The following article was originally sourced from the piece “Hands-on Learning” on Kellogg’s News & Events page.
Each semester, the Kellogg School of Management offers new, cutting-edge courses for its MBA students. Here are highlights of two new courses students are taking in the spring semester 2014.
An Ecuadorian Invasion
The Ecuadorian government has turned to Kellogg students in Professor Susan Perkins’ new International Business Strategies Lab to help promote the nation’s tilapia, export their sugar substitute stevia and have their national airline fly directly into the U.S.
Prof. Perkins was inspired to create the course after seeing the innovative work and excitement from students on hypothetical situations in a previous international business strategy course.
Perkins describes the course as “the trifecta of international trade, global strategy and government policy” where her students work remotely with real-world clients. But then she arranged for Ecuador, which has a trade commission office in Chicago, to be the primary client.
“We are going to have those executives in the classroom,” Perkins said. “The students will be working with them on a weekly basis to understand their needs.”
A Corporate Greenhouse
Professor Mike Mazzeo new Strategies for Growth course looks at middle-market companies, which he roughly defined as in the $10 million to $200 million, 20- to 200-employee range.
“Their challenges have been understudied,” he said. “The large companies and the startups have gotten a lot of attention.”
Already a popular pick for the semester with a long waiting list, those that did get in will learn strategies for growing these companies, working from case studies compiled during Mazzeo’s research for his new book, Roadside MBA.
“I’m hoping that they get a greater appreciation for the fundamentals of growth and how that can be applied in all sorts of different situations,” Mazzeo said.