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BU5048: BUSINESS STRATEGY (2016-2017)

Last modified: 28 Jun 2018 10:27


Course Overview

Business Strategy covers a broad range of topics that come under the general heading of “Business Strategy” / “Strategic Management”. The course introduces participants to concepts, frameworks and models that are useful in providing explanations of how companies operate with respect to goal setting, understanding their competitive landscape, assessing opportunities,  managing own capabilities, coordinating their activities with other companies, and competing to create value for customers. The course is interactive in nature, applying a learning-by-doing method involving students taking on roles as part of a series of simulation exercises. 

Course Details

Study Type Postgraduate Level 5
Term First Term Credit Points 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits)
Campus None. Sustained Study No
Co-ordinators
  • Mr Russell Williams

Qualification Prerequisites

None.

What courses & programmes must have been taken before this course?

  • One of MRes Business Research (Studied) or MSc Strategic Studies and Management (Studied) or Master of Business Administration (P/T) (Studied) or Master of Business Administration Full-Time (Studied) or Master of Business Administration (Human Resource Man't) (Studied) or Master of Business Administration in Energy Management (Studied)
  • Any Postgraduate Programme (Studied)

What other courses must be taken with this course?

None.

What courses cannot be taken with this course?

None.

Are there a limited number of places available?

No

Course Description

The Business Strategy and Organisation course will apply theories, concepts and techniques of analysis, developed mainly in economics, but also in organisation theory and in economic sociology to realistic business situations. The strategy aspect recognises that most decisions are significant, irreversible and made in situations of uncertainty. The organisation aspect recognises that decisions are made in strictures and institutional settings, such as business organisations, product markets, finance markets and in business-to-business and business-to-consumer relationships. The course will be appropriate to (pg) level five teaching because it will present students with different theoretical and conceptual approaches, which draw on different assumptions about human agency and institutional and structural durability. Hence, students will receive an introduction to game theory, with its concepts of stable equilibrium, and also to behavioural theories of strategy, which are procedural and based on agents' routines, standard operating procedures and durable capabilities. Lectures will introduce theories, concepts and techniques of analysis. Seminars will be of equal significance and will focus on applications, mainly through case studies. Students will also learn case studies as an approach to pedagogy. Coursework will involve students undertaking their own independent case study analyses.

Further Information & Notes

None.


Contact Teaching Time

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

Teaching Breakdown

More Information about Week Numbers


Details, including assessments, may be subject to change until 30 August 2024 for 1st term courses and 20 December 2024 for 2nd term courses.

Summative Assessments

1st attempt: 1. An individual Assessment comprising 40% of the total course marks. 2. A group piece comprising 30% of the total course marks 3. An individual Professional Reflective Review comprising 30% of the course marks. The individual assessment (1. and 3. above) is as follows: 1. An individual contribution to a theoretical issue, a case issue or work-based issue (2000 words) – 40% of total course marks. 2. A reflective review of the lessons learned through participation in the course (1500 words or a 5min video/oral presentation) – 30% of the total course marks. Material for these individual assessed elements will be obtained through a series of timetabled individual and group activities complemented by directed reading and own research. The group assessment (2. above) is as follows: A group activity/challenge – 30% of the total course marks. In undertaking the challenge, and in the preparation of the assessed requirements (see on), students are required to keep minutes of their group meetings and record peer contributions. These minutes along with the reflections on peer contributions peer are reviewed by the assessment team as part of the assessment process. The group assessed requirements for this course are:- a 10 minute group presentation (contributing 10% and a 6 page Briefing Note comprising 20%).

Resit: There is no resit opportunity for the group element. For the individual elements students who score below D3 will be required to submit the respective elements within six weeks of the mark and feedback being returned.

Formative Assessment

There are no assessments for this course.

Feedback

None.

Course Learning Outcomes

None.

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