Welcome LetterDecember 22, 2006 Subject: Quantitative Methods for Management Decisions, MA 6600 Dear Students, Welcome to Quantitative Methods for Management Decisions. This course explores the use of applied quantitative tools for managerial decision making. These tools include Bayesian decision theory, programming algorithms and special deterministic models, such as queuing models. Students will utilize computer applications to analyze data and to assist in the decision making process. The prerequisites for this course are BU 5300 or equivalent and computer proficiency. We hope that this course will help you to become a more effective manager. I should tell you a little bit about my background. In my first computer job, back in 1991, I worked for $100 a week answering phones for a former Wang Laboratories employee who was building a new business around his training as a Certified Netware Engineer. That job was supposed to help me pay my way through school to become a Civil Engineer. Instead it launched me down a whole new path, and I have spent my professional career as an information technology integrator and an entrepreneur. In my academic life I have studied engineering, education, business, and information technology. I have a B.S. in Workforce Education and Development from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, an M.S. in Technology for Education and Training from the University of South Dakota and, most recently, an M.B.A. from National American University. I am currently enrolled in a Ph.D. program at the School of Mines. Professionally I have collected a number of industry certifications, mostly from Microsoft. These include Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer, Microsoft Certified Trainer, Microsoft Office Specialist Expert, Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor, and Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator. I have managed teams that worked on Internet technologies, database development, applications development, applications deployment, and network design. From 1994 until 1999 I was a Yeoman in the U.S. Navy, and was in charge of many of the administrative functions of an F/A-18 squadron. While managing correspondence, personnel records, financial reports, operational reports, and classified materials during our three deployments around the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian Gulf, I developed an intimate understanding of many technological challenges that are now common issues for even the smallest businesses, such as information security, portability, connectivity, and interoperability. I have also, at various times, worked in research laboratories and studied engineering public policy. I spent the summer of 2001 in Washington, D.C. on an internship funded by the National Science Foundation to study the public policy issues surrounding the proposal to convert the Homestake Mine into an underground laboratory. From 2002 until 2003 I was the Information Technologies Division Manager for a global technical services firm that does research for many U.S. and foreign government agencies and corporations. I spent much of 2003 and 2004 as a laboratory assistant in the Friction Stir Welding Laboratory of the Advanced Materials Processing Center at the School of Mines. In 2005 I was hired by the State of South Dakota to help develop an index for High Performance Campuses. As a trainer, I have had exciting opportunities to work with all kinds of organizations to help them understand how to use technology to improve their workflow and expand their capabilities. A few of the organizations that I’ve done consulting and training for that you might recognize include: RESPEC Inc, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, Microsoft, Navajo Nation, IMC Global, Regal Computer, Hills Products Group, South Dakota School of Mines, and Rushmore Borglum Story Museum. My current interests run in the direction of the impact that information technology has on business and society. I am writing a book with the working title of Era of Convergence. I speak regularly to groups of all sizes about the evolution of information technology, how it is impacting global business, and how to use it effectively. And I work as a consultant, often managing technology deployments and company startups. I have my own company called “Real South Dakota,” and I am starting a U.S. office for another technical services company called “Denhi.” As for my personal life, many of you have already had the pleasure of meeting my lovely wife, Ruth, who is also a student in the M.B.A. program. We’ve been married about two and a half years, and we share our home with two dogs and a cat. I believe that managers need to understand and be able to explain the analytical basis for the decisions they make. My goal for this course is to prepare you to be a better manager by helping you improve your analytical skills. Our first class will meet on Wednesday, January 3rd. We will meet for 11 weeks. That means we will meet for two hours per night (from 7:30 to 9:20 pm). I will post a syllabus for this class on the Internet at www.danielstanton.com/MA6600, and I’ll use this site for posting assignments and other useful links. You will find the syllabus attached. Please read it and
complete the assignments for Week 1 before our first class. If
you have any questions about these materials, please send me an
email or ask them during the first class. Sincerely,
Daniel Stanton - return to top - MA 6600 GENERAL COURSE INFORMATION1. Schedule:
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3. Contact Information:
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5. Grading Approach.
6. NAU Policy on Cheating and Plagiarism
7. Campus Closure Due to Weather.
MA 6600 MASTER SYLLABUSMA 6600 - Methods for Management Decisions - 4.5 quarter credits Course Description: Objectives of the Course: 1. Observe the role of probability in an uncertain
environment. Additional Instructional Materials: Instructional Materials: MA 6600 WINTER 2007 COURSE SYLLABUSCourse Outline Week 1: Introduction to Quantitative Methodss Written Assignments Each week you will be asked to turn in assignments. Some of them, such as the Biographies, will require you to do research and write papers, while others will involve analyzing problems and using spreadsheets to solve them. I will be posting a website at www.danielstanton.com/MA6600. This site will contain information for this course, and will allow you to download copies of many of the handouts that you’ll receive in class. One of the things that I will post on the site is an Assignment Tracker to help you keep track of what is due each week during the term. Assignments, quiz grades, and your classroom participation, will be the basis for your grade. Therefore, you should have a pretty good idea of how you are doing at all times. Quizzes We will have a short quiz worth 10 points at the beginning of each class. You will know in advance what the quiz will cover, so if you are prepared the quiz is an easy way to earn points. The quizzes will focus on material from prerequisite courses. The intent is to encourage you to brush up on old material before you come to class. That will make it easier for us to spend our time together covering new material, and putting the old stuff together in new ways. Biographies You will write a biography for each of ten people. Each biography should be at least 200 words, or about one full double-spaced page, and will be worth 10 points. You do not need to apply APA format to these biographies, nor do you need to attach a cover page, but you will lose points for errors in spelling and grammar. Please feel free to use Wikipedia as a starting point for your research, but be careful of relying on it as your only resource. Here are some questions that may help you generate ideas while you are writing:
Assignments for Our First Class
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