Courses—MBA

Instructors: Alex Wright & Elianna McHenry

Serves as the entry point for new students in the MBA program. This course is designed to onboard students by introducing them to the scope of the program and its integrated design and learning objectives. The orientation will also help students understand program expectations and time commitment and prepare themselves for online communication and technology requirements necessary to successfully complete their online MBA degree.

Instructor: Alex Wright

This MBA entry course examines the running of an enterprise from the Chief Executive Officer’s (CEO’s) point of view. It is designed to help students develop their strategic thinking ability and learn methods for effective strategic planning. Students will learn about framing theoretical and practical training for the purpose of understanding business practices and enhancing organizational efficiency and effectiveness. This will include conducting external and internal assessments of an organization, identifying key strategic issues, identifying and choosing alternative strategies, and defending those decisions. This course provides the framework for the final MBA integrated project, MBA 651 Integrated Project. It will provide students with the instruction and tools helpful for integrating individual MBA course learning into their final MBA project and presentation. Prerequisite: MBA 501.

Instructor: Michael Chen

This course examines domestic and global production and distribution of goods and services as guided by the free market economy. The course takes the perspective of the economist as advisor to managers and directors of a firm operating in an external economic environment and making operational and strategic decisions for the firm. With an understanding of supply, demand, and consumer behavior as a background, the course studies how firms remain competitive through the improvement of strategic thinking about competition in the market, and efficient organizational structure and decision making, especially involving allocating resources, managing production, and earning a profit under changing economic conditions. Pre-requisite: MBA 501. Co-requisite: MBA 630.

Instructor: Mark Borchert

This course helps students understand the evolution of marketing communication as it becomes a functionally widened and linked activity. Students learn where each distinct communication function has resided and how they are forming a new entity called Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC). IMC involves the measured blending of disparate activities such as messaging, branding, advertising, public relations, sales promotion, events and sales training into a tightly coordinated activity that provides maximum persuasive impact within targeted markets. Teamwork among the various individual organizations is essential to the success of IMC. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Michael Jordan

This course provides a biblical perspective of transformational leadership, focusing on two key components; transformation is missional and it is intentional. Students will examine how to navigate the current societal and organizational landscape in a faithful and integrated manner by first considering transformation on a personal level, then organizational. A variety of resources, assessments and coaching exercises will be engaged by students during this course. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

This course examines the impact diverse political and social forces have on business and the law. Students explore the historical, cultural, political, philosophical, and religious foundation of legal and social systems as they relate to the ethical and profit dimensions of the economic complex. Honing critical thinking, persuasive speaking and writing skills, will be accomplished through analysis of the above in relation to policy and implementation procedures in international and domestic markets. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Students may choose to waive this course and substitute an elective course for this core course if they have earned a B- or better in at least two of the following undergrad/graduate level courses: Business Law I and/or II, Employment Law.

Instructor: Dr. Torrance Jones

This course is focused on improving leader efficacy in developing peak organizational and people performance. Performance contributors and/or detractors will be studied from a biblical perceptive where students will examine how recent trends in workplace ‘advances’, scientific findings and human resource best practices confirm and/or conflict with God’s design of humankind. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Bruce Bader

This course emphasizes the connection between design-thinking and innovation. Students will learn the process of design-thinking, which begins with a genuine interest in understanding the people for whom products and/or services are being designed. Study and practice of this process will help in bettering student ability to ask questions, challenge assumptions, redefine problems and create change – all important aspects for developing strategic options and solutions not immediately identified through left brain thinking and problem-solving approaches. This course will consider the opportunities and challenges of design-thinking and innovation within a variety of organizational contexts, and how it relates to differing services and product lines. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Paul Young

Examine and apply mathematical and statistical methods to improve data literacy and to develop tools that will improve management decision-making. This course familiarizes students with the assumptions underlying various statistical techniques and assists in identifying their appropriateness in a variety of situations. Students will perform statistical analysis and interpret results that contribute to information-based decision making. Prerequisite: MBA 501.

Students may choose to waive this course and substitute an elective course for this core course if they have earned a B- or better in at least two of the following undergrad/graduate level courses: statistics (level 200+), data science (level 200+), calculus, or a 200+ level college math course.

Instructor: Dr. Michael Chen

This course considers how organizations assess and manage risks in the external and internal environments and adapt daily operations and long-term plans to minimize unexpected losses. Students will learn how to identify and categorize risks, how to develop and prioritize responses to risks, how risk affects strategic planning and daily operations, and how insurance and other tactics and strategies mitigate risks. Enterprise risk management, governance, and contingency planning will be considered for the entire organization, including: accounting and finance, sales and marketing, human resources, and information technology. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Professor Bruce Bader

This course explores the critical nature of processes, and provides insight into how the most successful companies organize complex systems to deliver consistent and excellent products and services. It includes the basics of forecasting, capacity planning, scheduling, inventory management, total quality management, and supply chain management, and how these span business functions of finance, sales marketing, and product identify. The intersection of teams and cross functional connections will be explored. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Dr. Michael Chen

This course prepares students to effectively extract and utilize information in financial statements. The relation between financial statement representation and underlying business activities is emphasized. Specific topics to be addressed include: revenue recognition practices, obligation measurement, and the impact of organizational form on accounting measures of performance, digital platforms, and GAAP. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Students may choose to waive this course and substitute an elective course for this core course if they have earned a B- or better in at least two of the following undergrad/graduate level courses: Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, and Cost Accounting.

Instructor: Elianna McHenry

This course focuses on the mechanics of financial statement analysis from various perspectives, including: shareholders, financial analysts, boards of directors, investors, and business mergers and acquisitions. Topics covered are balance sheet and income statement analysis, ratio analysis, cash flow analysis, common size analysis, trend analysis, and earning analysis. Students will analyze and evaluate free cash flow generation, profitability, operating efficiency, and the impact of leverage on business risk and return on equity. Students will integrate a biblical and ethical framework that helps guide assure objective, i.e., bias free analysis. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630, Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Corporate Finance, and one upper level accounting course.

Instructor: Alex Wright

In this course students learn the ‘thinking and doing’ of successful entrepreneurs. This multi-dimensional course is intended for those inclined toward becoming an entrepreneur; those needing to implement entrepreneurial and lean startup principles in their organization; or those who desire to learn how to effectively work with an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship will be explored from the biblical perspective of creativity and the productive process of innovation. Topics include: deframing, metaphors, dialectical inquiry, path creation, and bisociation. Students will learn how to turn an innovative idea into a plan of action using lean startup strategy. Additionally, students will consider the entrepreneurs role in managing and mitigating the uncertainty of risk. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Marc Williams

This course emphasizes the decision-making and discipline of financial management. Subjects include: financial reports and metrics, financial analysis and planning, financial forecasting, financial markets, financial leverage, working capital management, capital budgeting processes, cost of capital, and the evaluation of domestic and global merger and acquisition opportunities, including takeover and antitrust strategies. Students will integrate a biblical and ethical framework that helps guide financial management decision-making. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Students may choose to waive this course and substitute an elective course for this core course if they have earned a B- or better in at least two of the following undergrad/graduate level courses: Corporate Finance I/II, Investment Management, or Money, Banking and Finance.

Instructor: Professor Roger Mattice

An introduction into the role of project management within a cross section of organizations and project types. Topics include project definition, planning, scheduling, life cycles, project attribute estimation, resource allocation, scope creep, and project portfolio evaluation and selection. Management issues related to project manager selection, subcontracting, team dynamics, and project monitoring and control are explored as essential elements of a successful project. Opportunities to research and evaluate the landscape of digital tools for project management and leverage real world tools in the scope and sequence of learning. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Dr. Alex Wright

This course provides a biblical perspective for ethics, morality and social responsibility in relationship to individual leaders, organizations, the community, and global society. The inter-related nature of ethics, morality, and social issues will be reviewed along with how societal views and actions influence and impact organizational performance. An emphasis is placed on the decision-making responsibility of Christian leaders related to these topics that influence and shape organizational culture, policy, practice and people. Prerequisite(s): MBA 501, MBA 630.

Instructor: Alex Wright & Elianna McHenry

Final course in the MBA program. Students finalize a detailed personal plan focused on an existing company project, new business venture, creation of a new product or service, organizational process improvement, cultural change, or restructure of their current workplace department/organization. Students will present their integrated projects virtually and observe and interact with peer presentations. The project focus must meet established guidelines and be preapproved by the MBA Director.