Results for GSBGEN

Students of all sexual orientations are invited to apply for this unique new seminar looking at the distinct challenge LGBT leaders have faced in communicating effectively. Through the years, many individuals have led the struggle for gay rights and inclusion through a variety of different communication strategies and tactics; some were successful while others were not. This seminar course will explore some of the key leaders in the LGBT community and how they chose to communicate. Together we will search through a variety of film clips, transcripts, news reports, and other historical elements to see how the message, media, and moments work together. A number of guest speakers will also share their perspective on what it means to "Lead Out Loud." Heterosexual identified students as well as LGBT students are encouraged to apply; in fact, we seek to have a true diversity of opinions in the room as we explore this topic. All students will benefit from this exploration of how to communicate about controversial, sensitive, and personal subjects with greater strength and purpose.

Whether you are launching a start-up, leading an organization, or inspiring social action the need to communicate effectively is crucial to your success. This seminar, grounded in the work of Nancy Duarte's book Illuminate, will look at how leaders can effectively use speeches, ceremonies, stories, and symbols to lead change.n nYou will be able to apply course concepts to a change initiative within which they are already engaged and receive feedback from professor and peers to improve. Plans include field visits to Duarte's offices and other venues where change efforts are underway. You will also benefit from seeing the evolution of MBA students' presentations in the highly successful LOWkeynotes program.

With leadership comes responsibility. This course explores the numerous ethical duties faced by managers and organizations. It combines analytical frameworks with the latest findings on human behavior to inform a wide range of ethical decisions and strategies. Readings include case studies, insights from experimental psychology and economics, and excerpts from or about major works of moral philosophy. Through online and in-class exercises, discussions, and personal reflection, you will reveal and assess your ethical intuitions, compare them with more explicit modes of ethical thought, and learn how to use ethics in business settings. A diverse set of ethical viewpoints will be considered with an emphasis on not only their implications for ethical behavior but also on the social and cognitive pitfalls that undermine the ability of business leaders to fulfill their ethical duties.

With leadership comes responsibility. This course explores the numerous ethical duties faced by managers and their organizations. It combines classical philosophical theories with contemporary scholarship on human behavior to inform a wide range of ethical situations, decisions, and strategies. Resources include case studies, insights from experimental psychology and economics, and excerpts from or lectures on major works of moral philosophy. Through online and in-class exercises, discussions, and personal reflection, students will discover, reveal, and assess their ethical intuitions, compare them with more explicit modes of ethical thought, and began to learn how to explicitly apply ethics in business settings. A diverse set of ethical viewpoints will be considered, emphasizing not only business leaders’ ethical behavior but also social and cognitive pitfalls that undermine ethical behavior.

GSB students are eligible to report on work experience that is relevant to their core studies under the direction of the Senior Associate Dean responsible for the MBA Program. Registration for this work must be approved by the Assistant Dean of the MBA Program and is limited to students who present a project which, in judgment of the Advisor, may be undertaken to enhance the material learned in the first year core required courses. It is expected that this research be carried on by the student with a large degree of independence and the expected result is a written report, typically due at the end of the quarter in which the course is taken. Specific assignment details and deadline information will be communicated to enrolled students. Units earned for this course do not meet the requirements needed for graduation.

Investing for Good will introduce students to the entire spectrum of purposeful, values-driven, and impact investing. We examine the field from the perspective of an institutional investor (i.e. fund manager, investment advisor, endowment manager, head of a family office, etc). Our goal is to have students emerge with a practical and analytical framework for: 1. evaluating impact and mission-aligned investments across multiple asset classes and sectors; 2. constructing a portfolio using impact as a lens; 3. designing an impact investment company; and 4. understanding the many practical and theoretical challenges confronting this exciting emerging field.nnWe start by exploring some fundamental questions: what is a purposeful or impact investment; can impact investments be defined along a spectrum between conventional investing and philanthropy; whose money is it; what are the constraints and opportunities; how do we (re)define return and/or performance. We briefly analyze impact investing in the context of modern portfolio theory. We then develop a framework for portfolio construction and evaluation across four criteria: risk, return, liquidity, and impact. Through a combination of class dialogues, role plays, and case discussions, we will explore a wide variety of asset classes, impact themes, and investment challenges. A series of team-based investment committee simulations will comprise a significant portion of the course and will provide a significant experiential learning experience.nnPrevious experience in finance, investing, social enterprise, entrepreneurship, or philanthropy is not required, but both helpful and welcomed. While first year students are encouraged to enroll, students who have limited familiarity with the basics of investing and corporate finance are strongly encouraged to purchase David Swensen's "Pioneering Portfolio Management" and cover the recommended chapters in advance of the course. It's is also important to note that this class will require financial modeling and detailed investment analysis.nnMany of the issues we'll be tackling have no unambiguous answers. Lively discussion and debate will be necessary and expected.

This course teaches the fundamentals of real estate investing. The course begins by introducing the financial analysis tools that investors use to make decisions and structure deals. Topics will include cap rates, debt and equity financing, DCF analysis, and joint ventures (among others) and then use these tools to analyze investment cases across asset and deal types. Through case studies and with the help of industry guests, we explore land economics, market analysis, investment vehicles, risk, development, real estate tech and urban design. The course is designed for students with limited or no background in real estate. Students are not required to have a finance background, but students without any background in this area will need to bring an extra willingness to learn the analysis tools.

This course addresses the distinctive challenges and opportunities of launching high-potential new ventures in developing economies. Developing economies are attractive targets for entrepreneurs because many are just starting to move up the growth curve, and they offer low-cost operating environments that can be great development labs for potentially disruptive innovations. They increase in attractiveness when their political institutions stabilize and they become more market-friendly. At the same time, developing economies pose serious challenges. Pioneering entrepreneurs take on significant risks to gain early mover advantages. Specifically, entrepreneurs will not be able to count on the same kind of supportive operating environments that we take for granted in the developed world. They often face cumbersome permit and licensing processes, poorly developed financial and labor markets, problematic import and export procedures, unreliable local supply chains, weak infrastructure, corruption, currency risks, limited investment capital, lack of financial exits and more. This course is designed to help would-be entrepreneurs - both founders and members of entrepreneurial teams - better understand and prepare for these issues as they pursue the opportunities and address the challenges to start, grow, and harvest their ventures in these environments.nnGSB314 combines a seminar/discussion format (Tuesdays) with a team-based project (Thursdays). For the Tuesday sessions, students will read about and discuss the key challenges described above and potential solutions. Guests will describe their own startup and investing experiences in developing economies and answer questions. A framework based on the recently published World Economic Forum (WEF) report on "Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Around the Globe and Company Growth Dynamics" will be used to structure the course. Each student will prepare a short write-up as a final assignment, for this portion of the course, on a case chosen from a selection provided by the instructors.nnThe Thursday sessions is a team-based exercise for students who either have a specific idea or want to join a team of classmates to pursue more deeply an understanding of the team's country of focus and an initial investigation of the idea's viability. Students must come in willing to be team players and do the work necessary to complete this exercise over the full quarter. Each team member's contributions will be assessed by fellow teammates. Teams of AT LEAST 3 STUDENTS EACH will be formed before the start of class or on the first day of class at the latest so students can decide if they want to enroll. The team will describe, in a final presentation, the challenges and opportunities in their country using the WEF framework. The final presentation will also include the team's thoughts on the viability of their proposed venture and how it capitalizes on their country's assets and addresses its challenges. A detailed business plan is not required; however, specific recommendations and plans for next steps that would be carried out during a 3 to 6 month field and market research study in the country will be part of the final presentation.nnNote: Students who only want to participate in the seminar/discussion portion of the class and not do a team-based project (see details below) may enroll in GSB514 for 2 units.

Business leaders have marketing strategies, expansion strategies, finance strategies, even exit strategies. Successful leaders, however, also have communication strategies. This course will explore how individuals and organizations can develop and execute effective communication strategies for a variety of business settings.nnThis course introduces the essentials of communication strategy and persuasion: audience analysis, communicator credibility, message construction and delivery. Deliverables will include written documents and oral presentations and you will present both individually and in a team. You will receive feedback to improve your communication effectiveness. In the final team presentation, your challenge is to craft an oral presentation that will persuade your audience to accept your strategic recommendations. By doing this, you will see why ideas, data and advocacy are combined for a professional, persuasive presentation. nnThis practical course helps students develop confidence in their speaking and writing through weekly presentations and assignments, lectures and discussions, guest speakers, simulated activities, and videotaped feedback. An important new feature of this course is that a team of external communications coaches work in concert with the professor to ensure that students get rigorous and individualized coaching and feedback.nnIn this course you will learn to:nn- Create communication strategies at an individual and organizational leveln- Develop clearly organized and effective presentations and documentsn- Diagnose and expand your personal writing and oral delivery style n- Adapt your delivery style to different material and audiences n- Enhance oral delivery through effective visual aidsnnStudents at all levels of comfort and expertise with public speaking and business writing will benefit from this course. Waitlists have been long for this course, and you're encouraged to keep that in mind as you make your course selections. Waitlisted students are encouraged to attend the first two classes.

Successful leaders have to conceive, author, rebuild, pivot, differentiate, and finally maintain a personal reputation to make a lasting, recognizable and powerful identity. Reputation Management will explore how you can effectively communicate to create, adapt and maintain your personal reputation. Your reputation remains fluid as you navigate your career decisions and interact with different professionals along your journey. nnThe course is designed along three interlocking elements: reputation management literature, relevant case studies, and curated guest speakers. Students will learn the fundamentals of strategic corporate communication and the risk of not managing reputation effectively. These frameworks will be extended with specific case studies to illustrate where individuals, groups, and firms have faced the challenge of managing reputation effectively. We will focus on both traditional and virtual components of communication including the relevancy of online reputation management. Finally we will invite well-known leaders from a range of industries who have built and sustained their reputations, through effective communication. Each leader has had to manage their reputations in the public eye, and alongside their peers, supervisors, and employees. Guests will be invited to discuss their conscious and unplanned strategies of how to successfully communicate the kind of person, leader, innovator, or public figure they strive to be. nnStudents will benefit from a rich blend of frameworks, cases, and speakers enabling them to successfully enter the work force and create their own, personal reputations. Students will create a case study drawn from their own experience (or personal network), of a reputation dilemma. A final assignment requires students to research their own reputation history by projecting what they think their reputation is, creating their own survey for friends, colleagues and employers to take, conduct three interviews about their personal reputation with three individuals who have worked closely with them, and then synthesize all this feedback into a cohesive paper and short video that reflects their authentic work and personal reputation. Throughout the course students will post at least one blog drawn from class concepts and respond to posts by peers in the class.

The course will be structured around the perspective of a foundation or a high net worth individual who has decided to devote substantial resources to philanthropy and wishes to decide which philanthropic goals to pursue and how best to achieve them. Although there are no formal prerequisites for the course, we will assume that students have experience working at a foundation, nonprofit organization, impact investing fund, or similar organization, or have taken an introductory course in strategic philanthropy such as GSBGEN 381. (With the exception of several classes on strategy and evaluation, there is no substantial overlap with Paul Brest's course, Problem Solving for Social Change (GSBGEN 367) , which has a different focus from this one.)

The disruptive nature of the Internet has set in motion the destruction of business models that have supported traditional media organizations. This course will examine the current state and broader economic challenges facing the media industry. These include: the impact of technology, changing consumer behavior, the rise of mobile, social networks, big data, real-time metrics, innovations in digital advertising and distribution channels, and new business models. Students will analyze new digital media ventures and hear from industry experts facing innovation challenges at the intersection of content, technology and business. The course also will identify paths for entrepreneurs interested in building a media business. And experiment with prototyping new digital media ventures.

The course explores the role of mindfulness, self-compassion and compassion in the workplace, and the contribution of these qualities to leadership. Topics addressed will include: How can mindfulness enhance clarity in purpose and productivity? What is the connection between mindfulness and compassion? Is compassion in the business world a strength or a weakness? Are compassion and profit motives fundamentally incompatible, or can they support each other? What does compassionate leadership look like? Can mindfulness and compassion be trained at the individual level, and built into company policy? How does self-compassion support effective leadership and recovery from setbacks? Participants in the course will engage with exercises from evidence-based programs targeting the development of mindfulness and the practical application of the skills of self-awareness, self-compassion, and perspective taking in the context of work and relationships.

This course examines trends and opportunities in the sustainable energy sector with a particular focus on low carbon energy. We examine these trends in the context of technological change, emerging business opportunities and the parameters set by public policy. nSpecific topics to be examined include: (i) the impact of regulatory policies and tax subsidies on the energy mix (ii) the growing competitiveness of renewable energy, in particular solar PV and wind, (iii) sustainable transportation (iv) adaptation by fossil fuel energy sources, (v) innovative financing mechanisms for energy projects, (vi) the venture capital perspective (vii) the changing role of utilities in the energy landscape.

Believe it or not, the "Silicon Valley model" has little or nothing to do with most businesses. Most businesses are not started by MBAs; most startups are not funded by VCs; most employees don't work for tech firms; and most businesses don't sell out to other businesses or go public. Rather, the vast majority of businesses world-wide are started, funded, and owned by families, and these firms create most of the employment in the global economy. Despite the prominence of family firms, teaching and research have traditionally focused on analyzing the widely-held or Silicon Valley model of the firm. This course explores the challenges and opportunities faced by family businesses. It is taught by Leo Linbeck III, Lecturer since 2005 at the GSB and President and CEO of Aquinas Companies, LLC. This course is an outlier in a world obsessed with tech startups and venture capital; it is a "Minority Report" from the heart of Silicon Valley. The course is intended for four main audiences: (1) Students whose family owns a business. (2) Students who are considering working for a family firm. (3) Students who are interested in acquiring or consulting with a private firm either directly (search funds, management consultants, etc) or indirectly (private equity, etc). (4) Students who are sick of only learning about cool, sexy startups and the geniuses who get rich from them. The course uses a combination of case studies, guest speakers, lectures, movies, and student presentations to explore the central ideas of the course, which are likely to appear irrelevant to everyone (save the instructor).

This case study-oriented course will focus on the critical skills needed to evaluate, develop, finance (on a non-recourse basis), and complete standalone energy and infrastructure projects. The primary course materials will be documents from several representative projects - e.g. solar, wind, storage, carbon capture - covering key areas including market and feasibility studies, environmental permitting and regulatory decisions, financial disclosure from bank and bond transactions, and construction, input, and offtake contracts. Documents and economic models tend to be highly customized. By taking a forensic approach, looking at several different projects, we can learn how project developers, financiers, and lawyers work to get deals over the finish line that meet the demands of the market, the requirements of the law, and (sometimes) broader societal goals, in particular climate change, economic competitiveness, and energy security.

This is a course on how energy and environmental markets work, and the regulatory mechanisms that have been and can be used to achieve desired policy goals. The course uses a electricity market game as a central teaching tool. In the game, students play the role of electricity generators and retailers in order to gain an understanding of how market rules(including environmental regulations and renewable energy mandates) affect the business strategy of market participants, and in turn economic and environmental outcomes. The goal of the course is to provide students with both theoretical and hands-on understanding of important energy and environmental market concepts that are critical to market functioning but not always widely appreciated. Concepts covered include: 1)regulated price-setting versus price-setting through market mechanisms, 2) BTU arbitrage in input energy choices, 3) uniform price vs. pay-as-bid auctions, 4) the ability and incentive to exercise unilateral market power, 5) unilateral versus coordinated exercise of market power, 6) transmission congestion, 7) forward contracts and their effect on market functioning, 8) dynamic pricing of electricity and active involvement of final demand, 9)the nature of energy reserves, 10) carbon pricing mechanisms including taxes and cap-and trade systems, 11) renewable portfolio standards and other renewable energy incentives,12) determination of levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and its impact on new capacity investment decisions, and 13) interactions between environmental mechanisms and regulations. We will also discuss the key features of the markets for major sources of energy such as oil, natural gas, coal, nuclear, solar, wind, and biomass. The course is useful background for private sector roles in energy production, research, management, trading, investment, and government and regulatory affairs; government positions in policymaking and regulation; research and policy functions in academia, think tanks, or consultancies; and non-profit advocacy roles related to energy and the environment.

This experiential course will focus on how to make a business decision correctly. The theory will focus on common behavior biases and mistakes. Students will practice making business decisions by analyzing a business case each week.

Negotiation is a central part of business in the worlds of sports and entertainment. This course will examine negotiation dynamics and key takeaways for general management from multiple different settings where negotiations had an important role--these will include preparing for a negotiation, the negotiation process itself, contractual outcomes of negotiation and their execution and in some cases litigation. The settings will include negotiations over player and actor contracts, negotiations between leagues and players associations, negotiations between investors and movie companies, and negotiations between content providers (both in sports and entertainment) and distribution partners (such as cable stations, international media companies, and online companies such as Netflix). Each of the six sessions is planned to include at least one and in some cases two guests that have had extensive experience in negotiations.

To grow and innovate, you not only need a big idea, you also need stake-holder buy in and action. However, many companies fail in this regard because stakeholders are not aligned, the real problem that the innovation seeks to solve has not been identified, and the story has not been defined. Story can fuel stakeholder buy-in by painting a clear picture of what is and what could be for everyone - from employees, to investors, to customers. In other words, an excellent story means that you can delegate tactical aspects effectively because it clarifies how to execute specific functions against the story (e.g., digital marketing, advertising, design). Further, when the stakeholder becomes part of the story, they are more likely to act, which generates momentum and create a culture of optimism.nnStory is equally important for leaders of companies, who often need to act as editors - shaping the stories told by employees and customers - to align with a shared vision. A secondary goal of the class is to demonstrate how personal stories can be used by leaders to build high performing teams and companies. By creating powerful stories, you'll see how your company can gain momentum and how you can help your employees and customers become more connected. nnBy the end of the class, you will have gained insight into:n- How to use stories as an asset in businessn- What makes for a good and bad storyn- Pitching stories

This course will explore the contemporary higher education industry, focusing especially on the places where disruptions of all kinds present significant opportunities and challenges for investors, entrepreneurs, and the businesses that serve this huge global market, as well as for faculty, students, and higher education administrators. Using a variety of readings and case studies to better understand recent disruptions and the unbundling occurring across the post-secondary landscape, from outside and inside the academy, both for-profit and non-profit, the course will examine technology in teaching and learning; the future of the degree and alternatives to the traditional credential; accreditation; competency based education; debt and education financing models; investing in the education space; and tertiary products and platforms that serve the student services market. Guests will include higher education leaders and practitioners, as well as investors and entrepreneurs.

For students interested in the nonprofit sector, those in the joint Business and Education program, and for Public Policy MA students. The focus is on the missions, functions, and capabilities of nonprofit, public, and private organizations, and the managerial challenges inherent in the different sectors. Focus is on sectors with significant competition among institutional forms, including health care, social services, the arts, and education. Sources include scholarly articles, cases, and historical materials.

The course will provide students from different disciplines with an understanding of the broad educational policy context. The course will cover topics including a) school finance systems; b) an overview of policies defining and shaping the sectors and institutional forms of schooling, c) an overview of school governance, d) educational human-resource policy, e) school accountability policies at the federal and state levels; and f) school assignment policies and law, including intra- and inter-district choice policies, desegregation law and policy.

(Same as EDUC 347) Topics: the worth of college and graduate degrees, and the utilization of highly educated graduates; faculty labor markets, careers, and workload; costs and pricing; discounting, merit aid, and access to higher education; sponsored research; academic medical centers; and technology and productivity. Emphasis is on theoretical frameworks, policy matters, and the concept of higher education as a public good. Stratification by gender, race, and social class.

The relationships between political and economic analysis and policy formulation in education; focus is on alternative models of the political process, the nature of interest groups, political strategies, policy efficiency, the external environment of organizations, and the implementations of policy. Applications to policy analysis, implementation, and politics of reform. (APA)

This twice-a-week full-quarter workshop will offer techniques and practical in-class exercises for writing better -- better memos, emails, feedback for colleagues, news releases, responses to questions from the media and from interviewers, and opinion pieces. Glenn Kramon, an editor who has helped New York Times reporters win 10 Pulitzer Prizes, will teach the course along with accomplished journalists with expertise in powerful, persuasive writing for business. They will provide not only helpful tips but constructive feedback on students' work. They will also share thoughts on how best to work with the news media.

This course will examine the world of wine with a fresh and contemporary lens. It will explore the market dynamics of this fascinating global industry. The goal of the course is to provide insight into the branding, marketing, and distribution dynamics that shape what consumers can buy and consume with a focus on the strategies of some of the world's leading wine brands. Attention will also be paid to the legal, regulatory, and market dynamics that define the U.S. wine industry as well as to issues of contested authenticity in the world of wine.

This course will examine the diverse management challenges facing the sports industry. The course will cover issues at the league level, the team level, the athlete/agent level, and the college level. The diverse constituencies with interests in sports issues (athletes, fans, media companies, advertisers, and legislators to name a few) will be discussed. Sports issues at a global level (the IOC) and both U.S. and outside U.S. will be covered. There will be coverage of evolving business ventures related to the sports industry (such as venture backed sports companies and sports networks). nnA key focus is on how the sports industry is similar to and different from other industries. Key concepts underlying the course are: value creation/value sharing; revenue ecosystem; virtuous circles and vicious circles; disruptive technologies; growth facilitators and growth inhibitors; leveragable assets/inherited liabilities; and entrepreneurship/new product innovations. Over 80% of the sessions typically will include a guest co-lecturer from the sporting industry.

One of every four dollars in the American economy will be spent by the federal government this year. This course will examine how federal spending, taxes, deficits and debt affect the U.S. economy and global financial markets, and how the economy affects the federal budget. We will look inside the federal budget to understand entitlement spending, what causes it to grow so fast, how it could be reformed, and why that's so hard to do. We'll understand where the money goes -- how much goes to infrastructure, education, housing, health care, energy and the environment, parks, scientific research, national defense, and other needs. We'll look at the stimulus vs. austerity debate, both within the U.S. and between the U.S. and Europe. We'll look beyond partisan battle lines and explore various fiscal philosophies that sometimes split the political parties. We'll cover the federal budget process from developing the President's budget to enacting individual spending and tax bills, and discuss process reforms including spending and deficit reduction targets, a balanced budget amendment, and line item veto. We'll cover the major players in the budget debate and understand where the big and small budget decisions are made. We'll look at federal taxation, where the money comes from, how it affects the economy, and how it might be restructured. We'll examine the recommendations of the President's budget commission and see if we can predict what will become of its recommendations. And we'll see if we, as a class, can solve our nation's fiscal problems as Washington has so far been unable to do.

Stanford graduates will play important roles in solving many of today's and tomorrow's major societal problems -- such as improving educational and health outcomes, conserving energy, and reducing global poverty -- which call for actions by nonprofit, business, and hybrid organizations as well as governments. This course teaches skills and bodies of knowledge relevant to these roles through problems and case studies drawn from nonprofit organizations, for-profit social enterprises, and governments. Topics include designing, implementing, scaling, and evaluating social strategies; systems thinking; decision making under risk; psychological biases that adversely affect people's decisions; methods for influencing individuals' and organizations' behavior, ranging from incentives and penalties to "nudges;" human-centered design; corporate social responsibility; and pay-for-success programs. We will apply these concepts and tools to address an actual social problem facing Stanford University. (With the exception of several classes on strategy and evaluation, there is no substantial overlap with Paul Brest's and Mark Wolfson' course, Strategic Philanthropy and Impact Investing (GSBGEN 319), which has a different focus from this one.)

Society needs confident, skilled and agile female professionals at every career level, especially in the earlier stages of their career, which provide the platform for future leadership opportunities. Female leaders face the same challenges as male leaders do, but female leaders also encounter an additional set of challenges (sociological, institutional, economic, cultural, social, familial, personal, sexual) that their male counterparts most likely will not. The same is true for female entrepreneurs, board members, managers, CEOs, social changemakers, educators and beyond, regardless of their career stage, access and background. Effectively overcoming female-specific challenges requires awareness, confidence and a practical skill-set that will be developed through an academic grounding in research, frameworks and case studies. Through a personalized learning model, students will apply learnings through active participation in in-class discussions and simulations, directly engage with industry leaders, and develop an individual leadership plan.

This course will explore the critical role diversity plays in successful organizations and challenge students to develop their own brand of leadership, learning from leaders in education who have grappled with these challenges. As impact-oriented leaders aspiring to address challenges across social, economic, and political arenas, we have an imperative to advance diversity, and education provides the perfect canvas on which to explore this imperative. High-stakes issues such as school district reform, teacher effectiveness, and the school-to-prison pipeline present complex dilemmas that demand superb leadership skills. In this course, we will: (1) explore the role that diversity plays in complex leadership challenges; (2) study a range of effective leadership approaches considering different topics in education; and (3) understand our own values and decision-making criteria, developing tactics to improve our leadership capacity. We will examine contemporary leaders and controversies from education, draw upon timeless historical thinkers, enjoy the wisdom of guest speakers, and work intensively in small groups to highlight challenges, opportunities, and tradeoffs. By exploring a range of approaches and situations, we will work to a deeper understanding of ourselves and how to become more capable, empathetic, and effective leaders.

Appropriate for any student driven to effect positive social change from either the for-profit or nonprofit sector, Philanthropy will challenge students to expand their own strategic thinking about philanthropic aspiration and action. In recent decades, philanthropy has become an industry in itself - amounting to over $358 billion in the year 2014. Additionally, the last decade has seen unprecedented innovation in both philanthropy and social value creation. This course explores the key operational and strategic distinctions between traditional philanthropic entities, such as community foundations, private foundations and corporate foundations; and innovative models, including funding intermediaries, open-source platforms, technology-driven philanthropies, impact investing and venture philanthropy. Course work will include readings and case discussions that encourage students to analyze both domestic and global philanthropic strategies as they relate to foundation mission, grantmaking, evaluation, financial management, infrastructure, knowledge management, policy change and board governance. Guest speakers will consist of high profile philanthropists, foundation presidents, social entrepreneurs and Silicon Valley business leaders creating new philanthropic models. The course will also provide students with real-world grantmaking experience in completing nonprofit organizational assessments and making grants to organizations totaling $20,000.n

This is a skills/toolbox class. The goal is to teach future business leaders how Washington actually works so you can interact more effectively with it and be a better informed citizen and voter. This course is about the practice of policymaking and politics, not the theory of either. It has three major components: (1) Elections, focused on the exciting and chaotic election cycle this fall; (2) Governing, focused on the mechanics of White House and Congressional policy decision-making, and (3) Practical Skills for interacting with Washington, DC.nnWe'll quickly cover everything you should have learned in civics class: how the electoral college works, the structure of Congress and the Executive Branch, how a bill becomes a law. Then we'll look at how it really works--what lobbyists do, how a President gets information and makes decisions, how and why it's so hard to change policy or enact a new law. We'll simulate a White House presidential decision-making process. We'll examine presidential and congressional election strategies. We'll discuss the strategy and tactics of trying to pass (or block) legislation.nnWe'll also look at political parties, get a better understanding of the makeup of the American polity and how it's changing.nnWe'll also discuss working in Washington--especially running for office, appointed positions. We'll look at what's involved in political fundraising and interacting with the DC press corps. We'll talk about how one might participate in the policy process from outside of DC. I hope to have a few guest speakers.

Need approval from sponsoring faculty member and GSB Registrar. There is a limit on the number of units in courses of independent study that may be applied toward degree requirements.

Healthcare spending is now nearly 18% of the entire GDP of the U.S. economy. The S&P healthcare sector has been one of the best producing segments of the market for the last five years, and growth of healthcare expenditures continue to escalate at a rapid pace. This has triggered an abundance of opportunities for those interested in a career in healthcare management, investing, or entrepreneurialism. The Business of Healthcare-2017-18 will present the current market framework from the eyes of a clinician and with the perspective of the consumer-patient, but with the experience of a successful business builder and investor. Course will begin with the discussion of the channels of distribution of healthcare delivery, from providers, to practitioners, to consumer-facing "healthcare lite" sectors of the market. Impact of the regulatory environment, with specific focus on the Affordable Care Act and the impending plans to Repeal/Replace, will be evaluated. High-level exploration of international health care markets and how they compare to the American market will be included. Overview of venture and private equity investing will be deeply probed, with many specific market examples of how investors develop an investment thesis, identify specific targets, diligence companies, and close an investment. Discussion around building financial modeling for target acquisitions will be presented, and the course will delve into the burgeoning area of healthcare analytics and outcomes management, including Artificial Intelligence, and its future impact on positioning, reimbursement and clinical outcomes. Sectors that will be discussed include: Healthcare services, Healthcare IT, Life Sciences, Pharma and Biotechnology, and Managed Care. The topic of the emerging importance of consumerism will be probed and consumer-directed healthcare related products and services will be explored, e.g. nutraceuticals, wellness, fitness, etc. Course will include preparatory readings, presentations from successful and powerful industry leaders, and robust in-class discussion and case studies requiring student engagement. Final grade will consist of class participation, one minor in-class presentation, and a final paper developing either a new healthcare business start-up proposition or presenting an identified investment target in the healthcare industry. Course will be especially valuable for those interested in a career in starting a healthcare company, healthcare investing, healthcare administration, or other healthcare-related management and goal of class will be provide an in-depth overview of how to get started or advance a professional interest in the industry.

Social ventures require leadership, funding, expertise, skills and networks to get off the ground, grow and scale. This course will focus on the key strategies for building and leveraging a network of champions to capitalize a social venture at early-stage, and for sustaining and growing that network as the venture grows. This class is applicable to intrapreneurs, changemakers within major institutions, (private or public), board members, impact investors, those who aspire to be senior leaders within social ventures and social entrepreneurs (founders). Co-led by a practicing venture philanthropist and a social entrepreneur, this interactive, pragmatic course will: n- Discuss the critical financial and human capital needs of organizations and companies at different life stages. n- Explore the concept of champions and the different types of champions including board chairs, co-founders, mentors, faculty advisors, donors, investors, community evangelists, and fellow entrepreneurs. n- Learn about effective networks and how to build them, including the role of communications, relationship-building, and crisis management. n- Explore the concept of a powerful vulnerability and the art of "influence without authority" in attracting financial and human capital to the mission and making social ventures happen. Special emphasis will be given to developing co-founders and founding teams, boards and funders/investors as champions. n- Develop a roadmap for the ways you will support social ventures throughout your career. n- Meet social entrepreneurs and their champions who promote them within various power structures (major corporations, government, the institutional funding community) to learn about the successes and failures of their partnerships. Guest speakers will be posted prior to start of class. n- Invite you to join instructors, guest speakers and fellow students for casual dinner on both Wednesdays after class.n- Get to know your fellow classmates who share a passion for addressing the world's intractable problems and for creating systemic change.

GSBGEN 514 - Creating High Potential Ventures in Developing Economies (2 Units)nnThis course addresses the distinctive challenges and opportunities of launching high-potential new ventures in developing economies. Developing economies are attractive targets for entrepreneurs because many are just starting to move up the growth curve, and they offer low-cost operating environments that can be great development labs for potentially disruptive innovations. They increase in attractiveness when their political institutions stabilize and they become more market-friendly. At the same time, developing economies pose serious challenges. Pioneering entrepreneurs take on significant risks to gain early mover advantages. Specifically, entrepreneurs will not be able to count on the same kind of supportive operating environments that we take for granted in the developed world. They often face cumbersome permit and licensing processes, poorly developed financial and labor markets, problematic import and export procedures, unreliable local supply chains, weak infrastructure, corruption, currency risks, limited investment capital, lack of financial exits and more. This course is designed to help would-be entrepreneurs - both founders and members of entrepreneurial teams - better understand and prepare for these issues as they pursue the opportunities and address the challenges to start, grow, and harvest their ventures in these environments. nnGSBGEN 514 is a seminar/discussion format in which students will read about and discuss the key challenges described above and potential solutions. Guests will describe their own startup and investing experiences in developing economies and answer questions. A framework based on the World Economic Forum (WEF) report on "Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Around the Globe and Company Growth Dynamics" will be used to structure the course. Each student will prepare a short write-up as a final assignment on a case chosen from a selection provided by the instructors. Note: Groups of students who want to work as a team to investigate a specific new venture idea in addition to participating in the seminar/discussion sessions should consider enrolling in GSB314.

Successful leaders understand the power of authentic, memorable communication.nnThis course uses the lens of oral communication and presentations, to introduce the essential elements of the strategic communication strategies that make authentic, memorable communication work.nnFocusing on oral communication and presentation, we introduce the essentials of communication strategy and persuasion: audience analysis, message construction, communicator credibility, and delivery.nnDeliverables include written documents, focusing on individual and team presentations, with students receiving continuous feedback to improve their communication effectiveness, and to sharpen their authentic leadership voice.n nThis highly interactive, practical course, is focused on feedback to help students at all levels of communication mastery develop confidence in their speaking and writing. Course includes presentations, assignments, lectures, discussions, simulated activities, in-class feedback, and filmed feedback.n nIn this course you will learn to:n-Recognize strategically effective communicationn-Implement the principles of strategic communication across different platformsn-Develop clearly organized and effective presentations and documentsn-Diagnose and expand, your personal authentic communication stylennAs you make your super round selection, keep in mind that wait lists have been long for this course.

This course is a compressed version of GSBGEN 356. We will examine the world of wine with a fresh and contemporary lens. It will explore the market dynamics of this fascinating global industry. The goal of the course is to provide insight into the branding, marketing, and distribution dynamics that shape what consumers can buy and consume with a focus on the strategies of some of the world's leading wine brands. Attention will also be paid to the legal, regulatory, and market dynamics that define the U.S. wine industry as well as to issues of contested authenticity in the world of wine.

The thrust of this seminar is about designing effective and innovative solutions by leveraging deep insights into the workings of the human brain, specifically the instinctual brain. Designing solutions for organizations-for example, "How do we design effective solutions that will foster innovation and risk-taking in large organizations?"€ Designing solutions for markets so as to identify potentially disruptive new-business ideas; for existing organizations, fostering a competitive advantage, loyalty, customer life-time-value, etc. Designing solutions for customer engagement and behavior change. Designing solutions for leaders, who need to be effective at making decisions and, arguably even more important, influencing others' decisions. The seminar will explore these topics by unraveling the workings of the human brain, leveraging frameworks that essentially capture the way instinctual brain systems shape our decisions, experiences and behaviors. Filled with mini-case studies and examples to illustrate the various topics, the seminar features an individual as well as a group project that is geared toward applying the learnings to identifying a potentially disruptive new business idea.

The disruptive nature of the Internet has set in motion the destruction of business models that have supported traditional media organizations. This course will examine the current state and broader economic challenges facing the media industry. These include: the impact of technology, changing consumer behavior, the rise of mobile, social networks, big data, real-time metrics, innovations in digital advertising and distribution channels, and new business models. Students will analyze new digital media ventures and hear from industry experts facing innovation challenges at the intersection of content, technology and business. The course also will identify paths for entrepreneurs interested in building a media business.

The course explores the role of mindfulness, self-compassion and compassion in the workplace, and the contribution of these qualities to leadership. Topics addressed will include: How can mindfulness enhance clarity in purpose and productivity? What is the connection between mindfulness and compassion? Is compassion in the business world a strength or a weakness? Are compassion and profit motives fundamentally incompatible, or can they support each other? What does compassionate leadership look like? Can mindfulness and compassion be trained at the individual level, and built into company policy? How does self-compassion support effective leadership and recovery from setbacks? Participants in the course will engage with exercises from evidence-based programs targeting the development of mindfulness and the practical application of the skills of self-awareness, self-compassion, and perspective taking in the context of work and relationships.

Many students are prepared to be leaders, but few are prepared to be thought leaders. Yet, that's precisely what many of our students will become. This communications course focuses on the risks and the rewards of stepping into a thought leadership role as a subject matter expert or change agent in a domain of the student's choice. From the very first class students will tackle different communication elements (blogs, op-ed pieces, keynote talks, video blogs, conference panels, etc.) and receive feedback from professors and peers. By the end of this course students will: -Understand the risks and rewards of thought leadership -Identify and clearly articulate their own niche and "What-If?" future -Know the communication channels available to exercise thought leadership -Codify best practices and lessons learned into a forward-thinking document or framework that they can share widely -Craft a distinct message with an authentic voice across multiple channels -Build their ripples of influence by engaging their first followers and building a tribe -Begin to activate well-respected advocates who will champion their ideas -Define how to measure the success of their efforts (ex: reach, resonance) -Create a resource list of vendors, tools, technology and communities to support their thought leadership efforts -Overcome what may hold them back from stepping into the spotlight and assuming the role of thought leader in their niche. A prequalification assignment is required for this course. See https://goo.gl/forms/mAPC5izvC5gABJ2K2 for details and submit the survey by September 18.

This course examines business models and opportunities related to clean energy, specifically to low-carbon energy. We examine emerging trends for this sector in the context of technological change, business opportunities and the parameters set by public policy.

Licensing of technology and its corresponding intellectual property is big business, and integral to the business plans and competitive strategies of start-ups and Fortune 500 companies alike. Although the annual dollar magnitude of licenses of patents and other technology-related IP is difficult to estimate due to the proprietary nature of much of the data, academic studies peg the U.S. IP licensing market at ~$66B, and the global market at ~$180B. The development and evolution of technology standards and interoperability requirements, regulatory overlays that require technologies outside a company'€™s core competencies, the proliferation and widespread enforcement of patents, the rapid expansion of IP-based business models, and the staggering expense and uncertain benefits of internal R&D, among other things, have combined to weigh heavily on the buy side of the make/buy scale, and to amplify the importance of inbound and outbound licensing arrangements for both start-up and Fortune 500 companies.nnBecause licenses are complex legal agreements with important legal consequences, it is tempting for business executives to delegate to lawyers the negotiation of the non-economic terms of their companies'€™ technology license agreements. The problem with such an approach, however, is that 'œnon-economic'€ terms relating to license scope and duration, the extent of any representations and warranties to be offered, how and when and by whom payment will be effected and royalty calculations policed, indemnification against third-party IP and enforcement of licensed IP against infringers, the ownership and responsibility for patenting of improvements made to licensed technology, remedies for violation of the license, and many other issues, can and often do have significant and occasionally mortal economic and business consequences. While no business person should grapple with these issues in the context of a large or complex license agreement without legal counsel, it is critical that the business person understand the consequences and negotiating levers and trade-offs themselves, for at their core, the decisions to be made on these issues are business decisions, not legal ones.nnIt is the objective of this course to enable students to better understand and think critically about the principal issues that arise in the conceptualization and negotiation of technology license agreements, including those involving computer hardware and software, biotechnology and pharmaceutical compounds, medical devices, and other methods and products. As we address licensing arrangements in particular industries, business and licensing executives from companies active in these markets will participate in various class sessions, and will share with the students their experiences and strategic perspectives.

Negotiation is a central part of business in the worlds of sports and entertainment. This course will examine negotiation dynamics and key takeaways for general management from multiple different settings where negotiations had an important role--these will include preparing for a negotiation, the negotiation process itself, contractual outcomes of negotiation and their execution and in some cases litigation. The settings will include negotiations over player and actor contracts, negotiations between leagues and players associations, negotiations between investors and movie companies, and negotiations between content providers (both in sports and entertainment) and distribution partners (such as cable stations, international media companies, and online companies such as Netflix). Each of the six sessions is planned to include at least one and in some cases two guests that have had extensive experience in negotiations.

This project-based seminar is a rare opportunity for students to focus on a significant, currently ongoing problem from their work/lives: with the help of classmates, participants spend 5 weeks exploring how various problem-solving methods and frameworks can apply to their chosen projects. Problems that students have brought to the course in the past range from business challenges (e.g., designing part of a complex project, evaluating a business opportunity, creating a marketing plan), to problems of a more personal nature (e.g., determining one's career path). Each seminar session is divided into two parts: whole-group discussion and practice of a particular problem-solving tool, followed by a practicum, where students work pairwise in partnerships and receive feedback and assistance on their progress. The course is designed to achieve two goals. First, it will give you tools that should increase the probability that you'll make (hopefully substantial) progress on your problem. Second, it will introduce you to research that explains why it's sensible to try those tools on hard problems, i.e., the point of those tools.[1] Please note that the first goal is stated rather cautiously. There are good reasons for this. I expect that most students will be working on hard problems. (Everyone in the class will be getting help from classmates on their particular problem; why bother your peers with an easy problem that you could solve yourself?) An important idea in cognitive science, Newell¿s Law, says that magic doesn't exist: if a problem-solving method is powerful (very likely to solve a certain type of problem), then it only works on a narrow class of problems. So this course will not give you tools that are both powerful and general. It can't: such tools don't exist. Happily, improving your problem-solving skills, at least in certain domains, is possible, and that's what the course aims to do. Progress on hard problems usually requires help from friends and colleagues. Virtually all researchers of creativity agree that most innovations that are both bold and useful involve multiple problem solvers. This course will implement this important pattern by requiring every student help a classmate with their problem. Another important empirical regularity in the field of innovation is that when problems are hard many (perhaps most) candidate-solutions don't work out. It's easy to accept that about other people's ideas; about my own, not so much. So a vital component of effective problem-solving is tough-minded evaluation. This implies rejecting bad ideas or bad parts of a would-be solution. Hence, at the end of the course you will be required to evaluate the progress that a classmate has made on his/her problem and to explain your assessment. (For obvious reasons you will not evaluate the same person you're helping.) In sum, every student will do three things in this course: generate new ways to make some progress on a problem of their own choosing; help somebody else work on their project; evaluate somebody¿s progress. Implementing this design effectively requires that everybody sign on to a social contract: everybody agrees to take all three roles seriously. [1] Some students taking GSBGEN 541 might expect a d.school style course. There are similarities: e.g.,GSBGEN 541 is project-based, as are many d.school courses. But there are also important differences. In particular, this course explains why some problem-solving techniques work better than others by introducing students to key research on cognition and organizational decision making.

This seminar will explore the nature and role of leadership in organizations. We will examine such questions as (1) What is leadership? (2) Why is it important? (3) What is it that leaders actually do? (4) How do they do it? (5) How are leaders developed? (6) Why do leaders succeed or fail? (7) What about your potential for leadership and your strategy for developing it?nnOur primary objective in this seminar is to achieve a deeper understanding of the nature and role of leadership in organizations. Our approach will be to examine a small sample of the literature, together with the amazing story of Ernest Shackleton and his Endurance crew, and then to probe several key questions through lively class discussion. The discussion, informed by the readings and also by our collective experiences, will seek to develop some general principles and observations about leadership - particularly about how you might better develop yourself as a leader.

The health care system accounts for 17% of US GDP and is one of the fastest growing segments of the economy. This two unit class focuses on the interplay and tension between the main players in the health care field - providers of health care services (individual doctors, group practices, integrated health care systems), payors (insurances companies, employers, consumers, and government), patients, and innovator companies (biopharma, medical device, diagnostics, and health care IT). The course is designed for students with a broad diversity of backgrounds and interests who want to better understand the health care business and system. No prior experience in the health care or medical field is assumed or needed. The focus of the class will be primarily on the US health care system, but there will be limited discussion of non-US systems as well. The course is divided into four modules: - An overview of the US Health Care System and the interplay between payers, providers, innovators, and patients' Provider delivery models, health care information technology, and incentive structures - The relationship between quality, cost, and access - Integrated systems, value-based, and fee for service models - New IT technologies, including electronic data records - The role of information and incentives - Innovator business models and issues - Financing and managing new product development - Clinical trial management and gaining regulatory approval - Marketing, reimbursement, and sales strategies - Business models to drive innovation - Health care system reform and comparisons of the structure of the US Health Care system to that of other countries. The class will be taught primarily from the perspective of a business person operating a company rather than that of a policy maker, academic, or investor. While there will be a few lectures to provide background and frameworks for course topics, most classes will involve a case discussion and prominent guest speakers from the health care industry. Speakers will include CEOs, senior executives, and partners from leading companies and venture firms.

This two-week, six-session workshop will offer techniques and practical in-class exercises for writing better -- better memos, emails, feedback for colleagues, news releases, responses to questions from the media and from interviewers, and opinion pieces. Glenn Kramon, an editor who has helped New York Times reporters win 10 Pulitzer Prizes, will teach the course along with accomplished journalists with expertise in powerful, persuasive writing for business. They will provide not only helpful tips but constructive feedback on students' work. They will also share thoughts on how best to work with the news media.

Course examines investment and financing issues that face a diverse set of participants in the sports industry (defined very broadly). A key theme is using general financial concepts to better structure decision making in the sports industry. Specific topics illustrate the broad set of perspectives considered: Player Payroll Financial Dynamics; Asset Appreciation Opportunities; Assessing the Value of Players (& General Managers); Investment Syndicates in Sports; Investing in Startup Leagues; Financial Valuation of Sporting Clubs; Financial/Strategy Analysis for a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Venture; and On-Line Sports Venture Evaluation. One hand in requires feedback to the CEO's of several new sporting ventures about ways to expand their opportunity set; the CEO's come to a class and present their venture. The second hand in is a case study of a sports investment where there was sizable value creation or value destruction. Each session typically is co-taught with an industry visitor.

This Sports Marketing course combines (a) a focus on key marketing themes (such as branding, customer attraction/retention, and celebrity power) and (b) an analysis of marketing in diverse areas of the sporting industry: the league level, the team level, the player level, the network level, the advertiser level, the sponsor level, the fan level, and the media level. The nine sessions cover the following: Corporate Sponsorship; Online Marketing; Events as Brand Building Investments; Marketing to Youth; Sports/Entertainment Nexus; Club Marketing Strategies; Brand Revitalization & Strengthening; Motor Sports Marketing; Marketing in a Web 2.0/Social Networking World. Each session is typically taught with an industry visitor.

In this seminar we will explore the intersection of art and commerce in the entertainment industry. We will look at creating films and television programs that are artistically meaningful and/or have the potential for commercial success. Films are increasingly used as a tool for social change, and we will also examine this power. nnThe entertainment industry is one of enormous importance - both from a business and cultural standpoint, and has influence in virtually every sphere of our society. Sometimes the industry can seem baffling, mercurial, and characterized more by madness than method. But despite its uncertainties, Hollywood does have its own rules, rhythms, methods and strategies - and examining and evaluating them will be a key part of this seminar. This is a time when many existing formulas are being reconsidered, retooled, or jettisoned, and new technologies and expanding markets are having a profound impact on the industry - and tracking and analyzing this will be a key part of the course.nnI will also bring some of my professional experiences into the classroom (including directing, writing, producing for film and television, etc.), and discuss these experiences through the intersection of the business and creative sides of the industry. We will have class discussions on entertainment industry's future, and address varied and effective paths for creating entertainment product that has artistic and/or commercial merit and is intended have widespread distribution. Students taking the course will be asked to be part of a group project and present their work in class.

Politics, perhaps like no other arena, provides a rich and dramatic laboratory for studying the art and science of influential communication. Whether it is a local school bond election or a Congressional race, a Presidential debate or a State of the Union Address, the demanding communications of politics provide insights into our own strengths and gaps as a communicator and leader. Political campaigns, by their very nature, are highly visible, oriented toward very specific objectives, and increasingly leverage a variety of new media platforms. They are often emotionally charged, and rife with conflict and drama. The principles of political communications transcend politics, and are useful guides for leaders in business, the non-profit community, as well as government. How candidates, elected officials, and leaders in all kinds of organizations communicate vision, values, and experience, as well as how they perform in very fluid environments, not the least of which may be during a crisis, has a great deal to do with their career success. nnIn its ninth year, this highly interactive course allows students to explore both theory and practice behind effective positioning and presentation. Last year was a presidential election year in the United States, and was an extraordinary event in many respects. Students will analyze and evaluate both successful and unsuccessful communications strategies of political campaigns and candidates. They will explore historic examples of US Presidential debates, from Nixon/Kennedy to the present. Further they will experience political events as they happen -- like last year's campaigns -- with each class drawing lessons from political developments around the nation and the world. Students will also hone their own strategic communications skills in activities requiring both written and spoken communication. This is not a course in political science, American government, or in public speaking. However, the engaged student will gain insights into those areas as well.nnThe course is taught by David Demarest, Vice President of Public Affairs for Stanford University. Demarest has broad communications experience across the public and private sector in financial services, education, and government. After serving as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, and Assistant Secretary of Labor in the Reagan Administration, in 1988 he served as Communications Director for Vice President George H. W. Bush's successful presidential campaign. He then became a member of the White House senior staff as White House Communications Director. After leaving government in 1993, he spent the next decade leading communications for two Fortune 50 companies, before coming to Stanford in 2005.

GSBGEN 566 is an elective course offered to 2nd-year MBA and MSx students. The goal of this course is to improve students' judgment in confronting challenging, real business situations encountered in the normal progression of corporate activities. The course aims to sharpen moral reasoning and build judgment without favoring a particular position. The course will be taught by Mark Leslie and Peter Levine, Lecturers. The course is taught using 'vignettes'. At the beginning of each class students will be given a one-page reading that describes a business situation which requires a decision to be made. After in-depth discussion, a second page will be handed out, describing how the situation actually unfolded and challenges the class with new information. This new information typically changes the dynamics of the case and requires a new decision to be made. Often there is a third and fourth page that continues the dialogue. Frequent student-to-student and student-to-instructor role-playing will be employed in the development of the session. Note that for most classes there is little or no advanced preparation required, which is often the case when making real-world business decisions. Cases are drawn from a wide selection of ACTUAL BUSINESS SITUATIONS with protagonists joining the class as guests whenever available. Vignettes are based on topics such as raising venture capital, managing major industrial customers, product distribution agreements, board of director and fiduciary conflicts, developing financial instruments, palace revolt / mutiny, work/life balance, rape accusation of an executive, etc. The class is extremely engaging - it is quite usual to find continuing discussion of the day's case outside the classroom among small groups of students. This class is for two GSB credits and will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Sixty percent of the final grade will be derived from classroom performance; the remainder will be based on a final written assignment describing a personal ethical situation that the student has faced in their careers.

This elective 1-unit course is offered to 2nd-year, 3rd-year, and 4th-year Medical students, Residents, and Fellows, and to 2nd-year MBA students who aspire to improve their ability to deal effectively with difficult interpersonal situations. The course will be taught at Stanford Medical School by H. Irving Grousbeck, Consulting Professor of Management, Stanford Graduate School of Business, with assistance from Dr. Charles G. Prober, Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education. Teaching techniques that have been successful in helping business school students improve their ability to manage difficult conversations will be used. The course, which will be case-based, will involve frequent student-to-student and student-to-instructor role-playing in actual medical situations. Physician-experts often will be present to participate as class guests. Relevant principles of professionalism, leadership, and psychology underlie the course pedagogy. There will be seven classes held on Wednesdays beginning September 27th and concluding on November 15th (no class on October 25). Each class will begin promptly at 12:30 and end at 2:05, without a break. Due to the abbreviated nature of the class (7 sessions), students will be expected to attend all classes unless excused in advance. Class preparation will include reading of assigned cases; analysis of the cases and recommendations as to how to confront specific difficult conversations (consistent with assigned study questions); and reading of assigned background material. While optional, it is suggested that students form regular study groups. For GSB students, 50% of the final grade will depend on classroom performance; the remainder will be based on a final written assignment of no more than 6 pages. GSB students will be graded on a Pass/Fail basis. The course will be ungraded for Medical School students, Residents and Fellows. All students will be expected to complete the written assignment. Class size will be limited to 35 students per the following: (1) a maximum of 15 MBA2 students and (2) a maximum of 20 2nd-year, 3rd-year and 4th-year Medical Students, Residents, and Fellows.

This course will look at ongoing and upcoming innovation in cars, driving, and mobility from three perspectives: (1) technology, (2) economics & business Models, and (3) policy. We'll survey changes in powering vehicles (e.g. electrification and biofuels), in vehicle connectivity and communications, and most especially changes in autonomy and self-driving vehicles. We'll look at changes in the economics of cars, vehicles, and driving ¿new business models, shared ownership, mobility as a service, as well as who some of the major players are in this nascent field and what they're doing/developing. And we'll explore the interactions of technology and economics with policy and broader societal changes-¿direct effects like safety, legal liability, and who can drive; indirect effects on traffic, insurance, infrastructure needs, fuel taxes, and the environment; as well as longer-term and even bigger changes in daily life and where and how we live, work, and drive.

Ever wonder if your online audience is paying attention to your web presentation or meeting? Have you wanted more engagement from your participants? Communicating virtually - using conference or video calls, web tools, and mobile devices is very challenging. Yet more and more communication is happening with presenter and audience connecting electronically.nInformed by scholarly research and industry best practices, this workshop will provide a hands-on, practical introduction to immediately applicable techniques that will help you prepare and deliver engaging, participative, and impactful virtual presentations.nnSpecifically, you will learn techniques for confidently delivering virtual presentations, how to create content that invites engagement, and how to facilitate speaker-audience interactions that invite collaboration without losing control. We will also cover best practices for responding to audience input and questions that will amplify your message and for handling challenging interactions and questions. With these virtual-presenting skills, you will feel more confident presenting and your audience will be more connected and engaged.

This course examines the strategies that highly educated women and men use to combine work and family and the strategies that managers and policy makers can use to help others strike a balance. Topics include the tradeoffs in becoming a stay-at-home parent, the economic value of unpaid labor, the consequences of balancing two high-powered careers and children, the economics of marriage, fertility, child care, and elder care, the gendered division of labor in the home, time-management , workplace innovations, and policy initiatives. Guest speakers add their own perspectives on these issues and describe the roles their organizations play.

GSB Graduates will be entering and re-entering the workforce needing to know and understand how to build, broadcast, maintain and protect their personal brand. Project You will help each student realize: What is a personal brand and how can it be unleashed as a valuable, competitive advantage? Why do you need a personal brand? How do you differentiate yourself and create a brand identity and strategy? How do you use social and traditional media to enhance your brand effectively as well as measure the metrics of social media responses? And how do you know when to pivot and evolve your brand for sustainability? GSB Lecturer, Allison Kluger, a former Television Executive and Co-Lecturer, Tyra Banks, Supermodel/Entrepreneur/Television Executive/Business CEO, will lead this class. They will help students create their own specific image to support their brand, teach them how to navigate on-air exposure, and help them create a long-term strategy for how to promote their personal brand across several media platforms. Within a highly interactive learning environment, image transformations, live broadcasting of presentations at a television station, live streaming of portions of the class on Facebook Live, and YouTube recordings of presentations will all be part of the assignments and requirements. The class culminates with the students sharing their honed personal brand to the public via three viable platforms (Facebook Live, local television, YouTube) to jump-start their personal brand extension. A 1:30 video stating "Who you are, what your personal brand is, and what you want it to be?" will be a mandatory requirement before Class #1.

Effective decision making is a critical skill for political and business leaders. Decisions must be made under pressure and often with incomplete information. George Osborne was Chancellor of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom in the aftermath of the global economic crisis, and this class will study three of the biggest challenges global economic policy makers faced during this time. Students will gain a framework for how senior leaders approach decision making, and will be given the chance to put this into practice. Each class will include a simulation where students are put in the role of a senior policy maker facing a key decision.

This course is open only to students participating in the Stanford-Tsinghua Exchange Program and is required of those students. Requirements include researching and reporting on companies to be visited, attending lectures in preparation for the China visit, attending lectures at Tsinghua, and carrying out and reporting on a project with one or more Tsinghua student. Offered Pass/No Pass only. 2 units. Winter quarter.

Academics must effectively communicate the importance of their research to a wide range of audiences, including colleagues, students, stakeholders, and the general public, as well as in a variety of contexts, from academic conferences and job talks to one-on-one conversations, news interviews, and social media.n nThis highly interactive course is designed to equip PhD students with the skills to confidently present their research and connect with varied audiences. Students will craft an elevator pitch for academic settings, create a 3-min TED-like talk aimed at the general public, learn how to document and tell the "story" of their research, and practice responding to Q&A and research critiques. This class combines best practices from public speaking with elements from related fields, including the art of improv and the science of communication.

This course covers various advanced quantitative methods with applications in marketing and economics. Topics include simulation-based estimation, dynamic decision processes, and other topics relating to empirical models of demand and supply. The course stresses the conceptual understanding and application of each technique. Students will learn to apply these techniques using Matlab or an equivalent language.

This seminar examines research on the psychology of judgment and choice. Although the normative issue of how decisions should be made is relevant, the descriptive issue of how decisions are made is the main focus of the course. Topics of discussion include choice, judgment heuristics and biases, decision framing, prospect theory, mental accounting, context effects, task effects, regret, and other topics. The goal of the seminar is twofold: to foster a critical appreciation of existing knowledge in behavioral decision theory, to develop the students' skills in identifying and testing interesting research ideas, and to explore research opportunities for adding to that knowledge.

This course provides an introduction to microeconomic theory designed to meet the needs of students in the GSB non-Economics PhD programs. The course will cover the standard economic models of individual decision-making, models of consumer behavior and producer behavior under perfect competition, the Arrow-Debreu general equilibrium model, and some basic issues in welfare measurement. This class assumes a basic knowledge of undergraduate intermediate microeconomics, comfort with multivariable calculus and linear algebra and some exposure to real analysis.

This course is offered for students requiring specialized training in an area not covered by existing courses. To register, a student must obtain permission from the faculty member who is willing to supervise the reading.

This course is elected as soon as a student is ready to begin research for the dissertation, usually shortly after admission to candidacy. To register, a student must obtain permission from the faculty member who is willing to supervise the research.