Module BUSS41115: Business Economics and Accounting

Department: Business School (Business) [Queen's Campus, Stockton]

BUSS41115: Business Economics and Accounting

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• To develop skills in the application of economic analysis in business decision-making and planning
• To provide students with a critical understanding of key economic aspects of the business environment and the impact of changes in that environment at national and international level
• To provide students with a critical knowledge and understanding of the use of financial reporting external to the organisation, and of financial statements - their underlying principles and fundamental techniques of analysis and interpretation.

Content

• Markets, information and transaction costs
• Organisations, costs and the profit motive
• Competition and welfare
• Strategic behaviour by firms
• Global business and the macroeconomic environment
• Performance and business decisions
• Critical understanding of information conveyed through corporate reporting
• Analysis of company performance based on financial data

Learning Outcomes

• Have a specialist knowledge and understanding of: the importance of, and interaction between demand, costs and prices at the level of the firm and the market; the interrelationship between the competitive environment, government policy and business decisions.
• Have a critical understanding and appreciation of the complex nature of the economic business environment.
• Have a specialist knowledge and understanding of the use of financial data within organisations.
• Have a specialist knowledge and understanding of the analysis of financial data for evaluating the financial prospects of organisations.
• Have a critical understanding of the uses and limitations of corporate financial reports in internal and external business analysis.

• Be able to apply economic understanding in the analysis of business decisions.

• Written communication; planning, organising and time management; problem solving and analysis; using initiative; computer literacy.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• The learning outcomes will be met through a balanced combination of lectures, seminar-type activities, formative group presentations, other small group activities, IT workshops, guided reading and individual exercises. There are 3 hours of contact time each week, but within these 3 hours the nature and duration of the various types of teaching varies from week to week. The module has been timetabled accordingly.
• The summative assessment will be in two parts. The ‘takeaway assessment’ will test students’ knowledge and understanding of the subject-matter, and will be issued only a short time (i.e. several days) before the submission date. The written assignment will further test students’ understanding of relevant concepts, and their ability to apply and interpret what they have learned to the analysis of a particular issue in depth.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Group case study. Participation in DUO-based self-assessment exercises. In addition, seminar exercises will be used to give students an opportunity to explore, discuss, critique and apply the key topics in practice.

■ 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