Swiss School of Business and Management Geneva

(SSBM Geneva)

SSBM Geneva Program Outline

Executive MBA

Method: Online

Duration of Program: 12 months/2 semesters

Total number of ECTS: min. 60

Avenue des Morgines 12, 1213 Genève

Switzerland
www.ssbm.ch

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1. Enrollment criteria

Admission to MBA studies is granted to people who fulfil the following

requirements:

- Hold a Bachelor’s degree in the related field or an equivalent university

degree.

• Applicants who do not have a Bachelor’s degree in the related field

will have to complete at least 2 online management courses prior to
being enrolled into master program and subject to the Recognition of
Prior Learning policy. The Admissions Committee decides on the final
number of the courses that have to be taken by the student.

- Minimum of two years‘ work experience.

- English requirements:

• TOEFL, IELTS or Cambridge

• Intensive English Program certificate
• Previous education in English speaking or Bilingual school with an
official certificate
• Test/Interview with SSBM member staff (75 EUR cost which will be
deducted from tuition fees upon enrolment).
• If a candidate is not from a majority English-speaking country, then
an evidence of English language competency is required.

2. Credit Transfer and Recognition of Prior Learning

Credit Transfer and Recognition of Prior Learning are described in the “Recognition
of Prior Learning (RPL) Policy” of SSBM Geneva.

3. Graduation Requirements

Upon successful completion of the MBA program students will be awarded with an
MBA with a selected specialization. If no specialization was selected, “Executive
MBA” will be awarded. To successfully complete the program, students must:

• Complete all program courses with a passing grade

• Have no outstanding financial obligations towards SSBM

Award of MBA with Distinction

MBA with Distinction, is awarded to students who meet the following terms:

• Complete their studies with an average grade score of minimum 90%:

o For 6.0 grade scale minimum average grade of 5.5
o For 4.0 grade scale minimum average grade of 4.0 (letter grade A)

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4. Teaching Method and Learning Materials

This program is delivered entirely online through the SSBM Online Learning Portal
used by Harvard and MIT. Modules can be completed in student’s own time and
pace.

Online learning is delivered through asynchronous and synchronous methods.

Asynchronous learning takes form of:

− prerecorded lectures supplemented by a variety of engaging activities such

as quizzes, readings, assignments, capstone projects, knowledge checks,
etc.

Synchronous learning takes form of:

− live lectures in form of Live Q&A Sessions, live seminars and webinars,
guest lectures, live lectures on specific topics, one to one sessions with the
lecturers, etc.

All learning materials for this program are made accessible through the SSBM
Online Learning Portal.

Access to SSBM Connect is provided to all SSBM students. SSBM Connect is an

online platform to socialize / exchange / engage and communicate with current
students, alumni, professors and industry partners.

Access to SSBM e-Library and ESBCO (largest provider of research databases, e-

journals, magazine subscriptions, e-books and discovery service) is provided to all
students. SSBM Librarian is available to all students to further advance their
access to literature.

5. Grading system

Grade elements are described in the course syllabus and consist of formative and
summative assessments.

The numerical assessment at a module level is expressed in the following whole

grade points and half-grade points in between:

6 = very good
5 = good
4 = sufficient
3 = insufficient (fail)
2 = weak (fail)
1 = very weak (fail)
A grade of 4.0 is equivalent to 60% of the minimum possible performance:

Percent Grade 6.0 Scale

95-100 6.0
90-94 5.5

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 85-89 5.0
80-84 4.5
60-79 4.0
50-59 3.5
40-49 3.0
30-39 2.5

Additional conversion table for 4.0 and letter grade scales (for international
students):

Letter Grade Percent Grade 4.0 Scale

A 90-100 4.0
B 80-89 3.0
C 70-79 2.0
D 60-69 1.0
F < 60 0.0

The exam is passed if the total number of points equals to or is above 60.

6. Regular exam deadlines

If the student fails the 1st exam deadlines, he/she can attend regular
examinations.

• Students who do not pass the exam in the 1st deadline take the next regular
exam.
• Number of times the student can take the exam is 3+1, where the last one
is considered as a commission exam. If the student fails, the commission
exam he/she has to enroll in the course one more time.
• Commissions exam is held through the commission.
• Commission exam cannot be cancelled.
• Grade achieved on the exam is considered to be the final grade of the
student.

If the student decides to refuse the grade achieved on the exam, he/she is
obligated to communicate his/her decision to the head of the course and take
another exam.

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7. Program Outcomes

Master’s core Learning Outcomes applicable to all Masters:

• Graduating students will demonstrate fundamental knowledge of the

functional areas of business
• Master students will be able to demonstrate proficiency in technical and
digital literacy.
• Master students will demonstrate effective teamwork and leadership roles
• Master students will demonstrate good written and oral communications
skills
• Master students will be able to communicate effectively and efficiently
• Master students will acquire analytical skills

Program-specific Learning Outcomes:

• Demonstrate understanding of the importance of global finance

• Use and apply technology in the business environment context
• Analyze market strategies and understand how global organizations can
benefit from business models

8. Program Specializations
Students can tailor the Executive MBA program by choosing a specialization
by selecting additional courses that are added to the core program
curriculum. Specialization is dependent on the courses that the student
chooses.
Executive MBA specializations are the following:
• Global and International Management
• Cybersecurity Management
• Human Resources Management
• Global Finance and Banking
• Marketing
• Operations Management
• Strategic Management
• Entrepreneurship
• IT Management
• Sustainability & Energy Management
• Hospitality Management

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9. Program Curriculum

Course
Course Lecturer ECTS
ID
26705 Strategic Management (SMGM01) Anna Provodnikova 6
26700 Strategic Marketing (OSM01) Olesya Meskina 6
26633 Project Management (PM01) Mario Silic 7
26656 Financial Management (FM03) Dario Silic 8
26638 Business Presentation Skills (PSB01) Alexander Lyon 5
26658 Strategic Leadership (SL01) Marshall Goldsmith 5
26698 Innovation and Change Management (IACM01) Velimir Srica 7
26748 Digital Business Acceleration (DBA01) Damir Gavran 5
26657 Data Analytics and Decision Making (DADM01) Mario Silic 6
26639 Human Resources Management (HRM01) Aco Momcilovic 5
26647 Tax Management (TM03) Adrian Hammer 5
26684 Financial Statements analysis and company Dario Silic 7
valuation (FSACV02)
TOTAL: 72

10. Specialization courses

Course
Course Lecturer ECTS
ID
Global and International Management
26632 Business Strategy (BS01) Robert Barcik 6
37026 Game Theory (GT01) Valent Nikaj 5
36968 Logistics and Supply chain management Sasa Petar 6
(SCLM01)
26636 Operations Management (OM01) Lisa Bussom 6
Cybersecurity Management
26645 Cybersecurity Risk Management (CRM01) Mario Silic 5
26648 Cybersecurity Fundamentals (CF01) Mario Silic 6
37027 Ethical Hacking (EH02) Sagar Bansal 8
26909 Introduction to AI for Managers (ITAI01) Mario Silic 5
Human Resources Management
Artificial Intelligence in HRM
26746 Cross-Cultural Management (CCM01) Alex E. Asampong 5
26631 Organizational Behaviour (OB02) Tiffany Baer 7
Global Finance and Banking
26917 Financial Statement Analysis and Reporting Hrvoje Volarevic 6
(FSAR01)
26647 Tax Management (TM03) Adrian Hammer 5
26744 Accounting for Managers (AFM02) Derrald Stice 5
36960 Financial Risk Management and Insurance Mateo Mohorovic 6
(FRMI01)
26918 Private Equity and Venture Capital (PEVC02) Pierre Matek 5

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 26644 AML Compliance for Managers (AML01) Gordan Sirovec 3
26919 Financial Regulation (FINREG01) Pierre Matek 5

Marketing
36967 SMarketing-Sales and marketing integration Vesna Glisic 6
(SM02)
26910 Customer Data Driven Marketing (DDM01) Damir Gavran 7
Digital Marketing Fundamentals Desiraju Bhanukiran
Artificial Intelligence in Marketing Angelina Njegus
Operations Management
37033 Operating Systems (OS01) Davor Cafuta 6
36968 Logistics and Supply chain management Sasa Petar 6
(SCLM01)
26643 Strategic Risk Management (SRM01) Mario Silic 6
Strategic Management
26632 Business Strategy (BS01) Robert Barcik 6
26643 Strategic Risk Management (SRM01) Mario Silic 6
Entrepreneurship
26682 Entrepreneurship (ENT01) Jaka Vadnjal 5
26631 Organizational Behaviour (OB02) Tiffany Baer 7
26784 Business Intelligence (CS01) Luka Lesko 8
26793 Business Environment (BEI01) Jaka Vadnjal 5
IT Management
26701 IT Management (ITM01) Deepa Mani 6
37028 Management of Information Systems (MIS01) Mario Silic 7
37027 Ethical Hacking (EH02) Sagar Bansal 8
26909 Introduction to AI for Managers (ITAI01) Aco Momcilocic 5
26916 Cloud Computing (ICCM01) Tomislav Tepes 5
Sustainability & Energy Management
26681 Energy Principles and Renewable Energy Various external 6
(EPRE01) lecturers
26915 Sustainability (SUST01) Marc Buckley 6
Hospitality Management
36970 Hospitality Management (HM01) Igor Radosevic 5
37007 IT in Hospitality Management (ITHM01) Minja Bolesnikov 5
37008 Global Hospitality and Tourism Management Minja Bolesnikov 5
(GTHM01)
36984 Innovative technology-driven value creation Xavier de Leymarie 7
(ITDVC01)

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Course Descriptors

8
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
Course Description

This course includes a study of strategic planning including mission statement

development, analysis of the external environment and internal organizational
factors, development of strategic alternatives, selection of appropriate
alternatives, implementation of strategies, and competitive strategies and
dynamics. Special emphases are given to the integration and coordination of the
functional areas within the enterprise.

Also, you will learn how organizations create, capture, and maintain value, and
how it is fundamental for sustainable competitive advantage. You will be able to
better understand value creation and capture and learn the tools to analyze both
competition and cooperation from a variety of perspectives, including the industry
level (e.g., five forces analysis), and the firm level (e.g., business models and
strategic positioning).

• Understand how managers coordinate different functional areas,

resources, and systems inside a company and align them with the
external environment to enhance overall performance
• Knowledge of strategic management tools and frameworks, and
apply them to real business contexts Process diverse business and
industry information to diagnose strategic issues, evaluate strategic
alternatives, and formulate a coherent and actionable strategic plan
• How to think like a CEO, entrepreneur, or general manager.

Course objectives

Business strategy skills course has the learning objective : Initiative skills. After
the course students will be able to improve their initiative skills when doing global
business.

Course Learning Outcomes

The purpose of the course is to give students an appreciation of:

• Understand the nature of competition and industries at an advanced level.

• Understand how external forces such as social, political/legal, economic,
and technological, influence strategic decision-making and firm
performance.
• Understand the sophisticated relationships among the functional areas of
an organization (marketing, human resources, production, finance, and
accounting) and how effective strategic planning requires a concerted
effort among all functional areas.
• Understand strategy research, including extensive use of the internet as a
research tool.
• Apply the strategic management model to the analysis of an ongoing
enterprise, including industry, environmental, and firm assessments; firm,
business, and functional strategic assessments; development and

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 evaluation of strategic alternatives; and strategic implementation and
control.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of ECTS
Hours Allocation
• Video material 6,5 0.3
• Practical part (knowledge 3 0.1
tests, discussion
questions)
• Lectures – Reading part 30 1.2
• Preparations for the lectures 40 1.6

• Readings (literature) 30 1.2

• Learning for final 40 1.6

assignment + time for
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:

Clifford S. (2011). Where Wal-Mart failed, Aldi succeeds. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/business/30aldi.html
FedEx SWOT analysis (2020). Retrieved from https://bstrategyhub.com/fedex-
swot-analysis/
Galunic C., Hermreck I. (2012). How to help employees "get" strategy. Retrieved
from https://hbr.org/2012/12/how-to- help-employees-get-strategy
Leavy B. (2013).Updating a classic formula for strategic success: focus,
alignment, repeatability, and leadership. Strategy & Leadership 41, 1, 18-28.
Perrott B. E. (2011). Strategic issue management as change catalyst. Strategy &
Leadership 39, 5, 20-29. Porter M. E. (2008). The five competitive forces that
shape strategy.
Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2008/01/the-five-competitive-forces-that-shape-
strategy
Sheppard B., Zarubina D., Jenkins A. (2020). Adapting to a new world. Retrieved
from https://www.strategy- business.com/article/Adapting-to-a-new-world
Sloan J. (2017). Learning to think strategically. (3d ed.). New York : Routledge.
Subramanian S., Rao, A. (2019). How to build disruptive strategic flywheels.
Retrieved from https://www.strategy- business.com/article/How-to-build-
disruptive-strategic-flywheels

SSBM portal

Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case

studies, excel cases etc)

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STRATEGIC MARKETING
Course Description
The aim of this course is to provide learners with a detailed understanding of the
marketing planning process and to apply these principles to a variety of business
contexts. The unit also provides a comprehensive understanding of
environmental analysis and how this can lead to the development of appropriate
objectives and strategies to enhance operational marketing performance.

We strongly advise the students to finish the course, lecture after lecture as
stated in syllabus, as there is a logical classification of topics as each new topic
is based on the previous one.

We strongly advise the students to finish the course, lecture after lecture as
stated in syllabus, as there is a logical classification of topics as each new topic
is based on the previous one.

Course objectives
• Evaluate the role of marketing in an organisation.
• Analyse the relationship between corporate strategy and marketing
strategy.
• Explain how marketing strategy is developed. Evaluate various
approaches to internal environmental analysis.
• Evaluate various approaches to external environmental analysis.
• Explain how internal and external analyses can be integrated to devise
strategic alternatives.
• Justify decisions and choices to be made at a corporate level.
• Assess how these decisions influence marketing at business unit and
functional level.
• Evaluate approaches to competitive positioning of businesses.
• Summarise a range of strategies that can contribute to competitive
advantage.
• Assess marketing strategies, their application

Course Learning Outcomes

• Understand the principles of marketing and its role in business practice
• Be able to evaluate approaches to marketing analysis.
• Be able to apply and analyse strategic marketing decisions and choices.
• Be able to evaluate and understand the use of marketing strategies for
competitive advantage.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number ECTS
of Allocation
Hours
• Lectures – Video material 3 0.2
• Readings – literature, reading assignment 50 2.0
and literature

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 • Quizzes, assignments and individual study 50 2.0
• Learning for final assignment + time for 50 2.0
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:
Aaker, D.A. and McLoughlin, D. (2010) Strategic Market Management- Global
Perspective. UK: John Wily & Sons Ltd. Best, R. J. (2009) Market-based
Management: Strategies for Growing Customer Value and Profitability. 5th
Edition.
Harlow: Prentice Hall.
Bradley, F. (2005) International Marketing Strategy. New Jersey, FL: Prentice
Hall. Chernev, A. (2009) Strategic Marketing Management.5th Edition. New
York: Brightstar
Media.
Hastings, H. and Saperstein, J. (2007) Improve Your Marketing to Grow Your
Business. New York: Wharton School Publishing.
Hooley, G., Saunders, J., Piercy, N. F. and Nicoulaud, B. (2007) Marketing
Strategy and Competitive Positioning. 4th Edition. Harlow: Financial
Times/Prentice Hall.
West, D., Ford, J. and Ibrahim, E. (2010) Strategic Marketing: Creating
Competitive Advantage. 2nd Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press
SSBM web platform
Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case
studies, excel cases etc)
Web
Different web sites will be mentioned during the lectures. The students are fully
advised to consult such web pages in
advance of lectures so that they can be prepared to better understand different
chapters.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Course Description

The course introduces students to the basic concepts of project management.

Effective management of projects ensures that they are completed on time, within
budget and are of high quality. The aim of the course is to familiarize students
with techniques needed to achieve these three goals. Basic topics and segments
of project management that students will address in this course are: quality of an
effective project manager, typical responsibilities of the project manager and

12
project selection, preparation of the detailed work schedule and budget, creating
a project team, management, quality control of the project; risk management and
more.

Course objectives

During the course variety of teaching methods will be used: from basic
explanations of terms and concepts, exercises, working on case studies, individual
work in finding the application of the presented knowledge and group/team work
on the project. Beyond mere description of theoretical lectures, the emphasis will
be on practical work, where students will plan and manage a project.

Course Learning Outcomes

1. Students will acquire the Students will study the literature (books) in the fields of
project management, which
ability to apply the will help them to gain the necessary knowledge to solve
tasks, tests, exercises and
acquired knowledge in case studies.
new and unfamiliar Students will prepare a seminar in which they will
demonstrate theoretical
circumstances, using knowledge and application to selected cases from practice.
understanding of the
principles of project
management.

2. Students will Students will write a project plan, and tasks will be dealt
with in groups. Students
communicate effectively will orally present their group and individual work.
in a manner appropriate
to leadership roles.

3. Students will gain the Students will use information technology in order to develop
ability to use new project documentation. The same technology will be used in
technologies. the preparation of student papers.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of ECTS

Hours Allocation
• Lectures – Video material 6,5 0.2

• Readings – literature, 70 2.8

reading assignment and
literature
• Video tutorials 2 0.1

• Individual study 45 1.8

• Learning for final 50 2.0

assignment + time for
solving

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Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:

Harold Kerzner (2000): Applied Project Management. USA: John Wiley & Sons

http://www.projectmanagement.com/

Additional literature

Keith Goffin, Rick Mitchell. Innovation Management (2009) - Strategy and

implementation using the Pentathlon Framework, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. Also
available in German language (FinanzBuch Verlag).

Mark Dogson, Davig Gann, Ammon Salter (2008). The Management of

Technological Innovation, Oxford Univertsity Press

Paul Trott (2009). Innovation Management and new Product Development,

Prentice Hall, 2008.

Klaus Kerth, Heiko Asum, Volker Stich, Die besten Strategietools in der Praxis,
Carl Hanser Verlag,

Paul Williams (2009). The Innovation Manager’s Desk Reference, Lulu.

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Course Description
The course is made of a combination of lectures and case studies. Themes are
covered through small business cases, homework, real-life examples, case
studies work, etc.

Students are required to follow on-site lectures and case studies and be
prepared by reading the given reading materials. Students are expected to
actively follow on-site lectures and case studies.

Course objectives
The Financial Management course consists of a few basic sections of key
importance for Corporate finance like: basic theoretical concepts of modern
corporate finance; rates of return on money market and capital market, cost of
capital, risk measurement; capital structure; company valuations; short and long
terms cash flow projections; Discounting etc (FCF, NPV, IRR, PBP, WACC, EPS...)
etc. The course deals with traditional financial instruments and modern corporate
analysis of securities on primary and secondary capital markets. Special focus will
be put on common and preferred stocks, different bonds and different types of
loans. The goal of this course is, by using inputs like spread, rating, credit
worthiness, Beta, cost of capital, yield, maturity, variance, standard deviation etc.
to learn students how to apply such and other finance indicators in practice in
foreign capital markets, in order to enable students to successfully understand
and use concepts of modern corporate finance. Furthermore, emphasis will be put
upon financial engineering in such a way that the student acquires knowledge

14
necessary for creating a financial model in excel using all relevant financial excel
formulas, and implementing them in the analysis of accounting reports such as
the balance sheet, profit and loss account, and cash flow reporting, with the goal
of calculating the rates of return of a specific investment (profitability index, NPV,
IRR, etc) for the shareholders and debt providers. At same time, students will
learn how to calculate the average cost of capital (WACC) and to valuate a
company through dividends, FCF and multiples through different capital
structures, scenarios analysis, break even analysis and sensitivity analysis. Many
different small and big excel cases from different foreign capital markets will be
used to learn students the way Financial Management should work in practice.
Course Learning Outcomes
• Students will acquire basic knowledge in financial management.
• Students will have the capacity of critical and analytical thinking.
• Students will have the capacity for adaptation which is necessary for doing
business in the global environment.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number ECTS
of Alloca
Hours tion
• Video material – PowerPoint 30 1.2
• Problem Solving Exercises – 20 0.8
Excel
• Preparations for the lectures 20 0.8

• Preparations for the practical work 20 0.8

• Readings (presentations and literature) 30 1.2
• Learning for final assignment + time for 80 3.2
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:
Main literature:

• Brealey, A.R., Myers C.S., Marcus, J.A. Fundamentals of Corporate

Finance. McGraw Hill. (BMM)
• J. C. Van Horne, J. M. Wachowicz, Jr. Fundamentals of Corporate
finance (Prentice Hall),
• J. Berk, P. DeMarzo: Corporate finance. Pearson Education.

Additional literature:

• Asquith, P., & Weiss, L. A. Lessons in corporate finance: A case studies

approach to financial tools, financial policies, and valuation. John Wiley &
Sons.
• Wahlen, J., Baginski, S., & Bradshaw, M. Financial reporting, financial
statement analysis and valuation. Nelson Education.
• Corporate finance Raymond Am. Brooks, Pearson

15
 • Corporate finance Sheridan Titman, Arthur aj. Keown and John d. Martin,
Pearson

SSBM web platform

Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case

studies, excel cases etc)

Excel

Excel is an important tool for corporate finance. All lectures by prof. Silić will be
held online where every student can individually perform exercises in Excel.
Students are advised to get acquainted with Excel before and during the
lectures, and especially with using different financial formulas for easier
understanding of the course.

Web

Different web sites will be mentioned during the lectures. The students are fully
advised to consult such web pages in advance of lectures so that they can be
prepared to better understand the calculations in excel.

Some of the web pages are listed here:

Financeyahoo.com Marketwatch.com Federalreserve.com Dow jones, Nasdaq etc

Ecb.europa.eu

PRESENTATION SKILLS IN BUSINESS

Course Description
This course is designed to give students exposure to foundational and intermediate
elements of presentation skills in professional settings. The course teaches
students principles of organizing or structuring a message, delivery skills to come
across as more confident and composed, and techniques to open and close
presentations like a professional. This course will also help students develop more
memorable communication in less formal interactions such as giving regular
updates at meetings.
Course objectives
Professional presentation skills course has the learning objective: Presentation
skills. After the course students will be able to improve their presentation skills
when doing global business. Students will learn many techniques of presentations
individually and in groups.

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Course Learning Outcomes
1.
To understand and Develop an understanding of the principles of effective
practice foundational presentation design, including visual hierarchy, clarity, and
audience engagement.
qualities of a sound Identify and analyze the key components of successful
presentation design presentations, such as clear objectives, compelling storytelling,
and appropriate use of multimedia.

2. To identify key Analyze and identify common speaking distractions and

speaking weaknesses, such as filler words, lack of eye contact, or
distractions or other ineffective body language, in order to help students become
weaknesses and aware of their specific areas for improvement.
build on students’
speaking strengths Develop strategies and techniques to minimize speaking
distractions and strengthen students' overall speaking skills,
including exercises to reduce the use of filler words, enhance eye
contact, improve body language, and project confidence.
Provide individualized feedback and guidance to each student,
highlighting their speaking strengths and offering personalized
exercises and activities to further enhance their abilities,
ultimately building their overall speaking proficiency.
3. To develop a strong Understand the elements of an effective introduction, including the
opening for an importance of capturing the audience's attention, establishing
introduction relevance, and clearly stating the purpose of the presentation.
Learn and practice various techniques for crafting compelling
openings, such as using a captivating anecdote, posing a thought-
provoking question, or presenting a surprising statistic, to engage
the audience from the start and set a strong foundation for the
Presentation.
4. To develop a strong Understand strategies for creating impactful conclusions that
closing for a leave a lasting impression on the audience, such as summarizing
conclusion key points, providing a call to action, offering a memorable
quote, or delivering a thought-provoking closing statement, to
effectively wrap up the presentation and leave the audience with
a sense
of closure and inspiration.
5. To outline a Learn the principles and techniques of creating a well-structured
presentation presentation outline tailored for professional settings, including
suitable for a identifying the main objectives, organizing content logically, and
professional establishing a clear flow of information to effectively convey
context the intended message to professional audiences.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of ECTS

Hours Allocation
● Lectures – Video material 6,5 0.3

● Readings – literature, 50 2.0

reading assignment and
literature
● Individual study 20 0.8

17
 ● Learning for final 50 2.0
assignment + time for
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:
Main literature:

Recommended Website: http://www.communicationskillscoach.com/

SSBM portal

Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case

studies, excel cases etc)

STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
Course Description

Strong leadership is regarded as one of the best predictors of organizational

success and critical human capital required for career progression in almost every
organization. However, leadership is also a highly complex and often
misunderstood phenomenon. It’s hard to define, but we all know good and bad
leadership when we see it.

This course will equip aspiring leaders with an understanding of what leadership
is and how an individual can develop the skills required to become an effective
leader in their organization. Taught by instructors and presenters

with decades of business and not-for-profit leadership experience, you will learn
the difference between leadership and management, the importance of
understanding others and building empathy and relationships, and gain a better
understanding of the different leadership styles you may encounter throughout
your career.

In this five-parts course, I share my insight from over 4 decades of coaching.

We’re going to look at a proven process that you can use to develop yourself as a
leader. As an executive educator and coach, I will help you understand how your
beliefs and the environments you operate in can trigger negative behaviors.
Through simple and practical advice, I will help you achieve and sustain positive
behavioral change.

Research on coaching is clear and consistent. Coaching is most successful when

it’s applied to people with potential who want to improve — but not when it’s
applied to people who have no interest in changing. This istrue whether you are
acting as a professional coach, a manager, a family member, or a friend.

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Course objectives

• Understand the usage of different coaching methods.

• Distinguish the five types of leadership coaching techniques and team
behaviors.
• Describe the benefits of using different techniques and exercises within
the team/organization.
• Apply “follow up”, “feedforward” and “wheel of change”. Explain how and
why to use the techniques.
• Be able to conduct a basic exercise with your team as a leader and
evaluate the outcome.
• Create plan for independent learning, self-study and evaluation of own
progress as a leader.

Course Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course you will be equipped to:

• Master ‘what to stop’ as a leader and explore how to use ‘what to stop’
in coaching
• Examine the classic challenges for successful leaders, and how to use
feedforward
• Explore a proven model for developing yourself as a leader, and the
importance and impact on leadership effectiveness
• Discover why we all need help and structure, a new approach to
employee engagement, and the daily question process

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures – videos
3 0.1

Lectures – reading part

40 1.6

· Preparations for the

lectures 20 0.8

Reading part (literature and

pre-reading links) 20 0.8

· Learning for final

assignment + time for 42 1.7
solving

19
Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:

Live an Earned Life Leadership as a Contact Sport

The many Faces of Corporate Leaders Try Feedforward Instead of Feedback

SSBM portal

Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case

studies, etc.)

INNOVATION AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Course Description

The course is made of a combination of lectures, case studies and team projects.
Themes are covered through small business cases, individual and team
presentations, real life examples, self-assessment tests, etc.

Students are required to attend the lectures, prepare, and present individual and
team projects on innovation and change management.

We are always open for questions, discussions and suggestions of our students
through especially e-mail communication.

Course objectives

The course is aimed at providing students with theoretical principles as well as

with practical knowledge, including tips and tricks in the area of change and
innovation management. The students will develop understanding of innovation
and creativity as phenomena in general, and specifically within an organizational
environment. They will develop individual and team skills in preparing and
presenting innovative projects, specifically those based on digital transformation
and creating added value.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Provide an introduction to innovation and change management

• Describe and explain innovation and change in the age of digital
transformation
• Research and explain convergent, divergent, lateral, and vertical thinking
• Provide an insight into barriers to creativity and innovation and how to
remove them
• Learn how to manage change in seven steps

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 • Explain and practice individual and team creativity supporting techniques
• Outline the principles of building innovative and change-oriented
organizational environment
• Understand and learn the principles of managing projects that bring change
and innovation
• Develop case studies and student projects with presentations

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures – videos
5.5 0.2

· Preparations for the

lectures 15 0.6

Preparations for the practical

work 55 2.2

•
Readings
(presentations/lectures 50 2
and literature and
reading
assignments)
· Learning for final
assignment + time for 50 2
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:

Srića Velimir (2016): Creativity and Innovation Management, Kindle Store

Additional literature:
1. Cameron Esther (2015): Making Sense of Change Management,
Cogan Page
2. Hayes John (2010): The theory and practice of change management,
Palgrave Macmillan
3. Srića Velimir (2014): In Search of Harmony in a
Disharmonious World: Leadership Manual for
ChangeAgents and Dreamers, Algora Publishing
4. Srića Velimir (2008): Social Intelligence and Project
Leadership, Journal of American Academy of Business,
no. 2.

21
DIGITAL BUSINESS ACCELERATION
Course Description

Digital transformation is an abused buzzword nowadays and vast oceans of

solutions and technologies makes it very hard to navigate. Making a winning
strategy for a concrete business can be confusing and time consuming. Gap
between “nice ideas” and proven and applicable strategical solutions seems quite
difficult to bridge in everyday life. The goal of the course is to provide a navigation
map for business leaders. The course is made of a combination of lectures, case
studies and team projects.

Course objectives

In this course, we will start out by introducing a concept of a sort of holistic

framework, looking at digital strategies through five key domains of strategy that
are changing and being transformed by digital technologies. Customers are being
changed, our competition, how we think about data, how we think about
innovation, and how we define the value of our business and our industry. Those
are the five domains of digital transformation, because each of these areas of
strategy are changing so dramatically today.

Topics we would address include:

• Domains of Digital Transformations,

• Digital Customers networks and New Path to purchase,
• Understanding of Digital customers behaviours,
• Platform Business models,
• Cooperation’s,
• Disintermediation and Asymmetric competition,
• Building Data as Strategic Assets for Business,
• Big Data,
• Innovation through Experimentation,
• Translation of the Lean Start-up to Enterprise Innovation,
• Adaptation of Value proposition.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Understanding the customer habits and digital behaviour driving the

customers across different markets
• Analysis of data – building data as a strategic asset in business
• Value creation from analysed data
• Apply the principles and best practices of the leading start-ups to
enterprise large scale organizations

22
Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures – videos
4.5 0.2

· Preparations for the

lectures 10 0.4

Preparations for the practical

work 30 1.2

•
Readings
(presentations/lectures 30 1.2
and literature and
reading
assignments)
· Learning for final
assignment + time for 50 2
solving

Course materials and textbooks

Main literature:
David L. Rogers (2016): The Digital Transformation Playbook
Additional literature:
Geoffrey G. Parker, Marshall W. Van Alstyne, Sangeet Paul Choudhary (2017):
Platform revolution
Alexander Borek, Nadine Prill (2020): Driving Digital Transformation through
data and AI.

DATA ANALYTICS AND DECISION MAKING

Course Description

This course provides a conceptual and practical overview of analytical tools,

techniques, and practices used to support data driven decision making in an
organization. It places an emphasis on working with data, databases, and
performing and interpreting descriptive analytics and visualization techniques in
the context of contemporary, data- rich decision-making environments including
various business and management applications and contexts.

Course objectives

The goal of this course is to help you develop your skills as a data-savvy manager
who are managers that are not necessarily data-science experts, but understand

23
what analytics can and cannot do, how to ask the right questions, and, most
importantly, how to interpret data to make better decisions. To that end, we will
study several basic analytics techniques, focusing on how you, yourself, can apply
them in practice, interpret their output, build intuition, and leverage them in
decision-making. Specifically, we will focus on Data Exploration, Data Aggregation,
Data Visualization, various analytics and software tools such as Excel, Power
Query, Power BI, Python, SQL, Azure ML, Machine Learning, etc. From various
data sets you will be able to give sense to data and convert data into a manageable
insight for decision-making.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Explain the key ideas behind fundamental techniques in data
analytics, including dashboarding, visualization, classification,
aggregation of data
• Identify new opportunities to use these techniques across business
domains to guide decision-making
• Apply these techniques to novel problems using a combination of
Excel, Power Query, Power BI, SQL, Python or machine learning
• Formulate and communicate actionable business recommendations
based upon your analysis, including its limitations
• Critically assess the validity of analytics-based recommendations in the
context of specific business decisions

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation
Lectures – videos 5.5 0.2

● Problem Solving 30 1.2

Exercises –
Excel
· Preparations for the 20 0.8
lectures

Preparations for the practical 20 0.8

work
• Readings 35 1.4
(presentations/lectures
and literature
· Learning for final 40 1.6
assignment + time for
solving

Course materials and textbooks

A First Course in Database Systems (3rd Edition), Jeffrey D. Ullman,

Jennifer Widom, Pearson (2007). ISBN-10: 013600637X

24
 [Companion page]
Business Analytics (2nd Edition), James R. Evans, Pearson (2015).
ISBN-10: 0321997824. [Pearson web site]
Data Analysis Using SQL and Excel, Gordon S. Linoff, second edition,
Wiley Publishing (2015). ISBN-10: 111902143X [Companion page]

Additional learning resources:

SQLite page (with documentation and tutorials)

SQLite Tutorial (Tutorials point)
Using SQLite in Python
Using SQLite in R
SQL Tutorial (Tutorials point)
Database Systems: The Complete Book by Hector Garcia-
Molina, Jeff Ullman, and Jennifer Widom. Companion web
site.
Database Management Lecture by Jennifer Widom
7 Steps to Mastering SQL for Data Science (KDnuggets)

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Course Description

Modern HR Departments have outgrown their administrative related activities

within organization and becameactive contributors to the strategy and competitive
success of organization. The focus of this module is to exploremodern HR functions
and how they evolved over the years, and what is considered a good practice in
some of those areas. Aim is also, to encourage to think about HRM in your
organization in the context of globalized world and 21st century.

Course objectives

• To provide an understanding of the HR functions in modern organizations

• To understand HR strategy and HR function and its position within today
business
• To deepen knowledge of the range of HRM practices, models, and ideas
• To develop some specific knowledge and skills crucial for good people
management
• To develop new understanding and approach in your collaboration with
your HR department

25
Course Learning Outcomes

• A knowledge and awareness of some behavioral, managerial and HRM

challenges facing our organizations
• Develop a critical approach to the implications, assumptions and
limitations of current practices and theories in the field
• Working understanding of a range of human resources and people
management practices
• Acquire a usable toolkit of basic HR tasks and operationst the end of this
course, you will be able to:
- Explain the key ideas behind fundamental techniques in data
analytics, including dashboarding, visualization, classification,
aggregation of data
- Identify new opportunities to use these techniques across business
domains to guide decision-making
- Apply these techniques to novel problems using a combination of
Excel, Power Query, Power BI, SQL, Python or machine learning
- Formulate and communicate actionable business recommendations
based upon your analysis, including its limitations
- Critically assess the validity of analytics-based recommendations in the
context of specific business decisions

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures – PowerPoint 5 0.2
Lectures – videos 3 0.1

Lectures – Reading part 9 0.4

· Preparations for the 37.5 1.5

lectures

Individual study for additional 20 0.8

activities (presentations,
seminars, projects,
debating, reporting etc.)
· Learning for final 50 2
assignment + time for
solving

Course materials and textbooks

R. Noe / J. Hollenbeck: Human Resources Management; Mate d.o.o. 2006

R. Brčić, Ž. Dulčić, M. Černe, T. Hernaus: Koraci uspješnog organiziranja;
Školska knjiga 2018
S.P. Robbins: Bitni elementi organizacijskog ponašanja; Mate d.o.o. 1995

26
Additional literature:
Allen, P.L 2015. - Toward a new HR philosophy. McKinsey Quarterly
Schein, E.H. 1983. - The role of the founder in creating organizational
change.
P. Capelli. - Why We Love to Hate HR…and What HR Can Do About It; HBR
2015
P. Capelli, A. Travis. - The New Rules of Talent Management; HBR 2018
SSBM web platform
Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation

TAX MANAGEMENT
Course Description

The course is made of a combination of lectures and case studies. Themes are
covered through small business cases, homework, real life examples, case studies
work, etc.

Students are required to follow online lectures and case studies and be prepared
by reading the given reading materials. Students are expected to actively watch
all online lectures live lectures and participate in case studies.

Course objectives

The Tax Management course introduces the students to basics of managing

taxation issues in the course of running a business. The aim of the course is not
to gain an in-depth understanding of specific tax issues but rather to be able to
identify key issues that may arise from the taxation perspective. The students will
be provided with an overview of typical taxes and duties that impact businesses.
Next, they will be shown practical examples of tax- driven transactions and
transactions that were severely impacted by ignorance of taxation planning. Focus
will then shift to making decisions about taxes and timing of such decisions.
Finally, the students will learn about tax controversies (tax audits) and basics of
their management.

27
Course Learning Outcomes

Learning Learning outcomes

objectives
1. Students will After this course, the students will learn to recognize and manage
acquire basic typical tax drivers and risks, learn essential mitigation steps,
knowledge in manage tax planning and handle post-transactional risks and
taxation exposures.
concepts. The course is based primarily on European taxation system to
enable the students to apply their knowledge in real life.
However, any students not residing in Europe should still be able
to pick up key taxation concepts as the course will also refer to
international tax concepts, tax treaties and global tax guidances.
The goal of the course is not to gain an in-depth understanding of
specific tax issues but rather to be able to identify key issues that
may arise from the taxation perspective.
All given outcomes will be valued through a case study (all
together 100 points or 100%) in the final examination where all
tax management topics from all lectures will be covered.

2. Students will The students will discover problems and offer possible solutions,
have the as well as identify possible risks of a proposed solution.
capacity of
critical and
analytical
thinking.
3. Students will The students will identify key global trends in taxation and
have the discuss the influence of those trends on the entire activity of a
capacity for company. The students will identify key taxes that may impact a
identification of business or its employees and be able to assess the approximate
key tax issues tax impact of a business transaction.
concerning
businesses,
which is
necessary for
doing business
in the global
environment.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures (listening videos and 60 2.4
reading materials) –
PowerPoint
· Preparations for the 10 0.4
lectures

28
 Preparations for the practical 10 0.4
work
· Learning for final 50 2
assignment + time for
solving

Course materials and textbooks¸

OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and Tax

Administrations 2017; online version available at
https://www.oecd.org/tax/transfer-pricing/oecd-transfer-pricing-
guidelines-for- multinational-enterprises-and-tax-administrations-
20769717.htm
Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital: Condensed Version
2017; online version available at
https://www.oecd.org/tax/treaties/model-tax-convention-on-income-
and-on-capital-condensed-version- 20745419.htm
Croatian tax legislation, available at Croatian Tax
Authority's web, https://www.porezna-
uprava.hr/hr_propisi/_layouts/15/in2.vuk2019.sp.propisi.i
ntranet/propisi.aspx

SSBM web platform

Presentations, seminars and additional materials for class participation (case
studies etc.)

FINANCIAL STATEMENT ANALYSIS

&COMPANY VALUATION
Course Description

The course is made of a combination of lectures, case studies and practice via
excel sheets. Themes are covered through small business cases, homework, real
life examples, case studies work linked especially with corporate finance.

Students are required to follow the lectures and case studies and be prepared by
reading the given reading materials. Students are expected to actively participate
on the lectures and case studies.

We are always open for questions, discussions and suggestions of our students
through especially e-mail communication or if necessary, by telephone.

Course objectives

The course will be taught using a combination of examples, discussion questions,

cases and homework problems. We will learn new concepts using various firms’

29
historical and current financial data. To achieve these objectives, we will learn a
framework for business analysis and valuation. The steps in the framework

include:

(1) Business Strategy Analysis: The purpose of business strategy analysis is to

assess the profit potential of the firm at a qualitative level. This involves an
understanding of the firm’s strategy and its industry and considering how these
affect and are affected by the firm’s financial performance.

(2) Financial Analysis: The purpose of financial analysis is to assess the firm’s
historical financial performance in the context of its goals and strategies. Tools
used for financial analysis include ratio analysis, cash flow analysis, dividend policy
and common-size financial statements.

(3) Accounting Analysis: The purpose of accounting analysis is to develop an

understanding of whether a firm’s accounting captures its true underlying
economic condition(s) and potential accounting manipulations. This involves
understanding accounting transactions, identifying accounting flexibility,
evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies and estimates, and at times,
altering financial statements to enhance decision making.

(4) Valuation/Prospective Analysis: The purpose of valuation/prospective

analysis is to forecast the firm’s future financial performance and determine a
potential valuation of the firm—our best assessment of intrinsic value. To do this
we will learn the mechanics of forecasting financial statements and we will see
how to create the valuation models.

Furthermore, emphasis will be put upon financial engineering in such a way that
the student acquires knowledge necessary for creating a financial model in excel
using all relevant financial excel formulas, and implementing them in the analysis
of accounting reports such as the balance sheet, profit and loss account, and cash
flow reporting, with the goal of analysing the firm’s risks, performances and
returns for owners. At same time, students will learn how to calculate different
ratios of profitability, liquidity, leverage, efficiency, market ratios and to valuate a
company through dividends, FCF and multiples through different capital
structures, scenarios analysis, break even analysis and sensitivity analysis. Many
different small and big excel cases from different foreign capital markets will be
used to learn students the way Financial Statement Analysis and Company
Valuation should work in practice.

Course Learning Outcomes

The Financial Financial Statement analysis & Company valuation course helps
students understand how companies communicate through financial statements.

Students will learn how to:

30
 • use financial statement analysis as an integral part of the strategic
analysis of any company.
• adjust and interpret financial statements, analyse cash flows, make
judgments about earnings quality and efficiency of assets and liabilities.
• apply financial statement analysis prospectively to forecast and value
firms by applying modern accounting-based technologies.

This course provides a comprehensive and up-to-date treatment of the analysis

of financial statements as an aid to decision making. Topics covered include:
financial ratio analysis, the effect of various accounting alternatives on financial
ratios, forecasting accounting and financial numbers, use of financial statement
information, financial distress prediction, and corporate restructuring.

Overview of student workload

Learning activities Number of Hours ECTS Allocation

Lectures – video 6 0.2
Exercises 35 1.4

Reading of presentations and 55 2.2

literature
Learning for final assignment and 80 3.2
time of solving (Financial model)

Course materials and textbooks

1. Brealey, A.R., Myers C.S., Marcus, J.A. Fundamentals of Corporate

Finance. McGraw Hill. (BMM)
2. J. C. Van Horne, J. M. Wachowicz, Jr.Fundamentals of Corporate finance
(Prentice Hall),.
3. J. Berk, P. DeMarzo: Corporate finance. Pearson Education.
Additional literature:
1. Asquith, P., & Weiss, L. A. Lessons in corporate finance: A
case studies approach to financial tools, financial policies,
and valuation. John Wiley & Sons.
2. Wahlen, J., Baginski, S., & Bradshaw, M. Financial reporting,
financial statement analysis and valuation. Nelson Education.
3. Corporate finance, Raymond Am. Brooks, Pearson
4. Corporate finance, Sheridan Titman, Arthur aj. Keown and John d.
Martin, Pearson
5. Johnson, Howard E. Business Valuation. (The Canadian Institute of
Chartered Accountants)
6. Niculita, A. V., Pratt S. P., Valuing a Business: The Analysis
and Appraisal of Closely Held Companies, (McGraw-Hill Co.)

31