Module BUSI4W915: MANAGING IN THE COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT (EBS)

Department: Business School (Business)

BUSI4W915: MANAGING IN THE COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT (EBS)

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To explore in depth the complex environmental pressures at work on organisations, how they can respond to these influences, and the key issues involved in aligning with these forces.
• Specifically, the module takes an integrated perspective of the operating environment of the organisation from the standpoints of two core areas of activity: marketing and operations management. Firstly, the module begins by exploring the network of exchanges between buyers and sellers in a market economy and the particular role of marketing in facilitating those exchange relationships. This is then followed by an exploration of the extent to which the organisation-customer interaction is wholly dependent upon effective operational management in terms of the design, planning, control, forecasting and management of resources.
• A particular feature of the module is the way in which it not only conceptualises the pressures faced by organisations, but also identifies the main issues that need to be addressed by individual managers.

Content

• The module takes an integrated perspective on two core areas of business activity:
• Marketing: the contexts of marketing; the consumption experience; building relationships; creating ‘solutions’; brand selection and brand management; the movement of space and time.
• Managing Operations: operations strategy; product and service design; quality management; process design; planning and control; supply chain management; operations improvement.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the module, the students should have:
• developed an integrated and critical appreciation of the key business areas that need to be managed in a competitive operating environment to achieve a holistic view, the emphasis being on process and integration rather than functional 'silos';
• developed a critical appreciation of the dynamic pressures of the environment, both internally within the organisation and externally;
• developed a critical understanding of the existing theoretical knowledge based on key areas of marketing and operations management.

• Upon successful completion of the module, the students should:
• be able to apply their understanding to the analysis of complex issues in marketing and operations management;
• be able to formulate an information-driven strategic response to marketing or operational circumstances.

• Creating a holistic vision.
• Building and developing teams.
• Negotiating and persuading.
• Networking.
• Sourcing appropriate data and evaluating evidence.
• Interpreting and using numerical and financial information.
• Reflecting and synthesising from experience.
• Developing critical thinking.
• Exercising discrimination and judgement.
• Synthesising diverse perspectives.
• Developing coherent and persuasive arguments.
• Selecting appropriate modes of communication.

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

• Learning outcomes will be met through a combination of lectures, groupwork, case studies and discussion, supported by guided reading and webinars. The written examination will test students' acquisition and articulation of knowledge. The written assignment will 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:

Classroom-based exercises involving individual and group analyses and presentations on specific business situations/problems relevant to the learning outcomes of the module. Oral and written feedback will be given on a group and individual basis as appropriate.

■ 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