Programme

PGPX

Term

V

Academic Year

2021-22

Course title

Experiments for Business and Policy Decision-making

Area

Public Systems Group

Credits

0.75

Instructor(s)

Prof. Sandip Chakrabarti, Prof. Ambrish Dongre

Course Description & Objectives

Description: The last couple of decades have seen an explosion in experimental design and analysis spanning various fields of management and policy. Experiments have become central to organizational decision-making, with many companies administering numerous experiments each year, and analyzing the data to improve service delivery and increase profits. Experiments yield critical insights for organizations in fields such as marketing, human resources and people analytics, communication, strategy, operations, etc. Governments also use experiments to test and evaluate policies that affect people and firms. The goal of this course is to encourage students to develop an experimental mindset by exposing them to a variety of experiments aimed at improving managerial and government decision-making, keeping in mind the pros and cons of such an approach. Objectives: The main objective of this course is to provide an introduction to various types of experiments in the management sciences and public policy, evaluate when and where experiments are useful, explore what insights can be gained from experiments, and what their limitations are. Students will learn about various experimental designs, and develop frameworks for interpreting, designing and analyzing experiments. We will conduct in-depth discussions of selected research papers and cases – all of which are designed to emphasize that an experimental approach towards decision-making is an essential tool in the hands of a manager or policy-maker.

Pedagogy

Mix of lectures and case discussions, in-class deliberations, and presentations of cases led by students and moderated by the faculty.