Business and Society

3 cr · Undergraduate

The course will provide overarching frameworks to examine the nature, role, and importance of business in society. Key internal operations of business organizations will be discussed (e.g. finance, marketing, operations), but the majority of the course examines the relationships that business firms must balance among key stakeholders in their external environment (i.e. government, owners, customers, communities, suppliers, future generations, etc.). Students will examine various institutional contexts (e.g. economic, political-legal, and socio-cultural) and critically think about relationships between business and society, mindfully considering alternative approaches to management. Special emphasis will be placed on contemporary social issues in business (e.g. sustainable development, corporate social responsibility).