Postgraduate Course: Climate Change Consulting Project (CMSE11518)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The Climate Change Consulting Project is an interdisciplinary MSc course at the University of Edinburgh Business School in which climate change and the environment are viewed and addressed from the perspective of private and public-sector organisations. Students are matched in groups to assess and address real-world, climate change-related challenges that a private or public-sector organisation is experiencing. During the course students investigate and try to solve this challenge in the form of a consulting project. By the end of the course students present their findings and solutions through a written consulting report to their clients, examiners and other stakeholders. |
| Course description |
Climate change brings significant risks for natural and social systems. These developments pose fundamental challenges to the way in which society is organised and governed. An increasing number of studies therefore advise that an interdisciplinary effort from businesses, society and policy makers alike is needed to respond to these challenges. The Climate Change Consulting Project is an interdisciplinary MSc course at the University of Edinburgh Business School, and challenges students to think about climate change in the context of organisations' current and future decision-making. Currently, businesses are largely seen as organisations that are impacted by climate change, rather than being important participants, and possibly leaders, in attaining a low carbon society. Students will learn to challenge this interpretation of organisations by gaining an in-depth understanding of the fundamental challenges that climate change and broader environmental issues pose to business current decision making. More specifically, students will gain expertise on how business leaders make decisions related to climate change and environmental-related issues and how specific problems can be solved through knowledge attained in previous classes. The course will prepare students to be future leaders that engage with climate change in sustainable, profitable and meaningful ways.
Students are matched in groups to assess and address a real-world, climate change-related challenges that a private or public-sector organisation is experiencing. During the course students investigate and try to solve this challenge in the form of a consulting project. By the end of the course students present their findings in a written consulting report to their clients, examiners and other stakeholders.
The main focus of the course is on the successful cooperation between the student groups and their client partner. Students are therefore expected to spend a significant amount of time consulting with the client partner and their group members outside of the lectures/discussion sessions. Students are expected to deliver their final work in the form of a written report. There will also be other written assignments.
A Climate Change Consulting challenge involves:
1. A private or public sector organisation/business (the 'client') who proposes a challenge.
2. A group MSc students who address the proposed challenge over a 10/11-week period. Towards the end of this period the group of students provides a written consultancy report and presentation to the client which detail the findings and associated solutions.
3. An appropriate level of input from the client during the 10/11-week period through e.g. access to data, periodic guidance and conversations via emails, phone and face-to-face meetings. The client also attends (physically or virtually) the initial briefing meeting at the beginning and the final presentation at the end of the 10/11-week period.
The client receives a detailed written report and presentation addressing the proposed challenge, and may also benefit by building links with potential graduate employees. Students gain considerable benefit from working on a real-world project, including learning how to communicate and work with a client. Consulting projects generally work best when the output is something of genuine and immediate value to the client. There is no financial payment as part of the consultancy project to the clients or students.
Content Outline
1. The purpose of Consultancy
2. Establishing a Client Relationship
3. Team Building and Project Management
4. Establish an Internal Consultancy Contract
5. Monitoring Consultancy Progress
6. Reviewing Consultancy Progress
7. Consultancy in Reflection
Student Learning Experience
Students will experience a mixture of lectures, workshops and discussion sessions which are spread over the semester period and which will occur in conjunction to the students' assignments. The main focus of the course is on the successful cooperation between the student groups and their client partner. Students are therefore expected to spend a significant amount of time consulting with the business partner and their group members outside of the lectures/discussion sessions and workshops sessions. Students are expected to deliver their final work in the form of a presentation and a written report. There will also be a number of other short written assignments that are part of the broader group consultancy project.
Tutorial/seminar hours represent the minimum total live hours - online or in-person - a student can expect to receive on this course. These hours may be delivered in tutorial/seminar, lecture, workshop or other interactive whole class or small group format. These live hours may be supplemented by pre-recorded lecture material for students to engage with asynchronously.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2021/22, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Additional Information (Learning and Teaching) |
Seminar/Tutorial hrs are the min total live hrs, online or in-person, students can expect to receive
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
80 %,
Practical Exam
20 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
40% coursework (individual) - assesses course Learning Outcomes 2, 5
40% coursework (group) - assesses all course Learning Outcomes
20% presentation (group) - assesses all course Learning Outcomes |
| Feedback |
Formative feedback:
Formative verbal feedback will be provided to the students during lectures/discussion sessions and workshop and formative written feedback will be provided on submitted drafts for sections of the group report. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Develop and articulate a clear and appropriate consultancy project methodology that is sound and feasible within the time scale of the project.
- Build and sustain a mutually satisfying relationship with a client partner, particularly in terms of communication, negotiation and a flexible response to changing circumstances within the relationship.
- Establish a consultancy analysis for the client's challenge, proposition and needs.
- Understand and critically evaluate the impacts of climate/environmental change on organisations and vice versa.
- Identify and apply knowledge, tools and practices as a team to deliver a client-focused output.
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Reading List
Keele, S. Consultants and the business of climate services: implications of shifting from public to private science. Climatic Change 157, 9-26 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-019-02385-x
Kaesehage, K., Leyshon, M., Ferns, G., Leyshon, C. (2017). Seriously Personal: The Reasons that Motivate Entrepreneurs to Address Climate Change. Journal of Business Ethics.
Haque, S., Deegan, C. & Inglis, R. (2016) Demand for, and impediments to, the disclosure of information about climate change-related corporate governance practices, Accounting and Business Research, 46:6, 620-664, DOI: 10.1080/00014788.2015.1133276
Wright, Ch., Nyberg, D., Grant, D. (2012). .Hippies on the third floor¿: Climate Change, Narrative Identity and the Micro-Politics of Corporate Environmentalism. Organization Studies.
Greenberg, J., Knight, G., Westersund, E. (2011). Spinning climate change: Corporate and NGO public relations strategies in Canada and the United States
Jackson, D. and Kaesehage, K. (2020). Addressing the Challenges of Integrating Carbon Calculation Tools in the Construction Industry. Journal of Business Strategy and the Environment. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Matthew Brander
Tel: (0131 6)51 5547
Email: Matthew.Brander@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Fionna Ogilvie
Tel: (0131 6)51 3028
Email: Fionna.Ogilvie@ed.ac.uk |
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