Narayan Mandayam can be reached at narayan AT winlab DoT rutgers DoT edu
Richard Frenkiel can be
reached at frenkiel
AT winlab DoT
Office hours are by appointment
The view of the “wireless revolution” presented in this course is intended to operate at two levels. At one level, it is about the wireless systems themselves, from the early experiments in ship-to-shore telegraphy to modern systems such as cellular and WiFi. There is a kind of magic in wireless, and we believe the systems discussed in the course are important and interesting. At a more fundamental level, however, this course is about the creation of successful business/entrepreneurial strategies in a messy world, where issues such as technology, competition, politics, economics and risk demand solutions that don’t offer the comfort of being “provably correct.” Thus, while we have chosen examples from the fascinating world of wireless communications, the lessons learned are relevant to a much broader class of situations.
This course is intended for all
undergraduate students (from engineering, science, arts, business, economics,
and humanities) who have an interest in the strategic problems that emerge when
companies and entrepreneurs set out to create successful new businesses.
A primary objective of the course is to demonstrate that students from all
disciplines can understand a wide range of strategic issues at a basic, intuitive
level, and can use this basic understanding to solve important real-world
problems. Each student will be exposed to issues that are not ordinarily
a part of his or her education. Engineering students will see how
corporate finance and politics can make or break a new technology.
Students with non-technical backgrounds will come to understand how technology
can influence system performance and cost. No prior background is assumed
or needed in any of these subjects, including any advanced knowledge of mathematics.