Business & Competitive Intelligence

Students in the Intelligence Studies program are about to enter what is often a large and complex professional world. In order to navigate that world, particularly in the search for employment, students need to learn how to make the most of the professional communication process. During this course, students will learn how to write an effective resume, to write a cover letter that best expresses their goals and capabilities, to undergo a job interview and to communicate in a professional setting.

This course examines the skills needed to effectively communicate intelligence analysis results to a decisionmaker. Through repetitive application of the focused set of skills needed for that communication, it prepares intelligence analysts to deliver analysis in a variety of written and oral formats. Students will also be assigned readings on best ways to prepare and develop a written intelligence product and to prepare and present an oral briefing making best use of presentation tools such as PowerPoint and Prezi. Students will also become familiar with visualization tools available for presentations and reports.

This course examines the skills needed to effectively communicate intelligence analysis results to a decisionmaker. It builds on skills learned in Communicating Intelligence Analysis I (CIA1) by adding a defined intelligence tasking that students will pursue the entire term. Students will produce and deliver written and oral analytic reports on the assigned tasking. They will be graded for adherence to effective communication skills learned in CIA1 and for the quality of their analysis. Students will develop increased familiarity with structured analytic methods learned in other RIAP courses and will apply new methods to these products.

This course is divided into three parallel tracks covering strategic theory, the practice of strategic intelligence, and the application of those principles to a "real life" problem. Analysts will participate throughout the course as a member of a group in a large-scale estimative project.

This course introduces the basics of financial accounting for business enterprises with a focus on accounting for corporations. Topics include the theory of the financial accounting principles that guide the preparation of financial accounting information and the role of accounting in capital markets as well as the ethical standards imposed on accountants. The course provides a thorough review of the accounting cycle and the operating areas of the balance sheet with special focus on how accounting transactions affect the financial statements and analysis of financial statement information.

A survey of the legal principles found in transactions typified in today's business world. Emphasis is placed on the case study method along with real-world examples. Topics covered include: alternative dispute resolution, structure of the court system, contracts, sales, property law, insurance law, and corporate ethics.

This course addresses the complex agenda of issues such as the role of business in society, the nature of corporate responsibility, the ethical environment of business, the relationship between government and business, and the impact of business on the natural environment. Attention will be given to the impact of these issues on a business and its stakeholders (managers, consumers, employees, and community members). Case studies will be used to highlight each area of concern.

Application of statistical techniques to business problems. Includes descriptive statistics, business forecasting, statistical inference, and regression. Computer software is used in this course. The goal is to introduce students to a new way of thinking about data, and to help them gain an understanding of how to use, communicate, and interpret statistics in a variety of business contexts. Offered fall and spring semesters.

This foundational course introduces students to basic design concepts, computer literacy and software competency. Through various exercises, students will experience four of the basic types of publishing tools used by designers -- Photoshop, Illustrator, In Design and Dreamweaver.

This course introduces the field of business analytics, commonly defined as the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, exploratory and predictive models, and fact-based management to drive decisions and actions. Business analytics is a process of transforming data into actions through analysis and insights in the context of organizational decision making and problem solving. As such, business analytics is applied in operations, marketing, finance, and strategic planning among other functions. Students actively participate in the delivery of this course through case and project presentations. Offered Fall and Spring Semesters Prerequisites: STAT135, Junior/Senior Standing.

This course introduces to fundamental concepts in computer science. Topics include: problem solving, algorithm development, computer programming in a high level language, debugging programs, abstract data types, variables, assignment, loops, conditionals, functions. Students who have successfully completed MATH 146 should not take this course.

This course introduces students to concepts in cyber security including: fundamentals of secure policy design: least privilege, fail-safe defaults, separation, minimize trust, economy of mechanism, minimize common mechanism, least astonishment, open design, layering, abstraction, modularity, linkage, interaction, social engineering attacks, cybersecurity user education, sensitive personal data, indentifying and documenting security requirements for software and systems.

Study of computer system administration using standalone and networked UNIX/Linux systems. Topics Include system design and installation, file systems, BASH shell, user and process management, backup/restore, common administrative tasks, troubleshooting, and networking service administration. This course includes a lab intensive component. Students who have successfully completed MIS 180 should not register for this course.

An introduction to networks, protocols, and distributed systems. Topics include: OSI model, TCP/IP, LAN and WAN, layer 2 and layer 3 architecture, resource management, naming, addressing and routing, reliable communication, security, and higher-level services. Students who have successfully completed MIS 260 should not register for this course.

This course will introduce students to the concept of securing data in transfer or during storage. This includes a discussion on information security objectives: data integrity, authentication, and data privacy: classical ciphers and block ciphers: cryptography (secret key cryptography, public key cryptography), cryptographic algorithms used; message digests; password-based, address based, and cryptographic authentication; and end to end security.

This is a study of the concepts, procedures, design, implementation and maintenance of a relational data base management system. Topics include normalization, database design, entity-relationship modeling, performance measures, data security, concurrence, integrity and Structured Query Language. MySQL will be the database management system used in this course. Students who have successfully completed MIS 350 should not take this course.

This course examines how to utilize digital media technology to meet marketing goals. Students will understand the digital marketing environment, examine best practices in developing digital marketing strategies, learn how to implement strategies using digital marketing techniques, and evaluate the performance of digital marketing campaigns using digital marketing metrics.

A hands-on course in data analysis and visualization based on key design principles and techniques for interactively visualizing data based on principles from the fields of statistics, perception, graphic design, cognition, communication and data mining. Through lecture, case studies and design studios, students will work individually and collaboratively to visualize complex datasets using software applications to identify patterns, trends, and variation across categories, space, and time. Students will obtain practical experience with the visualization of complex data including multivariate data, geospatial data, textual data, time series and network data.

This course will cover topics related to the collection, exploitation and analysis of geospatial information and imagery. The focus of the course will be on how to use software and knowledge of geospatial concepts to respond to a variety intelligence requirements that arise from fields that range from military and law enforcement to business, humanitarian issues, and other security issues. The emphasis is on the choice and application of appropriate methods for the analysis of the spatial and imagery data often encountered in the various intelligence disciplines.

An introduction to the field and laboratory methods involving identification, examination, comparison and analysis of forensic evidence including fingerprints, ballistics, blood spatter, hair and fiber, questioned documents, footwear and tire prints and impressions, as well as the various methods of crime scene documentation.