B521
Special Topics in Economics
Summer 2013

Class Time and Instructor

Instructor: Sung Won Sohn, Ph.D
For Class Assignments go to: www.DrSohn.com
Classes: Wednesdays, 6:00 to 10:00 pm
Course Location: TO Campus
Contact Information
Phone: 805 437 2789
Email:

Cases and Articles

The course material comes from the following sources:
1.  Articles from Harvard Business Review (HBR)
2.  Cases from Harvard Business School (HBS)

Office Hours

Wednesdays 5:00 to 6:00 pm or by appointment at TO Campus
Learning Objective
There are two main areas the course will go into: current topics, understanding business strategies, marketing, finance, management.
1.  Current topics: Each session, we will spend up to 30 minutes discussing current economic issues of the week.
2.  We will use Harvard Business School (HBS) cases and articles (HBR) from Harvard Business Review to learn how real businesses faced and dealt with business issues.
Basis for Evaluation
The grade is based on one mid-term exam(35 percent), one final exam (35 percent), class participation (10 percent) and a student paper (20 percent). The exams will be essay-style covering everything we discuss in class.

Paper

Students are encouraged to find a real business and write a real-life case study. Preferably, it should be someone you know locally. It should be a private company. A well-developed real-life story will receive higher points. The paper will be evaluated on three factors: (1) how well and clearly it is written, (2) how well the story is developed and (3) your advice on how to improve the company based on what you have learned in the MBA program. In short, pretend you are a consultant to the company.

What should you do to succeed in this course?

·  Come to Class and Participate: Attendance is required. Class participation will be your best source of information for this course. Missing class means missing valuable discussion, and information regarding assignments.
·  Read the Cases and articles: They are very valuable sources of information and clarification. Class discussion will be based on your readings.
·  Get started on your paper early. Toward the end of the term, you will present your paper to the class (20 percent of your grade).

Academic Honesty

All work that students submit as their own work must, in fact, be their own work. Verbatim language taken from other sources -- books, papers, web sites, people, etc. -- must be placed in quotation marks and the source identified. Similarly, work on tests and exams must be the student's own work, not copied or taken from other students' work.
In accordance with the CSU Channel Islands policy on academic dishonesty, students in this course who submit the work of others as their own (plagiarize), cheat on tests or examinations, help other students cheat or plagiarize, or commit other acts of academic dishonesty will receive appropriate academic penalties, up to and including failing the course.
Assignments or papers with plagiarized language or ideas will receive a failing grade. Plagiarism or cheating on quizzes or exams will also result in a failing grade. In cases where the cheating or plagiarism was premeditated or planned, students may receive an F for the course.
Students are encouraged to consult with the instructor on when and how to document sources if they have questions about what might constitute an act of plagiarism or cheating.
Course Schedule
The schedule below is flexible. For some cases, we can spend more than indicated here. The objective is learning, not necessarily adhering to a rigid plan.
Week 1: HBR Article: The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy by Michael Porter R0801E
Strategy
Week 2: HBS Case: Benihana of Tokyo #9-673-057
HBS Case (Stanford Univ.): Wells Fargo Mergers of Equals #HR 26A
Week 3: HBS Case: Walt Disney #9-701-035
HBS Case: Federal Express (B) #9-579-040
Marketing
Week 4: HBR Article: an Introduction to Marketing #9-584-124
HBS Case: Cola Wars continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2006 #9-706-447
Week 5:HBS Case: Colgate Palmolive Company #9-593-064
HBS Case: Commerce Bank #9-603-080
Week 6: Mid-term Exam August 7
Business Ethics
Week 7: HBR: Ethical Breakdowns April 2011 Reprint #R1104C
HBS (Thunderbird School): Blood Bananas: Chiquita in Colombia #TB0245
HBS: Accounting Fraud at Worldcom #9-104-071
Finance
Week 8: HBS Case: New Century Financial corporation #9-109-034
HBS Case: State Street #9-209-112
Management
Week 9: HBS: Airbus A3XX: Developing the World’s Largest Commercial Jet (A) #9-201-028
HBS Case: Samsung Electronics #9-705-508
Week 10: HBS Case: The Walt Disney Company and Pixar Inc.: To Acquire or Not to Acquire #5-709-462
HBS Case: Shinhan Financial Group #9-305-075
Week 11: Student Papers
Week 12 : Final Exam on September 18