The Business Foundations program provides a functional overview of all phases of business, including ownership, marketing, personnel, accounting, finance, managerial controls, leadership, and the relationship of business to the ethical, economic, and social environment in which it operates.  Business Foundations provides students a window on global business: how the global marketplace operates and how a country’s customs, politics, and ethnicity affect business. 

The program is designed for business and non-business degree seeking students, current and future entrepreneurs, or anyone who wants a practical foundation in business. Winter’s studies will focus on Financial and Managerial Accounting Fundamentals. As the program continues in the spring quarter, students will continue to study finance, do independent study, and learn through a four-credit internship.

Each quarter's specific topics are designed as foundations for students with no prior academic business background. The instructor will strive to teach the program in an engaging manner, using a mix of uncluttered reading materials, conversational language, and humor to introduce students to the essentials of business and management without sacrificing rigor or content.  We will use a real-world focus to illustrate fundamental concepts and employ case studies of companies whose products and services are familiar.

The intent of the program is to provide a theoretical framework for the realities of starting, managing, and growing a small to medium size business.  Our goal is for students to gain insight into the operational, legal, financial, ethical, and practical challenges associated with running a business.  We will explore how organizations are legally and financially defined, what is unique about them, and the advantages and disadvantages of each type.  The program uses seminar, case studies, simulations, guest speakers, discussions, assignments, self-study, and an internship to integrate classroom knowledge with current best practices, protocols, and cultural aspects of doing business in today's global, diverse economies.