COURSE NUMBER: MBA267.2

COURSE TITLE: Brand Strategy Boot Camp

UNITS OF CREDIT: 3.0

INSTRUCTOR: Bill Pearce

E-MAIL ADDRESS: william_pearce@haas.berkeley.edu

CLASS WEB PAGE LOCATION: http://bspace.berkeley.edu

MEETING DAY(S)/TIME: Wednesday, 6:00PM-9:00PM

PREREQUISITE(S): MBA206

CLASS FORMAT: Mix of case discussions, lectures, and group/individual projects.

REQUIRED READINGS: Cases, Course Reader available on Study.net

BASIS FOR FINAL GRADE:

The final grade will be based on:

•        3 or 4-person Team Brand Project (final):  40%                                       

•        Six one-page case assignments:  30%

•        Class participation:  20%

•        Class exercises:  10%

ABSTRACT OF COURSE'S CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES:

This course is designed for students interested in careers in Marketing, Consulting or General Management.

Focus:

1. How to drive organic growth

2. Learning to lead

3. How to avoid common career pitfalls in your early career and develop you “personal” brand

Introduction:

Theory + Experience = Career Advantage

We take the CMO’s perspective on business growth, strategy and people development.  This course will teach you how to apply your MBA to maximum advantage in a Marketing, Strategy and/or General Management assignment.  Markets are by nature dynamic; how you apply your learning and express your understanding of your market position and opportunities is the key to career advancement.

To address these dynamics the course will be a semester-long immersion in the roles and responsibilities of a manager that has to make decisions based on marketplace reactions and results.  You will learn to identify, diagnose and enact solutions to business growth problems.  

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

• Turn analytical skills into compelling arguments, both written and verbal;

• Evaluate qualitative and quantitative research and turn into actionable decisions;

• Learn how to write briefs that provide a basis to evaluate growth drivers;

• Lead with influence versus authority;

• Develop long-range business plans to meet strategic and financial objectives.

The Course objective is to immerse students in the key marketplace drivers of B2B and B2C companies and how to generate organic growth. Emphasis will be placed on practical skills to successfully execute job responsibilities ultimately leading to promotion.  Professor will use case study, group and individual projects to determine final grade. Presentation and writing skills will be given extra attention.  

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: Bill Pearce is a Lecturer at the Haas School of Business. Before joining UC Berkeley in 2011 he received his MBA from Cornell University. Bill is a veteran marketing practitioner having held senior marketing positions at P&G and Campbell Soup. Additionally, Bill served as CMO for Taco Bell and Del Monte Foods. Bill is a Board member of the Ad Council, CMO Council and the American Heart Association. He is an Advisory Board member of Rich Relevance, Technorati Media, Virtual Fan Network and several other firms in the Digital marketing sector.