Undergraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2009-2010 (archived)
Module BUSI1121: ENTERPRISE AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Department: Economics, Finance and Business (Business)
BUSI1121: ENTERPRISE AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
| Type | Open | Level | 1 | Credits | 20 | Availability | Available in 2009/10 | Module Cap | None. | Location | Durham |
|---|
Prerequisites
- None.
Corequisites
- None.
Excluded Combination of Modules
- None.
Aims
- To provide a rigorous approach for students exploring the process of enterprise development.
- To assist students to acquire and demonstrate factual and conceptual knowledge and understanding within the field of enterprise development and to be able to apply appropriate terminology effectively.
- To assist students in generating and validating a business idea.
- To enable students to acquire and demonstrate a range of skills, behaviours and attitudes and provide motivation and confidence through exploring self-employment.
- To help students develop self-awareness of the technical and business abilities they need to develop and survive in business.
- To explore opportunities for students to use their skills and ideas to meet the needs of the local/regional community as a business.
- To work closely and co-operatively with individuals, companies and organisations from relevant internal and external networks.
Content
- Raising awareness of Enterprise and Entrepreneurship.
- Generating and validating a business idea.
- Checking the requisite abilities to run a business.
- Deciding how to acquire resources and premises.
- Calculating the financial requirements to launch the business and keep it going.
- Deciding upon appropriate marketing and selling techniques.
- Considering appropriate quality standards.
- Developing appropriate customer care strategies.
- Researching what legal and other regulatory requirements will affect the business.
- Developing a business plan.
- Assessing and appraising relevant networks.
- Developing an awareness of ethical considerations.
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge:
- To have developed an awareness of networks and stakeholders.
- To have developed an appreciation of ethical considerations in setting up and running a business.
Subject-specific Skills:
- To be able to work collaboratively to develop a workable business idea.
- To be able to validate a business idea and potential market (through market research).
- To be able to assess what resources are required to develop a business idea, and where they can be obtained.
- To be able to estimate the financial performance of the business, and forecast what might happen once the business is up and running.
- To be able to develop strategies to cope with risk and uncertainty.
- To be able to produce a business plan for an appropriate audience.
- To be able to make preparations to start the business.
Key Skills:
- Written Communication - e.g. by completing a formative assignment and a summative assessment through the Business Plan.
- Oral Communication - e.g. by giving students the opportunity to negotiate, present and explain issues to peer groups and the class leader; in general, by actively participating in discussion during classes.
- ICT Skills – e.g. by giving students the opportunity to use the Virtual Centre small business support platform and incubator they will have access to a wide array of IT based toolkits, resources and systems; by word-processing formative assignments; accessing, utilising and sharing personal and group digital portfolios and on-line conferencing; using e-mail to communicate with the class leader and other students; undertaking bibliographical search and information retrieval via on-line databases for student-centred learning.
- Team working and Interpersonal Skills - e.g. by working in teams to undertake ideas generation, research, plan preparation and presentation; using face-to-face opportunities in seminars, discussion forums, structured chat room, personal messaging and e-mail to communicate with other students and class leaders; discussing prepared material in classes with both the class leader and other students in the group.
- Planning, Organisation and Time Management - e.g. by working in teams; preparing for classes; observing the strict assignment deadlines; downloading before the relevant lectures any OHPs from the Virtual Centre; revising relevant material before lectures; preparing for examinations.
- Initiative - e.g. by organising teamwork and group based activities; searching relevant literature and information in preparation of the formative essay and student-centred learning.
- Problem Solving and Analysis – e.g. by having the opportunity to apply key tools provided during lectures within tutorials.
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- The module will be delivered via a blended learning approach, combining managed learning environment technologies with face to face delivery. The aim is to create an integrated, coherent, practical and engaging learning experience. It combines the use of method and media to suit the learning outcomes and to appeal to undergraduates with different learning styles and time/location constraints. Critically, it tracks and reports all individual and group-based activity and incorporates automated assessment (formative and summative) where appropriate. Every student will have an individual online portfolio and shared access to a group area for collaborative team working.
- The assessment of the module is in three parts to ensure that all the learning outcomes are addressed: the multiple choice exam and individual written assignment test knowledge and understanding of the subject matter, and the group business plan tests acquisition of the subject-specific skills and key skills.
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total/Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 10 | Throughout module | 1 hour | 10 | |
| Online tutorials | N/A | Continuously available throughout module | 3 hours per week on average | 57 | |
| Seminars (pre-recorded webcasts to be replayed by students) | 5 | Throughout module | 1 hour | 5 | |
| Primary research (e.g. to assess the nature of demand and the potential future market for a product or service) | N/A | Throughout module | 1 hour per week on average | 19 | |
| Groupwork | N/A | Throughout module | 2 hours per week on average | 38 | |
| Preparation and Reading | 71 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component: Group Business Plan | Component Weighting: 40% | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| Business plan | 62.5% | ||
| Digital portfolio comprising primary/secondary research and analysis | 25% | ||
| Peer assessment of individual contributions | 12.5% | ||
| Component: Individual Written Assignment | Component Weighting: 60% | ||
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| Individual written assignment | 3000 words (maximum) | 100% | |
Formative Assessment:
A combination of individual and group-based work including: Enterprise Profiling Test; multiple choice tests; individual digital portfolio; group discussion forums; audit reports from the Managed Learning Environment.
■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University