Week
Date
Topics
Readings
Cases
Assignments
Week 1
8/30
Overview of Course
Complete info card
Overview of Case Analysis
Photos
Week 2
9/6
The Concept of Strategy
Grant: Ch. 1
Porter: What is Strategy*
Register for Capstone at
www.capsim.com
(Industry: C46191)
Mintzberg: Crafting Strategy*
Capstone: Watch Introductory Lesson;
Complete Rehearsal Tutorial;
Print Guide (recommended)
Week 3
9/13
Grad Speaker Series Speaker
Capstone: Complete Situational
Analysis
Form Capstone Teams
Week 4
9/20
Mission & Values
Grant: Ch. 2
Corporate Social Responsibility
Porter & Kramer: Strategy and Society*
Due at Beginning of Class
Analyze the vision, mission,
and values of a local org’n
Capstone Practice Round 1**
Handy: What’s a Business For?*
Case: Paradise Farms (on webpage)
Week 5
9/27
Mission & Values; CSR (cont’d)
Paine: Ethics: A Basic Framework*
Business Ethics
Wickes & Harris: Moral Theory and
Framework*
Capstone Practice Round 2**
Case: Smithfield Foods (on webpage)
Week 6
10/4
Industry Analysis
Week 7
10/11
Analyzing Internal Resources
Grant: Ch. 3&4
Case: #3. US Airlines Industry in 2009
Grant: Ch. 5 & 6
Due at Beginning of Class
Complete a 5-Forces analysis
for the same local org’n
Capstone Round 1**
Week 8
10/18
Developing Competitive
Advantage
Grant: Ch. 8, 9 & 10
Case Analysis Due
Bartlett and Ghoshal: Building
Competitive Advantage*
Hambrick & Fredrickson: Are You Sure
You Have a Strategy?*
Case: #5. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Week 9
10/25
Developing Competitive
Advantage (cont’d)
Case: #10. Harley-Davidson, Inc.
Case Analysis Due
Capstone Round 2**
Week 10 Industry Life-Cycle
11/1
Grant: Ch. 11 & 13
Capstone Round 3**
Week 11 Organizational Structure and
11/8
Strategic Control
Grant: Ch. 7
Capstone Round 4**
Week 12 Managing the Multi-Business
11/15
Firm
Grant: Ch. 15 & 17
Case Analysis Due
Case: #22. Bank of America
Capstone Round 5**
Week 13 Catch-up
11/22
Capstone Round 6**
Week 14 Diversification Strategies
11/29
Grant: Ch. 14 & 16
Case Analysis Due
Case: #23. General Electric
Capstone Round 7**
Week 15 Current Trends
12/6
Grant Ch. 18
Reflection Papers Due
Case: W. L. Gore
Capstone Annual Reports Due
* See ‘Supplemental Readings’ on the class website for sources for assigned readings
** All decisions for Capstone are due on Saturday of the week assigned at 11:59 PM