Example course descriptions

Course	Organisation
Objectives	to explain the key elements of organisational structure and design to comprehend the nature of organisational culture to identify the dynamic facets of an organisation in order to achieve company objectives to understand the forces for organisational change and development
Course	Corporate Finance
Objectives	to derive a cash flow statement from a balance sheet to evaluate the financial performance of a firm to compound and discount a series of cash flows
Course	Strategic Management
Objectives	to understand the following key-concepts of strategic management: what is competitive advantage? what is competitive and what corporate strategy? how do we achieve and sustain it? who plays what role? to evaluate the competitive, political, legal, socio-cultural, ecological, economic and technological factors which play a key role in determining both the direction and outcome of strategic business activity analyse and assess the possibilities and processes by which (international) business strategies are devised, developed and implemented to critically assess the limits and possibilities of implementing appropriate (international) business strategies
Course	International Taxation
Objectives	to characterise the fundamental principles of national/international taxation (Swiss, German, French, German and US Taxation; double taxation avoidance) to discuss and critically evaluate OECD Model Tax Convention, as basis for specific double taxation treaties to display knowledge of the transaction policies, in particular regarding, outbound and inbound transactions as well as Mergers and Acquisition transactions and transfer pricing to explain the purpose and aims of international taxation law. Course
Course	Human Resource Management
Objectives	to understand the interaction between business strategy/structure and HR strategy/structure as well as to explain the strategic importance of human resource management (HRM) as a source of competitive advantage in organisations in the context of global megatrends and functional HR best practise/best fit trends

Course	Intercultural Management Styles
Objectives	to describe models, processes & styles of management in contexts for intercultural business and management to develop and evaluate strategies relevant to managing cultural diversity and towards developing intercultural synergies
Course	Marketing Research
Objectives	to write a clear, structured and problem-oriented marketing research plan using the appropriate selection of techniques and methods available to develop an analytical approach to data collection to accompany the marketing research process up to the data preparation stage to present the findings
Course	Conflict Management
Objectives	to understand the relation between negotiation theory and conflict resolution theories to analyse the nature of conflicts to identify causes and potential amelioratory actions and methods to evaluate options for the application of the conflict models discussed to demonstrate a practical understanding of the challenges and opportunities of conflict resolution to identify current and emerging trends in the field to understand and analyse conflict in depth applying the methods discussed
Course	Project Management
Objectives	to manage projects or support management of projects to design project management structure (including different roles and linkages) depending on the organizational structure in an enterprise to conduct project time planning and identify the critical path of a project using the CPM- and PERT-techniques to understand the life-cycle and phases of a project, viz. Initiation, Planning, Execution and closing and how these are managed using the project management processes to measure project performance by applying Earned-Value Analysis (EVA)

Course	Macroeconomics
Objectives	to explain the cause and effects of the level of consumption and investment to define the short-run equilibrium output and the multiplier model to examine how government spending and taxes affect aggregate demand to consider output determination including foreign trade to define the key attributes and functions of money to analyse the role and function of commercial banks to explain the key roles of the central bank and the channels in which it can affect the money supply to analyse how money market equilibrium can be achieved
Course	Information Systems
Objectives	to understand the role of IS in today’s business world to understand the components of information systems (IS) to know the major components of IS infrastructure to understand how IS are enabling new forms of commerce to be aware of emerging technologies to understand how various types of IS provide the information needed to gain business intelligence to support decision making for the different levels and functions of an organization to understand how IS foster stronger relationships with customers and suppliers to understand how IS are used to enforce organizational structures and business processes
Course	Cases in European Business Law
Objectives	to understand the importance of EU law for business to understand the basics of EU law as relevant for business

Course

English and French or German (opposite of native language)

Objectives

Development of key skills (speaking, listening, reading, writing) in a professional context
Extension of business vocabulary (banking, insurance, customer service etc.)
Country knowledge: current topics relevant to English/French or German speaking countries as well as for business and economy
Writing business letters and academic/professional reports
Effective oral presentations with use of aids
Preparation for official exams such as the Cambridge Exam in English, the German Certificate of the Goethe Institute or the DFP AFFAIRES exam in French and/or others (depending on the student’s language level).

After an initial examination on the students’ language level in the two non-native languages (normally English/French or English/German), the classes split up in different groups according to their language level. Normally there are three English groups (B2, C1 and C2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages), three French groups (B1, B2, C1) and two German groups (B1, B2). According to students’ language level, learning objectives may differ, but they generally include the objectives above.

Course	Spanish
Objectives	Development of key skills (speaking, listening, reading, writing) in a professional context Extension of vocabulary with business focus Country knowledge: current topics relevant to Spanish speaking countries as well as for business and economy Preparation for official Spanish exam DELE and/or others (depending on the student’s language level)
	Depending on the students’ level of language, there might be different groups. According to students’ language level, learning objectives may differ, but they generally include the objectives above.
Course	Chinese
Objectives	The Chinese language and its graphs (Pinyin, simplified signs and letters) 100-500 Words (listening, comprehension, pronunciation, writing in pinyin) Understand and apply simple and work related dialogues with standardized grammatical patterns Introduce yourself and others, work related situations Provide information regarding your personal background, your study programme and your business area The Chinese culture’s impact on language and vice versa Making contacts in China
	Depending on the students’ language level, there might be different groups (normally A1 and A2). According to students’ language level, learning objectives may differ, but they generally include the objectives above.
Course	Leadership Models
Objectives	awareness about underlying assumptions of different management models reflection of today's prevailing command-and-control management model knowing an alternative management model that is beyond command-and-control: Concepts and examples how to approach the implementation of transformational change Awareness about underlying assumptions of different management models reflection of today's prevailing command-and-control management model knowing an alternative management model that is beyond command-and-control: Concepts and examples how to approach the implementation of transformational change
Course	Development Economics
Objectives	to define the major challenges facing developing countries to give an outline of how to solve major problems facing developing countries to understand how to use the principles of economics in solving problems facing developing countries to conduct a case study in development economicsdefine the major challenges facing developing countries to give an outline of how to solve major problems facing developing countries to understand how to use the principles of economics in solving problems facing developing countries to conduct a case study in development economics
Course	Sociology, Media & Sports Management
Objectives	In addition to considering Sports Management and Media in general, students will be given examples of localization in sports marketing during the October 17 course. A task will then be set to see how this information can be used in a commercial marketing campaign. The experience of this UK based course is intended to provide students with an increased awareness of the potential sensitivities of clients, co-workers and companies in an increasingly cultural diverse marketplace.
Course	Trinational Economic and Political Cooperation
Objectives	to understand the economic and political structures of the Upper Rhine region (cantons of Northwest Switzerland, Alsace region, Federal State of Baden-Württemberg) to understand the institutional bodies (e.g. the French, German Swiss Upper Rhine Conference) in the Upper Rhine and their political actors to understand the important business sectors of the cross-border bodies, e.g. Land Use Planning, Transport, Culture, Industry, Tourism to understand the prerequisites for successful cross-border co-operation and the latest developments in the Upper Rhine to understand the legal decrees which lay the foundation of tri-national co-operation
Course	Corporate Social Responsibility
Objectives	Understand and appreciate why CSR matters Learning how to put sustainability into practice Understanding and using concepts and frameworks for the analysis and management of stakeholder expectations Implementing CSR and sustainability from different stakeholder perspectives Getting familiar with CSR industry best practices Being able to use reporting frameworks for triple-bottom-line reportingUnderstand and appreciate why CSR matters Learning how to put sustainability into practice Understanding and using concepts and frameworks for the analysis and management of stakeholder expectations Implementing CSR and sustainability from different stakeholder perspectives Getting familiar with CSR industry best practices Being able to use reporting frameworks for triple-bottom-line reporting
Course	Mindfulness-Training
Objectives	Nach Teilnahme am Kurs werden die Studierenden fähig sein: selbstständig Zazen und andere Meditationen zu praktizieren selbstständig verschiedene Achtsamkeitsübungen, z.B. Bodyscan und Yoga zu praktizieren und Achtsamkeit allgemein in ihrem Alltag anzuwenden. besser mit Stress und starken (störenden) Gefühlen umzugehen. Nach Teilnahme des Kurses werden die Studierenden die folgenden theoretischen Kenntnisse erworben haben, die durch praktische Übungen individuell angewandt und verifiziert wurden: Bedeutung und Funktion der Wahrnehmung Einheit von Körper und Geist Entstehung von Stress Grundlagen achtsamer Stressreduktion Grundlagen achtsamer Kommunikation und ihrer Bedeutung Selbstregulation durch Zen Die Praxis des Zen

Social Media FHNW School of Business

Degree Programmes

Business

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