GLOBAL IMPACT RESIDENCY - 2025/6

Module Overview

The Global Impact Residency is an immersive project designed to expose students to business ecosystems where social and environmental impact are central to strategy. Through a blend of faculty-led fieldwork, leadership dialogue, and consulting engagement, students will work directly with mission-driven enterprises, including B Corporations, social enterprises, and purpose-led innovators across a selected global location.

This project partners MBA candidates with business leaders and communities to explore how purposeful business models thrive in diverse cultural and economic contexts. The initiative aligns with experiential learning principles, allowing executives-in-training to engage in strategic consulting, operational improvements, and sustainability-driven innovation.

The module aims to develop the practical skills required to tackle specific problems within a social enterprise locally or internationally. Working individually or in teams, students will design, test and present viable social enterprise models that balance impact and financial sustainability.

Through this hands-on experience, students will refine their problem-solving, leadership and stakeholder engagement skills while applying ethical and sustainable business principles.

By the end of this module, they will gain an in-depth understanding of social enterprises, impact-driven business models, and the challenges of scaling socially focused enterprises. The module includes a final presentation/pitch deck to the client and/or industry experts who will offer valuable feedback and potential implementation opportunities.

Module provider

Surrey Business School

Module Leader

SOTUNDE Deji (SBS)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

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

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None

Module content

Indicative content includes:
¿ Social enterprises, B Corporations, and the global movement for business as a force for good
¿ Defining project scope, key impact areas and identifying opportunity
¿ Problem-solving and Research Methods (design/systems thinking, qualitative/quantitative techniques, data collection and analysis)
¿ Systems innovation and regenerative business models
¿ Social Business Model Canvas
¿ Frameworks for sustainable strategies
¿ ESG and impact measurement frameworks (e.g., B Impact Assessment, SDGs)
¿ Strategic Leadership/Growth leadership for social enterprise
¿ Stakeholder engagement and partnerships

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

An individual presentation may be undertaken in place of the group presentation.

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate problem-solving, leadership and stakeholder engagement skills while applying ethical and sustainable business principles.

The module is assessed by means of a group presentation/Pitch Deck and an individual reflective report.

Summative assessment

1. Students submit a group work (Presentation/Pitch Deck)
2. An individual reflective essay


Formative assessment for this module:

Students can expect to receive feedback from faculty on participation, discussions and team during the facilitated sessions.


Feedback
Feedback will be provided in the following forms: Written feedback on the group work and individual reflective essay. This will be provided by a first marker and the moderator in the context of the marking rubric uploaded on SurreyLearn.

Module aims

• Provide MBA students with direct experience in sustainable business practices to enhance the characteristics of a transformative, progressive and responsible future leader.
• Develop the practical skills required to tackle specific problems within a social enterprise locally or internationally
• Enhance problem-solving, leadership and stakeholder engagement skills while applying ethical and sustainable business principles
• Contribute to Social Enterprise/B Corporations scaling of their impact while maintaining financial viability, and increasing students¿ awareness of sustainable solutions for social and environmental challenges
• Create strong connections between MBA candidates and mission-driven businesses

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to provide a range of delivery methods in a blended way to facilitate the development of skills in the areas set out above.

The learning and teaching methods include:
¿ Analysis of case studies on social enterprises
¿ Faculty coaching and mentorship with regular check-ins to refine ideas
¿ Discussions/Guest speakers: social entrepreneurs, investors and policymakers
¿ Facilitated sessions on scoping, problem-framing and research methods
¿ Hands-on sessions on the social business model canvas
¿ Presentations, discussions
¿ Group problem-solving using a simulation/group project

The delivery is structured as follows:
¿ In-class: Lecture, seminar, case discussions, guest speakers to cover indicative content
¿ Outside class: Topic-themed 5-day residency, working in groups (3-5) on the client¿s project(s) with the possibility to discuss with the module leader

At the end of the module, the students will pitch/present solutions and plans of action to the client or panel of experts in a format that is appropriate to the intended audience. The presentation/Pitch Deck is an assessment component. The assessment strategy is designed to ensure the learning outcomes are assessed on different levels.

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: MANM601

Other information

Surrey Business School, Master of Business Administration 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: Sustainability: It provides a practical opportunity to navigate and apply UN SDGs and social impact frameworks with an emphasis on the ethical, transformative, progressive and responsible future leaderships in the community of a social enterprise and beyond. Global and cultural capabilities: The module provides students with an opportunity to develop an in-depth understanding of diverse cultures, and cultural sensitivities and enhance their cross-cultural competencies. It also provides an opportunity to apply design/system thinking and human-centered approaches for responsible social impact. Digital capabilities: Students will use a range of industry-leading market research tools/techniques and social impact metrics/software to conduct surveys, stakeholder feedback and report findings. Students will also be expected to participate in collaborative and remote working using appropriate communication technology as well as creating visual presentations and compelling impact reports/pitch decks for stakeholders. Employability: The cultivation of vital responsible future leadership traits and skills related to leading and developing people and organizations. Resourcefulness and resilience: The use of a module design focuses on the scaffolding of knowledge, systematic thinking and an emphasis on learning as a sustainable source of competitive advantage.

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.