Student-Initiated Courses

Leading Bay Area entrepreneurs share the lessons they learned in creating their organizations. Each week the guest speaker gives a one-hour presentation, followed by a networking dinner for select students. Past participants have included Shai Agassi, whose Project Better Place aims to revolutionize electric cars, and the Haas team behind Revolution Foods, who are improving the quality of school food throughout the area.

This seminar provides an overview of private equity investing through weekly interactions with a diverse group of accomplished industry professionals from institutions such as buyout funds, mezzanine capital funds, equity fund limited partners, investment banks, and other third-party service providers. In addition to reviewing the roles of each party involved, the course also focuses on each step in the deal process, demonstrates the varying investment strategies of industry players, highlights current market trends, and provides both financial and strategic insight into this growing asset class.

Through discussions led by local professionals, this course gives a general introduction to the various segments of the real estate industry, including: commercial and residential development, REITS, private equity, investment banking, brokerage, investment sales, consulting, homebuilding, lending, affordable housing, and asset management. The speakers offer insight into their particular market segment, as well as current industry trends and career path strategies.

The course explores the growth of microfinance operations to provide financial services to poor and low-income people on a sustainable basis. Addressing the current challenges and debates in the world of microfinance, the course presents advice and best practices from scholars and successful practitioners as well as new technology startups targeting the industry. For the final project, the class invests $25,000 (in real dollars) in a portfolio of microfinance opportunities.

Leading marketing professionals discuss various marketing career tracks, functions, and skill sets, allowing students to gain valuable advice from real-world practitioners. Recent speakers came from some of the most-well known companies in the Bay Area, including: Yahoo!, Apple, Old Navy, Intuit, Banana Republic, and Ogilvy.

Covering all aspects of producing, distributing, marketing and selling wine, this course provides broad knowledge of the wine industry. Classes are taught by industry experts, from winemakers and CEOs to wine writers, importers, and lawyers. In addition to learning about the wine industry, class members will have the opportunity to refine their tasting skills.

This course introduces various investment styles and strategies as speakers from different sub-segments of the asset management industry present lectures and case study workshops to dissect the challenges and issues investors face. A wide variety of practitioners are guest speakers, from portfolio managers of major mutual fund companies to recent MBA alumni working as investment analysts.

Each week consultants from top firms offer a better understanding of the work and lifestyle associated with a career in Management Consulting and a glimpse of individual firms' cultures and areas of concentration. An in-depth case discussion proves invaluable in preparing for interviews for summer internships and full-time employment.

The biobusiness filed involves multiple areas of expertise, including: entrepreneurship, business development and corporate challenges, investing and valuation, consulting, and marketing. In this speaker series, students learn about the challenges in biobusiness from industry experts, who present cases representative of their experience. This course is ideal for students who wish to pursue careers in biotech, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, healthcare, consulting, or any other healthcare-related field.

Sponsored by the Haas Technology Club, this course provides firsthand information from internet executives in. Industry executives will discuss major business issues, including competitive forces, technological evolution, business models, and future growth prospects in their respective spaces.

This course establishes a basic understanding of the traditional energy industries and explores developments in alternative energy technologies in response to global warming, energy dependence, and the geopolitical impact of hydrocarbon extraction. Guest speakers will give an overview of alternative energy fields, including: solar, ethanol, wind, smartgrids/distributed generation, wave, and storage-and discuss their company's business decisions, obstacles, and vision.

This course identifies and examines approaches to impacting poverty through the use of market-based mechanisms. It encourages students to challenge traditional approaches to development while exploring the limits of the market as a poverty reduction tool. Starting with an overview of international development economics and theories and followed by a look at specific market-based interventions and techniques designed to reduce poverty, the course concludes by examining trade and government policy and how markets can be made to work better for the majority. Looking at the nonprofit, corporate, and social entrepreneurship sectors, with a strong emphasis on non-US markets, the course brings together advice and best practices from successful practitioners and institutions as well as from those providing the capital and business approaches for their success.

Developed in 2008, this course explores new concepts, tools, and methodologies in the software, internet, and digital media spaces. Bay Area industry professionals from Google, Apple, Yahoo, Electronic Arts, among others, present an overview of the different roles involved in bringing internet and digital media products to market. By providing insight into leadership roles that are common for graduating MBAs, such as product management, marketing management, and business development, this course prepares students for product leadership interviews and making important career decisions.

This one-unit course aims to educate Haas students about the various roles individuals play within the Strategy, Business Development, and General Management functions and increases the career opportunities available to Haas students. Each week, a guest executive will speak on their firm's areas of concentration and culture, followed by a case discussion and Q&A. In the past, executives have come from companies such as McKesson, Google , Intel, and Chevron.

The Education Leadership Speaker Series introduces students to esteemed leaders in the field of education, from both the public and private sectors, from schools, districts, nonprofits, and other organizations. Topics include school districts, charter schools, consulting to education organizations, operations support, human capital, and investing in education.

Presenters will focus on the business of sports and the various career opportunities in the industry, as well as how their day-to-day decisions affect their organization. Students have the opportunity to gain valuable advice from real-world practitioners on their roles and responsibilities. Some of the segments of the sports industry this class explores include: college athletics, professional sports, media and sponsorship, and consumer products. Targeted speakers include: CEOs, CFOs, Brand Managers, Strategic Planners, Sports Authors, CSR Executives, Executive Directors, Athletic Directors, and Athletes. A handful of possible organizations include: the San Francisco 49ers, the Oakland Raiders, the San Francisco Giants, the San Diego Padres, Patagonia, Nike, Cliff Bar, Visa Sports Marketing, Cal Athletics, EA Sports and CBS.