Module BUSI4BP15: Responsible Business

Department: Management and Marketing

BUSI4BP15: Responsible Business

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• To equip students with a comprehensive understanding of how businesses can act responsibly to address global challenges, particularly through alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• To develop skills to create sustainable business strategies, develop responsible business modes, fostering ethical decision-making, and promoting cross-sector collaboration.
• To prepare students to lead organisations that balance profitability with social responsibility and environmental stewardship.

Content

• Introduction to responsible business
• The role of business in achieving the SDGs
• Ethical frameworks for corporate responsibility
• Sustainable business models and strategic integration
• Global value chains and responsibility
• Stakeholder engagement and cross-sector collaboration
• Corporate governance and responsible leadership
• Measuring impact: Sustainability reporting and metrics
• Innovation for sustainability: Opportunities and challenges
• Future of responsible business: Trends and student presentations

Learning Outcomes

• Advanced understanding of the principles of sustainable business practices, including corporate social responsibility, integration of sustainability into core strategy, and balancing profitability with social and environmental impacts.
• Understanding how firms contribute to the SDGs across global value chains, with emphasis on empirical evidence and case study evaluation
• In-depth knowledge of stakeholder engagement and cross-sector collaboration, including frameworks for partnerships between businesses, governments, and NGOs to address complex societal challenges.
• Understanding of ethical frameworks and governance models that underpin responsible business conduct, focusing on transparency, accountability, and ethical decision-making in a global context.
• Knowledge of key sustainability metrics and reporting standards used to measure corporate social and environmental impacts.

• Ability to integrate sustainability into strategic business decision-making, ensuring that economic, social, and environmental factors are aligned to create sustainable value.
• Skill in designing stakeholder engagement initiatives, facilitating meaningful collaboration with governments, NGOs, and communities to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Competence in applying ethical frameworks to business practices, critically evaluating corporate actions to ensure they contribute positively to both societal welfare and organisational integrity.
• Ability to assess and critically analyse corporate sustainability claims, distinguishing between genuine initiatives and superficial "greenwashing" through data-driven evaluation.

• Written and oral communication
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• Data interpretation and sustainability reporting
• Planning, organising, and time management

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 workshops, presentations and discussions on case studies, supported by guided reading.
• Summative Assessment: Students will complete an individual sustainability project presented as a poster (A1 format, equivalent to 2,500 words), worth 100% of the module grade. This project assesses students' ability to integrate sustainability principles into business practice, critically evaluate sustainability strategies, and effectively communicate their findings.
• Formative Assessment: Formative feedback will be provided through active participation in seminar discussions, especially those involving case studies. This enables students to develop analytical and critical thinking skills in a supportive environment and to receive ongoing feedback on their contributions.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Feedback will be provided on individual contributions to the class discussion on case studies.

■ 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