Undergraduate Program Course Descriptions

MKTG1010 - Intro To Marketing (Course Syllabus)

The objective of this course is to introduce students to the concepts, analyses, and activities that comprise marketing management, and to provide practice in assessing and solving marketing problems. The course is also a foundation for advanced electives in Marketing as well as other business/social disciplines. Topics include marketing strategy, customer behavior, segmentation, customer lifetime value, branding, market research, product lifecycle strategies, pricing, go-to-market strategies, promotion, and marketing ethics.

MKTG1018 - Intro To Marketing (Course Syllabus)

The objective of this course is to introduce students to the concepts, analyses, and activities that comprise marketing management, and to provide practice in assessing and solving marketing problems. The course is also a foundation for advanced electives in Marketing as well as other business/social disciplines. Topics include marketing strategy, customer behavior, segmentation, customer lifetime value, branding, market research, product lifecycle strategies, pricing, go-to-market strategies, promotion, and marketing ethics. (This is the honors section of MKTG 1010 open only to Joseph Wharton Scholars).

MKTG2110 - Consumer Behavior (Course Syllabus)

This course is concerned with how and why people behave as consumers. Its goals are to: (1) provide conceptual understanding of consumer behavior, (2) provide experience in the application of buyer behavior concepts to marketing management decisions and social policy decision-making; and (3) to develop analytical capability in using behavioral research.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2120 - Data & Anlz For Mktg Dec (Course Syllabus)

This course introduces students to the fundamentals of data-driven marketing, including topics from marketing research and analytics. It examines the many different sources of data available to marketers, including data from customer transactions, surveys, pricing, advertising, and A/B testing, and how to use those data to guide decision-making. Through real-world applications from various industries, including hands-on analyses using modern data analysis tools, students will learn how to formulate marketing problems as testable hypotheses, systematically gather data, and apply statistical tools to yield actionable marketing insights.

Prerequisites: (MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018) AND (STAT 1010 OR STAT 1110 OR STAT 4300)

MKTG2250 - Principles of Retailing (Course Syllabus)

This course is a cross-functional overview of retailing – from types of retailers to current trends and strategies. The objective is to familiarize students with the retail business model in its various forms – from pure store-based retailers, to digital natives, and everything in-between. Topics will include structures & organizational models, channels & formats, real estate & locations, marketing & customer relationship management, the full merchandising cycle (planning & buying to display & pricing), and operations & technology. This knowledge will be fundamental to careers working for retailers themselves (e-commerce or omnichannel), but also in consulting to retailers, in banking or investing in the retail sector, or even starting a brand or retail concept. Those seeking more depth in product design & development, buying, planning, pricing, and visual merchandising should consider taking Retail Merchandising (MKTG 3060). Those seeking more depth in sourcing, distribution, fulfillment, and store/site operations should consider taking Retail Supply Chain Management (OIDD 3970)

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2270 - Mktg and Electronic Comm (Course Syllabus)

The effect of the Internet and related technologies on business and social institutions is more profound than that of any prior invention, including the printing press and the internal combustion engine. Furthermore, marketing is critical to the success of firms that will shape the consumption-led economies that are fueled by these technologies. MKTG 2270 provides a research-based and framework-driven approach to succeeding in this environment, through a rigorous approach to understanding digital marketing and electronic commerce. The course is organized into two sections and utilizes relevant theory, empirical analysis, and practical examples, to develop the key learning points. Guest speakers will participate as well, as appropriate.

MKTG2340 - Creativity (Course Syllabus)

The ability to solve problems creatively and generate change is a recognized standard of success and plays an important role in gaining a competitive advantage in many areas of business management. This course is designed to teach students several creative problem solving methodologies that complement other managerial tools acquired in undergraduate and graduate studies. The course offers students the opportunity to learn how to solve problems, identify opportunities, and generate those elusive ideas that potentially generate enormous benefits to organizations. The objectives of this course are to enhance the students' (a) creativity, (b) ability to innovate and (c) ability to identify, recruit, develop, manage, retain, and collaborate with creative people. The course includes: 1. A review of the literature on creativity, creative people, innovation, and design as well as the leadership and management of creative people and innovation. 2. Hands on learning of approaches for generating creative ideas. Students will have the opportunity of implementing the techniques studied in class. 3. Applications of creativity to selected management domains - Approaches to the generation of creative options are not limited to the development of products and services or businesses, but can be applied to all areas of management, business, and life. The purpose of these sessions is to explore the applications of creative approaches to marketing, advertising, organizational design, negotiations, and other management challenges. 4. Integration - Both via individual assignments and a group project in which interdisciplinary teams of students generate a creative product/service/customer.

MKTG2370 - Neuroscience for Bus Decisions (Course Syllabus)

This course provides an overview of contemporary brain science and its applications to business. Students are first rapidly introduced to the basic anatomy and physiology of the brain and become familiar with important techniques for measuring and manipulating brain function. The course then surveys major findings in neuroscience with applications to business, including vision, attention and advertising; valuation and marketing; decision making; learning, innovation and creativity; social influence, team-building, and leadership; and discussion of the ethical, legal, and societal implications of applying neuroscience to business. Applications to business, education, sports, law, and policy are discussed throughout.

MKTG2380 - Consumer Neuroscience (Course Syllabus)

How can studying the brain improve our understanding of consumer behavior? While neuroscience made tremendous strides throughout the past few decades, rarely were meaningful applications developed outside of medicine. Recently, however, breakthroughs in measurement and computation have accelerated brain science, and created an array of opportunities in business and technology. Currently, applications to marketing research and product development are experiencing explosive growth that has been met with both excitement and skepticism. This mini course provides an overview of the neuroscience behind and the potential for these developments. Topics will range from well-known and widely used applications, from eye-tracking measures in the lab and the field, to emerging methods and measures such as mobile technologies, face-reading, and neural predictors of market response. This course is self-contained and has no prerequisites. However, students with some background in business, economics, psychology, and/or neuroscience are likely to find some of the material covered in this course complementary to their existing knowledge. Much of the foundational work in consumer neuroscience and neuroeconomics involves laboratory experiments. Accordingly, we will read and discuss several experimental papers and the craft of designing an experiment will occasionally be discussed. However, we will not dedicate significant time to the methodology of experimental design and analysis. As will become clear as the course progresses, “consumer neuroscience" can be used to study almost any aspect of consumer behavior.

MKTG2390 - Visual Marketing (Course Syllabus)

As consumers, we are constantly exposed to advertisements and experience visual messages from product packages in stores, retail displays, and products already owned. In essence, visual marketing collateral is omnipresent and is an essential part of corporate visual identity, strategy, branding, and communication. Some of this falls to creative graphic design, but advertising, design, and marketing can also be significantly enhanced by knowledge of how visual information and its presentation context can be optimized to deliver desirable and advantageous messages and experiences. This course will emphasize how to measure, interpret, and optimize visual marketing. This course will use lectures, discussions, exercises and a group project, to help students understand the underlying processes that influence our visual perception and visual cognition. Students will learn about the theoretical processes and models that influence, attention and visual fluency. Students will also be exposed to eye-tracking instruments that help measure eye movement. Finally, we will explore how visual stimuli can influence consumer memory, persuasion, and choice. We will examine practical applications in marketing, advertising, packaging, retail, and design contexts.

MKTG2410 - Entrepreneurial Mktg (Course Syllabus)

This course focuses on the real life marketing challenges involved in launching an entrepreneurial venture. The primary goal of the course will to provide a roadmap for students seeking to actively engage as entrepreneurs, investors or managers in the startup culture. Many of the entrepreneurial marketing principles studied in this course will be equally applicable to mid-size and larger companies seeking new approaches to drive top-line growth. The course will address how start-ups, early growth stage and more mature companies have used entrepreneurial marketing as an essential competitive weapon to grow their businesses by gaining customers, driving revenue, acquiring funding and recruiting A-level employees, advisors and directors. Students will form teams and select an idea/concept for an entrepreneurial venture, and by the conclusion of the course will have developed a fully fleshed out and testable marketing plan. Preferably, the selected venture will be one that one or more members of the team would consider implementing, should their plan prove feasible.

Prerequisites: (MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018) AND MKTG 2120

MKTG2470 - Mktg Strgy Tech Platform (Course Syllabus)

This course focuses on the unique aspects of creating effective marketing and management strategies for technology-intensive on-line and off-line businesses. It addresses the effective competitive marketing strategies for winning in markets which are powered by technology: specifically, how firms create value for customers and how they can integrate technology in delivering a better consumer experience. While competitive marketing strategy is important for all managers, this course will be particularly useful to students who are planning to accept a position in leading technology companies, and marketing firms in which technology is likely to play an important role. In addition, the course will provide value to those who expect to work in consulting or investing in technology industries, and must analyze firm strategies. Course open to sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 or MKTG 1018

MKTG2520 - Marketing Analytics (Course Syllabus)

Companies are currently spending millions of dollars on data-gathering initiatives, but few are successfully capitalizing on all this data to generate revenue and increase profit. Converting data into increased business performance requires the ability to extract insights from data through analytics. This course covers the three pillars of analytics – descriptive, predictive and prescriptive – within the marketing context. Descriptive Analytics examines different types of data and how they can be visualized, ultimately helping you communicate your findings and strengthen your team’s or organization’s decision making. Predictive Analytics explores the use of data for forecasting. You will learn to utilize various tools, including regression analysis, to estimate relationships among variables and predict future behavior. Prescriptive Analytics takes you through the final step — formulating concrete recommendations. These recommendations can be directed toward a variety of marketing actions, including pricing and social-platform outreach. Students will be exposed to several methods such as linear regression, logistic regression, multinomial regression, machine learning methods (e.g., neural networks and random forests). We will learn how to employ these methods for such managerial decisions as demand forecasting, pricing, and valuing customers. Overall, you will develop a data analytics mindset, learn new tools, and understand how to convert numbers into actionable insights.

Prerequisites: (MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018) AND (STAT 1010 OR STAT 1018)

MKTG2540 - Pricing Policy (Course Syllabus)

The pricing decision process including economic, marketing, and behavioral phenomena which constitute the environment for pricing decisions and the information and analytic tools useful to the decision maker.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 or MKTG 1018

MKTG2600 - Antitrust and Big Tech (Course Syllabus)

This course considers the role of antitrust law in facilitating and policing the business strategies of dominant firms and joint enterprises. We will examine technology-driven firms such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Uber, and Microsoft, as well as disrupted industries such as the digital music industry. In each case, we will consider how firms adapted their strategies to rapidly changing technological environments and ask whether antitrust law served to promote or to hinder innovation and competitive development. Course coverage will range over all portions of the business economy in which competition and innovation are important, but emphasizing markets that have a significant technological component. We will also study a series of classic business cases in technology rich markets, including the American Can Company, Standard Oil, and DuPont. We will pay special attention to the role of intellectual property rights in fostering both individual and collaborative innovation.

MKTG2650 - Principles of Advertisng (Course Syllabus)

This course focuses on advertising via all media - print, digital, video, TV, Internet, etc. Emphasis is placed on understanding the communication development process and consumer behavior (psychology), the measurement and evaluation of advertising effects, and developing appropriate media plans.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2660 - Mktg For Social Impact (Course Syllabus)

Private and public sector firms increasingly use marketing strategies to engage their customers and stakeholders around social impact. To do so, managers need to understand how best to engage and influence customers to behave in ways that have positive social effects. This course focuses on the strategies for changing the behavior of a target segment of consumers on key issues in the public interest (e.g., health behaviors, energy efficiency, poverty reduction, fundraising for social causes). How managers partner with organizations (e.g., non-profits, government) to achieve social impact will also be explored.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010

MKTG2680 - Contagious (Course Syllabus)

Why do some things catch on? Products become popular, apps take off, and videos go viral. Why? What makes some things succeed while others fail, and how, by understanding the behavioral science behind social epidemics, can we make our own stuff more successful? This course looks at these and related questions as it examines why things become popular. Building on research from psychology, sociology, marketing, and economics, the course explores characteristics of products, services, and ideas that lead them to catch on, what makes ideas stick, and how social dynamics shape success. We’ll talk about viral marketing, growth strategies, the role of social media, and influencers. Whether you have a product, service, or idea you want to catch on, or just want to better understand social epidemics, this course will shed light on what drives success.

MKTG2700 - Dgtl Social & E-Com Mktg (Course Syllabus)

MKTG 2700 explores the digital marketing environment from both a consumer and business perspective. The course provides an overview of various online business models and delves into digital advertising and social media marketing techniques and technologies. A mixture of case studies, guest speakers and assignments, including one that uses real advertising data, translates theory into practice. It is recommended that students enrolling in the course be comfortable using Excel and are knowledgeable in applying regression analysis techniques. Students who would prefer a less technical course may wish to take MKTG 2270, Digital Marketing and Electronic Commerce, a half cu course offered by the department.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2710 - Models For Mktg Strategy (Course Syllabus)

The course develops students’ skills in using analytics to make better marketing decisions. Compared to other courses in marketing analytics, the focus is less on ‘what is happening?’ or ‘what will happen?’ and more on ‘what should we do?’ I.e., the course moves beyond descriptive and predictive analytics into prescriptive analytics. It covers a variety of topics, models and tools: (1) Marketing mix modeling & optimization, (2) Choice modeling, choice-based conjoint analysis & market simulators, (3) Modeling churn & maximizing customer lifetime value, and (4) Quantifying causal effects in marketing. The course requires familiarity with Excel and linear regression from the very first day, but is otherwise self-contained. Lectures are organized around a mini-case or illustrate the model/technique at hand through one or more real-life applications.

Prerequisites: (MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018) AND (STAT 1010 OR STAT 1018)

MKTG2770 - Marketing Strategy (Course Syllabus)

This course views marketing as both a general management responsibility and an orientation of an organization that helps one to create, capture and sustain customer value. The focus is on the business unit and its network of channels, customer relationships, and alliances. Specifically, the course attempts to help develop knowledge and skills in the application of advanced marketing frameworks, concepts, and methods for making strategic choices at the business level.

MKTG2780 - Strategic Brand Mgmt (Course Syllabus)

Which brands make you happy? Apple? Amazon? Starbucks? Everlane? Soulcycle? Sweetgreen? What draws you into these brands? How do companies create compelling brand experiences? How could you cultivate a well-loved brand? This course explores such questions with the goal of identifying the ingredients for building an inspired brand. The course is created for students interested in building a brand and/or immersing themselves in the enhancement of an existing brand, and it is comprised of lectures, cases, guest speakers, discussions, in and out of class exercises, and a final project. Broadly, the course will be divided into four parts: 1) Understanding Brand, 2) Crafting Brand, 3) Measuring Brand, and 4) Managing Brand. The course will provide students with an appreciation of the role of branding and (taking a consumer-centric approach) will augment students' ability to think creatively and critically about the strategies and tactics involved in building, leveraging, defending, and sustaining inspired brands.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2790 - AI in Our Lives (Course Syllabus)

This course takes a behavioral perspective on the topic of autonomous technology, such as Artificial Intelligence. It reviews new insights to help companies thrive in the dawning age of smart machines. The emerging behavioral science of autonomous technology helps us understand barriers to consumer adoption and how to design captivating AI experiences. Moreover, we discuss how to improve managerial decision-making with data and algorithms. This is a non-technical course. No coding or data science skills are required. The course uses a blend of pedagogical approaches, including interactive lectures, workshops, guest lectures, and case discussions, to bridge two perspectives. On one side, we acknowledge the tremendous value that autonomous technology can provide to firms and individual consumers. In many ways, automation defines progress. On the other side, we examine emerging risks for consumers in an AI-driven economy. The main theoretical lens will be offered by psychology, but we will also examine ideas from economics, management, history, statistics, computer science, art, sociology, and philosophy. The application contexts will focus on marketing. While also relevant to other disciplines (e.g., operations, innovation), the course is therefore especially suitable for students interested in a career in marketing (e.g., product management, customer experience management).

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG2880 - Pricing Strategies (Course Syllabus)

This course is designed to equip students with the concepts, techniques, and latest thinking on pricing issues, with an emphasis on ways in which to help a firm improve its pricing. The orientation of the course is about practice of pricing, not theory. We will focus on how firms can improve profitability through pricing, look at how firms set their prices and how to improve current practices to increase profitability. The first part of the course focuses on how to analyze costs, customers, and competitors in order to formulate proactive pricing strategies. The second part focuses on price promotions, price bundling, price discrimination, versioning, nonlinear pricing, pricing through a distribution channel, dynamic pricing, etc.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 or MKTG 1018

MKTG3060 - Retail Merchandising (Course Syllabus)

As a follow-on to Principles of Retailing (MKTG 2250), this course delves more deeply into both the fundamentals and recent trends in the end-to-end retail merchandising process. The objective is to familiarize students with both the theory and practice of planning, buying, designing, pricing, and displaying merchandise to consumers. This knowledge will be fundamental to careers working for retailers themselves (e-commerce or omnichannel), but also in consulting to retailers, in banking or investing in the retail sector, or even starting a brand or retail concept. Those seeking more depth in sourcing, distribution, fulfillment, and store/site operations should consider taking Retail Supply Chain Management (OIDD 3970).

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018 OR MKTG 2250

MKTG3090 - Experiments for Bus Dec Making (Course Syllabus)

EXPERIMENTS FOR BUSINESS DECISION MAKING: In the past decade, massive shifts in how companies interact with their customers have suddenly made field experiments an economically feasible way to learn about a variety of business questions such as what types of promotions are most effective, what products should be stocked at a store, how e-mail promotions should be designed, how sales staff should be compensated, etc. Many marketers engaged in online retailing, direct-marketing, online advertising, media management, etc. are rapidly embracing a "test and learn" philosophy and a number of platforms such as Google Website Optimizer, have been developed to facilitate rigorous field experiments in the online environment. Just as with the quality revolution in manufacturing during the 1980s and 1990s, the rapid rise of the "test and learn" philosophy in marketing has created a huge demand for those who can design, field, and analyze marketing experiments. Through this course, you will learn and practice a wide range of critical skills, from the statistical methods used to design and analyze experiments to the management and strategy required to execute an experiment and act on the results. Although the cases and examples will focus on marketing problems, the material covered can be applied in a number of other domains particularly operations management and product design.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 or MKTG 1018

MKTG3500 - Special Topics (Course Syllabus)

CONSUMER NEUROSCIENCE: How can studying the brain improve our understanding of consumer behavior? While neuroscience made tremendous strides throughout the 20th century, rarely were meaningful applications developed outside of medicine. Recently, however, breakthroughs in measurement and computation have accelerated brain science and created a dizzying array of opportunities in business and technology. Currently, applications to marketing research and product development are experiencing explosive growth that has been met with both excitement and skepticism. This mini-course provides an overview of the neuroscience behind and the potential for these developments. Topics will range from well-known and widely used applications, such as eye-tracking measures in the lab and field, to emerging methods and measures, such as mobile technologies, face-reading algorithms, and neural predictors of marketing response. The course will also discuss applications in branding and product development, including wearable physiological devices and apps, sensory branding for foods and fragrances, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and neuroscience-based products designed to enhance cognitive functions. These applications stem from many subfields of cognitive neuroscience, including attention, emotion, memory, and decision making. This course is self-contained and has no prerequisites. However, students with some background in business, economics, psychology, and/or neuroscience are likely to find the material covered in this course complementary to their existing knowledge.

MKTG3520 - Special Topics (Course Syllabus)

MARKETING ANALYTICS: Companies are currently spending millions of dollars on data-gathering initiatives - but few are successfully capitalizing on all this data to generate revenue and increase profit. Moving from collecting data to analysis to profitable results requires the ability to forecast and develop a business rationale based on identified data patterns. Marketing Analytics will cover the three pillars of analytics - descriptive, predictive and prescriptive. Descriptive Analytics examines different types of data and how they can be visualized, ultimately helping you leverage your findings and strengthen your decision making. Predictive Analytics explores the potential uses of data once collected and interpreted. You will learn to utilize different tools, such as regression analysis, and estimate relationships among variables to predict future behavior. Prescriptive Analytics takes you through the final step - formulating concrete recommendations. These recommendations can be directed toward a variety of efforts including pricing and social-platform outreach.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 AND STAT 1010

MKTG3530 - Business of Wellness (Course Syllabus)

Wellness relates to the active pursuit of activities, choices, and lifestyles that lead to a state of holistic health. The global wellness industry represents a rapidly expanding, multi-trillion-dollar market. The purpose of this course is to provide a better understanding of the marketing of wellness brands, services, and products and the consumer behavior of wellness. Throughout the course, we will explore: 1) The evolution of the wellness industry and its various sub-industries (e.g., fitness, beauty, mindfulness, mental health, food/drink, tourism, etc.); 2) How organizations “sell wellness” through marketing strategies and tactics; and 3) “Consuming wellness,” or the consumer psychology and behaviors that contribute to or detract from one’s personal wellness. We will also consider significant ethical and moral issues in the wellness industry, and how consumers can be more discerning of wellness offerings. These topics will be explored through the specific lenses of marketing, consumer culture, and consumer psychology. By the end of the semester, students should have a better understanding of the wellness industry, including its various stakeholders, evolution, the business opportunities and challenges, and consumer behaviors.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010

MKTG3550 - Special Topic: AI in Our Lives (Course Syllabus)

“AI in Our Lives: The Behavioral Science of Autonomous Technology” (or “AI in Our Lives” for short) takes a behavioral perspective on the topic of autonomous technology, such as Artificial Intelligence. It reviews new behavioral insights to help companies thrive in the dawning age of smart machines. We focus on both the behavior of consumers and how managers should make decisions about consumers. Related to the former, the emerging behavioral science of autonomous technology helps us understand barriers to consumer adoption and how to design captivating AI experiences. Related to the latter, we discuss how to improve decision-making with data and algorithms. This is a non-technical course. No coding or data science skills are required. The course uses interdisciplinary materials and a blend of pedagogical approaches, including interactive lectures, workshops, guest lectures, and case discussions. In addition to its many substantive insights, the course offers moments of reflection to help you understand how technology is changing our lives, and how each of us can help effect positive change in the world. The course bridges two perspectives. On one side, we acknowledge the tremendous value that autonomous technology can provide to firms and individual consumers. In many ways, automation defines progress. On the other side, we examine emerging risks for consumers in an AI-driven economy. The main theoretical lens will be offered by psychology, but we will also examine ideas from economics, management, history, statistics, computer science, art, sociology, and philosophy. The application contexts will be focused on marketing. While also relevant to other disciplines (e.g., operations, IT, innovation, or general management), this course is therefore especially suitable for students interested in a career in marketing (e.g., product management, brand management, service design, and customer experience management). The ultimate goal of the course is to help ensure that the amazing technologies currently being developed bring about positive change. The course will strive to achieve that by tackling the following UN Sustainable Development Goals: SDG9 (Innovation), SDG8 (Economic growth), SDG3 (Health and wellbeing), SDG10 (Reduced inequality), and SDG12 (Responsible consumption and production). The course complements the research activities of the new Wharton Human-Centered Technology Initiative.

Prerequisites: MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018

MKTG3990 - Independent Study (Course Syllabus)

Prerequisites: MKTG 2120

MKTG4010 - Marketing Analytics (Course Syllabus)

In this class students will (1) Apply knowledge to practice for an actual client, with a focus on the synthesis of knowledge acquired across curriculum (2) Practice analytical thinking skills (analyzing and framing business problems and problem-solving techniques), including consideration of ethical issues. (3) Practice written and oral communication skills, as well as working in an (assigned) team environment, by leveraging the experience developed in earlier years of the leadership Journey. (4) Reflect on their own social and intellectual development over their time at Wharton and Penn.

Prerequisites: (MKTG 1010 OR MKTG 1018) AND WH 1010 AND WH 2010 AND MGMT 3010

MKTG4760 - Appl Prob Models Mktg (Course Syllabus)

This course will expose students to the theoretical and empirical "building blocks" that will allow them to construct, estimate, and interpret powerful models of consumer behavior. Over the years, researchers and practitioners have used these models for a wide variety of applications, such as new product sales, forecasting, analyses of media usage, and targeted marketing programs. Other disciplines have seen equally broad utilization of these techniques. The course will be entirely lecture-based with a strong emphasis on real-time problem solving. Most sessions will feature sophisticated numerical investigations using Microsoft Excel. Much of the material is highly technical.