module specification

The module is primarily designed for direct entrants to Level 6 of the BA International Business Management students from home and international backgrounds to equip these aspiring managers with the skills and techniques required to critically analyse contemporary organisations and to develop realistic, creative, and informed proposals for future strategic directions.

Attainment  of levels 4 and 5

• To develop understanding of the challenges presented to an organisation by national and international business environments.
• To develop knowledge and understanding of a range of practical strategic management tools for analysis, choice making and implementation and how to critically select and apply them in a range of contexts
• To enable students to use their analysis of contemporary organisations to develop persuasive, creative, realistic and informed proposalsfor an organisation’s future strategic direction and goals
• To enhance student employability by developing transferable skills such as researching, analysis, evaluation and decision making, presenting data, persuading and implementing

The module also aims to assist students in the acquisition of the following skills:
1. Academic  reading
2. Researching
3. Analysing data
4. Completing tasks and projects
5. Commercial awareness
6. Application of knowledge and presenting data
7. Career management

• What is strategy? Definition and links with other disciplines
• Strategy in national and international contexts
• Strategy analysis: analysing organisational purpose and scope
• Strategy analysis: Analysing the internal and external environment
• Strategy choice: assessing business unit and corporate level strategy options
• Strategy choice: evaluating strategic choices and making strategic decisions
• Different processes and practices of strategy making

This module will be delivered through weekly workshops which will be enhanced when possible with day long activities during the course of the semester.
Students will be reminded to focus particularly on the opportunities the classroom sessions provide to engage in, and reflect upon, their aspirations as soon-to-be-graduates.  These weekly workshops will consist of a combination of theoretical input, reports on independent reading, action centred and problem-based tasks, supported by multimedia, including DVDs and student led discussions whichwill focus on the explanation of key strategic tools and outlining the stages in the formulation and implementation of strategic decisions. Classroom sessions can be supported with on line discussions which will be facilitated by tutorial staff and enable students from differentbackgrounds to interact.
Weblearn will also be used as an interactive mechanism between students and tutors, for example, to direct students to particular readings or to provide news about the module or the module content. It will also be used for the timely provision of generic feedback following formative assessment.

On completing the module students will be able to
1. Analyse an organisation or industry situation using an appropriate range of strategic management frameworks and analytical concepts and techniques.
2. Develop and evaluate a range of strategic options to address strategic issues in a particular organisational situation and present a persuasive case for a particular course of action
3. Identify the main issues confronting an organisation when developing and implementing strategic change and make recommendations for managing and implementing change effectively
4. Work effectively both in a team and independently on a given business task or project. Be able toreflect on own contribution and provide constructive feedback on the contribution of others.

The module will be assessed through two assessment opportunities.

The first assessment of the module, accounts for 40% of the overall module grade and it is based on a 'real-life' organisation in the form of a case study.  Teams of 4 or 5 students are required to produce and present in class a video on the environmental analysis and proposed problem-solving of the challenges of a selected organisation, using appropriate theoretical concepts and analytical techniques covered in the syllabus of the module.   The video presentation will last for 10 minutes.  After the video presentation, 5 minutes will also be allocated on questions and answers. 
For this assignment an Action Plan & Contribution Log will be required to be submitted by the students detailing their individual intended and actual contributions to their group/pair work.

The second assessment, accounting for 60% of the overall module grade will  be based on a individually negotiated ‘real-life’ organisation (case study) requiring students to produce a strategic plan or similar for this organisation,

Guidance will be given by the tutors to ensure appropriate evidence of meeting all learning outcomes is demonstrated in the assessments.

Core text book
Lynch  R (2012) Strategic Management, 6th Edition, Prentice Hall.

Recommended reading
Johnson G, Whittington R & Scholes K (2011), Exploring Strategy, Ed9, Prentice Hall
Grant R (2010), Contemporary Strategy Analysis: concepts, techniques, applications Ed 7. Blackwell.
Grant R and Jordan J (2012 forthcoming) Foundations of Strategy, Wiley
Ireland, R., Hoskisson, R, and Hitt, M. (2009) The Management of Strategy: Concepts and Cases, 8th Ed. Cengage Learning
Johnson G, Scholes K and Whittington R (2009), Fundamentals of Strategy, Prentice Hall.
Academic Journals (available via the Library catalogue)
Harvard Business Review
Long Range Planning 
Strategic Management Journal