THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2020/2021

Information in the Degree Programme Tables may still be subject to change in response to Covid-19

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Business School : Business Studies

Undergraduate Course: International Strategic Management in Practice (BUST10104)

Course Outline
SchoolBusiness School CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryStrategy is central to contemporary organizations. This course seeks to outline the analytical contours of modern strategy in the broader context of globalization.
Course description Conceptually, the course will examine debates on decision-making, elites, financialization, globalization, power and politics, and performativity/reactivity. The course will illustrate these concepts through real life examples, including an exploration of the global financial crisis, the politics of populism, the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic, a study of changes in the BBC, and an evaluation of the implications of the social media for strategy. The course will blend theory with practice, encouraging participants to reflect on how they would deal with complex strategic problems. The course will comprise of lectures, class presentations and visits by some guest speakers.

Syllabus

Globalization and de-globalization
The Contours of Strategy
The Contours of Strategy
Organizational Identity
Globalization and Financialization
Social Capital and Networks
Strategic Decision Making
Power & Politics
Trust and Legitimacy
Business Elites


Student Learning Experience

The sessions comprise lectures, discussions and case studies and students will gain from the experience of:
Engaging with cutting edge debates
Researching and preparing a case study.
Presenting their findings in a confident and compelling manner.
Preparing a 'professional standard' consultancy report.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites It is RECOMMENDED that students have passed Strategic Management (CMSE10002)
Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements Business Studies Honours entry.
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesVisiting students must have at least 4 Business courses at grade B or above. This MUST INCLUDE one course equivalent to CMSE10002 Strategic Management. We will only consider University/College level courses.
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2020/21, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  None
Course Start Semester 2
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 20, Summative Assessment Hours 2, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 174 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 60 %, Coursework 40 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) This course is assessed through

(1) a group report (40%) (10% of which will be moderated from peer assessment marks using WebPA)
(2) a final examination (60%).
The scheduling of the assessment is organised as follows:
1. Each group will be given a case study to prepare and analyse.
2. Each group will prepare a 2,000 word strategy report, providing a strategic analysis and set of recommendations. This will be submitted in week 11 (precise hand-in to be confirmed). Feedback will be provided in week 12.
3. A 24-Hour Take-Home Examination (60% of the grade) in the summer examination diet, in which students will be expected to attempt two out of five questions.
Feedback Generic feedback on your coursework, together with individual marks, will be made available on Learn. You will also be able to review your individual feedback electronically via My Grades on Learn from the same date.

Your examination marks will be posted on Learn (together with generic feedback and examination statistics) as soon as possible after the Boards of Examiners¿ meeting (normally early-mid June). During the summer months (i.e. mid/end June ¿ end August), you may come into the UG Office (Room 1.11, Business School, 29 Buccleuch Place) to look at your examination scripts. Note that you will not be able to remove any examination scripts from the UG Office as they may be required by the Board of Examiners.

Continuing students will also be given the opportunity to review their examination scripts early in the new academic year in Semester 1 (i.e. in October).
Exam Information
Exam Diet Paper Name Hours & Minutes
Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May)2:00
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Understand and discuss critically of the interconnections between strategy, organizations and broader societal issues.
  2. Understand and discuss critically the implications of globalization for strategy, the rise of financialization and its implications for strategists, and the processes of strategic decision-making.
  3. Understand and discuss critically the role of power and politics in organizational life.
  4. Understand and discuss critically the potential impact of rankings and league tables on strategy making, and the challenges social media pose for strategy.
  5. Understand and discuss critically the formation of corporation elites.
Reading List
There is no set text for this course. Participants will be given access to draft text book chapters written by the course lecturer and various journal articles.

Participants are expected to buy one of the following for the group work (nb. please do not purchase before the groups are allocated):


Coll, S. (2012) Private Empire.

Esler, G. (2012) Lessons from the Top. London: Profile Books.

Kirkpatrick, D (2010) The Facebook Effect.

Martin, I. (2013) Making it Happen: Fred Goodwin, RBS and the men who blew up the British economy. London: Simon and Schuster

McNish, J. and Silcoff, S (2015) Losing the Signal: The Untold Story Behind the Extraordinary Rise and Spectacular Fall of Blackberry. London: Flatiron.

Perman, R. (2012) Hubris: How HBOS wrecked the best bank in Britain. Edinburgh: Birlinn.

Stone, B. (2013) The Everything Store. London: Transworld.

Witt, S. (2015) How Music Got Free: What Happens When an Entire Generation Commits the Same Crime? London: The Bodley Head / Penguin Random House.

Isaac, M. (2018) Super Pumped: The battle for Uber. WW Norton & Co.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills The course will allow participants to develop their practical strategic skills further. More specifically, course members should be able to:

* Analyse a strategic situation coherently and credibly.
* Develop research skills.
* Work as part of a group to produce a high quality report, where you prepare an impressive written analysis and a creative range of recommendations.
* Present persuasively your report findings and recommendations to the class, acting as an effective advocate for your findings.
* Demonstrate a sophisticated grasp of current issues in strategy.
Additional Class Delivery Information 2 hour lecture Mondays 1100 - 1300
KeywordsISMP
Contacts
Course organiserDr Ron Kerr
Tel: (0131 6)51 5582
Email: Ron.Kerr@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Margot Morton
Tel: (0131 6)51 5251
Email: Margot.Morton@ed.ac.uk
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