Master's Level Course Descriptions

GRADUATE MASTER'S LEVEL COURSES OFFERED BY THE INFORMATION SCIENCE AND SYSTEMS DEPARTMENT

MBA INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND SUPPLY CHAIN COURSES:

INSS 540: Operations Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course provides an understanding of analytical and managerial tools and concepts that are used to help manage important operations functions. It provides a foundation for understanding the operations of a business or manufacturing facility. Students will learn how a company's technology, facility configuration, processes, trading relationships, and management practices enable it to effectively and efficiently serve their markets. The course covers such topics as production and inventory control, scheduling, and quality control. Students will be able to implement various techniques used in operations management based on knowledge of college algebra, statistics, and Excel spreadsheets. Prerequisite: INSS 586

INSS 586: Fundamentals of Quantitative and Statistical Skills for Managers
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course highlights the essential skills in mathematics and statistics that are required of the manager. These skills underlie the manager's ability to make sound decisions and solve complex problems.

INSS 587: Fundamentals of Information Technology for Managers
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course highlights the importance of the world of information technology in organizations. The focus is providing a base for understanding the fundamental concepts of architecture, information systems, the internet, and other technological innovations to the effective structure of supply chains, enterprise management, and customer response. The course is centered on the practical understanding and use of the concepts and terminology of technology. This course uses productivity software applications to solve business cases.

INSS 630: Supply Chain Management and Strategic Sourcing
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course introduces students to tools, techniques, and strategies for effective sourcing and for managing supply chains. Students learn to use software tools for managing supply chain resources. This course uses case studies and articles to enhance student learning.

INSS 632: Logistics Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course introduces students to analytical tools and frameworks related to logistics and distribution channels management. Students learn to use software tools in designing and managing a logistics network. This course uses case studies to augment student learning.

INSS 634: Information Systems for Supply Chain Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course introduces students to managerial and technical issues related to the adoption and strategic use of information systems for effectively managing supply chains. Students learn to use software tools and techniques to manage enterprise resources. This course uses case studies to augment student learning.

INSS 636: Current Issues in Supply Chain Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This capstone course introduces students to current issues in supply chain management. Students discuss case studies and review the latest academic & practitioner articles. Students work on a project where they deal with a real company's supply chain management issues.

INSS 687: Information Technology & Supply Chain Management System
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course highlights the role of technology as an integrative component in the strategic success of an organization. The course examines the role of Information Technology (IT) plays as a competitive tool that can differentiate a company's products, services, and processes. The course also examines the basic supply chain management processes and the strategic role of enterprise information systems in creating business value for organizations. Prerequisite: INSS 587.

INSS 692: Knowledge-Based and Collaborative Systems in the Organization
Three Hours: 3 Credits
Knowledge management is a key element in many organizations. Explicit knowledge exists throughout an organization and has to be organized with knowledge systems to provide support for decisions and problem-solving and planning. Implicit knowledge is another element in a successful organization that defies ordinary means of organizing. Both are explored. Knowledge-based organizations and ideas like intellectual capital (to compare with financial capital) are hand in hand with the increased collaboration in a modern organization. The class explores the richness of these concepts through cases and projects.

INSS 693: Decision Support Systems
Three Hours: 3 Credits
In this course, students integrate areas leading to and contributing to management decision making. The course focuses on management's needs and uses for decision and expert systems, various management support tools, and implementing management support systems. The course includes contemporary topics in Decision Support Systems (DSSs), Executive Information Systems (EISs), Expert Systems (ES), Neural Networks (ANN), Groupware. It provides hands-on practice in building and using decision support and expert systems software applications. Prerequisite: INSS 687 with a grade of ‘B' or better.

INSS 695: DATA ANALYTICS FOR DECISIONS -
Three hours; 3 credits.
This course focuses on the development, governance, management, and utilization of analytical and computational models for structured and unstructured data to solve business needs. Information architectures, business intelligence and data mining topics relevant to the business domain are covered.

Prerequisites: INSS 587: Management Information Systems, and INSS 586: Quantitative and Statistical Skills for Managers, or equivalent, with a Grade of B or better.

INSS 696: Current Issues in Information Technology
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course provides students with opportunities to learn about the current issues in technological advantages in the field of information technology through current readings, discussions, and experiences. The content of the course varies from semester to semester based on paradigm shifts in business. Currently, topics include Electronic Commerce, Internet, and Intranet, EDI, Applications of World Wide Web, etc. Prerequisite: INSS 687 with a grade of ‘B' or better.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT COURSES:

PROJ 600: Foundations in Project, Program, and Portfolio Management.
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This problem-based interdisciplinary course introduces project management tools and techniques. It introduces program and portfolio management in corporate and government settings. Students use practical applications to manage projects from start to finish. Students use software tools for planning and monitoring projects (Formerly Project, Program, and Portfolio Management).

PROJ 650: Project Integration and Scope Management.
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course explores integration processes, including developing the project charter and project management plan; directing and managing execution; monitoring and controlling work; integrated change control, and project closeout. The scope management portion of this course covers the processes that ensure all the work, and only the work, required for successful project completion is included in your projects. Scope processes include scope planning and definition, creating a work breakdown structure, and scope verification and control (Formerly Project Planning and Resource Management). Prerequisite: PROJ 600.

PROJ 655: Building and Leading Successful Project Teams.
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
The course focuses on project communication needs, how to plan for meeting those needs, project stakeholder management, and related project human resource issues. It introduces students to a communications model, techniques to improve communications, crisis communications, identifying stakeholders, and virtual teams. Students learn the dynamics of human resource planning tools, receive an overview of key organizational behavior theories and leadership theories, negotiation, team development, and conflict management. The course uses case studies to augment student learning. (formerly Project Communication, Negotiation, and Human Resource Management)

PROJ 660: Project Time and Cost Management.
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course links project time and cost management to build on the definition of project work accomplished through scope management. It offers students an opportunity to both plan a project from a time and cost perspective but to also learn the techniques to monitor and control it to successful completion. Topics include cost estimating techniques, activity sequencing, critical path analysis, and earned value management. Students will use project management software in this course. (Formerly Project Cost, Value, and Financial Management). Prerequisite: PROJ 600.

PROJ 670: Managing Project Procurement, Quality, and Risk.
Three Hours: 3 Credits.
This course focuses on three of the key success factors for the execution of most projects: procurement, project quality, and risk management. It introduces students to the challenges associated with determining what the project team will not produce internally, acquiring the external resources needed, integrating procurements into the overall project plan, and conduct, administration, and closing of procurements. Students are introduced to the dynamics of contract negotiation, and basic contracting legal requirements.
Students are introduced to topics such as quality processes, quality assurance, and quality control and best practices to ensure delivery with the required quality, integrating quality into projects, and selecting and applying pertinent quality metrics. Finally, concepts of identification and classification of potential risks to the successful completion of the project, analyzing identified risks, developing mitigating actions to take should any of the identified risk events occur, and monitoring techniques for risk management are presented. The course uses case studies and team exercises to augment student learning. (Formerly Project Procurement Management in Public and Private Sectors). Prerequisite: PROJ 600.

PROJ 681: Managing IT Projects
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course covers the fundamentals of project management methodology as applied to IT initiatives. By using case studies, this course examines all aspects of IT projects, including hardware and software selection, vendor relationships, and working with local and remote teams. The course introduces students to modeling software tools. Prerequisite: PROJ 600.

PROJ 685: Special Topics in Project Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course introduces students to special topics in project management. Students discuss case studies and review the latest academic and professional journal articles. Currently, topics such as Agile Project Management, tools, and techniques are presented in this course. Prerequisite: PROJ 600.

PROJ 690: Project Management Application
Three Hours: 3 Credits
Each student identifies and manages a project (about 12-weeks in length) on campus or at a company or agency. Students manage a complete project management life cycle and validate a full range of PMBOK®-specific project management processes from project charter through project closure. Projects must be approved by the Chairperson. Prerequisite: PROJ 600, PROJ 655, PROJ 650, PROJ 660, PROJ 670.

PROJ 798: Project Seminar
Three Hours: 3 Credits
Required of all students in the last semester of the MSPM program. Students must complete the Project Seminar after completing all core courses. This course has a comprehensive project requirement similar to a thesis that integrates research with all Project Management knowledge areas, processes, and a final deliverable along with all the project management documentation. Prerequisite: PROJ 600, PROJ 655, PROJ 650, PROJ 660, PROJ 670.