Business Administration

This course introduces the basic concepts and principles of sports marketing. The objective of this course is to recognize the importance of sport marketing and become capable of analyzing sports marketing phenomena.

This course focuses on scientific methods that marketers can use to obtain valid and reliable information on consumer behavior in order to both develop better products and services, as well as effectively promote them. It covers the fundamental issues of conducting scientific research in the area of customer behavior, including: factorial analysis; drawing perceptual maps; cluster analysis; discriminant analysis; joint analysis; in-depth interviews; group dynamics; commercial observation techniques.

This course introduces students to the important principles relevant to medical entrepreneurship. It guides them through the relevant theories underpinning entrepreneurial practice. The ethical framework governing medical entrepreneurship is explored, which allows students to understand potential unintended consequences of innovation. Using small group work, students collaborate and develop their entrepreneurial ideas, culminating in an assessed presentation to the cohort during their final week. Through this, students  develop their own teamwork, communication and leadership skills with a focus on creativity and design.

Financial Institutions examines the function, characteristics, and operation of various financial institutions, e.g. banks, other deposit-taking institutions as well as non-deposit-taking institutions. This involves not only an examination of the nature and characteristics of their services or products they offer via different markets such as money markets, bond markets, equity markets, foreign exchange markets, derivative markets, and the credit markets in order to meet the needs of different market participants, but also of why financial crises emerge in the operation of these markets.

International managers face diverse and dynamic business environments in which they must accurately assess the institutional factors that shape the success or failure of their strategies and operations. This course aims to provide students with management knowledge for understanding international business environments in order to design effective managerial practices. It covers a range of issues concerned with managing international operations, such as: the global business environment and national differences, global institutions and driver of globalization, cross-cultural management and business ethics, cross-cultural negotiation or expatriation and assignments abroad amongst others.

This course is a focused study of the European luxury industry with an emphasis on current and developing trends and issues. Topics covered include business strategy, marketing, retailing, management, branding, and public relations of luxury companies in the fashion, food and beverage, and automobile sectors.  Through readings, analyzing current case studies of real-life companies, discussions, viewing media, luxury retail professional visits in Maastricht, and a possible field trip, students examine how the luxury industry maintains its aspirational image with consumers even as it sells entry-level products such as sunglasses and accessories to a mainstream audience.

This course offers a study of e-branding. Topics include: the concept of an eBrand and typologies; the functions of brands and the functional and emotional attributes of brands; brand personality and identity; monitoring perceptions and associations of brands; online brand crisis management.