Economics for Managers

Explore the world of business through the lens of economics as you prepare for your next opportunity.

KEY CONCEPTS

Develop effective pricing strategies

Benchmark costs compared to competitors through relative cost analysis

Apply conjoint analysis to understand what features customers value most

Understand the power of network effects to drive demand

Identify sources of competitive advantage through differentiation

Course Description

The fact of scarcity forces individuals, firms, and societies to choose among alternative uses – or allocations – of its limited resources. Accordingly, the first part of this summer course seeks to understand how economists model the choice process of individual consumers and firms, and how markets work to coordinate these choices. It also examines how well markets perform this function using the economist’s criterion of market efficiency.

Overall, this course focuses on microeconomics, with some topics from macroeconomics and international trade. It emphasizes the integration of theory, data, and judgment in the analysis of corporate decisions and public policy, and in the assessment of changing U.S. and international business environments.