Wes Hartmann
The John G. McCoy-Banc One
Professor of Marketing
Stanford Graduate School of Business

Marketing for Measurable Change (2021-Present)

Whether for mission or for profit, companies and organizations often seek to shift customers from existing alternatives to a better choice. This project based course applies foundations of marketing and strategy to develop a plan for measurable change in market outcomes. It begins by considering objectives, then analyzing customers to develop a proposal that includes a vision, development roadmap and growth model. While various marketing vehicles may help achieve growth, we emphasize strategic relationships to move beyond the marginal growth of converting one customer at a time.

This course covers various advanced quantitative methods with applications in marketing and economics. Topics include simulation-based estimation, Markov Chain Monte Carlo estimation of hierarchical Bayesian models, dynamic decision processes, and other advanced topics relating to empirical models of demand and supply. The course stresses the conceptual understanding and application of each technique. Students will learn to apply these techniques using Matlab or an equivalent language.

This course explores where creativity occurs in the value chain or business ecosystem more broadly. We begin with an industry analysis strategy framework that allows us to understand how value is created and shared. Expanding beyond a traditional value chain, we emphasize a more complex nature of interactions between firms that we refer to as the business ecosystem. Primary insights in the class derive from how the ecosystem can promote creativity. Focus is placed on the make or buy decision with respect to creativity and how multi-business firms operating across vertical layers of an industry, or integrating diverse industries, can promote innovation and creativity over time. Applications involve product management, product development, branding, and advertising. Contexts include video distributors producing movies and shows; brands bringing creative agency work in-house; and the acquisition of new brands and products in the beverage industry.

This course deals with the overall general management of the business enterprise. Extensive case studies of a variety of companies of differing size, industry, and current conditions provide the basis for the comprehensive analysis and establishment of a strategic management approach for the organization. Frameworks are presented for strategy identification and evaluation; assessing industry attractiveness; evaluating the firm's capabilities, resources, and position; determining the optimal horizontal and vertical scope of the firm; entering into strategic alliances and joint ventures; and formulating and implementing strategy in multi-business organizations.

This course examines fundamental issues of general management and leadership within an organization. You will learn about setting an organization's strategic direction, aligning structure to implement strategy, and leading individuals within the firm. You will master concepts, frameworks, and tools to assess an industry and a firm's competitive environment, and to craft alternatives. You will study the interplay among formal structure, informal networks, and culture in shaping organizational performance. By integrating leadership theory, the lessons of practical application, and your own experience, you will develop skills and capabilities essential to leading others. And you'll gain a better understanding of your own leadership preferences, strengths, and weaknesses.

The objectives of this course are to introduce students to the substantive and procedural aspects of marketing management and to sharpen skills for critical analytical thinking and effective communication. Specifically, the goals are to:
- introduce students to marketing strategy and to the elements of marketing analysis: customer analysis, competitor analysis, and company analysis
- familiarize students with the elements of the marketing mix (product strategy, pricing, advertising and promotion, and distribution)
- enhance problem solving and decision-making abilities in these operational areas of marketing
- provide students with a forum (both written and verbal) for presenting and defending their own recommendations, and for critically examining and discussing the recommendations of others.