CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT AND ECONOMICS - 2025/6

Module Overview

This is a core module where students can identify, explore, and analyse contemporary issues in the business, management, and economic environments of the 21st century.  The overall focus of the module is on: 

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   to encourage students to identify and analyse key issues such as inflation and its impact on cost of living from international, national, industry and firm perspectives.  
  


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   To evaluate the impact of these contemporary issues and suggest critical solutions. 
  

Teaching inputs introduces students to key concepts and theories of business, management, and economics. Contemporary issues are then identified and discussed, encouraging student to utilise key concepts in analysing these issues. 

Student through seminars and guided activities are encouraged to carry out research using library resources and reputable internet sources. This develops their research skills by exposing them to a wide range of literature and encourages critical analysis of different perspectives on a topic or issue. This approach guides students through the learning cycle of knowledge, application, and analysis of issues, concepts, and theories. This builds the students confidence and learning skills essential for the degree programmes and professional careers. 

Throughout the semester students have additional opportunities to book individual/group sessions to clarify /address any learning issues.  

Module provider

Surrey Business School

Module Leader

ATTA Zainab (SBS)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 3

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

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None

Module content

This module provides an opportunity for students to draw together strands from concurrent Foundation Year modules and apply them to an area of their own interest within a Business, Economics or Hospitality and Tourism Management context.  

Key module content includes: 

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   An introduction to contemporary issues in business, management, and economics – exploring key concepts and analytical frameworks. 
  


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   Exploring the dynamics of competitive markets, business, and organisation lifecycles.  
  


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  Examining the concept of market failure and its implications for contemporary issues and business decision making. 
  


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  Understanding Creativity, Ideation and Innovation and their significance in exploring contemporary issues and solutions in business, management, and economics.  
  


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  Exploring the trends and changes in business finance and the implications for business and management in the 21st century. 
  


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  Discussion of Sustainability, the types of sustainability, the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their impact on economies, business, and management.  
  


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  Technology its impact on economies and business and its role in analysing and proffering solutions to identified contemporary issues. 
  


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  Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethics and Sustainability in business and management  
  

With each student working to a topic of their own choosing over the course of the semester, there are particular challenges in managing time and resources independently, meaning that students need to demonstrate both resourcefulness and resilience as learners.  Individual support is built into the module to help students meet these challenges and develop the required attributes, in the form of two scheduled individual tutorial sessions, further ad hoc tutor advice sessions, taking advantage of and learning from these support opportunities is a key part of an active approach to the module.

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their critical and reflective learning. It allows students to draw on topic and contemporary issues based on module content but also to import and utilise knowledge and skills learned in other modules - MAN0002 and MAN0003. The assessment strategy encourages cross – modular knowledge encouraging students to use their skill developed in this module, applying, and adapting these to other modules within the Programme.    The assessment strategy links with the module and Programme learning outcomes encouraging awareness of the cross- disciplinary nature of knowledge, which is increasingly relevant in the globalised and interconnected business and economic environment.  
 
The summative assignment is made up of two elements:  

Three individual blogs of 200 words each: students have the opportunity to choose any issue based on taught material or their own research as long as the issue(s) relate to business, management, and economics. The blogs encourage student to be succinct yet expressive in terms of output. The 1000-word article allows them to develop draw themes from their blogs developing these into an academic article. Students show case the progression towards a more critical approach to learning and reflection.  Students learn to appreciate the different types of formats that outputs can take in the professional world.   

An Open Note Exam: Students are expected to explore, develop, and communicate mastery of their cumulative learning over the semester through the medium of answering examination questions based on pre- seen material. The pre-seen case material is based on contemporary issues which have been reported in the UK and/or international press. The case material is released to students three to four weeks before the examination cycle. Revision session which encourage discussion of the pre-seen material are provided to assist students as they prepare for the Open note exam.  

Formative assessment  
 
There will be important opportunities to practise and develop their blog, academic article writing and case study skills. 

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  Completion and submission of one formative blog of 200-word and article plan.   
  


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  Revision and mock sessions in preparation for the open note exam during timetabled revision week.   
  

 

Feedback 

Further formative feedback and guidance by peers and tutors will be provided during seminar time.  In addition, students are encouraged to prepare carefully for individual tutorial times, to ensure that tutor feedback at those times is relevant to their needs at that point of their work in progress.  Students are welcome too to email draft work and queries to module tutors for informal written feedback, and to make use of module tutors’ office hours and drop-in times for individual guidance and feedback. 

Module aims

• Provide students with an introduction to the fundamental concepts and frameworks used in contemporary issues in business, management, and economics.
• It builds students skills in applying the theoretical concepts and models to contemporary issues in business management and economics. This encourages development of students analytical skills.
• Develop students critical comprehension, evaluative and synthesis skills. These skills are essential in decision-making and problem solving in business, economics, and management. The module lays the foundation for more complex study in the degree programme and in professional life post-graduation study.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is based on an active approach to module content of Contemporary Business in Business, Management and Economics. The underlying theories and models will lay the foundation for building critical appreciation of the significance of contemporary issues in business, management, and economics for global, regional, and domestic economies in the 21st century.  Students be supported through lectures, seminars, problem-based learning, and opportunities for self-reflection. Students work individually, in pairs and in groups developing an appreciation for diversity in thinking and decision-making.  

Emphasis is two-sided: active engagement from you the student and also from the module co-ordinator. This approach is underwritten by the pedagogical aim of developing independent and critical learners who engage with the learning environment and context.  

 
The learning and teaching methods include: 
 

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   Weekly lectures:  
   

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  The lectures are designed to introduce students to concepts and theories underlying the various identified contemporary issues in business, management, and economics. Lectures are discursive and students are encouraged to discuss key concepts and question these during the lecture. Lecture content includes illustration and examples from different parts of the world, this exposes students to the interconnectedness of business and economic environments in different countries.   
  


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  Seminars and workshops are more practical with students exploring developments and contemporary issues arising from topic such as sustainability, creativity, and technology. Discission and case studies are used encouraging students to research various topics and then use tools like Excel to analyse issues through a scenario. The outputs are then delivered as a short presentation or report. This encourages peer and lecturer’s constructive feedback which contributes to peer learning, confidence, and the development of a learning community.   
  


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  This broad and analytical approach to learning and teaching through this module allows student the opportunity to appreciate the breadth of content within business, management and economics and the more analytical depth of academic work required at university.  
  


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  Seminars include opportunities each week for students to consult lecturer as they develop and chart their learning progress.  
  

 

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   Formal guided individual reading and study activities, included in SurreyLearn. These would typically include short videos to watch and make notes from, targeted resources for self-study, articles to read ahead of discussion in class, short writing activities. 
   

 

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   Independent study is a key requirement which requires confidence and skills development. This module addresses this by encouraging students to review and engage with learning material independently and then discuss these in pairs or groups within seminars, allowing for the students development of their ‘own voice’. Guided learning is made available in Surrey Learn on the module page and this may be in the form of videos short clips, articles and questions based on these materials. The diversity of material encourages student to discuss in seminars/tutorials their own experiences and material that they have encountered.  
   

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: MAN0001

Other information

In conjunction with receiving departments, the Foundation Year programme is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, Sustainability, and Resourcefulness and Resilience. This module is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills, and capabilities in the following areas: 

Employability: The module provides guided opportunities for students to develop their knowledge and understanding of core business, management, and economics subject-specific content with direct relevance to future employment contexts. 

Assessments foster a critical approach within the subject area, with application of theory to practical contemporary issues. These include supported development of specific skills and attributes relevant to employment and self-employment. 

A particular focus of this module is in fostering written communication skills, both in a professional concise digital genre and in more extended and more traditionally academic form. 

Students will also start to cultivate skills of research and data analysis, plus the time management skills required to manage complex tasks independently over extended periods. The ability to reflect critically on individual performance and learn from feedback are also sound preparation for the world of work. 

 

Digital Capabilities: digital literacy is a vital skill in today’s world and the Foundation Year programme aims to ensure that students enter the first year of their degree programmes equipped with a critical approach to navigating the mass of information available to all on the World Wide Web.  Identifying and evaluating relevant sources available to them via the Internet, the university library with its ‘digital first’ policy, and the electronic tools and databases available through the library portal.  Digital tools, including Artificial Intelligence, are under increasing scrutiny in today’s world: this module also looks at the potential of a range of digital tools in helping students to develop extended written texts such as this Research Project, whilst maintaining academic integrity.    

Resourcefulness and Resilience: Foundation Year students often show low levels of confidence in their academic abilities when beginning the programme. Through this module in Semester 1, however, scaffolded approaches to learning support students in further developing both their resourcefulness and resilience necessary to meet new challenges. 

By participating in this module, students have the opportunity to accustomise gradually to the nature of independent study which is expected at tertiary level, and which proves for most to be a key difference from study at 6th form level. 

A formative (i.e., practice) task is designed to allow students to learn from work in progress and make effective use of feedback, thereby further enhancing students’ independence as learners. 

 

Sustainability: Through analysis of relevant case studies, students have opportunities to develop their abilities to recognise the extent to which decisions made by practitioners¿in their own areas of business, management or economics may impact widely across¿society and on the environment. The module enables students to improve their critical thinking skills in ways that will allow them to apply problem-solving strategies to sustainability¿challenges, such as excessive consumption or¿climate change. 

Students with a particular interest in sustainability will have opportunities to choose topics for further investigation in their written blogs or academic-style article, that encompass themes related to sustainability, and to examine this in the context of its relevance to their chosen area of business, economics or hospitality and tourism management. 

 

Global and Cultural Capabilities: Globalisation and glocalization are deeply embedded within business, economics, and management at the domestic, regional, and international levels. There is increased competition for exploitable opportunities, profit maximisation, social entrepreneurship, and enterprise; and this is examined through topics such as market and market trends, migration and issues of social costs and benefits. Illustrations and examples are drawn from across Europe, the United States, Asia, Middle East, and Africa to highlight the breadth and implications of global and cultural capabilities. This encourages students to appreciate and internalise the real implications of multiculturalism within business. 

The choice of topic focus available to students in the writing portfolio coursework assessment means that those with particular interests in global and cultural themes have the chance to explore these through the lens of their chosen questions. In this way, this assessment provides an effective stepping stone to producing the longer written project in Semester 2, in MAN0005 (Research Project). 

 

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 2025/6 academic year.