This course provides a rigorous introduction to an economic way of thinking that will enhance students’ ability to analyze business situations and strengthen their critical decision-making skills. It is designed to provide a rich set of tools and techniques students can readily apply to a wide range of strategic business situations at work, as well as a solid foundation in microeconomic analysis that they can build on throughout the rest of the MBA program.
Managerial Economics and Quantitative Analysis starts by introducing basic microeconomic concepts, and then gradually develops a set of powerful analytical tools that can be used to understand and predict how consumers and firms behave in different market structures and strategic situations, and over different time frames.
Outline
This course is divided into 8 lessons.
Lesson 1: Management and Markets
Lesson 2: Marginal Analysis and Basic Estimation Techniques
Lesson 3: Consumer Behaviour, Elasticity, and Demand
Lesson 4: Demand Estimation and Forecasting
Lesson 5: Decisions under Risk and Uncertainty
Lesson 6: Production and Costs
Lesson 7: Managerial Decisions and Market Structure
Lesson 8: Strategic Decision Making in Oligopoly Markets
Learning outcomes
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
know some economics principles and applications that are crucial to managerial decision making.
enhance their critical thinking ability by considering the aspects of cost and benefit
develop a sound analytical and logical approach.
develop an understanding of how different market structures work and how a company’s strategic decisions could depend on the particular market structure in which it operates.
discuss and analyze a wide range of stylized business situations and real-world problems.
develop some of the skills in demand for a successful career in business strategy.
Materials
Thomas, C. R. (2024). Managerial economics (14th international ed.). McGraw-Hill. (eText)
All other course materials will be accessed online.
Evaluation
Your grade will be based on the successful completion of weekly Applied Problems, two Group Projects, and a Comprehensive Individual assignment and on your participation in moderated group discussions.
Component
Marks
Weekly Applied Problems
Own solution (9 marks)
Discussions / comments on at least 2 solutions from others (6 marks)
15%
Weekly Discussions
Discussion initiation (9 marks)
Discussions / comments on others’ postings (6 marks)
15%
Group Project 1
Submitted assignment (10 marks)
Participation, as reflected in the peer evaluation (5 marks)
15%
Group Project 2
Submitted assignment (10 marks)
Participation, as reflected in the peer evaluation (5 marks)
15%
Comprehensive Individual Assignment
40%
Total
100%
To receive a passing grade in this course, you must meet these minimum standards:
receive an average of 60% in the participation component of the course, and
receive an average of 60% in each of the other components of the course.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized study counterparts.