decision-making and approaches to leadership.
This course will examine the main principles of strategic marketing with a special emphasis on non-profit organizations. Designed for non-business majors this course will provide practical "hands on" applications of marketing principles. Students will be exposed to the concepts of customer centricity, effective targeting and positioning, branding and promoting. Key principles of fundraising and sales will also be addressed. This course will not count towards a business major.
This foundational course introduces business minors to the basic accounting and finance knowledge used in a range of organizations. Common organizational activities, reports and constraints are examined. Students will gain an understanding of the complexities of using financial information to plan, evaluate and monitor performance. This course will not count towards a business major.
This course is the first step in career preparation and personal leadership gorwth. Students will develop a personalized and systematic approach to researching careers and to preparing for work opportunities. A leadership profile will be created, using one's personality, strengths, and personal values as a foundation. Prerequisite: Sophomore status. Open to all Offutt School majors.
This course is designed to help students learn about themselves, the world of work, and to prepare for the future. Through a series of class meetings, assignments, readings, reflective writings, and interactions with business professionals outside of the College, students will develop tangible materials, learn to seek and obtain internships and employment, and gain skills to effectively contribute to the workforce.
A more detailed examination of microeconomic theory, focusing on the behavior of individuals, firms and the interaction of these agents in the marketplace. Course will focus on the organization of markets, theory of competition, market failure and the effects of government intervention in the market.
Theoretical models to explain the recurrent fluctuations in economic activity and mechanisms through fiscal and monetary policy affecting the economy. Course examines aggregate economic measures of output, inflation, and unemployment; how the economy works in the long-run and short-run, and the likely effect of fiscal and monetary policies; fixed and flexible exchange rate regimes; and growth models.
An examination of the legal environment of business through text materials and case study. Particular emphasis is given to the role of law in society, the law of contracts, sales law, the law of negotiable instruments and business organization.
This course presents the economic, structure and policy concerns that regulate US business. The core concepts that guide the regulatory environment will be discussed within the context of corporate governance and responsibility. Topics discussed include market regulation, financial oversight, antitrust, securities, and information and consumer protection. The class examines regulatory models used in various areas of regulation.
Supply chain operating concepts (materials and logistics management) are presented. The dynamic nature of supply chain management for goods and services that impact the global economy are emphasized. Students gain a perspective about inventory operations, distribution, sourcing and procurement systems, postponement, and logistics management within a global context.
Students are introduced to the social scientific approaches used to understand how demographic, institutional, cultural, economic and ecological factors influence, and are influenced by, societal development. Comparative case studies enable students to understand the structure and dynamics (e.g., population change) of human populations as they relate socioeconomic development. This course can also count towards the environmental and sustainability studies program.
Development and use of information, database management and decision support systems for business applications. Emphasis will be placed upon functional use of business information.
Students will collect, summarize, and analyze statistical data and will learn how to disseminate the results in an ethical manner using basic probability theory, single and multiple variable hypothesis testing, correlation, and regression analysis. Students will learn to interpret the results in a global managerial context.
Students will learn the history of the analysis of globalization and the tools for performing global economic analysis. Differences between trade policies targeted at developed economies vs. developing economies will be explored. Students will learn how to analyze the impact of government policies, barriers to trade, and trade agreements on domestic and foreign consumer and producer welfare, government revenue, and global welfare. This course can also count towards the Global Studies Program.
This course provides a foundation in the principles of management theory and practice. Topics explored include the classic management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. The course integrates the four major themes of the Offutt School of Business into appropriate modules throughout the course. These include managerial ethics and social responsibility, the dynamic global business environment, leadership development and entrepreneurial perspective.
This course examines the role of human resource management as a strategic partner in for-profit, non-profit, and governmental organizations. Key functions such as planning, staffing, compensation and benefits, performance evaluation, labor relations and legal compliance will be examined, with an emphasis on best practices. The implications of legal, ethical, and global contexts and current workforce issues are analyzed.
Students will be exposed to essential marketing concepts and will develop basic proficiency in marketing research, marketing planning and relationship selling. Included will be global and ethical discussions embedded in the core instruction. Students will also have the opportunity to strengthen their entrepreneurship and leadership skills through hands-on projects.
Introduction to professional selling and its importance in today's world economy. Course includes techniques, strategies and relationships for success in selling oneself, one's ideas, products and/or services. Also stressed are professional, legal and ethical standards in the selling process.
This course addresses the new technological environment that marketers are facing by introducing strategic considerations related to technology and its implementation. The course explores the basics of marketing exchange utilizing the information highway, multimedia techniques, database marketing, interactive communications, and other e-business techniques. The course provides hands-on experience with relevant software.
Courses covering various topics of interest in this particular discipline are offered regularly. Contact department or program chair for more information.
This is the second course in the STEP program and designed to expand on areas of leadership and career development. The leadership area focuses on working in teams, communication, and emotional intelligence. The career area focuses on the skills needed to acquire an internship and continues to expand on career development as well as personal financial and negotiation skills. Junior status.
This course examines the financial activities of government (public sector), that is, spending and taxation in private economies. Students will gain an understanding of topics including provision of public goods, externalities, public education, social security, healthcare, environment, income tax, sales tax, property tax, etc. State and local government issues are also addressed.
This course is designed to integrate the concepts of electronic commerce strategy within the business enterprise. Topics include technology infrastructure, revenue based models, Internet marketing, business-to-business strategies, online auctions, ethical issues, hardware/software requirements, on-line payment systems, and security requirements.
This course is designed to familiarize students with the role of culture in managing organizations in a global economy. Communication, decision-making, motivation, leadership, and human resource management are particularly subject to cultural influence. The environmental influences of geo-political entities, socio-cultural values and attitudes, and technology on global business will also be considered.
Organizational Behavior is an interdisciplinary field of study that investigates human behavior at the individual, group, and institutional levels and applies that knowledge to help people be more productive and satisfied in organizations. Topic areas include values and attitudes, motivation, perception, personality, stress and change, decision making, leadership and influence. Students will receive extensive exposure to the theories and research methodologies of Organizational Behavior as well as application of those theories.
This course examines money (historical and contemporary), the market for loanable funds, banking, other financial markets and institutions, the central bank, monetary theory and policy. This course focuses on the question of interest rate determination, whether by markets or by administration. The course examines the concepts of market failure and government failure as applied to banking and other financial institutions.
Students will develop a basic understanding of global marketing processes. Through extensive exposure to cross-cultural issues, intercultural business practices, direct interaction with global marketing professionals and hands-on projects, students will be challenged to expand their horizon and understand another facet of marketing. Emphasis will be placed on international marketing research, market entry analysis, cross-cultural consumer behavior and practical training on export management.
The purpose of this course is to help students understand why, where, how and when consumers are buying or not. Students will be learning about internal, external and situational influences to consumption by reviewing and applying theories from the psychology and sociology literature. Practical marketing applications of these concepts will be encouraged through hands-on assignments throughout the semester. Recommended: PSYC 111 - Introductory Psychology, SOC 111 - Human Society.
An introduction to the theory and practice of quantitative modeling and optimization, with applications to computer simulation and business resource management. Possible topics include linear and nonlinear programming, network analysis, game theory, deterministic and probabilistic models. Prerequisite: consent of the instructor.
This course is designed to provide a comprehensive view of the nature and practice of leadership. Among the topics explored are historical, philosophical and theoretical foundations; ethics and values; power and influence; conflict management; and effective leadership in formal organizations. Prerequisite: junior or senior status.
The purpose of this course is to provide applied marketing research knowledge. This course introduces students to a variety of research methods, including qualitative and quantitative research. Students will have ample opportunities to apply their research skills and expand their analytical abilities through hands-on projects throughout the semester.
This course provides an opportunity for individual students to conduct in-depth study of a particular topic under the supervision of a faculty member. Contact the department or program chair for more information.
This course provides an opportunity for individual students to conduct research in a specific area of study, completed under the direction of a faculty mentor. Specific expectations of the research experience to be determined by the faculty. Repeatable for credit. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
This course is designed to integrate the concepts of strategic design, formulation and administration within the business organization and serves as the capstone experience for the business major. Topics include the firm's mission and objectives, enterprise development, industry dynamics, sustained competitive advantage, organizational strengths and policy implementation.