University Catalog 2023-2024

Business Management (BUS)

BUS 225  Personal Finance  (3 credit hours)  

Economic and financial strategies used to accumulate, manage and protect personal assets. Emphasizing income generation, expense reduction, investment selection, and wealth creation to meet future needs and goals. Topics include investing (mutual funds, stocks, etc.), annuities, insurance, retirement planning, and estate planning.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 295  Special Topics in Business Management  (1-6 credit hours)  

Experimental course development. Special topics in Business Management at the introductory level.

BUS 320  Financial Management  (3 credit hours)  

Financial decision making by businesses, including capital structure and dividend decisions, capital budgeting and working capital management. Basic financial concepts are covered such as risk and return measurement, portfolio theory and the time value of money.

Prerequisite: ACC 210

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 340  Information Systems Management  (3 credit hours)  

The use of computing in businesses is rapidly evolving. This course is designed to equip students with foundational knowledge to bring them to pace to current trends in this area. The course focuses on topics on how business computing solutions are built and used. Furthermore, the course will expose students to current business technologies and issues related to the development and use of these technologies. The course covers topics in Information Systems (IS) in organizations, current trends in the design and use of data/databases, Information Security and ethical challenges, current global trends in IS development and use along with key technical IS concepts.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 350/ST 350  Economics and Business Statistics  (3 credit hours)  

Introduction to statistics applied to management, accounting, and economic problems. Emphasis on statistical estimation, inference, simple and multiple regression, and analysis of variance. Use of computers to apply statistical methods to problems encountered in management and economics.

Prerequisite: MA 114

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 351  Introduction to Business Analytics  (3 credit hours)  

This course builds on BUS/ST 350 with an emphasis on the application of statistical methods using software. The course uses analytical methods and tools to drive actionable business decisions. Students will be exposed to a variety of statistical and machine learning methods including linear regression, logistic regression, decision analysis, classification trees, clustering techniques, optimization, monte carlo simulation, and statistical forecasting.

Prerequisites: BUS 340 and (BUS/ST 350, or ST 312, or ST 370, or ST 372); Corequisite: ST 307 or ST 308

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 360  Marketing Methods  (3 credit hours)  

Examination of decisions affecting marketing of goods and services in consumer, industrial and international markets. Emphasis on the role of marketing in a managerial context. Areas studied include: the activities of marketing research, identification of marketing opportunities, and the development of marketing mix strategies including the decisions concerning pricing, distribution, promotion and product design.

Prerequisite: MIE 201, Sophomore standing

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 370  Operations and Supply Chain Management  (3 credit hours)  

Concepts in planning, controlling, and managing the operations function of manufacturing and service firms. Topics include operations strategy, process choice decisions, forecasting, production planning and control, and trends in operations management. Common tools for informed decision-making in these areas.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 420  Financial Management of Corporations  (3 credit hours)  

Advanced theory and practice of corporate financial management. Topics covered include: asset management, evaluating financial statements, capital budgeting, alternative investments, cash flow management, equity valuation, and financing. Corporate financial policy decisions will include: cost of capital, capital structure, and dividend policy decisions.

Prerequisite: BUS 320 and (BUS/ST 350, or ST 312, or ST 370, or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 422  Investments and Portfolio Management  (3 credit hours)  

Analysis of the investment process, dichotomized into security analysis and portfolio management. Background information on financial assets, securities markets, and risk-return concepts. Analysis of valuation theory and techniques, modern portfoliotheory and portfolio performance.

Prerequisite: BUS 320 and (BUS/ST 350, or ST 312, or ST 370, or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 425  Advanced Personal Financial Management  (3 credit hours)  

Detailed economic, financial and legal analysis of risk management, retirement planning, investments, and estate planning. Additional emphasis on professional financial planning for those interested in personal finance as a career.

Prerequisite: BUS 320

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 426  International Financial Management  (3 credit hours)  

Foreign exchange markets, forward markets and derivatives, and their implications for direct and portfolio investment abroad. International capital markets. Multinational company exchange rate exposure measurement and management. Instruments of financing international trade and investment. Multinational capital budgeting and cost of capital.

Prerequisite: BUS 320 and (BUS/ST 350 or ST 305 or ST 312 or ST 370 or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 428  Financial Analytics  (3 credit hours)  

Advanced course examining the use of big data analytics in finance. The focus will be on the application of these tools in the areas of asset management and equity valuation. Topics covered include risk-return tradeoff, financial intermediaries in asset management (e.g., mutual funds, hedge funds, etc.), stock valuation models, and using financial statement information in stock selection / asset management. Students will complete a semester-long project involving data analysis (e.g., write an equity research report on a publicly traded U.S. firm, backtest an investment strategy, etc.).

Prerequisite: BUS 320

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 429  Financial Modeling  (3 credit hours)  

BUS 429 is 'corporate finance in Excel.' Starting from the theoretical base gained in BUS320, students work through problems in time value of money, capital budgeting, and valuation (among other things) using spreadsheet analyses. The course will take a very hands-on approach in building financial spreadsheet models. Microsoft Excel is the primary tool we will use to implement these financial models and the course will go into detail on the proficient use of Excel.

Prerequisite: BUS 320

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 440  Database Management  (3 credit hours)  

The fundamentals of database management within business applications. Data structures, user requirements, structured query language, query by example, application development, user interface design.

Prerequisite: ACC 340 or BUS 340

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 441  Business Data Communications and Networking  (3 credit hours)  

The fundamentals of computer networking and the use of computer networks in business applications. Client-server networks, architecture, network hardware and software, key issues in network management, network security, and the fundamentals of datacommunications.

Prerequisite: ACC 340 or BUS 340

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 442  Information Systems Development  (3 credit hours)  

This course provides concepts and skills necessary for designing, developing, and deploying information systems (applications) to aid in business and managerial decisions. It includes hands-on experience with development (coding) theory and concepts, objected-oriented algorithm design and development concepts, graphical user interface design concepts, and SQL and data structures using the C# programming language and the Microsoft. NET IDE.

Prerequisite: ACC 340 or BUS 340

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 443  Web Development for Business Applications  (3 credit hours)  

This course provides current technologies for designing and developing interactive, web-based systems for business. Topics may include current programming languages, server-side programming, client-side programming, server-side scripting, database integration, and more. Design concepts will be implemented through team projects.

Prerequisite: BUS 442; Corequisite: BUS 440

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 444  Systems Analysis and Design  (3 credit hours)  

Information systems development is a systematic yet a complex process and this course provides a holistic view of principles, methods and tools that govern that process. Topics in this course will equip the students with the understanding and necessary skills to navigate the complexities of developing Information Systems, which are among the primary responsibilities of technology consultants/analysts/managers. The course covers topics in systems development frameworks such as agile software management, systems development lifecycle, and object-oriented system analysis and design. The course focuses on hands-on experience with project management softwares and methods, systems requirements analysis via Unified Modeling Language (UML) and systems design/ user experience design.

Prerequisite: ACC 340 or BUS 340

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 449  Information Technology Capstone  (3 credit hours)  

This is a completely project-oriented course. Students will work on real applications for national or local firm(s) to solve "live" IT problems. Students will work in teams to develop client deliverables and present their final work to an appropriate industry-based management team. Field trips and/or outside class activities (including client/consultant work) are a major part of this course. Students who are unable to participate in these types of events should not enroll in this course.

Prerequisite: BUS 440 or 441 or 442 or 443 or 444.

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 458/ACC 458  Analytics: From Data to Decisions  (3 credit hours)  

Students will develop and apply their data analytics skills by analyzing case studies built around real business problems and real data. Case studies are designed around the full analytics lifecycle which encompasses the business problem, data, analysis, and decision. Students will learn to identify and explain business problems that can be addressed with analytics. They also will learn to determine which analytic methods are best suited to solve particular problems and will evaluate the impact of applying analytic methods. Finally, they will learn to explain the results of an analytic model and how those results impact the business "bottom line.

Prerequisite: BUS 351

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 459  Business Analytics Practicum  (3 credit hours)  

Advanced application of business analytics skills, tools and methodologies to solve business issues and problems. Small teams of students will undertake projects to identify business issues, confirm the information needed to address the issues, and apply the required data analytics tools and methodologies. The projects will include interaction with business personnel, refinement of business issues, gathering information, development of business analytics models, and presentation of results through data visualization. Each project will culminate with the student team presenting their findings and recommendations to the organization.

Prerequisites: BUS 351 and BUS 458

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 460  Consumer Behavior  (3 credit hours)  

The consumer decision process, with emphasis on consumer decision making, satisfaction/dissatisfaction factors, perception, learning, group influences, and marketing strategy implications. Restricted to majors within the College of Management.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 461  Channel and Retail Marketing  (3 credit hours)  

Retailing composes a substantial component of the US economy, creating millions of jobs. Marketing channels are where marketing mix strategy and tactics ultimately impact customers and produce sales. This course is designed to prepare students for roles such as buying, merchandising, store management, professional selling, distribution, inventory management or other retailing-oriented careers. Emphasis will be placed on developing students' relevant skill sets in key areas such as retail metrics, site analysis, pricing tactics, merchandising strategy, and customer relationship management. Relevant aspects of consumer behavior and organizational leadership in a retail setting will be covered.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 462  Marketing Research  (3 credit hours)  

The use, collection, organization and analysis of information pertinent to marketing decisions. Use of qualitative and quantitative data in the solution of specific marketing problems.

Prerequisite: BUS 360 and (BUS/ST 350, or ST 312, or ST 370, or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 463  Sales and Marketing Practicum  (3 credit hours)  

This course is a team-based project course where students work on a sales/marketing problem for a business enterprise. Students, company team leads (clients), and the NCSU faculty advisor will work together to document the project scope early in the semester. Ultimately, the student team will be responsible for project management. Components of this typically include a project scope, project work plan, key deliverables and milestones. The projects usually consist of building a framework for analyzing the project data, development of reasonable recommendations for action in both the long and short term, and various reports and presentations to project stakeholders: company participants and management, and the NCSU faculty advisor.

P: BUS 360 and one other Marketing Concentration Course (BUS 460, 461, 462, 465, 466, 467, 468, or 469)

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 464  International Marketing  (3 credit hours)  

Explores moving from a national marketing approach to a global marketing strategy, and discusses competitive advantages and challenges in making the transition. Both traditional countries of Western Europe and emerging markets will be examined. Students will analyze culture considerations when evaluating the impact on local business strategies. In addition to learning the impact on the world's economy through globalization, emphasis will also be placed on developing necessary professional skills.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 465  Traditional and Digital Brand Promotion  (3 credit hours)  

This course focuses on advertising and integrated brand promotions, spanning both traditional and digital media. Emphasis is on the brand. Includes development of marketing communications strategy and campaign materials, from consumer insight generation to creative execution.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 466  Personal Selling  (3 credit hours)  

Revolves around the art of people-to-people interaction, which applies not only to the business-to-business sales environment but is also applicable to other professions. The selling process will be examined along with activities necessary to be successful in sales. With a common thread of developing and nurturing relationships, students will examine building partnerships, implications of ethical and legal issues, adapting the approach to the situation and identifying social styles with associated behaviors. Attention will also be focused on the steps involved in the sales cycle and how to be successful in their execution.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 467  Product and Brand Management  (3 credit hours)  

Provides an in-depth understanding of marketing planning and implementation involved in product and brand management. The course places emphasis on developing specific marketing strategies to support the creation and launch of new products and to successfully manage existing products and brands.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 468  Marketing Strategy  (3 credit hours)  

This course is designed to build on the core marketing principles you learned in your introductory marketing course and to enhance your understanding of their strategic implications.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 469  Digital Marketing Practicum  (3 credit hours)  

This course provides you with an introduction to the digital marketplace through an experiential learning approach. After conducting a client audit, your team will develop a digital marketing campaign including appropriate major digital platforms. Post-campaign metrics and data analytics will be utilized to measure campaign effectiveness and future marketing strategy. The course pedagogy emphasizes class discussion, industry expert lectures, digital simulation, and a client digital project.

Prerequisite: BUS 360

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 470  Operations Modeling and Analysis  (3 credit hours)  

Tools, techniques, and strategies used for analyzing and improving business operations, including process mapping, capacity analysis, demand forecasting, and quality analysis and improvement. Emphasis on Excel as a tool for analysis, particularly on Excel functions and modules relevant to operations analysis.

Prerequisite: BUS 370 and (BUS/ST 350 or ST 305 or ST 312 or ST 370 or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 472  Operations Planning and Control Systems  (3 credit hours)  

Design and management of operations planning and control systems for manufacturing and service firms. Forecasting, capacity management, production and work force scheduling, project management, just-in-time and time-based competition, the impact ofinformation technologies on planning and control systems.

Prerequisite: BUS 370; Co-requisite: BUS 470

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 473  Supply Chain Strategy  (3 credit hours)  

THERE ARE NO PLANS TO OFFER THIS COURSE IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. Purchasing, materials management, and logistics. Purchasing systems, supplier-based strategies, price-cost management, value analysis. Inventory strategies, quantity and quality decisions, materials planning. Logistics strategies for services and manufacturing.

Prerequisite: BUS 370; Co-requisite: BUS 470

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 474  Logistics Management  (3 credit hours)  

Management of physical flows of goods between firms, management of inventories that support those flows, and assessment of the effects of freight transportation choices on these management activities. A variety of conceptual frameworks and quantitative tools are used to formulate the basis for effective logistics decision making and relate those decisions to broader issues in managing the entire supply chain and fulfilling the strategic objectives of a firm. A nominal fee for simulation software may be required.

Prerequisite: BUS 370; Co-requisite: BUS 470

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 475  Purchasing and Supply Management  (3 credit hours)  

This course is designed to help students develop knowledge of basic principles in purchasing and supply management. Students will be able to explain the potential contributions of these efforts of the competitiveness of the firm.

Prerequisite: BUS 370; Co-requisite: BUS 470

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 476  Decision Modeling and Analysis  (3 credit hours)  

Structured framework and process for modeling and analyzing business decisions. Business decisions are frequently made difficult by the presence of uncertainty and complex interactions among key drivers of the decision. In today's global environment the stakes of bad outcomes may be too high to justify learning by experience. Filled with in-depth insights and practical advice, this course covers the essential tools and techniques to improve your skills, such as: decision trees, influence diagrams, spreadsheet-based decision modeling, Monte Carlo simulation, demand forecasting, and methods to obtain and model decision-relevant data from subject matter experts in an unbiased manner.

Prerequisite: BUS 340 and (BUS/ST 350, or ST 312, or ST 370, or ST 372)

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 479  Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Practicum  (3 credit hours)  

This course is comprised of a team-based project working on a Supply Chain Resource Consortium (SCRC) partner company's supply chain management issues. These projects vary in scope as are company's supply chain issues and improvement initiatives.Student groups need to provide their own transportation to off-campus sites.

Prerequisite: BUS 370 and one 400-level Operations/Supply Chain Management course

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 480  Capstone Security Valuation & Portfolio Management  (3 credit hours)  

This course focuses on practical applications of security selection and modern portfolio theory. Students will use cutting edge industry methods to implement theory into practice. Students will learn technical skills in valuation/forecasting models, investment decision making process, portfolio management, and performance attribution in this advanced quantitative course.

Prerequisite: BUS 420

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 495  Special Topics in Business Management  (1-6 credit hours)  

Presentation of material not normally available in regular course offerings, or offering of new courses on a trial basis.

BUS 498  Independent Study in Business Management  (1-6 credit hours)  

Detailed investigation of topics of particular interest to advanced undergraduates under faculty direction on a tutorial basis. Credits and content determined by faculty member in consultation with Department Head. Individualized/Independent Study and Research courses require a "Course Agreement for Students Enrolled in Non-Standard Courses" be completed by the student and faculty member prior to registration by the department.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 541  Strategic Risk Analysis Using Excel  (1 credit hours)  

This course explores the use of data analysis techniques and tools that are useful for organizing and categorizing large volumes of information for use by executives to make strategic business decisions. The course exposes students to various Excel techniques through a business case to support management's decision making and focuses on how data analysis can be used to inform management and the board about top strategic risk issues.

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 542  Forecasting and Scenario Planning Using Monte Carlo Simulation  (1 credit hours)  

This course explores how forecasting and scenario planning are used to support management's decision making. The course focuses on how data analysis techniques and tools are useful for organizing and categorizing large volumes of information for use by executives to make strategic business decisions and it exposes students to Monte Carlo Simulation and Optimization techniques to support strategic business decisions. The course then focuses on communicating this information to inform management and the board about top strategic risk issues.

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 543  Communicating Risk Information Using Tableau  (1 credit hours)  

This course provides an introduction as well as hands-on experience in data visualization. It introduces students to design principles for creating meaningful displays of quantitative and qualitative data to facilitate managerial decision-making. Students develop an understanding of the fundamentals of communication and alignment around concepts that are required for effective data presentation and it provides an overview and develop an introductory level of competency on the use of the Tableau software tool that can be used for data visualization.

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 554  Project Management  (3 credit hours)  

Life cycle view of organizing and managing technical projects, including project selection, planning, and execution. Methods for managing and controlling project costs, schedules, and scope. Techniques for assessing project risk. Use of popular project management software tools. Application of project management tools and methods to product development, software, and process reengineering projects.

Typically offered in Spring and Summer

BUS 558  Communications, Privacy, and Ethics in Data Science  (2 credit hours)  

This class will give you the opportunity to explore the ethical issues associated with the development and use of Big Data and data science activities. The data science lifecycle will serve as a backdrop within which to examine ethical concerns related to the design, collection, use and dissemination of data. These include issues of AI and bias, transparency in communications and data design, privacy and data collection, among others.

Typically offered in Spring only

BUS 571  High Growth Entrepreneurship  (3 credit hours)  

Second course in a two-course entrepreneurship sequence focusing on opportunities outside the technology arena. Theoretical and practical, team-based, approach to the evaluation and assessment of opportunities for value creation. Emphasis on how to discover, validate, and then execute on an action plan to create value. Credit not allowed if the student has already taken MBA 576 or MBA 577.

Prerequisite: MBA 570. Credit not allowed if the student has already taken MBA 576 or MBA 577.

Typically offered in Fall and Spring

BUS 590  Special Topics In Business Management  (1-6 credit hours)  

Presentation of material not normally available in regular courses offerings or offering of new courses on a trial basis.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer

BUS 790  Special Topics In Business Management  (1-6 credit hours)  

Presentation of material not normally available in regular courses offerings or offering of new courses on a trial basis.

Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer