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During their first semester, students work in teams to develop a
business idea, write a business plan, and present the plan to area
business executives during the Top Dawg
Competition, which is part of the Freshman
Business Experience course. Other universities may say
that they have a business plan requirement, but it is often not
until their student's senior year. Our students develop and
present a business plan in their first year of college.
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All sophomores take the Real Business
Experience class in which student teams develop a viable
business idea, write a business plan, present the plan to a real
funding board and, if funded, start and operate the
business. Each team has a professional mentor for
guidance. The class is strategically placed in the second year
so that students have a real point of reference when they take
their business courses.
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The L.
Ben Lytle Professional and Career Development Program is a
formal, four-year process that includes two required
internships. Throughout the internship process, students
complete regular homework assignments and papers in order to link
classroom learning with real business experience. Students are
guided through the process by a professional career mentor who
coaches them throughout the four years.
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Finance students learn about investing in a non-traditional
way. Undergraduates and MBA students alternate managing a $1 million
investment fund of real money in the stock market. A group
of professional money managers advises the student teams and the
class has visits from prominent business executives such as
Bristol-Myers Squibb CEO Jim Cornelius and Andy Giesler, director
of investor relations at H.H. Gregg.
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Undergraduate and MBA students work on live consulting projects
with the Butler Business Accelerator, an
in-house professional consulting firm. Student Carolyn Mazzara
performed a strategic analysis of Indianapolis-based Langham
Logistics' marketing efforts - measuring the success of its
branding, taglines and efforts to target its niche against
competitors - and bounced her ideas for improving the marketing off
of Chief Executive Officer Kathy Langham.
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Butler MBA students kick off their graduate coursework by
participating in a one-day immersion experience with a local
business. The Gateway Experience gives students an
initial exposure to the experiential, hands-on learning process in
the MBA program. In just one day, students work in competitive
teams to develop the best solution to a problem currently faced by
a partner organization. Partner organizations have included
Steak 'n Shake, Aero Technologies, HH Gregg and Adidas.
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MBA students complete their coursework with a
full-semester Capstone Experience
course. Students work in teams on a semester-long, live case
with a local company. Students present their findings and
recommendations directly to executives from the
company. Recent partner organizations have included Rolls
Royce and Second Helpings.
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The Leadership London program takes
a non-traditional approach to leadership training. The program
uses stories from classical literature, essays about historical
figures, descriptions of current business challenges, and on-site
visits to London's historical sites and resources. Classroom
instruction is held in the morning, followed by an afternoon tour
to a site in London that relates to the discussion. For
example, a visit to the Tower of London follows a discussion of the
leadership qualities of Queen Elizabeth.
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Students have the opportunity to collaborate with faculty on
research projects through the Honors Program and the Butler
Business Accelerator. Assistant Professor of Marketing,
Bela Florenthal, partnered with Kelly Spillson, student and
Accelerator intern, on a research project on green marketing, based
on an Accelerator client project.