Management program

Undergrad major

Develop the knowledge and skills you need to be a successful leader.

Organizations today need managers who can effectively make decisions under complex and ambiguous circumstances, and in diverse and global environments. With a management major, you'll learn these skills. You'll also gain the hands-on experiences to become a socially-responsible leader, an evidence-based decision-maker, and an inclusive team member.

UWL's Management program prepares students for a challenging career in a variety of business contexts, including for-profit and non-profit organizations. The program emphasizes applied coursework and networking through internships and community engagement in classes. Students will find many opportunities to practice positive leadership and teamwork.

Management definition

Management is about finding the best way to accomplish tasks and achieve goals. Effective managers are essential to the success of any organization. They skillfully coordinate the activities of the organization and lead and support the people within it, so that the organization can achieve its goals. Managers need a good understanding of planning, organizing, leading and controlling organizational processes.

One of my professors gave out his email and said, 'If you have questions or need help, call or email me.'... Once I realized the professors at UWL — like at Western Technical College — were willing to help me, that helped me make the transition.

Ryan Crain

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Management careers

Students commonly choose careers in leadership, human resources, operations or entrepreneurship. Experience in the field ideally leads to executive roles in the future. Find more details of various management occupations on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics website. Some job titles include:

What distinguishes UWL's Management program?

Focus on your area of interest

Students can tailor their major to emphasize their management interests. Focus areas include: human resource management; general management; entrepreneurship and small business management; healthcare management; environmental sustainability; international management; and production, logistics and supply chain management.

AACSB-accredited

The Management program is part of the College of Business Administration, which is accredited by AACSB International. This accreditation represents the highest standard of achievement for business schools and is held by only 5% of schools worldwide. AACSB schools produce graduates who are more highly skilled and marketable to employers than other non-accredited schools.

Excellence in teaching

The Management Department has high-quality faculty with doctoral degrees and professional experience. They offer relevant and challenging curriculum in classes that integrate the instructors’ managerial insights from professional work. Faculty are committed to excellence in teaching and scholarship. Two management professors have received campus-wide awards for excellence in teaching, and faculty regularly make contributions to their field, including publication of their work in top-tier research publications.

Integration of social responsibility and sustainability

Students in the major benefit from a strong commitment to sustainability and social responsibility in research and teaching, or The Principles for Responsible Management Education. PRME is a United Nations supported initiative to equip today's business students with the understanding and ability to deliver change for tomorrow, providing them skills to balance economic and sustainability goals.

Community outreach through classes

Students have the opportunity to connect classroom learning with businesses and organizations in the community through applied projects, service learning experiences and internships. These activities allow students to engage with the community and make an impact on real community initiatives.

A facility where modern and historic meet

UWL's College of Business Administration is located in the recently-renovated Wittich Hall. Changes to the facility preserve the history of UWL's second oldest building, while providing modern places to connect and study. The facility was renovated with student input. Student spaces include computer labs, study spaces, sales competition rooms, a finance lab and more.

Successful interdisciplinary business program

Students have the opportunity to apply to a unique, interdisciplinary business program, the Integrated Core Program. Students in the program gain a deeper understanding of core business functions in management and how they relate to finance and marketing. The program aims to improve critical thinking, communication and professional skills through applied projects with community partners.

One-on-one faculty interaction

Faculty genuinely care about student success. Students meet with faculty advisors one-on-one each semester to discuss career goals, courses and hands-on opportunities to grow their skills and knowledge.

Sample courses

MGT 308 Organizational Behavior This course provides an introduction to organizational behavior. Emphasis is on key individual and group level behavioral processes deemed essential for effective management. They include perception, motivation, communication, and group dynamics. In addition, the course covers some basic concepts of organizational theory such as organizational structure and design, organizational culture, and strategy and goals. Prerequisite: admission to business. Also open to majors with a business concentration, or business minors, with junior standing. Offered Fall, Spring, Summer.

MGT 360 International Management Through this course, students will be introduced to the opportunities and challenges corporations face when doing business internationally and identify strategies and practices to manage effectively in a global environment. In particular, students will be exposed to, and encouraged to critically think about, international management topics such as the global business environment, ethics and corporate social responsibility, culture, international strategy and entry, organizational behavior across cultures, and international human resource management issues. In the end, students develop an understanding of, and appreciation for, culture and its impact on management and strategies for managing in a complex, global environment. Prerequisite: admission to business or international business minor with a non business major; junior standing. Offered Fall, Spring.

MGT 385 Human Resource Management This course serves as an introduction to human resource management (HRM), emphasizing the processes of employment and the related HRM functions. Functional areas in HRM related to HR strategy and workforce planning, recruitment, staffing and hiring, employee training and development, performance management, and employee wellness are covered. Across these functional areas, principles related to legality, diversity and inclusion, and business analytics are emphasized and applied. Students may take this course as a foundational experience toward a career in HR, or as exposure to pertinent HRM knowledge and skills needed by any effective manager. Prerequisite: admission to business or sports management major; junior standing. Offered Fall, Spring.

MGT 393 Production and Operations Management This introductory course explains the theories and analytical techniques about how manufacturing and service operations create value through operations management function. High-performing, world-class organizations have demonstrated that they execute not only efficient but also socially responsible operations management practices. This operations management course covers some of these practices: process management, operations strategy, project management, quality management, lean operations, global supply chains, sustainability, forecasting and inventory management. Prerequisite: STAT 145; MTH 160, MTH 175 or MTH 207; admission to business. Offered Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer.

MGT 395 Management Science Introduction to the quantitative models used in the private and public sectors. Topics include linear programming, transportation and assignment models, project planning, basic inventory models, decision theory, queuing models, and game theory. Prerequisite: MGT 393; admission to business or information systems major. Offered Occasionally.

MGT 399 Project Management: Planning, Scheduling, Executing, and Controlling This course emphasizes the use of special tools and techniques in management to accomplish the organizational mission through better control and use of existing resources. It explores ways to harness cross-functional synergy in an organization to successfully plan, schedule, execute and control projects. Prerequisite: STAT 145; admission to business; junior standing. Offered Occasionally.

MGT 412 Leadership and Team Development This course focuses on key differences between management and leadership and the importance of leadership in the context of effective team building. The emphasis is on organizational change and the role that leadership plays in providing direction for this change. Collaborative and non-hierarchical strategies that facilitate team building will be discussed as an alternative to top-down behavior. The course will provide opportunities to think deeply and systematically about the development of leadership skills and the creativity, initiative and motivation critical to that development. Prerequisite: admission to business or leadership development minor; junior standing. Offered Occasionally.

MGT 422 Social Entrepreneurship This course introduces students to the utilization of business entrepreneurial skills as a means of creatively responding to societal problems. Course discussion will include the drivers of social entrepreneurship, opportunity identification, social venture financing, hybrid legal forms, and social impact measurement. Prerequisite: admission to business; junior standing. Offered Occasionally.