Syllabus for
Master of Business Administration
Academic Year  (2022)

The MBA programme consists of six trimesters.  Students move to specialization courses during the last four trimesters.  Most of the courses are of three credits with coverage of 30 hours.

The course curriculum is designed for academic depth and employability in the industry.  Variety of pedagogy are used in addition to the regular class room teaching, such as case sessions, simulations, management games, laboratories and research-based assignments.  Experiential, student centric learning is the highlight of the programme. Co-curricular activities such as organizational study, mentoring and current affairs sessions, book reviews, paper presentation conferences augment the regular classes.  Extracurricular activities hone up the organizing skills and teamwork among the students.

Quiz Sessions

Continuous Internal assessments

Assignments

Field study reports

Periodic Tests

Assessment of Class Participation in case studies and discussions

Any other appropriate method identified by the instructor that would ensure objective assessment of the student performance.

The MBA programme consists of six trimesters. Students move to specialization courses during the last four trimesters. Most of the courses are of three credits with coverage of 30 hours. The course curriculum is designed for academic depth and employability in the industry. Variety of pedagogy are used in addition to the regular class room teaching, such as case sessions, simulations, management games, laboratories and research based assignments. Experiential, student centric learning is the highlight of the programme. Co-curricular activities such as organizational study, mentoring and current affairs sessions, book reviews, paper presentation conferences augment the regular classes. Extracurricular activities hone up the organizing skills and teamwork among the students. School of Business and Management has collaborations with Universities such as Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), USA; Western Michigan University (WMU), USA and University of Applied Sciences (FHWS), Würzburg-Schweinfurt, Germany wherein students are permitted to take approved courses from these Universities and transfer of credits for such courses will be considered for the award of MBA Degree.

CIA I: Assignment /  presentation                                                                                                          

CIA II:  Mid-term examination (written exam)

Two  hours examination on topics covered in about 50% of the course (15 hours of coverage). Questions based on understanding, application of concepts, and analysis  

CIA III:   Mutliple choice questions, Research Based Assignment                                     

End term examination:                                                                                                

Two  hours examination on topics covered in all the units. Questions based on understanding, application of concepts, and analysis  

This course is offered to MBA students during the first trimester. The course is designed to induct the students into the MBA program from various cultures, perspectives and educational background. The course ensures induction of the students into reading habits related to business, develops curiosity through current affairs and equips the students to benefit from peer learning through a structured mentoring process

Basket of currencies, Exchange rates, Inflation, repo rate, reverse repo rate, Oil price, GDP, Stock market

Business, Corporate, National, International, Technology, Politics, Sports

Latest topics from Technology, Business and Economics

Topics related to Management, Current affairs and Society, Goal setting with action plan, OST report guidance

Management books, Autobiographies, Biographies, Entrepreneurship, Building organizations

Accounting is the language in which the financial information is communicated in the world of business. Managers, irrespective of their functional areas will be either directly or indirectly exposed to the financial information and will have to use them in their decision-making. This course tries to familiarize students with the basics of financial accounting. The course describes the concepts of accounting, its principles, its standards and uses of the accounting information. Ultimately this course discusses preparation of income statement and balance sheet and financial statement analysis.

Forms of business organization, importance of accounting in the information age, users of accounting information; Explanation and interpretation of accounting equation; Assets, Liabilities, Equity, Incomes, Expenses, Analyze the effects of transactions on the accounting equation; Accounting standards, Principles and Transaction Analysis.

Statement of Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet; Understanding the different items that appear in these two statements; Different Types of assets and liabilities

Cost of Acquisition of depreciable assets, capital and revenue expenditure; Methods of depreciation – Straight line method and Written down value method, effect of choice of depreciation method on reported income 

Inventory valuation and income measurement, Effect of inventory valuation error on reported earnings

Inventory valuation following perpetual inventory system under LIFO, FIFO and Weighted Average Cost Methods and their impact on reported earnings

Introduction to cash flow statement, its purpose and structure (indirect method only); Computing Net cash flows from operating activities (using only the indirect method), financing activities and the investing activities; interpreting the cash flow statement.

Introduction to analysis of financial statements and its purpose; Horizontal (comparative analysis and trend analysis) analyses and vertical (common-size) analysis; Ratio Analysis – Analysis of profitability, liquidity, solvency and capital market standing, Dupont analysis of a company by using its Profit and Loss Account and the Balance Sheet. 

This course is offered in the first trimester to equip students with the art of managerial decision making at the firm level. Managerial Economics introduces students to the concepts of demand, pricing, cost, production, and markets. The course also demonstrates how all these concepts helps the manager in taking optimum and rational decisions.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course the students will be able:

1. To make use of the basic and fundamental concepts of managerial economics in making optimal decisions.
2. To analyze market forces, i.e. demand and supply, and compute the elasticity of demand and supply.
3. To examine the dynamics of consumer behaviour in the context of scarcity and opportunity cost.
4. To determine optimum cost and revenue, and break-even sales and quantity, in the short and long run.
5. To evaluate the equilibrium conditions for price, output, and maximisation of profit in different market conditions.

Introduction to Managerial Economics-Economic Systems-Principles of managerial economics, Integration with other managerial decision-making process-Tools and analysis of optimization-role of Government, Competition Vs Cooperation. Relationship with other management subjects.

Definition of demand, Law of demand and its determinants and exceptions, movement along the demand curve and shift in demand curve. Demand and supply relationship*. Definition of supply, Law of supply, Movement along the supply curve and shift in supply curve, Factors affecting supply, Market equilibrium and pricing, floor price and ceiling price. Application of demand and supply analyses: Concepts of elasticity, degree, determinants & types, practical implication, Relationship of Revenue and elasticity of demand, Demand forecasting and its use in demand. Qualitative and Quantitative interpretation of demand techniques-model specification using regression and OLS.

Introduction to Consumer behavior, Utility, Cardinal approach, Ordinal approach, Consumer’s equilibrium using Indifference curve analysis and Consumer surplus, Application of Indifference curve analyses.

Production functions, Law of Variable proportions, returns to scale and economies of scale. Producers’ surplus-   Costs, Isoquants, least cost combination types of costs, short run costs and long run cost, Revenue Analysis –TR, AR and MR, and break-even analysis, (case study)

Market types, characteristics, Perfect competition features, Price determination and equilibrium in the short run and the long run, Monopoly - features, equilibrium condition, Price discrimination. Monopolistic competition- features, Oligopoly - Cartels as one of the features of Oligopoly, Game theory-types, static and dynamic games-Pricing Strategy (Case study), Sustainability business model- Circles of Sustainability.

This is offered as a core course in first trimester. This course will provide a general introduction to management principles and theories, and a brief outline on history and development of management thought.

Meaning; Scope; Managerial levels and skills; Managerial Roles; Management: Science, Art or Profession; Universality of Management. 

Ancient roots of management theory; Classical schools of management thought- Scientific Theory and Henri Fayol 14 , ; Behavioural School- Max weber and Elton Mayo Hothrone Experiment, Quantitative School; Systems Approach, Contingency Approach; Contemporary Management thinkers & their contribution. Ancient Indian Management systems & practices. Comparative study of global management systems & practices.

Types of Plans; Steps in Planning Process; Plan vs Strategies, Policies and Planning; Decision making, Process of Decision Making, Techniques in Decision Making, Forecasting & Management by Objectives (MBO), Sustainable Planning- inclusion of SDG in managerial planning.

Organizational structure and design; types of organizational structures; Roles and Responsibilities Span of control, authority, delegation, decentralization and reengineering.

Human resource planning, Recruitment, selection, training & development, performance appraisal, Organizational Change -managing change, compensation and employee welfare. Use of Analytics and AI for HR Actions and Talent Management, Employee Motivation, Stress and managing employee stress 

Leadership concept, leadership Styles, Contemporary Leadership- Transformation leadership, servant leadership, toxic leadership, leadership communication. 

Importance of coordination and control; control process; Methods and techniques of control; Designing control systems, Quality Management

Social responsibility of managers, Managerial Ethics- Emerging Trends in Corporate Structure.

This is a common core course for 3 credit hours. It will discuss from both conceptual and application perspective, basic statistical methods widely used in business applications. The course gives an introduction to statistical methods needed in data analysis work related to applications in Economics, Finance, Marketing, Operations and Human Resources. Further it enables to conceptualize business problems in statistical terms and enhances understanding and application of fact and evidence-based decision-making process.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course the students will be able:

1. To develop the knowledge of visualization.
2. To apply probability distribution to business data.
3. To examine sampling techniques in the context of decision making.
4. To assess statistical data in order to support fact-based decision making.
5. To determine models for analyzing relationships between variables

Frequency distributions, histograms, stem-and-leaf displays, bar charts, pie charts, and scatter plots.

Data Preparation: Editing, coding, data entry, cross-tabulation, and graphical displays using MS Excel

Probability - Event algebra*. Conditions of statistical dependence and independence, Types of probability, probabilities under conditions of statistical independence, conditional probability under statistical dependence, Bayes’ theorem and its applications.

Probability Distributions - Meaning of Probability Distribution, Random variables, Discrete and continuous random variables. Expected value, Use of expected value in decision making, Variance of a random variable. Binomial, Poisson, Uniform, Normal and Exponential distributions and their properties and applications.

Sampling - Need, benefits and limitations. Probability and Non-probability sampling methods. Sampling distributions, Central Limit Theorem.

Estimation - Point and Interval estimators of mean and proportion - Determining sample size using confidence interval approach.

Testing Hypothesis - Concepts basic to hypothesis, null and alternative hypothesis, testing procedure, level of significance, Types of errors. Measuring power of a hypothesis test. Testing of means and proportions for small and large samples, testing of difference between means and proportions for small and large samples.

Chi-Square test of goodness of fit and test of independence. ANOVA, Multiple comparison procedures.

Inference about population variance. Overview of Analysis of CRD, RBD, LSD, and factorial designs.

t-Test, Chi-square test for Goodness of Fit and independence of attributes, ANOVA using MS Excel

Concept of Correlation - Measure of Correlation & Interpretation. Simple Linear Regression - Form, fitting, prediction, hypothesis testing in linear regression. Residual analysis for validation of assumptions* - normality, homoscedasticity, outliers and influential observations.

Correlation and Regression using MS Excel.

The course is offered as a mandatory core course for all students in Trimester I.  The course introduces students to a comprehensive set of concepts and theories, facts about human behaviour and organizations that have been acquired over the years. The subject focuses on ways and means to improve productivity, minimize absenteeism, increase employee engagement and so on thus, contributing to the overall effectiveness. The basic discipline of the course is behavioral science, sociology, social psychology, anthropology and political science.

Course Objectives: At the end of the course the student are able:

1. To infer the concepts of organizational behavior at the individual, group or organizational level
2. To choose multiple perspectives of the concepts of personality, perception and learning in organizations
3. To inspect the influence of job-related attitudes, values and job satisfaction on business decisions
4. To recommend the suitable motivational techniques to address business problems.
5. To assess the dynamics of group and teams in organizations

Historical Development, Behavioural sciences and Organizational behaviour, Meaning, Importance, Basic concepts, methods and tools for understanding behaviour, Challenges and Opportunities, OB model, ethical issues in organizational Behaviour.

Cross-cultural management, managing multicultural teams, communicating across cultures, OB in the digital age.

Personality:  Foundations of individual behaviour, Personality, Meaning and Importance, Development of personality, Determinants of personality, Theories of personality, Relevance of personality to managers. 

Perception: Nature, Importance and Definition of Perception, Factors involved in perception, The Perceptual Process, Perceptual Selectivity and Organization, Applications in Organizations. 

Learning: Definition and Importance, Theories of learning, Principles of learning, Shaping as managerial tool.

Attitudes: Sources and types of attitudes, Attitude formation and change, Cognitive Dissonance Theory. Effects of employee attitude, Job related attitudes 

Values: meaning, importance, source and types, and applications in organizations. 

Job satisfaction: Measuring Job Satisfaction, Causes of Job Satisfaction, impact of satisfied and dissatisfied employees on the workplace.

Meaning, process and significance of motivation, Early Theories of motivation: Hierarchy of Needs, Theory X Theory Y, Two Factor theory, McClelland Theory of Needs, Contemporary Theories of Motivation: Goal Setting theory, Self-Efficacy theory, Equity theory/Organizational justice, Expectancy theories, Motivation theories applied in organizations: Job design, employee involvement, rewards and global implications

Groups – Meaning, classification and nature of groups, Stages of group development, an alternative model for Temporary Groups with punctuated equilibrium model, Group properties: Roles, Norms, Status, Size and Cohesiveness, Group decision making.

Teams -Meaning of teams, Types of teams, Creating Effective teams, what makes individuals into effective team players, Team development, Team decision making. 

This course is undertaken by the students as a self-study project.  The project is carried out by the students for one month before joining the MBA program and is evaluated during Trimester I. It will be an organizational study in a manufacturing-oriented, large organization for a minimum of thirty days.

At the end of the course, students should have the knowledge and application of

• Vision, mission and objectives of business organization
• Organizational structure in business organizations
• Business functions in a business firm
• Organization type  the business under study fits in
• SWOT analysis for a business organization
• Key Result Areas of a business organization
• Business growth over years with appreciation of enablers and barriers

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This is a core paper offered in first trimester of MBA program. The course provides a comprehensive foundation for understanding the scope of information systems in a business environment. It covers the fundamental concepts of information, digitalization, and related technologies. Apart from this, the course also includes aspects pertaining to strategy and innovation, Information system management, development and operations including security. Latest IS paradigms like Unstructured Database, OLAP, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cloud, IoT, Blockchain etc. are given an exposure in the course. Ethical issues and sustainability aspects such as Green IT are addressed in the course. Additionally, use of IS and IT for societal good and nation building are also bought to students’ attention through the topics of Smart Cities, E-Governance etc.

Course Objectives: 

1. To assist in identifying the factors of information systems that interact with the organisation.
2. To enable application of concepts in managing and developing secure information systems for organisational competitiveness.
3. To facilitate analysis of applicability and value of enterprise information systems in a dynamic business environment.
4. To enable working knowledge of data management components in business scenarios.
5. To assist in identifying managerial implications of implementing disrupting technologies in organizations and associated ethical issues.

Information Systems vs Information Technology, Interaction Model for Managing Information Systems. DIKW hierarchy, Information as a Resource, Information in Organizational Functions, Types of Information Technology. 

Business Innovations with IT, Using IT for Competing, Information Goods, Information Systems & Competitive Strategy. Vendor Management, Role of CIO, IT Governance, Challenges for the Manager, IT Infrastructure Decisions. Business Process Analysis Overview, Business Process Integration, Life Cycle Models, Introduction to Software Project Management. Overview of IT Security, Basics of IT Operations and Lean IT.

Enterprise Business Applications, Overviews of ERP, Supply Chain Management System, CRM, International Information Systems. OLTP, OLAP, DSS, Analytics and Business Intelligence, Knowledge Management Systems. RPA, OCR.

Challenges of Data Management, Database Concepts – Structured and Unstructured, Database Elements, E-R Diagrams, SQL. Practice of SQL, Query by example. Data Warehouses, Data Lake, Data Hub, Data Catalog, Data Mining, Big Data, Data Centre concepts.

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, AI & ML - Implications for Managers. Cloud Computing and Services, Virtualization; IoT; Blockchain. Green IT, Ethical Issues, Dark Side of IT, Social Issues of Technology, ICT for National Development, E-Governance Concepts, Smart Cities. Industry 4.0, Service 4.0, Autonomous Robots, Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, 3D Printing, Wearables Technology, Bionics. Current developments and trends.

$ Including practical sessions on SQL and Query by Example.

* Self Learning Topics/Module

This course is offered to MBA students during the second trimester. The course is designed to familiarize students with business terms and updates through significant developments in the corporate world. The course also enables students to reflect on their personal values and work on their self-development. It gives opportunity for the students to identify their strength areas and work towards their area of Specialization in MBA.

Course Objectives: This course develops a futuristic thinking for the students to identify themselves with a specific area of Specialization and a career goal. Students get exposure to various business terms and develop an aptitude towards management thinking.

Business, National, International, Technology, Politics, Sports

Latest topics from Technology, Business and Economics, Visit to Industry

Entrepreneurship & Startup, Exposure to Domains

Topics related to Science, Environment, Business, Society, Government, Technology

Identify projects, Report writing

This is a core course offered in the Second trimester to students across all specializations. Students learn various aspects of Marketing in terms of concepts, strategies, opportunities and challenges. This course attempts to enable students to apply relevant theories and concepts to various aspects of doing business, and to deal with global firms and competition in domestic market. This course will provide a general introduction to marketing management and a brief outline on the basic concepts in marketing.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. To identify the Macro and Micro marketing environment and its impact on Business sectors.
2. To apply the bases of Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning.
3. To utilize the factors influencing Consumer and Business markets for buying decisions.
4. To analyze the strategies for Product and Price mix.
5. To recommend Promotional and Distribution mix strategies.

Importance and Scope of Marketing, Core marketing concepts; Company Orientations; analysing the Marketing Environment, Components of Environment- Macro environment and Micro environment.

Levels of Segmentation; Bases for Segmenting Consumer and Business Markets; 

Market Targeting, Developing and Communicating a Positioning Strategy.

Factors influencing Consumer Behaviour; Buying Decision Process; Theories of Consumer Decision Making. Organizational Buying; Participants in the Business Buying Process; Stages in the Buying Process; Institutional and Government Markets; Managing Relationships.

Product Levels: Classifying products; New product development, Product Line, Mix; Product Life cycles.

Pricing Environment: Consumer Psychology & Pricing; Pricing methods; Setting Price; Price Adaptations; Initiating Price Changes; Responding to Competitors’ Price Changes

Marketing channels and Value Networks: The role of Marketing channels; Channel Design Decisions; Channel Management Decisions; Channel Integration and Systems.

Marketing Communications Mix: WOM, IMC, Cultural aspects of Marketing Communication; Advertising, Sales Promotion, Personal Selling, Direct Marketing; Public Relations. Corporate Social Responsibility & Ethics in Marketing.

Course Description: course is an introduction to the human resources function and related elements and activities. The course outlines the roles and functions of members of the human resources department, as well as educating others outside human resources, in how their roles include human resources-related activities. The student will learn about the evolution in human resources management as we know it today. Emphasis is placed on the modern-day importance of HRM and the new “corporate view” of the function. Additionally, the student will be exposed to the view of HRM from the perception of both management and subordinate employees. The importance of maintaining fair and equitable compensation and benefit programs will be discussed. The student will be exposed to practical situations and problem solving, regarding areas of employee counseling, discipline and termination. Other critical areas of training and development, staffing and strategy will also be explored.

Course Objectives: This course attempts to integrate the understanding of the human resources management framework with the management best practices, tools and models

Concept: Meaning, Objectives, Scope, Functions, models of HRM, Strategic HRM, Human Resource Management A sustainability perspective. Human Resource Management in India: An overview, skills and competencies of HR professionals Overview of ethical choices in HRM and expected professional standards 

Definition, Objectives scope and importance, Methods of forecasting, Job analysis – objectives, process and methods, job description, job specification, job evaluation and job design.

Meaning and objectives, sources and constraints of recruitment, Selection process, Methods of selection, reliability and validity of test, meaning and importance of socialization, methods of socialization and retention of employees Ethical dilemmas in recruitment and selections, promotions and transfers. Employee privacy and confidentiality in testing

Meaning, Objectives and scope of human resource development                             

Training :Orienting and on boarding new employees, aligning strategy and training, the ADDIE five step model , conducting the training need analysis , Designing the training program , developing the Programme ,Implementing the Training Program, Management Development Programme, Evaluation of training effectiveness Current trends in training

Performance Management and Appraisal :                                                  

Meaning, Objectives, scope & purpose, Appraisal process, methods for evaluating performance, problems & challenges in appraisal, Fairness and equity in performance appraisals. Current trends in performance management 

Compensation                                                                       

Definition and objectives, Basic factors in determining pay rates, Job evaluation methods how to create a market – competitive pay plan , Executive compensation , broad banding  individual employee incentive, and recognition programme ,incentives for sales people , benefits Recent trends in wage and administration    

Meaning and importance of industrial relations, Trade unions, Collective bargaining and Workers’ participation in management.

2.      Decenzo, D A & Robbins, S P (2011). Human resource management, John Wiley & Sons.

3.      Fisher, C D., Schoenfeldt, L F & Shaw, J B (2011). Human resource management, Biztantra.

4.      Mathis, R L & Jackson, J H (2000). Human Resource Management, 9^th ed, South Western: Thomson Learning Publications.

5.      Rao, V S P (2000). Managing people. Amexcel Publisher.

6.      Snell, S & Bohlander,G (2009). Human resources management: A South Asian perspective. India: Cengage Learning.

This is an introductory course designed to help students understand the basic concepts of Financial Management. Apart from concepts like Time Value of Money, Cost of Capital, Capital Structure, etc, tools of financial decision making for Capital Budgeting, Working Capital Management, Dividend Policy, etc are also covered in this course. This course helps the students understand how financial theory translates into practical decision making.

Introduction to Financial Management, Meaning of Finance, Economics and Accounting, Goal of Financial Management and the three decisions - investing, financing and dividend, Corporate Finance, Capital Markets and Investments, Business Ethics and Corporate Governance, Agency problems - Managers v/s Stockholders, Agency problems - Stockholders v/s Bondholders

Time value of money - timelines, interest rate, number of periods, cash flows Future values - single cash flow, multiple cash flows, uneven cash flows Present values - single cash flow, multiple cash flows, uneven cash flows Annuity, annuity due Time value of money - perpetuities, fractional time periods, quoted rate v/s effective rate, loan amortisation schedule Time value of money - applied problems

Cost of Capital: pre and post -tax cost of debt, cost of preferred stock Cost of retained earnings - CAPM, DCF Cost of new common stock, floatation cost, weighted average cost of capital - WACC, book value weights, market value weights, target weights

Basics of Capital Budgeting, meaning of Capital Budgeting, techniques of Capital Budgeting, NPV, Payback period, Discounted Payback period, IRR, MIRR Comparison between different techniques, NPV profiles, Cross -over rate, decision criteria used in practice Capital budgeting - applied problems, Cash flow estimation for new projects Replacement projects

Capital Structure, book value capital structure, market value capital structure, target value capital structure Leverage – Operating Financial and Total

Dividends v/s capital gains, other dividend policy issues, establishing the dividend policy in practice Factors influencing dividend policy, stock dividends Share Repurchases

Working Capital Management, Financial Planning and Forecasting, meaning and types of working capital, Current Assets financing policies Inventory Conversion, Collection period, Payables deferral period, Cash conversion cycle Effective cost of credit

This is a core paper offered in second trimester of MBA degree. This course provides students, insights related to Strategy, Planning, Manufacturing and Control aspects of Operations. It prepares students for careers in Planning, Production and Control functions in Manufacturing, as well as, in Service sector. The concepts learnt in this field are applicable to all specializations including, Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Business Analytics, Lean Operations and Systems, and also in other fields.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. To enable comprehension of operations strategy design process in a competitive environment.
2. To facilitate examination of decision-making methods for layout, location, and line balancing in manufacturing setup.
3. To facilitate examination of inventory patterns and models for optimizing value in a supply chain.
4. To determine the root causes of quality defects through statistical and non-statistical methods.
5. To enable comprehension of emerging areas in lean, sustainability, and project management

Introduction: The Field of Operations Management, Production Systems, OM in the Organizational Chart, Operations as Service, Historical Development of OM, Current Issues in Operations Management. Operations Strategy: Operations Strategy, Operations Competitive Dimensions, Corporate Strategy Design Process, Fitting Operational Activities to Strategy, Productivity Measurement.

Process Selection, Manufacturing Process Flow Design, Measuring Product Development Performance, Planning the strategic use of resources -Plant location and Plant Layout, Line balancing with numerical, Takt time.

Inventory Management: Definition of Inventory, Purposes of Inventory, Inventory Costs, Independent versus Dependent Demand, Inventory Systems, ABC, EOQ, FSN, VED and VMI

Introduction to SCM, Bull whip effect, Push and Pull Systems Role of Technologies in SCM

Management of Quality – Introduction to QM tools such as TQM, SPC, 7 QC tools and Six Sigma

Introduction, Project Planning, Structuring Projects and Work Breakdown Structure. Ethical issues in OM. Lean concepts & Sustainable operations

This core course will motivate students on entrepreneurship. The course will discuss on the characteristics of the entrepreneurs, what motivates them and the challenges they face. The course makes students to understand how successful entrepreneurs will think. The effectuation concept will be explored. Further students will learn about the Lean Start-up framework which will allow them to successfully initiate/improve business idea. This course will also focus on developing required competencies to become an innovative, opportunity-driven, market-ready and entrepreneurial manager. 

Course Objectives:

This course attempts to enable students to exercise writing a business plan by applying various concepts of entrepreneurship such as lean, effectuation etc. Understand the requirements in domestic and international context for a startup. Manage suitability and entrepreneurial challenges.

Economics perspective on the entrepreneurship, the entrepreneurial society and Institutional changes. Entrepreneurial mindset- Fixed vs growth mindset. 

Entrepreneur Characteristics, Challenges faced by entrepreneurs. Opportunities for Women Entrepreneurs. Opportunities through Innovations, Social Entrepreneurship, Sustainable entrepreneurship and International Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship process, Principles of effectuation, reasoning, effectuation process. Nature of Lean Startup, Changes created by Lean Startup, Limitations of the Lean Startup method, Customer Development Model.

Introduction, overview and definition of corporate entrepreneurship - behavioral aspects of corporate entrepreneurship, how to succeed as an intrapreneur – understanding and managing of entrepreneurship process, what an intrapreneurial programme looks like.

Corporate Venturing – strategy and organization - internal and external corporate venturing - organizing and financing corporate venturing - managing corporate entrepreneurial ecosystems - corporate entrepreneurial climate - human resources for entrepreneurial thinking  

This course attempts to utilise the academic capability and skill of the students of MBA programme to develop and suggest practicable solutions to enduring societal problems prevalent in India. Thus the course inculcates among the students the agility of utilising acquired knowledge to explore strategies to overcome practical problems, while helping them to become a socially aware global citizen.

Course Objectives:

This course attempts to utilize the academic capability and skill of the students of MBA programme to develop and suggest practicable solutions to societal problems while helping the students to become a socially aware global citizen.

Course Execution:

1. This course shall be offered in association with the Centre for Social Action (CSA), Christ University; and they would be providing necessary capability building workshops, training, orientation and guidance programs for both the faculty as well as students.
2. Further to this CSA would act as a catalyst between the students of the course and the social development organisation or community that requires solutions to the societal problem faced by them.
3. The course shall be executed through the faculty mentors, who will act as a guide to students. Thus this course would present an opportunity to the faculty as well to contribute to the social service learning.

Each student, in consultation with the respective mentor, has to carry out necessary study, literature review and to prepare a project report to suggest feasible solutions to pre-identified societal problems of various social development organisations.                                 

This is a three-credit course offered as a Program Core during the second trimester for all MBA students. This course aims to impart the foundational concepts and skills essential for a future manager to understand and manage data, use data for decision making and present the outputs creatively using data visualization techniques. The course further aims to build an understanding of machine learning and the way it is used by organizations.

Course Objectives: 

On having completed this course, the students should be able:

1. To apply the basic concepts of Business Analytics
2. To apply the concepts of Machine Learning
3. To analyse the implications of Analytics in various functional areas
4. To assess data visually using tools 
5. To evaluate data using simulations through MS-Excel

Definition, Types - Descriptive, Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics, Ethics in data management, Business Analytics for decision making

Machine Learning - Definition, Machine Learning workflow, Models – CRISP DM & SEMMA, Types - supervised, unsupervised and reinforcement learning, managerial applications of Machine Learning

Applications of Analytics in various functional areas – Finance, Marketing, Human Resources and Operations

Business Intelligence – Concept and architecture, Role and significance in Business,

Fundamentals of visualization, Introduction to visualization tool (Tableau), data ingestion, working with visualization tool, dash boarding, story telling

functions, formulae, filters and conditional formatting. Pivot tables, Modelling using Multiple linear regression, Introduction to Monte Carlo simulation

This course is offered during third trimester for MBA students. This course includes readings, presentations, activities, and projects which help students to develop domain knowledge, skills and competency in their chosen area of specialization (Business Analytics, Finance, Human Resources, Marketing, Lean Operations & Systems). Students are expected to read, analyze, reflect, share their knowledge, opinions and views and participate actively in the session discussions. 

Course Objectives:

The objective of this course is to develop knowledge, skill and competence in the chosen area of Specialization that will support the student in building a lasting career in the functional area of their choice. Within the Specialization, identify a ‘’practice area’ for developing deeper level competencies. 

Key terms in domain, their meaning, relevance and application. Potential career opportunities and roles in domain, generic competencies for domain, specific competencies for special roles / opportunities

Key practice areas or sub areas in the domain, competencies associated with each practice area, career opportunities.

Building a resume, one-minute video pitch, Group Discussion sessions, Interview performance skills

Industry / sector specific opportunities, personal networking skills, proactively exploring internship opportunities.

Course Description:  This paper is offered as a common core course in the third trimester. The course aims to develop a research orientation among students and thereby making their managerial decision-making process scientific. The course covers all elements of business research process including problem discovery, literature review, research design, data collection, and data analysis using software applications, interpretation and reporting of results. It provides a knowledge base on steps in a research process needed to conceptualize, define, design and execute a business research project.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1.To identify management problems and convert them into research problems.

2.To choose appropriate research methods based on the research problem.

3.To identify suitable measures and sources of information for literature review and data collection.

4.To construct research instruments for collecting the required data.

5.To recommend suitable courses of action, based on statistical analysis of the data.

Business Research: Concepts, Research skills, types of research, manager-researcher relationship, limitations of research. Research Problem Definition - Problem definition, hypothesis, variables and measurement. Research process, designing a research study, Sampling design, Resource allocation and budgets, Scheduling of projects. Research Proposal:  Purpose, Proposal development, types, structuring the proposal and valuation.

Research design – and overview, the basic stages of research design, classification of research designs – Descriptive, causal, longitudinal, cross – sectional, Experimental and Exploratory. Research in ethics. Ethical treatment of participants, obligation towards sponsors, researchers, team members, and society. Professional standards. Resources for ethical awareness.

Sources of Data: Primary versus Secondary data, Library research, Literature review, use of internet. Data collection design: Qualitative - Focus group discussion, Projective techniques, Depth interview, Observation and Surveys. Measurement: Nature, data types, sources of measurement differences, characteristics of sound measurement, validity and reliability. 

Scaling Design: Definition, classification, response methods, rating and ranking scales, scale construction, arbitrary scale, graphic scale, Itemized rating scales. 

Instrument Design: Types of data collection instruments. Questionnaire construction - structure - content, Wording - sequence, Response strategy, Instrument refining. Experimentation: Nature, Evaluation, Conducting an experiment - Randomized designs - Completely randomized design (CRD) and Randomized block design (RBD). 

Overview of hypothesis testing- t-test, F-test, Chi-square test, Correlation, Regression, Discriminant analysis, MANOVA, Factor analysis, Cluster analysis. Report Presentation: Short and long report - Research report components - Report writing – Presentation – oral and written.

This is a three-credit course offered as a Discipline Specific Elective during third trimester for Business Analytics Specialization students. It is an introductory course on Relational Database Management (RDBMS) concepts. The course includes aspects related to database architecture and creation & querying of data. Various concepts of RDBMS will be delivered through lab sessions.

Course Objectives: At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. To identify data and the components of Database Management System
2. To experiment with Database Model with its relationships
3. To discover Data Definition and Manipulation using SQL
4. To evaluate different Databases and its influence in various applications in a global environment
5. To evaluate knowledge of Query Language using SQL

Data vs Information, Traditional Processing Systems, Database approach, Types of databases- Personal, Workgroup, Department, Enterprise, Inter-organizational, Virtual Storage, Functions and components of DBMS, Risks and Advantages of DBMS, Roles and Users of DBMS. Database Models, - RDBMS- Comparison between different data models. Database Architecture, Database Schemas- Logical, Conceptual and Physical, Designing Databases.

Database design strategies, Database structures- Tables, Views, Index. Logical Design vs Physical Design, Entity Relationship Modelling: Entity, Relationship, Cardinality, Types of Keys, Enhanced ER Design, Normalization and de-normalization, Setting up an RDBMS environment. Introduction to Database Languages: DDL, DML, TCL, DCL. 

Data Definition Language (DDL), Constraints, Integrity constraints, Data Manipulation Language (DML): UPDATE, DELETE, SELECT, Functions and Operators.

SELECT with Order BY, GROUP BY, Subqueries: Single row, Multi row; Set Operators, JOINs: Inner JOIN, Outer JOIN

Roles and Responsibilities of Database Administrator, Database Integrity and ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation and Durability) properties, Transaction Management, Commit and Rollback of Transactions

Emerging Trends:  Self Study: Data Centers, Distributed Data Storage, Big Data- Storage and Retrieval, Web, Cloud Databases, Influence of Data Management, - Social-Media, Business, E-Commerce, Retail, Banking etc. Ethics while handling data

The course defines business model innovation. The course introduces the students to the various innovations in the business models, and how these innovations have a disruptive influence on the industry.  This course provides students a detailed guide to the design and implementation of innovative, and scalable business models across sectors.

definition; types -product innovation, technology innovation; analysing with current business environment; challenges, Idea Management System, Divergent Vs Convergent Thinking

Business models and value proposition, Platform Business models, 2 sided marketplace & network effects in B2C and B2B, Business model failure: Reasons and Remedies, - risk management defined; building risk in business model; risk management strategies across different industries; various dimensions of risk management; groups of business models and risks

Understand the 3 components of the business model and its linkage-Desirability, Feasibility and Viability of redesigned Business Model-Deconstructing the Customer perspective, internal resources and capabilities perspective, Revenue streams and cost structure innovation

Process innovation, competitive advantage. Universality of innovation- staying ahead of the curve for winning customer patronage; how do companies innovate and succeed?  Exploring the link between innovation and organizational characteristics

Future markets: Green innovation- need and influence for of green innovation on corporate ethics across sectors and competitive advantage. Difficult trade-offs in scale, sustainability, and impact. Challenges associated with business model design and rejuvenation in large established.

This course is offered as a finance elective for the MBA programme. It develops an investment attitude and prepares students for careers in the areas of finance and investment. Students opting for finance specialization would find this course to be important as its applications can be seen while understanding financial markets

Course Objectives: This course attempts to develop a conceptual and analytical understanding of framework of evaluating financial instruments & markets and inculcates investment intelligence in students.

Overview of the Investment Environment and Investment Process; Organization and Functioning of securities markets - types of markets, issues, orders and trading strategies; securities trading (trading cost, short sales, margin trading); Security market indices - Stock market indices; Bond market indices. The investment setting - What is an investment? The Asset Allocation decision - Individual investor life cycle; the need for a policy statement; Input to the policy statement; constructing the policy statement; the importance of asset allocation, Introduction to Global stock markets

Introduction to Risk – Return Trade-off, Measures, Analysis, Determinants of Required Rates of Return and Relationship between Risk and Return, Risk-free rate and its influencing factors and Risk Premium:

An introduction to asset pricing models – Capital Market Theory: An overview; The Capital Asset Pricing Model: Expected return and risk; relationship between Systematic risk and return; Equilibrium and Disequilibrium; Multifactor Models of risk and return – Arbitrage Pricing Theory;

Equity Valuation 

Economic Analysis – Macroeconomic activities and security markets, The Cyclical Indicator Approach: Industry Analysis – Business Cycles and industry sectors, Evaluating Industry life cycle, analysis of industry competition and industry rate of returns: Company Analysis, SWOT Analysis; Technical Analysis– Assumption, Advantages, Challenges, Types of Charts, Technical Trading Rules and Indicators

Introduction to Efficient Market Hypothesis, Random Walk Model, Forms of EMH, Empirical Evidence- Tests and results of EMH; Implications of efficient capital markets;

Introduction to Portfolio Management - Measures of risk, return and utility; Markowitz portfolio Theory; Covariance and correlation of returns; portfolio return; portfolio risk; capital allocation; optimal risky portfolios; index models

Passive Vs Active management; asset allocation strategies; evaluation of portfolio performance –application of portfolio performance measures; Bond portfolio building and evaluation

Approaches to portfolio rebalancing, Issues in portfolio rebalancing, Frequency, Extensiveness, Transaction costs, Uses of index and futures funds, Equity Portfolio, Management Strategies, Active management, Dimensions, Optimal residual risk, Benchmark selection, Style, Types, Value, Growth, Size, Management, Rotation, Returns, Inconsistency, Style weights, Style drift, Limitations, Long-short strategies, The Treynor-Black Optimizing Model, Factor models, Contrarian strategies, Within industries, Specialized managers (e.g., REIT managers), Scope of active managers, Alpha sources, Portfolio segmentation techniques, Tracking error optimization, Setting tactical ranges, Market cap issues, Small cap portfolios, Quantitative management, Tax aware equity investing, Costs vs. Benefits of active management, Law Constrained active management, Effect of portfolio size, Passive management, Motivation, Economic impact

2. Chandra, Prasanna. (2008). Investment analysis and portfolio management. New Delhi: Tata McGraw – Hill Publications. 

3. Fischer.,& Jordan., Security analysis and portfolio management. Prentice Hall Publications.

4. Bhalla, V. K., Investment management, S. Chand & Co Publications.

5. Kevin S.(2008). Security Analysis & Portfolio Management, New Delhi: PHI Learning Pvt Ltd Publications.

6. Brealey.,& Myers., Principles of corporate finance (7 th ed.). Tata McGraw Hill Publications

Course Description: This is a cross-functional elective course offered in the third trimester to students of HR specialization. In this course Students learn various aspects of Industrial Relations mainly focusing on compliance part. They will be getting an in-depth knowledge of compliance and they will be becoming an asset for any organization irrespective of sectors.

Course Objectives: This course attempts to develop the awareness among students about the various acts and legal compliances required for smooth functioning of the organization which is essential for all HR managers.

Scope and Extent of the act, Definitions [Industry, Industrial dispute, Individual and collective dispute, Average Pay, Employer, Independent person, lay – off, Lock Out, Retrenchment, Strike, Unfair Labour Practices, Wage and Workmen], Procedure for settlement of industrial dispute, Prohibition of strikes and lockouts, Matters under the purview of Labour Court and Industrial Tribunal,

Definitions, Welfare Measures under the act, Safety Measures under the act, Working hours for adults, Employment of [Young persons, Women], Annual leave with wages, Penalties and Procedures. [Practical case laws will be discussed in depth].

Karnataka Shops and Establishments Act 1961, Activities of Karnataka Labor Welfare Board, Documents to be filed by Shops and Owners in Karnataka, Documents to be filed for registration and its process, Plantation Act [ Employers obligations on Welfare, Leave and Safety

Scope, definitions, establishment, Wages, Worker, Implementation of minimum wages, payment of wages, payment of bonus, advisory board, payment of dues and claims and audit, records and returns, inspector and facilitator and penalties.

Objects, Definitions of [Child Labour, Employer], Prohibition of Children in Certain Occupations, Hours and periods of work, Conditions of Work, Safety, Welfare and Health Measures for Children, Penalties if Children are Employed

Definitions [Contract Labour, Contractor, and Principal Employer], and Procedure for Registration of Establishment, Licensing, Obligations of employers to provide certain amenities, payment of wages, Penalties if this act is violated.

[Definitions: Accounting year, Allocable surplus, available surplus, direct tax, employee, employer, Wage], Computation of gross profits, Computation of available surplus, Eligibility and disqualification for bonus, Minimum and Maximum Bonus, Set on Set Off of allocable surplus, Time limit for payment of bonus, Calculation, Forfeiture of Bonus and Bonus in case of New Establishments, Penalties.

[Definitions: Industrial Establishment, Wages], Responsibility, Time and deductions for payment of wages, Recovery of Amount, Appeals, Conditions where attachment of property can be made, Penalties.

Definitions [ Scope of the act, Apprentice, Designated trade, Graduate or technician apprentice], Qualifications for being engaged as an apprentice, Contract of apprentice, minor as an apprentice, Number of apprentice, Period of training, Termination, Obligations of employer regarding hours of work, safety and health measures, Penalties

Objects, Definitions [ Employer, Industrial Establishment, Standing Orders], Scope of the Act, Establishments to which this act doesn’t apply, Procedure for submission of draft standing orders, Procedure for certification of standing orders, Conditions for certification of standing orders, Payment of subsistence allowance, Penalties.

2.      Kumar, H.L. (2013). Labor Laws Everybody should know (9th ed.). New Delhi: Universal Law Publishing Co. Pvt Ltd.

Additional Reading / Reference Material: Sarma A.M., (2013). Industrial Relations and Labour Laws (2^nd ed.). Mumbai: Himalaya Publishing House

CIA2: 30 marks

Class Participation: 10 marks

End Term Exam: 30 marks

Course Description: This course involves the study of the issues involved in identifying, and developing, relationships with international markets.  The course analyzes the marketing that occurs across national boundaries. Never before in the history of this country has international marketing been so critically important

Course Objectives:

To Provide an understanding of the scope and function of international marketing theory and practice

To develop knowledge and skills to help in developing international market strategies.

To analyze, discuss, describe, and demonstrate the marketing processes and strategies that firms utilize when marketing their products in foreign countries

The different meanings of ‘International marketing’ (Internationalization and globalization) The meaning of the value chain in international marketing. The Importance of International Marketing, Forces Affecting International Integration and International Marketing the Scope and Challenge of International Marketing. Motives for firms going international; Three theories explaining firms’ internationalization process

International Market segmentation, Assessing Market potential and choosing Target Markets, Targeting and Target Market strategy options, Positioning. Product decisions Standardization or adaptation of products, International service strategies PLC and IPLC Product communication alternatives, Branding decisions (sensory branding) Environmental strategies ‘Long tail’ strategies

International Pricing Objectives and Strategies; Factors influencing international pricing, Price escalation, Experience-curve pricing, Transfer pricing, Price quotations, Terms of payment

Structure of the channel (intensive, selective and exclusive) Managing and controlling distribution channels Managing logistics Most common export documents Transportation Internationalization of retailing Grey markets

 International Advertising, Advertising Agencies: Organizations and Brands, Creating International Advertising, International Media Decisions, Public Relations and Publicity. Sales Promotion, Personal Selling, and Special Forms of Marketing Communications

Warren J. Keegan & Mark C.Green (2018). 9th Edition, International Marketing, Pearson Education

Czinkota M.R., Ronkanen, I.A. M.H (2013). 10h Edition, International Marketing. Cengage Learning.

Albaum, G., Strandskov, J., Duerr, E., Dowd, L. (2006). International Marketing ,Pearson Education.

This paper is offered as a functional core course in the third trimester to LOS students. This course emphasizes the importance of total quality management in all areas of business and organizations. Students develop and specialize on the various approaches to quality and problem-solving methodology using quality tools. This course includes emerging trends like data driven quality, use of disruptive technology and non-invasive quality management. Students apply the concepts of continuous improvement and understand the importance of organizational learning as a process driven outcome.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. To understand foundation concepts of TQM
2. To analyse the implementation of Cost of Quality / Cost of Poor Quality for strategic planning.
3. To appraise the business implications of implementation of TQM
4. To explore qualitative and quantitative tools for quality management.
5. To organizational learning frameworks for continuous improvement of business processes

Importance of Quality – history - dimensions of quality – Total Quality principles. Quality Philosophies: Deming 14 Points to transform business; Juran Trilogy; Crosby Zero Defects; Ishikawa quality circles, customer supplier relationship; Taguchi Loss function. Kaizen as a function of Quality; TQM framework – awareness, defining quality and obstacles.

Cost of Quality - Discretionary Cost: - Prevention – Appraisal - Consequential Cost: Internal Failure - External Failure.  Target Costing, Quality and differentiation strategies, quality - strategic planning. COPQ- Cost of Poor Quality, Warranty Claims/ Field Returns and Management.

Management tools for quality, tools for Quality planning. Process Design & Control. Quality Circles, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO TS 16949. Malcolm Baldridge Award – criteria for performance excellence. Comparing Baldridge, ISO 9001 and Six Sigma. TQM in Education. Fitness Levels of Quality. Customer Satisfaction Levels, Company Integration on Customer satisfaction, Customer Focus: Work Concept Changes. Stages of Customer Focus. Customer Concerns, Kano Model and Value function

Importance of teams in Total Quality Ethical values in Quality. Implementing TQM - culture change required. Establishment of (EQC) Effective Quality Communication system. Manpower Training. “Genchi Gembutsu” concept – Go and See actual to understand Quality. Sustainability in TQM.

Benchmarking, Quality Function Deployment, Quality by Design, FMEA, TPM, SPC, Six Sigma, Zero defect inbuilt quality, Product quality design, eQMS - Data driven quality management and quality insights, Digital Twin, Non-invasive quality management, Vendor assessment and certification, GAP Model for Service Quality.

Continuous improvement by process, PDSA/PDCA cycle for improvement, types of problems, problem solving method, problem solving frameworks and tools. Individual learning, team learning, organizational learning.  Hoshin Management concepts of participation & improvement.     

This is offered as a core course in third trimester with 3 credits. This course is designed to expose the students to the concepts, and principles of both Sales and Distribution Management and to develop the necessary skills among the students to effectively sell and distribute products while managing the sales force effectively.

Course Objective: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. Classify different selling approaches and execute sales deals. with efficiency and Effectiveness.
2.  Explain sales forecast methods, territory management, permanent journey plan, annual operating plans and set sales targets and manage quota. 
3. Analyse the concept of Marketing channel design and structure and its overall impact on marketing mix strategy in decision making. 
4. Appraise the concept of Channel power, relationship and channel economics and its impact on “Go to market strategy.
5. Explain the concept of sales force motivation, productivity and performance.

Nature and importance of sales management, Dimensions of sales management.         

Estimating market potential and forecasting sales: Importance and definitions of Sales forecasting methods-quantitative and qualitative techniques.                                                 

Organizing the sales force -- Nature and characteristics, Basic types of organization, Specialization within sales department.

Selling process: Preparation & Prospecting – Challenges of prospecting, qualifying leads, effective prospecting. Sales Approach, Diagnosis and Solution generation. 

Handling Objections: common customer objections, Reasons why prospects raise objections, Objection handling techniques and method.

Closing call: Types of sales closures.  

Sales Force Staffing Process: The planning phase, The recruiting phase, The selection phase– Hiring and assimilation Phase.  

Directing the Sales force: Time and territory management --Objectives and criteria for territory formation, Sales territories design, Time management, Routing and scheduling

Sales quotas and compensation: Purpose, Types of quotas, Administration of quotas, Objectives of a compensation plan, Developing the compensation plans-basic and combination, Trends in compensation plan.

Restructuring quotas due to changes in organization, product portfolio, and geographical coverage.

Controlling and evaluating the sales force: Analysis of sales, costs and profitability, Budgeting, Sales analysis-Marketing cost analysis-Increasing sales force productivity.

Strategy in Marketing Channels: Marketing Channel Strategy and the Role of Distribution in Corporate Objectives and Strategy, Marketing Channel Strategy and the Marketing Mix. 

Designing the Marketing Channels: What is Channel Design, Who Engages in Channel Design, A Paradigm of the Channel Design Decision, the Phases of Channel Design. “Go to Market” with Multiple Channels.

Selecting the Channel Members: Channel member Selection and Channel Design, The Selection Process, finding prospective channel members, Applying Selection criteria, securing the Channel members

Motivating the Channel Members: Finding out the needs and Problems of Channel Members, Offering Support to Channel Members, Providing Leadership to Motivate Channel Members.

Product Issues in Channel Management: New Product Planning and Channel Management, the Product Life Cycle and Channel Management, Strategic Product Management and Channel Management, Trading Down, Trading Up, and Channel Management

Pricing Issues in Channel Management: Anatomy of Channel Pricing Structure, Guidelines for Developing Effective Channel Pricing Strategies, Other Issues in Channel Pricing (Free Riding, Grey Markets).

Promoting through the Marketing Channel: Promotional Strategies and Channel Member Cooperation, Basic Push Promotional Strategies in Marketing channels, Bait and Switch, Consignment Selling, “Kinder and Gentler” Push Promotion Strategies in Marketing, Breakeven Analysis for “Free Schemes” in Channel Promotions. 

Evaluating Channel Member Performance: Factors Affecting scope and frequency of Evaluations, Performance Evaluation versus Day-to-Day Monitoring, Channel Member Performance Audit.

(Self-learning module)

Electronic Marketing Channels: Structure of Electronic Marketing Channels, Developments and Trends in Electronic Marketing Channels, Business Models in Internet Channels, Television Sky shop, Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Marketing Channels. 

Direct Selling Channel Systems: Structure and Trends in Direct Selling, Direct Agents, DSA and MLM formats in Direct Selling

This is a three-credit course offered as a Discipline Specific Elective during third trimester for all Business Analytics Specialization students. Python is a general-purpose programming language which is simple and incredibly readable. The course discusses the fundamental principles of Object-Oriented Programming as well as in-depth data and information processing techniques. The course introduces core programming basics – including data types, control structures, algorithm development and program design with functions – through Python. During this course, students will explore real-world software development challenges while solving practical and contemporary business problems.

Course Objectives: 

At the end of the course, students should be able:

1. To identify various data types in python
2. To apply various types of string operations for data processing
3. To utilize functions for efficient programming.
4. To analyze the data using Numpy and Pandas.
5. To apply various data visualizations to capture data characteristics.

Programming essentials; data types and expressions – strings, variables, assignment, operators, type conversions; Using functions and modules – arguments and return values; Control statements: for loops – count-controlled, augmented assignment, steps; if-else statements – one-way, multiway (elif), logical operators and Boolean expressions; while loops – break, loop logic, errors and testing.

Strings and text files: string concatenation, subscript operator, indexing, slicing a string;

string methods, manipulating files and directories; text files: reading/writing text and numbers from/to a file.

Lists: basic list operators, list methods, mutators, aliasing, object identity and structural equivalence; tuples; dictionaries: dictionary literals, adding and removing keys, accessing and replacing values, traversing dictionaries.

Overview of Object-oriented programming, pickling, exception handling – the try-except statement. Overview of Functions, Functions as abstraction mechanisms, removing redundancy, hiding complexity; recursive functions; Managing a program’s namespace – module variables, parameters and temporary variables; scope, lifetime, named arguments; higher-order functions – Map, Filter & Reduce; anonymous (lambda) functions.  Simple student management system using python constructs and files.

The NumPy module: ndarrays, array-oriented programming, mathematical and statistical methods, sorting arrays, file input and output with arrays, array slicing using NumPy. The pandas module: pandas data structures – Series, Data Frame, Index objects; indexing, selection and filtering, function application and mapping, sorting and ranking, mathematical and statistical methods, reading and writing data in text formats, data preparation, transformation, wrangling – join, combine, reshape, data aggregation and group operations; string manipulation. Pandas-eval () and query ().

Advanced Plots and charts types (stacked bar chart, area chart, bubble chart, box plot, venn diagram, tree map), The matplotlib package: setting graph attributes, saving plots to files, plot configuration files, plotting with pandas and seaborn. Integrating with other Visualization tools.