Post Graduate Programme in International Management

Post Graduate Programme in International Management

(PGPIM : 2017 – 2019)

Course Outline

Problem Solving, Decision Making and Project Management

Course Instructor: Ashok Panjwani (Room No. B-18), Extn: 5187 Email: apanjwani@mdi.ac.in

COURSE OVERVIEW & OBJECTIVES

        The purpose of this course is to provide the students with a conceptual understanding and exposure to application of various scientific methods and techniques for business model building/problem solving and decision making.

        While the substantive content of this course is structured around known models (like LP, IP, Multi-criteria decision making, Gantt Chart, CPM, PERT, etc.), the focus of the course would be on introducing students to the art and science of modeling and problem solving frameworks. The art aspect deals with how a problem is articulated and formulated and this to a great extent depends on the individual’s intuitive faculties.  The science aspect of it is built using basic systems approach and concepts, and can be systematically learnt.  With increasing ease of availability of software(s), the nitty-gritty of computations has been mostly eliminated.  Thus, the emphasis is on correctly formulating a problem, which is the tougher part and really the job of the manager. This is weaved around some of the standard models, and their use will be examined in depth.  This course, therefore, specifically seeks to:

• Introduce students to the concepts and techniques of modeling decision situations in business;
• Define and understand various classes/types of standard mathematical models that can be effectively/easily used by business managers;
• Emphasize on skills to use computational techniques/methods and spreadsheet frameworks as effective tools for modeling and developing decision-support systems.

        After completing this course, the participants should be able to structure, analyze and solve problems in a variety of contexts.

PEDAGOGY AND  PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

The course will be based on a mix of lectures, classroom discussions, exercises and project/assignment work. Class participation is important and students are expected to prepare (read before coming to class) and critique the readings.  Students are also expected to use appropriate computer software(s) while they are undergoing this course.  

The course is designed to be interactive and exploratory with  the instructor as the facilitator in this process.  Thus, learning will only happen by taking  active part in exploring  alternative formulations,  solution analytics, adopting  a hands-on approach and probing the managerial implications of the outcome(s) using the problem-solving frameworks.

The performance assessment will be based on the following components/weightages:

Class participation/preparation/presence/presentation and Group Assignment (Case/Project)                                                        :        15%

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