Indiana University MBA Degree Online

Kelley Direct, an academic unit within the Indiana University Kelley School of Business, offers a Master of Business Administration MBA degree online to public and corporate students. The focus of Kelley Direct's MBA Degree Online is general administration and covers topics such as business ethics, economics, marketing, operations, information technology, and project management. Technical MBA degree online courses taught early on become the foundation for advanced core courses and electives. The MBA degree online program typically takes two years to complete but can be tailored to meet the needs of individual students.

MBA Degree Online Courses

The following is a list of MBA degree online core courses and MBA electives. Please note: some MBA electives are core or elective courses in other programs (i.e., MSF, MSGSCM, MSSM, Kelley/Thunderbird MIM/MBA dual degree, etc.). Specific courses offered as electives are determined two quarters in advance; please review your plan of study to see if your academic program includes elective credits.

C511 Organizational Development and Change (1.5 cr.)
Today's business environment forces executives to use every tool at their disposal to create and maintain an effective and adaptable organization.A major source of effectiveness and adaptability is the way in which the company's efforts are organized-its systems, structures, management process, rewards and strategies.The primary job of senior management today is to design, build, and operate organizations that function effectively. What this means is that the organization is in a constant state of change. Understanding the change process is vital. Knowing the roadblocks to effective change is very important.The role of the manager as a change agent becomes critical. Often the problems arise not from the change itself, but the process of making the change. Individuals resist change. It is a natural phenomenon. How and why this change manifests itself is a central issue in this course. Developing the skills to move through the change process not knowing what roadblocks one might encounter is becoming incredibly valuable.

C514 Managing Human Resources in a Global Environment (1.5 cr.)
Organizations must devise and effectively execute business strategies that are intended to attract, hire, lure, develop, retain, motivate and evaluate employees in order to achieve organizational objectives. Managing Human Resources in a Global Environment introduces students to key issues, practices, and principles that help organizations to manage their human resources effectively. C514 also emphasizes the practice of human resource management in a global marketplace.

C515 Employment Law for Human Resource Practices (1.5 cr.)
This course is designed to introduce and analyze human resources management utilizing am employment life cycle approach.Particular emphasis is placed on the legal environment inextricably intertwined with human resources management and the effect this relationship has on human resource practice. Human resources strategy and the function of human resources within the organization is also explored, focusing on employment law as a component in business strategy that should be utilized to solve issues both creatively and effectively.

C520 Decision Support Systems/Quantitative Analysis (3 cr.)
In this course, we enhance the student’s statistical and mathematical modeling skills covering the following topics: (1) probabilistic decision making, (2) regression analysis, (3)forecasting (4) simulation with @RISK (5) optimization modeling with the EXCEL Solver, (6) making decisions when multiple objectives are involved, and (7) using neutral networks to improve forecasting. Applications from all major functional areas will be discussed.

C522 Information Technology for Managers (3 cr.)
Study of information systems management issues including enterprise support applications, systems acquisition and implementation practices, facilitating end-user support and telework and e-business opportunities. Readings and case analysis and one team project.

C530 Economics for Managers (3 cr.)
Economic decision making in the business firm, the strategic interaction of business firms in industries, the purchasing and consumption behavior of individual consumers and consumers as a group, and the influence of public policy on market outcomes. Development of a fluency with the language of economics and a strong "economic intuition", understanding of selected economics-based decision-making tools and the impact and interaction of the structure of an industry on competition, analysis of intra-industry rivalry, and improved understanding of public policy issues. Emphasis on the logical foundations of economic analysis and managerial decision making. Will promote understanding and application of various quantitative measures.

C537 Market Power Pricing (3 cr.)
Price is one of the most important weapons a manager has in their strategic tool kit, yet it is often overlooked. Instead, managers tend to focus on sales volume and costs as strategic tools to enhance profitability, and not much energy is spent on optimizing pricing decisions. For example, managers routinely set prices by using historical cost-plus markup rules (X% above costs) that are outdated and have not evolved with the dynamic market characteristics. If managers were to optimize prices based on current market information, their overall profit margin would be greatly enhanced. This course is designed to give you the tools that are needed to effectively use price as a strategic tool. The course will have two components: a theory component coupled with an applied component that will give students hands-on experience quantifying pricing decisions through customized cases with data. Case applications will first cover strategic pricing decisions when competitors’ responses are not central to decision makers. Specifically, students will learn the skills essential to properly conduct optimal markup pricing, price customization, cash flow management, non-linear pricing, and product line pricing. Then we will expand our analysis to pricing strategies that account for competitors’ strategic responses. Applications will include predatory pricing, limit pricing, penetration pricing, and estimating rivals’ strategic responses using various oligopoly models.

C540 Financial Management (3 cr.)
Provides a working knowledge of the tools and analytical conventions used in the practice of corporate finance; establishes an understanding of the basic elements of financial theory to be used in application of analytical reasoning to business problems; and explores the interrelationship among corporate policies and decisions. Course work will include problem sets, study group preparation of executive summary memos and critiques, and use of PC spreadsheets to develop a planning model for a case focusing on funds requirement. Prerequisite: C521

C541 Advanced Topics in Finance (3 cr.)
Advanced study in Finance. Topics can vary from year to year but often include capital structure theory, dividend policy, risk management, financial restructuring, current asset management, mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and international finance.

C543 Financial Analysis and Firm Valuation (3 cr.)
This course blends accounting and finance topics dealing with the analysis and forecasting of financial information and the linkage of free cash flows to firm value. Among the topics included is ratio analysis, quality of earnings, off-balance-sheet financing, inter-corporate entities, evaluating intangibles, capital structure, and DCF valuation.

C550 Law and Ethics in Business (3 cr.)
The objective is to provide the student of management with a basic knowledge of the American legal system, the legal process and relevant substantive law which is necessary to making informed and effective business decisions. The law develops and evolves in response to changing social, economic, political, and technological forces, and business decisions often carry long-lasting as well as delayed effects. This course emphasizes the study of the law of torts, contracts, and product liability. It is hoped that consideration of a study of these legal principles will give prospective managers insight into the dynamics of the legal process to enable them to predict as soundly as possible the future legal environment in which their present decisions will bear fruit.

C560 Strategic Management and Business Planning (3 cr.)
This course introduces students to strategic management and planning. In the course, you are asked to develop and execute a business strategy in a business simulation. In the Kelley Direct Online MBA Program, you are asked to develop a wide variety of skills and competencies in management. Developing and executing a business plan is only one of these skills. In addition, many of the skills and competencies addressed in this course will receive progressively greater refining in subsequent courses. As a result, this course should be viewed as in introduction to many issues that you will address again from different perspectives throughout the remainder of the MBA program.

C561 The United States in a Global Economy (3 cr.)
This course takes a macroeconomist's lens to the United States economy in a global context. After taking this course, you will be better able to understand the U.S. and other industrial countries' economic performances, including the terminology and theories that are used to document and explain their long-term trends and cyclical ups and downs. That is, you should be able to better understand and evaluate articles you read in business periodicals like the Wall Street Journal, Business Week, the Economist and the Financial Times.

C562 Developing Strategic Capabilities (3 cr.)
This course offers an introduction to tools for strategic management. It provides an introductory review of the complexities involved in determining long-term strategies. Rather than assessing the firm's environment in terms of broadly defined opportunities and threats, we will examine the dynamics of the competitive environment, how both the pace and direction of industry change are influenced by the resources, capabilities, and competitive interaction of rivals. The course uses discussion forums, team projects, and an interactive simulation.

C563 Integrative Capstone Course (3 cr.)
Business development and venturing is the vehicle for our integrative capstone courses. Employing the tools learned and practiced throughout their program, students will work in small teams to develop business plans for new businesses, or entrepreneurial activities within larger organizations. There is also a business computer simulation that is designed to integrate the knowledge, skills and abilities learned in the program. Readings and other course materials will be assigned by the faculty instructor.

C564 Global Electronic Commerce (3 cr.)
Web-based course with CD-Rom access required. This course explores the meaning of "electronic commerce" and how organizations use it to conduct business more profitably. We will also examine key industries and technologies that currently shape the form that electronic commerce is taking in the U.S. Finally, we will examine cultural and societal factors that influence consumer response to electronic commerce.

C565 Thinking Strategically: Game Theory and Business Strategy (3 cr.)
Game Theory has traditionally been a tool of economists, but its use in management situations has been growing rapidly in recent years. This trend is sure to continue. Managerial decisions are not static and cannot be made in isolation. Instead, a manager must account for the reactions of both rival firms, subordinates, and superiors to this directives and proposals. Game theory is a tool to use to examine these interactions. The course extends the analysis of game theory and business strategy that you began in the Managerial Economics portion of the Core. The ultimate aim of the course is to strengthen your ability to think strategically in business situations, rather than to teach you facts or theories. To achieve this aim, we will iterate between theory and practice. We will use both formal case studies and real world examples to sharpen our strategic thinking skills.

C569 Strategic Cost Management (3 cr.)
This course focuses on 3 principal tools in strategic cost analysis: value chain analysis, cost-driver (activity-based cost and strategic positioning analysis. The course will teach students how to integrate cost analysis into strategic decisions, develop approaches for diagnosing the cause of low-profitability products, services, and identify how corporate strategy can be transformed to generate greater profitability.

C570 Strategic Marketing Management (3 cr.)
An introduction to the process of creating a market-driven organization. Specific topics include marketing strategy, market research and analysis, and the development of products and services, pricing, distribution and promotion. The course employs lecture, classroom discussion through threaded discussion forums, case analysis and field research projects.

C571 Marketing Strategy Simulation (3 cr.)
Teams of students apply the principles of marketing strategy by competing against one another in Markstrat, a complex, dynamic and remarkably realistic market simulation. This exercise requires students to draw on everything they have learned in previous marketing (and other) classes: Reading and interpreting marketing research; anticipating competitors' actions; making accurate market forecasts; and making sound decision about which markets to enter, what new products to launch, and how to price, advertise and distribute your brands. In all of this, each team's goals is to maximize the long-term profitability of its firm.

C572 Applied Marketing Research (3 cr.)
The basic objective of this course is to develop the student's understanding of marketing research as it applies to marketing decision making. The course covers principles of qualitative, experimental and survey research designs, secondary and syndicated data sources, questionnaire designing, and basic analysis. The major focus will be on the tools used to properly collect market research information. Students will also be expected to carry out a marketing research project based on these principles.

C580 Operations Management (3 cr.)
Surveys the management of operations in manufacturing and service firms.Diverse activities, such as determining the size and type of production process, purchasing the appropriate raw materials, planning and scheduling the flow of materials and the nature and content of inventories, assuring product quality, and deciding on the production hardware and how it gets used, comprise this function of the company. Managing operations well requires both strategic and tactical skills. The topics considered include process analysis, workforce issues, materials management, quality and productivity, technology, and strategic planning, together with relevant analytical techniques. The course makes considerable use of business cases. Most classes will be spent discussing the cases assigned. For each case, students will be asked to review actual company situations and apply technical and managerial skills to recommending courses of action. Most cases will be taken from manufacturing, but some will be service-oriented. Several of the cases will focus on international companies or issues.

D734 Working Capital Management (3 cr.)
This course focuses on the set of decisions and problems faced by financial managers-generally in the treasurer function of the organization - in managing short-term operating aspects of the firm. The financial impact of these activities generally is reflected in the top half of the balance sheet. This includes management of cash and liquidity, managing banking relations and funding, managing short-term financial risk, short-term forecasting and participating in managing credit, inventory, and payables policies. Many of these elements are a direct result of the operating policies and activities of the organization. While financial decisions such as capital structure or dividend policy may be the sole purview of the finance department staff, with little input from other areas of the firm, the short-term, operating finance decisions are directly impacted by and must be coordinated with decisions made in other functional areas of the organization, such as marketing or operations. For example, a decision on the size of the raw materials inventory will have to consider the production department's objective of having sufficient inventory level to maintain smooth operations and the finance department's objective of earning a sufficient return on the capital invested. In addition, mechanisms must be in place to efficiently move funds from customers into the company's banking system, to pay its obligations, and to invest temporary excess funds. This course focuses on the financial aspects of these operating decisions, how to evaluate these decisions, and the institutional framework in which these policies are implemented.

E700 Supply Chain Management: Project Management (1.5 cr.)
A project is a task with a beginning, a defined scope, and an end: installing a computer network, introducing a new product, reengineering accounts payable are some examples. It is projected that "the project manager is the linchpin in the current horizontal/vertical organizations". This course focuses on effective project planning and management. Extensive use is made in the course of case analysis. Students will also be exposed to state-of-the-art project management software (Project Primavera).

E701 Supply Chain Management: Business Process Design (1.5 cr.)
Viewing a business operation as a process has become an important concept. Applying this concept has resulted in significant improvements in cost, productivity and quality. This course will cover both manufacturing and administrative/service processes. Initially, the traditional or classical methods of process analysis will be described. Then current methods such as work-group analysis and cross-functional analysis will be covered. Next phase will be assessment and evaluation of processes. Techniques such as the rating method, performance evaluation, benchmarking, and the quality profile are described. Students will use state-of-the-art software designed specifically to support process engineering applications.

E730 Supply Chain Overview (3 cr.)
The course provides an intensive overview of supply chain management including sourcing, manufacturing, distribution along with technologies and quantitative models used in managing supply chain. The course is delivered during the initial residency part of the program.

E731 Supply Chain Management - Sourcing (3 cr.)
This course concentrates on the important functions of working and managing the vendor base that supports the supply base. Students will learn about the design of cooperative arrangements between trading partners, as well as the new technologies like internet reverse auctions and e-hubs that are being employed for e-procurement.

E732 Supply Chain Management System, Distribution Inventory Management (3 cr.)
Supply-Chain management is a system approach to managing the entire flow of information, materials, and services from raw materials suppliers through factories and warehouses to the end-customer. Supply-chain management is different from supply management. Supply-chain management (SCM) emphasizes all aspects of delivering products to customers, whereas supply management emphasizes only the buyer-supplier relationship. SCM represents a philosophy of doing business that stresses processes and integration. This course will focus in two major areas related to supply-chain management: (1) the design of the distribution system, and (2) the planning and control system used to manage the supply chain.

E733 Supply Chain Management - Enterprise Planning (3 cr.)
This course gives the student an in-depth understanding of the technologies that businesses use to better manage their supply chain operations. Key technologies covered are Enterprise Resource Planning systems, Customer Relationship Management, Advanced Planning Systems, and Data Mining.

F711 Information Technology (1.5 cr.)
Study of information systems management, including computer and communications concepts, IT investment decisions, business applications, systems acquisition and implementation, end-user support structures, e-commerce applications, and strategic capabilities. Readings and case analysis are used to address practical issues in the application of information technology.

F722 Managerial Accounting (3 cr.)
Concepts and issues associated with the accounting of and management of business; particular emphasis is given to understanding the role of accounting in product costing, costing for quality, cost-justifying investment decisions, and performance evaluation and control of human behavior. Enables the student to prepare, use, and critically evaluate management accounting information for purposes of planning and control, product costing, and performance measurement and evaluation. Analyzes the role of accounting information in making effective managerial decisions, both at the level of a particular department and of the enterprise as a whole.

F741 Asset Pricing and Security Valuation (3 cr.)
A key focus of managers in public corporations is the creation of enterprise value and the way that value is shared between various suppliers of capital. This course provides an understanding of how financial markets function and how investors value financial securities. This knowledge will assist the manager to understand how various decisions may impact firm and shareholder value. Topics covered include the demand for and pricing of debt and equity securities, portfolio theory, and the pricing and expanding role of derivative securities.

F742 International Financial Management (3 cr.)
This course provides an extension of the major finance topics a manger faces into a global setting. Investing across national boundaries presents unique opportunities and unique risks, thus domestic financial theory must be extended to incorporate these additional factors.. Topics include measurement and management of exchange rate, international parity relationships, translation and transaction exposure, international investment diversification, international capital budgeting and multinational cash management. Prerequisite C540 for MSF

F743 Financial Risk Management (3 cr.)
This course provides a detailed analysis of derivative contracts and their use in risk management strategies. As technology improves and corporations become more innovative, they will be able to isolate and break out more and different kinds of risk that then can be controlled and managed. At this time, risk management is a new area in financial management but is developing very rapidly. This course will consist of two main parts. The first part of the course focuses on the building blocks of derivatives (namely futures, forwards, swaps, and options) and the factors that determine the value of these securities. The second part focuses on the importance and implementation of risk management strategies. We will spend considerable time understanding the dimensions of risk management issues. We will also use cutting-edge software for analyzing risk management problems, such as Riskmetrics and Creditmetrics, and examine actual company cases. Prerequisite F741 for MSF

F744 Financial Strategy and Corporate Restructuring (3 cr.)
The course provides an examination of how corporate and financial strategies can lead to the creation, maintenance, transfer, and destruction of shareholder value.Topics covered include valuing alternative strategies, effectively communicating strategies to the financial markets and aligning the incentives of managers with those of shareholders. A framework for valuing mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures and other joint financing arrangements is developed and applied. Prerequisite F745 for MSF

F745 Valuation and Capital Investments (3 cr.)
A key focus of most publicly owned companies is enhancement of shareholder value. The value of a firm is determined through investors' assessment of the efficacy of managerial actions. Three key finance decisions that affect investors' assessments are the form in which capital is raised, how the capital is employed, and how returns are distributed to providers of capital. Managers and investors have differential access to information on the actions and impact of decisions. Investors try to compensate for this differential information by establishing governance structures to monitor and control management actions and by trying to read intent from management decisions. In turn management attempts to create a structure for analyzing decisions that is consistent with investors valuation if management action could be freely observed. This course investigates how agency relationships and financial contracting affect financial decisions such as capital structure, dividends, share repurchases, and managerial incentives. A capital investment process will be developed that includes the application of analytical tools to assess the economic value created by capital investments, adjustments for project risk using external market information and simulation techniques, and the use of real options analysis to value management flexibility and strategic investments.

R713 Global Supply Chain Management (3 cr.)
A major business trend, accelerated by E-business, is to concentrate on core competence operations and outsource the rest. Companies vary widely in their ability to manage outsourced partners, which make a huge difference in their strategy and success. Students will review recent examples of partner relations and will be asked to review the status of partner relations in their company and propose improvements.

X571 Business Ethics (1.5 cr.)
This course will focus on ethics in the workplace. We will identify and consider practical solutions to ethical dilemmas faced by individuals and explore pragmatic managerial approaches that focus on how managers and organizations can influence ethical behavior.

The course will also present an overview of the external legal and regulatory framework that affects the conduct and reporting of business activity. This will include an introduction to Sarbanes-Oxley, the most recent regulatory effort to influence the ethical behavior of both organizations and individuals associated with the organization with the goal of protecting the interests of one set of stakeholders - shareholders. We will also consider the extent to which compliance with such laws and regulations requires such extraordinary measures that ethical behavior in and of itself becomes a sustainable competitive advantage.


X572 Career Management (1.5 cr.)
This course will provide students with the background and resources necessary to evaluate their skills and background and to plan and execute a job search or career change. Topics covered will include self-assessment, market assessment, career strategy and planning, resumes and job search correspondence, networking, interviewing, accessing job opportunities, and offer evaluation and negotiation. This course is strongly recommended for students who are considering participating in on-campus recruiting for full-time jobs in Fall 2007.

X573 Green Capitalism (1.5 cr.)
The environmental movement has grown by leaps and bounds and innovative thinkers in the business world are setting a new business agenda – developing a strategy that explicitly takes into consideration the environmental issues – not as an afterthought but as a forethought. From design to manufacturing to services, such thinking can radically transform the business world. This course focuses on these timely and classical issues and provides an opportunity for business executives to reflect on them and develop an integrated perspective that can enable them to become successful leaders in the business world. The course forces students to take a hard look at some classical and also pragmatic ideas and real cases of companies that have managed such issues. It will challenge the students to develop an integrated perspective towards environment and business strategy.

X573 Law for Global Business (3.0 cr.)
This course exposes students to the nature of law and its business related functions in the global environment. It examines the legal problems associated with international trade, licensing, and investment. This includes an analysis of the fundamental principles of public international law and the U.S. regulations that have been enacted to implement various international agreements for trade and investment. Students should develop an awareness of the special legal problems facing global business managers as well as an understanding of the cultural, political, and ethical factors shaping the content and enforceability of international business transactions.


X574 Trans-global Business Project (3.0 cr.)
Country Analysis and Transnational Enterprise Management



Students first gain skills in country analysis. Country analysis is a methodology popularized by the Harvard Business School for measuring national economic performance, assessing a country’s institutional and cultural landscape, and forecasting political risk. This helps managers assess, in an orderly way, variables in foreign countries that they cannot control. Application of country analysis sets up a more sophisticated discussion of fundamentals in transnational enterprise management. These fundamentals include comprehension of organizational architecture for business across country boundaries, transnational leadership culture, and inter-country supply chain design. Students submit a deliverable that poses an applied management question and analyzes a business problem which spans multiple political jurisdictions.


X574 Collaborating with NGOs (1.5 cr.)
Globalization has brought economic prosperity to many nations but it has also polarized the world more than ever. There are two significant and recent trends that have served to address this. Many businesses have reached out of their business domain to serve the communities in which they are embedded in and the humanity at large. Parallel to this is the dramatic rise of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), estimated to number in thousands and employ several more thousands of professionals. While traditional view has pitched MNCs and NGOs as entities with competing interests, increasingly there is recognition of the common intentions of serving humanity with complimentary resource and knowledge assets. This course aims at enabling business executives to develop an understanding of NGOs, and consider the rationale and processes for MNC-NGO collaborations, assess potential impact of such collaborations on their business strategy and performance, and develop a thoughtful action agenda on making their organizations more effective in their outreach through such collaborations.

X575 Strategic Entrepreneurship (3.0 cr.)
In developing the foundations of the entrepreneurial mindset, this course describes tasks such as: making sense of opportunities in the context of changing goals, constantly questioning one’s ‘dominant logic’ in the context of a changing environment, and revisiting ‘deceptively simple questions’ about what we think to be true about markets and the firm.

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