Strategic management provides overall direction to an enterprise and involves specifying the organisation's objectives, developing policies and plans to achieve. Strategic management is the ongoing planning, monitoring, analysis and assessment of all necessities an organisation needs to meet its goals and objectives.
The module studies the management of those processes that extract, design, analyse, implement, control and evaluate strategies within the organisations. The key focus of the module is on the methods, approaches, theories and models that managers require; while, facing certain and uncertain circumstances in strategic decision-making.
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This module offers an introduction to strategic management. The importance of strategy to a successful firm cannot be understated. For this reason, in business and management research, the specific study of strategy emerged intending to work out a good strategy from bad. However, there has been no consensus reached, no universal standard for defining a good strategy and no fixed method for its design and implementation. Instead, several different theories and approaches to strategy have been developed and debated, some in direct opposition to one another. Taken as a whole, the academic field has provided a toolbox of methods for approaching strategy in different situations.
The module aims to introduce a range of strategic theories and tools of analysis, to assist in all aspects of strategy but with a predominant focus on the corporate and business levels. These will also be critically evaluated to identify their strengths and weaknesses concerning different situations. In this way, the module aims to demonstrate how to recognise problems and opportunities and how to be able to construct different strategies appropriate for different situations.
This module answers questions such as what strategy should we follow, what market should we be in, and what should we do to maximise our potential – the content also asks questions about what it means to be ‘strategizing’. These themes are explored alongside the importance of the environment for strategy (market, non-market, ecological and virtual), and the significance of change and complexity.
Teaching and learning are provided in two-hour lecture sessions per week for 10 weeks and 4 one-hour online seminars. The lecture sessions introduce the knowledge components of the module. Complementary activities will be undertaken during the tutorials to develop your thinking and skills concerning strategic situations in the organizations. Self-directed studies are a vital component of the module. Because of time constraints, you are strongly advised to read around each topic before attending the lectures. This helps to develop a deeper knowledge of the subject and provides a basis for greater engagement in the lecturing process. Guidance on
The expectation is that all students will prepare in advance of each seminar, having completed all the required reading and any specified preparatory work concerning the questions set. Seminars are designed as interactive, guided independent learning spaces where the major contribution/discussion is provided by students. Some seminars may be used for the preparation of assignments.
These textbooks provide a detailed and up-to-date treatment of the area. You should take a look at these books ASAP to get used to their format and style. Key features of these books include examples and illustrations from many different organisations and many countries to reflect the diversity of strategy in the organisations. Each chapter provides tools and techniques to help analyse existing organisations and guide their strategic decisions.
Additional journal papers are provided for core topics, these are optional but recommended reading. You will be able to access both your core and optional reading materials on Blackboard.
The lecture contents will be delivered via the module Blackboard site and presented and discussed in Face-To-Face sessions. Please use the MN7405 site on Blackboard to access:
Note. This timetable is likely to be subject to modification. Students should prepare for the tutorials before attendance.
You will have a one-hour seminar every week (Please check your timetable for your seminar time). Before attending the seminar, you must complete any preparatory work that can be found on BlackBoard. Please ensure you bring the module handbook with you to classes either in hard copy or electronically. Please note that success on this module is determined by your willingness to put in the work, to engage with the materials and each other.
Seminars are not supplementary lectures, they are group sessions within which small group work and discussion take place. They are your chance to test ideas, raise issues, challenge assumptions and discuss differences in perception. They are designed as a safe environment in which to engage in directed learning. Seminars start from the basis that all statements are open to question, and any opinion may be put forward as long as they can be substantiated, and do not cause deliberate offence on the grounds of age, disability, race, gender or sexual orientation.
Students will typically work in groups of 4-5 people. Ideas, questions and conclusions developed in the small groups will tend to be shared (at the end of sessions) with the entire seminar. This means that students benefit from the intensity of small group discussions and the knowledge generated by a larger forum. In online seminars, the tutor may try alternative approaches to organising the class.
Role of the student. The success of any seminar is dependent on the input of its participants. Key in this respect is the student. To get the most out of the seminars (to have meaningful discussions and learning experiences) you will need to undertake the core reading and have completed any preparatory work before attending the seminar. With online seminars, student contribution is vital to making the session production.
Role of the tutor. Each session is guided by a tutor. Their role is to set the ground rules for each session, describing the aims and broad structure. They also work the room providing assistance and guidance during set exercises/discussions. They will provide information where possible, or direct to sources of information where they do not have the answers themselves. They are there to guide discussions, not dominate them. They will bring the session to a conclusion, drawing out key themes and their relation to the learning objectives. They will, where possible, seek to answer questions relating to wider aspects of the course.
We value your feedback highly as it will allow us to enhance the module to provide you with the best possible experience in the Strategic Management module. Please feel comfortable and confident to express your feedback throughout the module; please tell us what is working well and what isn’t working so well, and what we can do about it. We will always listen and act on your feedback.
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