STRATEGY - 2023/4

Module Overview

This module will introduce you to the theoretical foundations of strategy, namely, how to understand market dynamics, opportunities and challenges and develop an appropriate business plan. The module makes the critical connection between the business model and value proposition, investigating the idea of strategic alignment between the two. It provides students with a thorough overview of strategy in the context of organisational structure, culture, relationships, and coordination.

Module provider

Surrey Business School

Module Leader

O'BRIEN Justin (SBS)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

N/A

Module content

Content:

• Understanding markets and competition


•  Industry attractiveness, industry value chain and industry lifecycle


•  Internal business resources, capabilities, and core competencies


•  Strategic planning process and strategy cycle


•  Strategy in practice: understanding the strategic process


•  Value and creating value propositions


• Business models and business strategy


•  Aligning the business model and the value proposition


•  Realising strategy: organisational design, systems, and culture


•  Current trends in strategic management

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

Group report will be replaced with an individual report

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate: The ability and discipline to prepare for classes by engaging with guided learning theoretical content. The capability to actively participate in a range of experiential workshop activities The skill and experience to form and effectively work in a group How to apply strategic management theory into a practical, real-world context.

Thus, the summative assessment:

• Group report (50%)


• Individual coursework (50%)

Formative assessment Formative feedback

is offered on an ongoing basis during seminars/group discussions, active earning sessions and project tutorials, which may be done face-to-face or online (synchronously). Feedback The class encourages and motivates you by giving ample opportunities for low stakes, to give and receive informal peer and instructor feedback during and after workshops. Summative feedback is provided in writing, separately for each of the elements of assessment.

Module aims

• Introduce a range of key theoretical perspectives pertinent to understanding of business and corporate strategy in the context of market competition.
• Equip students with a sound understanding of the process of strategic management and the different components of the strategy development cycle.
• Enable students to integrate theoretical concepts and models in Strategy with practical application to business situations.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to combine an introduction to the core academic corpus with more practical, applied learning gleaned through experiential group-based project work that takes place in and beyond formal class times.

Learning and teaching follows a student-focused, experiential, flipped-classroom methodology supported with pre-reading and pre-watching preparatory elements. Where feasible a guest speaker or speakers will be invited to run an/several applied workshop(s) to provide the opportunity to interact with a real-world business expert or experts.

Additionally, where central funding allows, a zero-cost study visit will be arranged for you to interact with a business in its own context. Timetabled classes will take the form of highly active and engaging workshops. SurreyLearn will host a range of essential self-directed and self-guided learning materials to provide the theoretical input to the module.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: MANM550

Other information

Resourcefulness and Resilience This module enables students¿ development to become independent critical thinkers, with expertise in selected subject area of academic and practitioner interest, capable to identify problems and apply scientific inquiry methods to obtain new knowledge aimed to address real-life organisational problems and enhance managerial practice. Employability Students have the opportunity to develop their soft skills (particularly communication) and team working. The field visit and guest speaker(s) will provide students with an opportunity to interact with real businesses. Global and cultural capabilities Often working in diverse groups, students will be exposed at close quarters to multi-cultural ideas and benefit from assessing their own world view resulting from these interactions. Sustainability If the client brief has the potential scope to, students may be able to build their sustainability knowledge.

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2023/4 academic year.