Results for STRAMGT

This course examines fundamental issues of general management and leadership within an organization. You will learn about setting an organization's strategic direction, aligning structure to implement strategy, and leading individuals within the firm. You will master concepts, frameworks, and tools to assess an industry and a firm's competitive environment, and to craft alternatives. You will study the interplay among formal structure, informal networks, and culture in shaping organizational performance. By integrating leadership theory, the lessons of practical application, and your own experience, you will develop skills and capabilities essential to leading others. And you'll gain a better understanding of your own leadership preferences, strengths, and weaknesses.

Having the opportunity to choose one's colleagues is rare in corporate life - we usually inherit them when we join an organization. More often than not, when we assume a management position in an organization, we inherit our subordinates as well.nnn- How do we maximize the performance of the teams we become part of? nn- What interpersonal skills give us influence? nn- Which interpersonal strengths can propel us to our next promotion?nn- What development areas might prevent our ascension to the executive suite?nnnIn the Leadership Labs, we focus on these questions. However, rather than tackle cases where you can distance yourself in comfortable analytical discussions, we throw you into experiential exercises, testing your ability to build effective relationships, motivate others, and influence outcomes. The Leadership Labs are designed for deep self-reflection about what behaviors you choose to use, the consequences of those behaviors, and given choices, how you might be even more productive.nnnIn total, there are ten Leadership Lab Sessions--six, three-hour Interpersonal Skills Labs, and four, 90-minute Managerial Skills Labs. The Interpersonal Skills Labs sessions are comprised of short lectures and increasingly challenging simulations and role-plays facilitated by the Arbuckle Leadership Fellows. The Leadership Fellows are second-year GSB students who have participated in a rigorous training program that prepares them to facilitate the exercises and cases used in the Interpersonal Skills Labs.nnnIn the 90-minute Managerial Skills Labs we examine several common managerial challenges faced by executives. Together with Faculty, students explore these topics using four case examples, each asking students to evaluate a series of situations, develop alternatives for their resolution, and ultimately recommend and implement a course of action from the point of view of the company's owner/manager. We have selected small to midsized businesses as the context for these discussions in order to highlight the impact that key decisions and their implementation can have on the broader organization. Class preparation should include not only analysis and conclusions, but also specific recommendations on implementation. Students should come to class prepared to role play important conversations between management and other key individuals.

In the Managerial Skills Labs we examine several common managerial challenges faced by executives. Together with Faculty, students explore these topics using four case examples, each asking students to evaluate a series of situations, develop alternatives for their resolution, and ultimately recommend and implement a course of action from the point of view of the company's owner/manager. We have selected small to midsized businesses as the context for these discussions in order to highlight the impact that key decisions and their implementation can have on the broader organization. Class preparation should include not only analysis and conclusions, but also specific recommendations on implementation. Students should come to class prepared to role play important conversations between management and other key individuals.

This course investigates the key strategic and organizational issues that arise in operating internationally in a "semi-globalized" world where borders matter less than in the past but where they are still a major fact of life. The course is case-based and builds on the strategy course in September.

This course addresses how the increasingly large number of firms that use or provide outsourcing and "offshoring" can create a sustainable competitive advantage. Students who complete the course will have a framework and a set of concepts that can be used to position a firm for strategic advantage in these supply networks. Positioning in and strategic analysis of product markets is covered in a variety of courses and books. A distinguishing feature of this course is that it addresses positioning and strategic analysis for firms operating as part of a network of providers, sellers and buyers... the factor markets. The course takes a general management perspective and provides examples through cases and discussions with visitors. The major theme of the course is that these firms must carefully consider how they position themselves in both the product and factor markets.

The focus of this class is on the challenges and key issues associated with the creation and management of a professional sales organization. Our emphasis is developing and managing the selling effort in the business-to-business capital goods sector. There will be relatively little emphasis on sales technique (i.e., students should not expect a course on "How to be a Better Salesperson"). The course is organized to follow the development of the sales function from the early stages of venture formation through growth to an enterprise-class company. We examine issues related to building and managing the sales effort at start up, hiring and training sales personnel, compensation and incentive plans, sales forecasting, addressing multiple product lines, multiple channels and multiple geographic regions, developing strategic alliances, merging sales forces, and managing large channel structures and sales structures in large enterprises.

This course is offered for students who at some time may want to undertake an entrepreneurial career by pursuing opportunities leading to partial or full ownership and control of a business. The course deals with case situations from the point of view of the entrepreneur/manager rather than the passive investor. Many cases involve visitors, since the premise is that opportunity and action have large idiosyncratic components. Students must assess opportunity and action in light of the perceived capabilities of the individuals and the nature of the environments they face. The course is integrative and will allow students to apply many facets of their business school education.

Many of America's most successful entrepreneurial companies have been substantially influenced by professionally managed venture capital. This relationship is examined from both the entrepreneur's and the venture capitalist's perspective. From the point of view of the entrepreneur, the course considers how significant business opportunities are identified, planned, and built into real companies; how resources are matched with opportunity; and how, within this framework, entrepreneurs seek capital and other assistance from venture capitalists or other sources. From the point of view of the venture capitalist, the course considers how potential entrepreneurial investments are evaluated, valued, structured, and enhanced; how different venture capital strategies are deployed; and how venture capitalists raise and manage their own funds. The course includes a term-long project where students work in teams (3-4 students per team) to write a business plan for a venture of the team's choosing.

This course is offered for students who, in the near term, aspire to the management and full or partial ownership of a new or newly-acquired business. The seminar, which is limited to 40 students, has a strong implementation focus, and deals in some depth with certain selected, generic entrepreneurial issues, viewed from the perspective of the owner/manager. Broad utilization is made of case materials, background readings, visiting experts, and role playing. Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on the application of analytical tools to administrative practice.

This course is a two quarter course that is organized around projects undertaken by teams of 4 to 6 students. It carries 3 units of credit each quarter and is spread over both Winter and Spring quarters to give students time to identify a business opportunity and investigate it in depth. The class meets multiple times each quarter, including some sessions on Wednesdays as described in the S356 Calendar 2010-11 (to be included on the CES website). The meetings consist of lectures, instructor meetings, section seminars, panels, and outside speakers. The time slots in the Winter Quarter are expected to be Mondays from 3:15-6:15 or Tuesdays from 3:15-6:15. The project involves the evaluation of a business opportunity from an initial idea or concept to a final written business plan. The teams will meet with instructors regularly, as well as with a mentor who will help guide the projects. Although not a requirement, teams are encouraged to identify non-sponsoring faculty or professional experts who are willing to provide guidance.nnnDeliverables and grading are described in detail in the S356 course Overview on the CES website.

Most everyone associated with technology start-ups would agree that the most important initial characteristic of a successful endeavor is a compelling vision. The journey from vision to escape velocity is highly dependent on management's ability to translate that vision into a product or service that closely and economically addresses a customer's significant point of pain. Without a tight product market fit, the start-up's offering will not be able to break through the market's gravitational forces which strongly favor existing solutions, resulting in likely failure. With tight product/market fit, it is far more likely the company will achieve repeatable and growing sales success.nnnConventional wisdom dictates that a start-up launching a new product should focus its energy understanding what the market wants (problem) and then translating that knowledge into an optimal set of product features (solution). This is the ideal strategy if one is attacking a market that already exists. However if the start-up pursues an entirely new market or re-segments an existing market, customers are unlikely to be able to articulate the benefits and features they will need. The approaches required to pursue new or re-segmented markets are radically different from those applied to existing markets. As a result it is not relentless execution and exploitation of a well understood market that will lead to success, but discovery of a new market or segment that is in need of the product as envisioned. If done well, this process of finding the optimal product/market fit has a disproportionate impact on success. Our intention is to create a course that explores the many issues associated with optimizing product/market fit. nnnTwo group papers comprise 50% of a student's grade with class participation representing the remainder.

This course is the second quarter continuation of S356. Usually only those enrolled in S356 during the Winter Quarter are eligible to enroll. If a new student is going to replace another on a team, permission must be obtained from the instructor assigned to that team. The S356 Course Overview, S356 Administrative Notes, and S356 Administrative Notes, all part of the Winter Quarter syllabus, contain the pertinent information about both quarters of this course. The grade distribution shown below applies to the Spring quarter portion of this course, and will be combined with the Winter quarter portion to arrive at the final grade for the course.

This course examines individuals and organizations that use entrepreneurial skills and approaches to develop innovative responses to social problems. Entrepreneurship has traditionally been seen as a way of creating wealth for the entrepreneur and for those who back her/his work. Social entrepreneurs employ "entrepreneurial skills," such as finding opportunities, inventing new approaches, securing and focusing resources and managing risk, in the service of creating a social value. As the intensity and complexity of social and environmental problems has grown in recent years social entrepreneurship, defined as innovative, social value creating activity that can occur within or across the nonprofit, government or business sectors, has become increasingly prominent. While virtually all enterprises, commercial and social, generate social value, fundamental to this definition is that the primary focus of social entrepreneurship is to achieve social impact above all else. We will study some of the most promising and the best-proven innovations for improving people's lives. We will also examine mature projects that are now tackling the issue of "scale", moving from local innovations to solutions that create deep systemic changes for larger numbers of economically disadvantaged individuals and communities throughout the world. This year we will focus on what are the constraints and opportunities for creating a social enterprise at scale. nn nnThe process of "scale" poses tremendous challenges. Even when organizations manage to overcome the many obstacles to growth, and achieve appreciable scale, this approach is seldom sufficient to achieve significant social impact on its own. This year our course will pay particular attention to network approaches which require the mobilization of a vast array of actors and resources, but have the potential to generate rapid and sustained social impact.

This course seeks to provide a survey of the strategic, governance, and management issues facing a wide range of nonprofit organizations and their executive and board leaders, in the era of venture philanthropy and social entrepreneurship. The students will also be introduced to core managerial issues uniquely defined by this sector such as development/fundraising, investment management, performance management and nonprofit finance. The course also provides an overview of the sector, including its history and economics. Cases involve a range of nonprofits, from smaller, social entrepreneurial to larger, more traditional organizations, including education, social service, environment, health care, religion, NGO's and performing arts. In exploring these issues, this course reinforces the frameworks and concepts of strategic management introduced in the core first year courses. In addition to case discussions, the course employs role plays, study group exercises and many outsider speakers.

This course focuses on the strategic management of technology-based innovation in the firm. The purpose is to provide students with concepts, frameworks, and experiences that are useful for taking part in the management of innovation processes in the firm. The course examines how they can be managed effectively. Specific topics include: assessing the innovative capabilities of the firm, managing the Corporate R & D function, managing the interfaces between functional groups in the development function in the firm, understanding and managing technical entrepreneurs, building technology-based distinctive competencies and competitive advantages, technological leadership versus followership in competitive strategy, institutionalizing innovation, attracting and keeping corporate entrepreneurs.

The seminar's aim is to develop participants' ability to create strategically informed action plans that are imaginative, inspiring and workable in highly dynamic environments. The seminar's pedagogy involves informed debate to evaluate and hone well-researched views by the participants and instructors, as well as the writing and presentation of position papers by small groups of seminar participants on the seminar's focal theme. Andy Grove will continue to participate as co-instructor of the seminar, but at a reduced level. In the course of the seminar discussions, we aim to deepen our understanding of strategic dynamics and transformational change at the societal, industry and organizational levels of analysis.nnnIn fall 2010, the focal theme of the seminar will be "The Future Role of Silicon Valley: Prospective Strategic Analyses." Within the overarching theme, we will research four sub-themes. Domain experts for three of the sub-themes have committed to co-leading the related sessions with the instructors (see below). nnnThe four sub-themes are:nn1. The role of Silicon Valley in the future of the semiconductor industry. George Cogan, Partner at Bain & Company and expert of the semiconductor industry, will co-lead this sub-theme.nn2. The role of Silicon Valley in the future of the computer industry. Tien Tzuo, CEO of Zuora Inc. and expert of SaaS and cloud computing, will co-lead this sub-theme.nn3. The role of Silicon Valley in the future of the automotive industry. Sven Beiker, Executive Director of the Center for Automotive Research at Stanford - CARS, will co-lead this sub-theme.nn4. The role of Silicon Valley in the future of U.S. Employment. Andy Grove will lead this sub-theme.nnnTwo seminar sessions will be devoted to each sub-theme. The first session will be led by the instructors. It will involve discussion of reading material and data and focus on refining the key research questions for the sub-theme. The second session (4 weeks later) will be led by the student team carrying out research on that sub-theme. nnnSeminar participants will organize into four teams, each one focused on a sub-theme. Each team will research the forces that are shaping the evolving role of Silicon Valley in relation to their sub-theme, try to assess the implications of that evolution for the future of the U.S. economy, and propose executable recommendations for strengthening Silicon Valley's future role. Each team will be expected to produce a monograph (10-15 pages) presenting and discussing its findings and recommendations, to be handed in at the end of the quarter.

This seminar provides the opportunity for students to study the structure and dynamics of the U.S. health care industry, and some of the ways it intersects with the global health care industry. The U.S. health care industry represents over 15 percent of the nation's GDP and is rapidly changing as a result of government regulatory reform enacted in 2010. The seminar's aim is to develop participants' ability to create strategically informed action plans that are imaginative, inspiring and workable in this highly dynamic environment. The seminar's pedagogy involves informed debate to evaluate and hone well-researched views by the participants and instructors, as well as the writing and presentation of position papers by small groups of seminar participants on the key dynamics of the industry. In the course of the seminar discussions, we aim to deepen our understanding of strategic dynamics and transformational change at the societal, industry and organizational levels of analysis.nnnAfter developing a complete picture of the structure of the health care industry and the strategic relationships among the key players - the strategic landscape -, the seminar will focus on how health care reform and other external forces will affect the strategic opportunities and challenges of four types of players in the strategic landscape: (1) Incumbents (e.g., pharmaceutical companies, hospital companies, insurance companies); (2) entrepreneurial startups (e.g., home monitoring, genetic testing companies, information services); (3) cross-boundary disruptors (e.g., health clinics, Wal-Mart, Cisco, Google); and (4) international health care providers (e.g. in Mexico, India, Thailand)nnnFour student teams will be formed to focus on one of the four types of players. Each team will prepare a research paper focused on determining how their type of player can take advantage of the regulatory, technological, social, cultural and demographic changes, and who will be the likely winners and why. During the first round of discussions (sessions 2-5) all participants will take part in examining the different parts of the competitive landscape. During the second round (sessions 6-9), the different teams will present their research findings and perspectives about the strategic opportunities and threats which exist. As part of the second set of sessions, the instructors will bring in domain experts to further augment the discussion.

Need approval from sponsoring faculty member and GSB Registrar.

There are now over a dozen courses taught on entrepreneurship at the GSB. These courses cover a wide range of topics of interest to the budding entrepreneur and venture capitalists. But what unique challenges do women face when approaching entrepreneurship? This seminar will showcase successful women entrepreneurs and the challenges they encountered in funding, communication styles, lifestyle balance, and paths to success. We will do so with mini-cases, panel discussions, readings, and some social time with experienced entrepreneurs. Men are also welcome to enroll.

This workshop provides students with a forum through which they can receive feedback on a new venture idea. Students who sign up MUST have an idea for a new venture. This idea should be at a relatively EARLY stage - we are not looking for completed business plans (although new venture ideas that are a little further along are not precluded). You must commit to preparing a twenty minute presentation on your idea PRIOR to the start of the seminar. As the workshop is limited to 15 students, and there are 15 hours allocated to it, the group will focus on each idea for about an hour. Students will get experience evaluating new venture opportunities both by commenting on the presentations of other students and by receiving feedback from the professor, outside entrepreneurs and professional funders. (The latter's participation will depend on individuals' schedules and willingness to participate.)nnnIt is fine for students who are already contemplating an idea in a team to sign up - but each student is responsible for carrying a one hour session on a unique idea. To get some idea of what a presentation might look like, you can watch the following video: http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/multimedia/CES/businessideas.ram.

The seminar is built around five company visits to some of the most innovative firms in Silicon Valley. We visit their location, meet with mid-level managers who are encouraged to engage us in candid conversation about the challenges facing the company, and the challenges they personally face on a daily basis to implement their firm's strategy.nnnKey questions include: What is the role, if any, of middle-managers in helping to formulate strategy? How is the strategy communicated to employees? In what circumstances do middle-managers explicitly invoke the strategy, if at all? What role do middle-managers play in strategic change? Do you distinguish financial and strategic health in your business? If so, do you quantify strategic health? How important is culture to the company's success and how do you reinforce this? What challenges have you faced in managing growth and organizational change at your company? What are the challenges to managing innovation in your company?nnnThe seminar will be particularly useful to students interested in strategy consulting or line management positions where you will participate in the strategy process, or any kind of implementation role. Each day we will spend time in class before each company visit to discuss a reading, the company background, and share reactions to the day's visit (this is an especially important aspect of the experience).nnnIn the past we have visited: Apple, Cisco, Facebook, Google, Ideo, Tesla and Yahoo!, among others. We plan to organize the same or similar visits this year.

For aspiring entrepreneurs who don't have a burning idea or the desire to start a company from scratch, acquiring a small business can provide a direct route to running and growing a business. This class will explore entrepreneurship through acquisition, including the Search Fund model. Key topics to be addressed:nn- Raising the money to acquire a company and building an investor basenn- Structuring a search for a company to buy: analyzing industries, utilizing resources, creating deal flow and managing contactsnn- Evaluating acquisition opportunities and performing due diligence and financial analysisnn- Structuring and closing the dealnn- Transitioning leadership from the sellernn- Operating and building the businessnn- Economics to the searcher/entrepreneurnn- Partnering or doing it alonennnThe course will be taught by two GSB alumni who have extensive experience buying small companies and successfully growing them.

This course examines individuals and organizations that use entrepreneurial skills and approaches to develop innovative responses to social problems. Entrepreneurship has traditionally been seen as a way of creating wealth for the entrepreneur and for those who back her/his work. Social entrepreneurs employ "entrepreneurial skills," such as finding opportunities, inventing new approaches, securing and focusing resources and managing risk, in the service of creating a social value. As the intensity and complexity of social and environmental problems has grown in recent years social entrepreneurship, defined as innovative, social value creating activity that can occur within or across the nonprofit, government or business sectors, has become increasingly prominent. While virtually all enterprises, commercial and social, generate social value, fundamental to this definition is that the primary focus of social entrepreneurship is to achieve social impact above all else. We will study some of the most promising and the best-proven innovations for improving people's lives. We will also examine mature projects that are now tackling the issue of "scale", moving from local innovations to solutions that create deep systemic changes for larger numbers of economically disadvantaged individuals and communities throughout the world. This year we will focus on what are the constraints and opportunities for creating a social enterprise at scale. The process of "scale" poses tremendous challenges. Even when organizations manage to overcome the many obstacles to growth, and achieve appreciable scale, this approach is seldom sufficient to achieve significant social impact on its own. This year our course will pay particular attention to network approaches which require the mobilization of a vast array of actors and resources, but have the potential to generate rapid and sustained social impact.

This course addresses key issues in the creation and implementation of company strategies in the international environment: nnn- Why and how do firms internationalize?nn- How should a firm assess the opportunities and risks in a foreign environment?nn- What are the competences a firm needs successfully to enter foreign markets, where it faces unfamiliar environments and entrenched local competitors??nn- How does a firm balance risk and return in deciding the best mode of foreign market entry? nn- What are the strategic options available to a firm in competing internationally?nn- How do international firms organize to deal with complexity?nnnThe course is in two parts, which are closely linked. The first is concerned with the strategy and operations of international firm, focusing on how corporations overcome the challenges of foreign environments to expand globally. This section covers foreign market assessment (analyzing the business opportunities and investment climate in a foreign country) and foreign entry strategy, including the alternatives of exporting, licensing, greenfield foreign direct investment or cross-border M&A. We look at trade-offs firms face between global or regional operating economies, on the one hand, and responsiveness to local customers, on the other, leading them to adopt global versus multi-local strategies. nnnIn the second part, we consider the development and adaptation of competences in the face of international competition. This section concerns the operational processes and organization structures firms use to support their international strategies. These include the generation and diffusion of knowledge across the corporate network, and the role of innovation and leadership in the transformation of international companies. nnnThe course uses a combination of case studies, problems, lectures and discussion, over a variety of companies and countries. Country settings include Japan, Spain, Italy, Singapore, India, Brazil, Romania, China, and the US. Companies may include P&G, Singapore Airlines, Timken, Indesit, HP, Inditex (Zara), Arcor and others.

This elective is concerned with two themes: nnn1. The strategies and competitive basis of new business challengers-- enterprises based in the countries of the "New World" of rapidly developing economies, including China, India, Brazil and Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Turkey; nnn2. How companies based in the developed world can compete with the challengers.nnnThe rapidly developing economies are the home bases for highly competitive new firms which have employed novel and successful business models to gain significant stakes in domestic markets. Their home economies have been, to varying degrees, less affected than the mature economies by the global financial crisis and their firms have been able to continue remarkable domestic growth trajectories. Further, many of these firms are outwardly focused and rapidly gaining positions in the developed world, where they are challenging the interests of developed world multinationals. For global incumbents, it is critical to understand the strategies of the new challengers and how to compete with them. nnnThe focus of the course will be on these New World firms, with the aim of understanding the strategies and competences they are deploying in their successful expansion. Integral to their developing global competences is the role of disruptive innovation, addressing under-served markets, and exploiting institutional distance in establishing competitive positions in the home base. Yet it is not clear to what extent these competences can be successfully translated into more developed markets. The course will address strategies multinationals based in the developed world can adopt to counter the new challengers and succeed in their home markets, as well as in the home markets of these challengers.nnnThe course will be taught with newly developed case studies written for this and related courses. The cases provide insight into the strategies of New World companies, how companies from the developed world can address the opportunities and risks in New World countries and use them as platforms for expansion.nnnThe following are examples of companies which will be included:nnnNatura - Exporting Brazilian Beauty, BrazilnnLenovo: Managing a Global Merger, ChinannHaier: Taking a Chinese Company Global, ChinannInfosys Technologies Ltd.: Looking to the Future, IndiannTNK-BP: Russian Oil and Foreign Interests, RussiannSamsung Electronics: Global Flash Memory Business, KoreannArcor: The Challenge of Becoming a Global Competitor, ArgentinannMetro Cash & Carry, Russia, India, ChinannMonsanto: Realizing Biotech Value in Brazil, Brazil, USnnArcelik's International Expansion, TurkeynnStudio Moderna in Eastern Europe, Slovenia

This new course, STRAMGT 554, is a two unit version of the popular course, STRAMGT 354: Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital. Many of America's most successful entrepreneurial companies have been substantially influenced and supported by professionally managed venture capital funds. This relationship is examined from both the entrepreneur's and the venture capitalist's perspective. From the point of view of the entrepreneur, the course considers how significant and global business opportunities are identified, planned, and built into real companies; how resources are matched with opportunity; and how, within this framework, entrepreneurs seek capital and other assistance from venture capitalists, angel investors or other sources. From the point of view of the venture capitalist, the course considers how potential entrepreneurial investments are evaluated, valued, structured, and enhanced; how different venture capital strategies are deployed; and how venture capitalists raise and manage their own funds and add value to their companies.nnnThis course represents a shorter, more intense version of STRAMGT 354 - Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital. Students should not take both courses, as there is considerable overlap in course content.

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.