Carnegie Mellon University

Strategic Management and Innovation

Course Number: 45940

This course focuses on how organizations expand and change their businesses, seeking to deliver value in changing business environments. Students will engage directly with analytical techniques to evaluate business situations and develop strategies that improve organizational performance three two to three projects on different business development topics. By focusing on the organizational perspective, you will develop practical skills in evaluating and designing ways for firms to achieve key strategic outcomes like growth and innovation, which determine the firm's chances of success in dynamic environments. This course is particularly useful if you are interested in careers such as consulting, business development, investment banking, private equity, or entrepreneurship, or simply want a better understanding of how your next firm can develop a more innovative outlook. Course topics include how to enter new markets with a "build borrow or buy" framework, analyzing M&A from a strategic perspective (complementing a financial perspective), determining how to design an organization for and after disruptive innovation, determining when to divest, and related topics.

Key Topics

  • M&A, Business development
  • Organizational development
  • Disruptive innovation
  • Organizational design
MBA Core Learning Evaluation: Students will be assessed on their performance on two to three group projects spaced throughout the mini.

Degree: MBA
Concentration: Strategy
Academic Year: 2025-2026
Semester(s): Mini 1
Required/Elective: Elective
Units: 6

Format

Lecture: 100min/wk and Recitation: 50min/wk