The educational goal of this course is to develop a holistic understanding of today's business world. Sustainability refers to the relationship between business, society, and planet. Understanding these connections, and connecting them to business decisions is the first milestone of this course.

Based on this holistic view, the ultimate objective of the course is for every student to develop his or her own personal synthesis and approach for identifying and solving the key problems that they will face in the business world, be it as entrepreneur or as a member in an existing corporation. There is an increased need in the business world for people being able to plan strategic innovation for a sustainable future.

As we move toward the third decade of the 21st century, the very nature of corporate and competitive strategy is undergoing radical transformation. Business will become increasingly focused on transformation rather than continuous improvement, as the global challenges of sustainability come to dominate the competitive landscape.

Forces such as the accelerating rate of technological change, the mounting environmental crisis or the widening gap between rich and poor - to mention only a few – will make clearly defined competitive strategies allowing for long terms competitive advantage practically impossible. Indeed, over the next decade or two, we will witness some important changes in existing industries which will be restructured, with many incumbents losing their positions to new entrants emerging from beyond traditional industry boundaries.

There is a personal and skill development aspect to this course. Competencies that students need to mobilize include team work, analytical skill, and multitasking between theory and practice.

The literature consists of academic articles plus usually a book as well. To give an idea in 2016 we used Stuart Hart’s motivational book "Capitalism at the crossroads". A set of academic articles will provide multiple viewpoints, depth, and critical perspectives.

Attendance in the first two meetings of the course is mandatory. You get introduced to tutor, fellow students, teams, and the educational approach. Failure to attend both meetings implies course failure.
* Excellent command of English in spontaneous class discussions, prepared student presentations, and in writing for essays (part of the grading). Vocabulary, syntax, pronunciation should all be proper.
* Basic understanding of strategic management and business economics. Basic concepts like ROA and concentration and the five forces should be known.
* Basic understanding (in terms of reading rather than actually doing) of statistics, notably, the ability to understand regression analysis as research tool, regression equations as a model in a research paper, and tables of results.