CMSV Introduces Software Management Concentrations

After eight years of offering master's programs to working professionals in the software industry, Carnegie Mellon Silicon Valley (CMSV) is expanding its software management degree to include areas of concentration that are becoming more prevalent in the industry. The Master of Science in Software Management program now offers four concentrations: Product Development, Entrepreneurship, Enterprise Innovation, and Service Management. Ray Bareiss, Director of Educational Programs explains, "based on consistent feedback from our students, alumni and industry partners, we’ve decided to re-structure the Software Management program to include these highly sought after areas of concentration."

The Product Development concentration allows students to learn the best practices for developing a software product from concept to launch. Gladys Mercier, Director of the Software Management Program offers, "at the inception of this program, we were heavily focused on the product development lifecycle; we still are, we've just added some more in-depth topic areas to meet the needs of the dynamic Silicon Valley environment."

The Entrepreneurship concentration provides a venue for students to pursue a start-up by developing their own product or service idea while following the Product Development curriculum. According to Martin Griss, Director of the Silicon Valley campus and Associate Dean of the College of Engineering, "a good number of our students come into the program with innovative ideas of their own. We wanted to continue to be supportive of these concepts as the entire Silicon Valley culture was founded upon the spirit of the entrepreneur; folks who took a glimmer of an idea, added their own sweat equity, and turned that idea into the Googles and Microsofts we know today!"

The Enterprise Innovation concentration offers the students the opportunity to learn how to sell, design, implement and deploy software innovation inside a large enterprise. Stuart Evans, who is the instructor of the Enterprise Innovation course says, "many times our students are gainfully employed in a large Silicon Valley company and are anxious to remain there and improve their path for advancement within the company. Learning enterprise innovation allows them to gain the knowledge needed to give them the skills and confidence to approach existing problems with innovation solutions."

Finally, the Service Management concentration provides a means for students to learn to manage the design, implementation, operation, and improvement of complex, software-intensive service systems. In addition to developing software, it turns out that the service sector now accounts for more than 80 percent of the U.S. economy. Jane Siegel and Jeff Perdue, course instructors and senior scientists at CMSV explain, "employees may be called upon to lead teams, to define innovative solutions, and make excellent business and technical decisions in a crucial area in the software industry; service management. Studying service management can provide them with the groundwork necessary to step into this role."

After completing a common core of first-year software management courses, students may select their concentration. These concentrations provide the opportunity to tailor the course of study to specific career goals.

Ray Bareiss concludes, "As our campus expands, we continually seek the feedback of our faculty, students, alumni and industry partners because they are aware of the ever-changing challenges required to produce more innovative products."

Originally published at: http://www.cmu.edu/silicon-valley/news-events/news/2010/new-sm-concentrations.html.