Teaching
I teach Cost Analysis and Internal Controls (BUSN 30001). I will next offer the course in Winter 2021 for the full-time, evening, and weekend MBA programs. Please e-mail me if you have any questions about the course.
Course description
This course focuses on internal operations, cost analysis, and performance evaluation, as opposed to the evaluation of external financial statements. Its targeted audience includes students intending become management consultants, entrepreneurs, managers (e.g., CEOs, CFOs, COOs, and product managers), and anyone with an interest in understanding how firms (1) make decisions about products and services and (2) evaluate performance and risk. Topics covered include overhead allocation, activity based costing, opportunity cost of excess capacity, customer profitability, capital budgeting, transfer pricing, performance evaluation, risk management, internal controls, and fraud. Applications cover both the manufacturing and services sectors.
Teaching style
The course is primarily case-based, with a smaller (roughly 1/3) lecture component. I require students to read the case and answer some questions before coming to class. In class, we discuss the case in detail. I end each class with a lecture that covers the core concepts of the topic(s) introduced by the case, as well as other related material. I find that the case-first, lecture-second approach, while difficult, encourages a deeper and more complete learning of the key concepts. The class is very assignment-intensive, especially at the beginning of the quarter.
Deliverables
Case assignments: At least one is due in each class session (except the final one); some sessions have two case assignments
Problem sets: There is one during the quarter
Take-home final project: This is the final exam (there is no in-class examination)
Recent course evaluations
Winter 2020: 4.7 out of 5, Winter 2019: 4.8 out of 5
Teaching awards
I received the 2019 Emory Williams Award for Teaching Excellence; this is the Chicago Booth schoolwide teaching award, decided by students across the full-time, part-time, and weekend Booth MBA programs.