COURSE NUMBER: MBA 292C.1

COURSE TITLE: Strategic and Sustainable Business Solutions

UNITS OF CREDIT: 3 Units

INSTRUCTOR: Robert Strand

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

CLASS WEB PAGE LOCATION: http://responsiblebusiness.haas.berkeley.edu/students/courses.html

PREREQUISITE(S): None

CLASS FORMAT: Discussion-based course comprised of lectures, guest lectures with sustainability experts, student presentations, and in-class time for teams to work on client consulting projects.

BASIS FOR FINAL GRADE: 35% Individual class participation & contributions, 10% Individual short writing assignments, 30% Team client deliverables, 10% Individual in-team contributions, 5% Additional

ABSTRACT OF COURSE'S CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES:
Business can and should solve the world’s most pressing problems. This statement represents the essence of this course. Approximately half of this course is dedicated to the philosophical exploration of the role of business and corporations in society, drawing upon influential thinkers throughout history including Adam Smith, Milton Friedman and Michael Porter. The other half is dedicated to the practical and strategic application of sustainability, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and creating shared value (CSV) through team-based student consulting projects. Industry clients vary by semester with representative companies from past semesters including: Patagonia, Microsoft, Adobe, Kimberly-Clark, Airbnb, Nike, Cisco, and Levi Strauss & Co..

CAREER FIELD: “Mainstream” business practitioners (marketers, financiers, operations, accountants, etc); sustainability/CSR practitioners; consultants

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: Dr. Robert Strand is the Executive Director of the Center for Responsible Business and member of the faculty at the University of California-Berkeley Haas School of Business. He is also Associate Professor of Leadership & Sustainability with the Copenhagen Business School. Prior to joining academia, Robert spent a decade in industry with IBM and Boston Scientific in a range of roles in manufacturing, supply chain, marketing, strategy, and investor relations. With his wife Sarah, he is the proud parent of two wonderful boys, Mikkel (4 years) and Jonas (2 year).