Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/strategy-law-ethics

Introduction

### Course Review: Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model In today’s intricate world, decision-making is more than just selecting an option; it involves navigating through a myriad of factors including business strategy, legal regulations, and ethical guidelines. The Coursera course titled **"Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model"** offers a profound exploration of these elements, equipping learners with a framework that can be applied in business, personal lives, and leadership roles. #### Course Overview The course is constructed around a powerful framework that emphasizes three critical pillars: **strategy**, **law**, and **ethics**. Each module is designed to build upon the last, offering a cohesive structure that not only explains these concepts theoretically but also provides practical tools that can be used immediately. The course opens with a historical case study regarding President Barack Obama’s decision concerning Osama bin Laden, effectively illustrating the stakes involved in high-level decision-making. The overall goal of the course is clear: to enable you to make successful decisions that create value while minimizing risks and adhering to ethical standards. #### Detailed Syllabus Breakdown 1. **Welcome to Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model**: This introductory module sets the stage for the course, explaining the Three Pillar Model and its application in various decision-making scenarios. 2. **Use the Three Pillar Model for Personal, Leadership and Business Decisions**: Here, students are introduced to the basic structure of the model. The importance of global thinking in decision-making is emphasized, alongside a practical decision-making tool that can be applied in everyday scenarios. 3. **Use Employment Law to Attract and Retain the Best Business Talent**: Employment law is crucial for successful operations. This module tackles its two critical areas: employee termination and sex discrimination, equipping students with the knowledge needed to effectively manage the talent landscape. 4. **Meet Your Customers’ Needs: Transform Product Liability into Product Innovation**: This module reveals how to turn product liability into a compelling advantage. It links product development with consumer research, fostering innovative thinking. 5. **Create Business Opportunities Through Government Regulation**: A unique angle on government regulation is presented; not only does it identify risks, but also shows how to harness regulations to create business opportunities. 6. **Use Your Intellectual Property to Create Shareholder Value**: Led by guest lecturer Susan Kornfield, this section dives into the intricacies of intellectual property. It unpacks how to effectively create, protect, and leverage these vital business assets through four key areas: trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and patents. 7. **Develop Contracts that Create Value for Both Sides**: This module provides crucial insights into contract negotiation. The focus is on creating contracts that not only minimize risk but also align with business objectives. 8. **Use Dispute Resolution Processes for Value Creation**: This part covers effective dispute resolution techniques, including arbitration and mediation, and highlights tools to transform disputes into opportunities. 9. **Create and Lead an Ethical Business**: The final significant section tackles the Ethics Pillar. It explores decision-making processes for ethical dilemmas, outlining how ethical leadership can shape an organization’s values. 10. **Final Examination**: The course culminates with a final assessment to ensure understanding and retention of the concepts covered. #### Personal Experience and Recommendation Having gone through **"Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model,"** I found the structure of the course particularly effective. Each module is thoughtfully designed, engaging, and packed with real-world applications that enhance the learning experience. The inclusion of varied teaching methods, such as case studies and expert interviews, added depth and relatability to the content. Moreover, the course does an excellent job of being accessible. The instructor's deliberate pacing is beneficial for non-native English speakers, ensuring that the content is understandable without being condescending. I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in improving their decision-making skills, particularly leaders, managers, and those in roles that require frequent ethical considerations. Whether you are a student eager to learn about the pillars of decision-making or a professional aiming to enhance your leadership capabilities, this course provides valuable tools and insights that can significantly impact your approach to both professional and personal decisions. In conclusion, **"Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model"** presents a comprehensive and practical framework for thoughtful, informed decision-making crucial in today’s complex environment. Investing time in this course could be one of the most rewarding decisions you make in your professional development journey.

Syllabus

Welcome to Making Successful Decisions through the Strategy, Law & Ethics Model!

This course will enable you to use the Three Pillar model to manage business risk and create value in an ethical manner. You will also be able to use the model when making personal decisions. After completing this introductory module, you will understand the course goal and game plan.

In this module you will learn the basic structure of the Three Pillar model and the importance of thinking globally in today’s business world. You will also learn a practical decision making tool that you can begin to use immediately for personal and business decisions. Suggestion: The videos are viewed by learners from around the world. English is not the primary language for many of these learners. As a result, when shooting the videos I have attempted to speak in a slow and deliberate manner. If English is your native language, I recommend that you increase the speed to at least 1.25x.

Your ability to attract and retain the best employees is essential to business success. This requires an understanding of employment law. The videos in this module cover two of the most important and controversial areas of employment law: the ability of a business to fire employees and sex discrimination. After watching the videos, you will be able to manage employment risks in these areas, while also attracting the best talent to your business.

In a fast-changing world, your ability to develop new products is an important source of competitive advantage. The videos in this module provide you with methods for managing product liability risks. You can use these same methods for consumer research and new product development.

Government regulation plays an important role in determining the success of businesses around the world. In this module you will learn how to manage government regulatory risk by shaping the law and through compliance. You will also learn how to create business opportunities by anticipating regulation (the Regulatory Frontier Strategy) and by developing business models based on gaps in regulation (the Regulatory Gap Strategy).

Whether you are an entrepreneur starting your own business or a manager in a major international corporation, intellectual property is one of your key business assets. In this module, guest lecturer Susan Kornfield, a leading intellectual property lawyer, will explain how to create, protect and use your intellectual property in the US and internationally. The module is divided into the four key areas of intellectual property: trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and patents. Although these areas can be technical and complex, she brings them to life with many fascinating examples. Each of the four sections concludes with a summary of a lawyer’s perspective on intellectual property (which tends to focus on risk management) and a business perspective (which focuses on value creation).

Successful contracts are the key to value creation for businesses. This module provides a contracting checklist of the key elements anyone in business should understand when negotiating contracts. These elements are necessary to minimize risk by creating a “perfect” contract. However, because a legally perfect contract can also be harmful to business success, the module also covers how to focus your contracts on business objectives and how to visualize contract terms to increase your understanding.

This module focuses on the processes that you will use to resolve disputes and build relationships that are key to business success. Short videos demonstrate arbitration and mediation processes. The module includes discussion of practical management tools you can use immediately to manage risks relating to business disputes: a corporate pledge, screens, contract clauses, and online resources. The module also shows you how to dispute resolution for value creation, including using the power of apology and a life goals analysis.

This module focuses on the Ethics Pillar of decision making by addressing three questions that are important to your career success: (1) What decision-making process should you use when facing an ethical dilemma? (2) What guidelines should you consider when analyzing the dilemma? (3) How can your best serve as an ethical leader in you organization? In answering these questions, the module shows how you can use the Law Pillar and the Strategy Pillar to embed ethical standards into your business and create an ethical organization.

This module includes the final examination, including both the relevant instructions and honor code.