Specialization: course opened to all study programs
Warrantor: doc. PhDr. Martin Bútora
Instructor: Martin Nielsen, MA
Lecturing hours (weekly): 2
Credits: 3 ECTS
Date: Tuesday 1.30 - 3.00 PM
Room: Rector´s meeting room located on the 3rd floor (New Building)
Working language: English
Evaluation: passed/not passed
Aim of the course: Aim of the course is to acquaint students with the historical overview, current state and future prospects of the US economy through the eyes of one of the biggest corporations in modern US history - IBM. In the last 100 years IBM shaped many aspects of American life from the economic, political, social and security point of view. By introducing and developing new business thinking oriented towards customers’ satisfaction and market competitiveness IBM became also a pioneer of American business philosophy. Students will familiarize themselves with the most important periods of the US economy while focusing on the internal and external interdependences within the economic system of the country. By analyzing the system students will learn how to decrypt the basic development indicators enabling them to anticipate future trends in the US economic environment. By having access to the IBM corporate history the students will examine the reasons of corporate ups and downs and will try to formulate recommendations - what was needed to be done to avoid downturns and management failures within the corporation.
Preliminary timetable of the course:
- 1. Welcome session: Organizational Information, Presentation of IBM + short
lecture on the prehistory of IBM
- 2. 1910-1920 Time of Death and Birth
- 3. 1920-1930 Customer Satisfaction and Jazz rule the US
- 4. 1930-1940 Research, Education and Social Responsibility as the Remedy for
the Great Depression
- 5. 1940-1950 Computer as the Phoenix of the WW 2
- 6. 1950-1960 IBM Equal Opportunity Policy Inspires the American Society and Politics
- 7. 1960-1970 IBM 5 mil. $ Gamble and the US becomes the Leading Country in
Computer Production
- 8. 1970-1980 Global Economic Pessimism vs. US Battle for the Space
- 9. 1980-1990 US Asks the IBM to “Connect” the Country to Effectively Face
Rising Economic and Security Challenges
- 10. 1990-2000 IBM Net Losses as a Serious Concern for the US Economy – Time
to Restructure
- 11. 2000-2010: The Decade of Misused Crises and Used Chances
- 12. Debrief and Evaluation Session
- 13. Colloquium Exam
