Katherine Casey is a Professor of Political Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She teaches a Strategy Beyond Markets course for first year MBAs that is tailored to the particular opportunities and challenges facing firms investing in developing economies. Her current research examines how asymmetric information in electoral contests affects voting choice and public sector performance, and the impact of foreign aid on collective action and economic development. Katherine holds a PhD in Economics from Brown University and a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University. She has worked as a consultant for the World Bank in Madagascar, the Comoros and Indonesia, and has spent several years working with the Government of Sierra Leone.
POLECON 231: Strategy Beyond Markets
This course focuses on the firm’s strategic interactions with nonmarket players, like politicians, regulators and bureaucrats. These players work within the public institutions that determine the “rules of the game” for market activity. Their interventions, like passing a new piece of legislation or writing new regulatory standards, shape market competition and the opportunities available to firms. The goal of the course is to build a deeper understanding of and appreciation for what goes on beyond the market, and to develop tools and frameworks with which to analyze it. We will focus on building integrated strategies for optimal firm performance that combine elements from within and beyond markets. The course is case-based, drawing on case studies from a variety of countries and institutional environments.