StudyQA — MBA: Strategic Management — City University of Seattle

Description Contents Requirements

The Greenwich School of Management Master of Business Administration (MBA), Strategic Management pathway is the classic, traditional MBA. The masters programme is awarded by the University of Plymouth and is studied in the heart of historic Greenwich, London.

The Strategic Management MBA programme is well suited to professional managers who want to gain an insight into the working of the various functional areas of management across the organisation. This MBA pathway suits those who are looking to further their careers either in their present area of expertise and professional competence or who are looking to change career path or to venture into consultancy.

The main philosophy of the Strategic Management Master of Business Administration programme is that management can be taught as a unified body of knowledge, applicable to any business organisation.

This MBA programme aims to develop the analytical skills of the course members within the context of management. These skills embody the knowledge, techniques and best practice in business administration and focus on problem identification and problem solving.

The University of Plymouth MBA programmes at Greenwich School of Management can be studied by attendance in the following modes:

Daytime - 12 months full-time or 24 months part-time
Evening - 24 months part-time
Executive - 24 months (7 weekends and 3 Saturdays)

Full-time programmes are conducted between Monday and Friday, during the day. Part-time programmes are conducted at two daytime or evening sessions per week.

Programme Modules

* Business Environment and Strategic Management

Since the management of organisations is influenced by many external as well as internal factors, it is necessary to identify and understand the ways in which they influence management policies. It is also essential to understand how they influence strategic aims and how interrelationships affect long term planning and decision-taking.

The nature of strategic planning and its relationship to operational policies; organisational objectives and their impact upon resource acquisition and deployment; internal and external factors governing organisational objectives; compatibility of objectives; strategic choices, the direction and pace of change; evaluating strategic risks and methods of minimisation; methods of controlling strategic change; process of planning and managing organisational strategy; time horizons for long term planning, the effect of technological innovation and the emergence of new competition.

* The Strategy of International Business

International business frequently involves different problems of management organisation and policy to achieve corporate success compared to those of the home market. This module identifies the former problems and provides methods of determining means of exploring policies likely to lead to successful outcomes.

International business environment; differences in business culture between the home and overseas markets; methods of formulating strategy for overseas business; methods of serving overseas markets: direct exporting, overseas subsidiaries, agency, licensing, joint ventures; contrasting the strategy of overseas business between small and large companies, consumer goods and capital goods industries, service industries; methods of credit use and optimum finance; international capital markets; establishing and maintaining international communications; meeting international competition; political risks; the impact of e-commerce.

* Leadership and the Management of Strategic Change

Effective management depends not only on the right policy and techniques. It requires the appropriate management structure and allocation of responsibilities and accountability. It also necessitates reward systems which stimulate energy and provide incentives to achieve management objectives. These features of management will only work in organisations where effective leadership is present to plan, organise and communicate them.

Nature, purpose and structures of management organisation; allocation of responsibilities and accountability within organisation; influence of resources and objectives on organisation; changing size and technology on structure and organisation; role of leadership on structure and management organisation; management culture and the influence of leadership; symptoms of poor leadership; role of leadership in strategic change.

* Accounting and Finance for Managers

For non-specialist accountants this module introduces the basic concepts and techniques of Accounting and Finance and demonstrates the tasks and methods of identifying and resolving management financial issues.

The purposes of accounting; the uses of accounting information; the role of the financial accountant and the management accountant; the nature of financial information; company financial statements; the use of financial statements for management decisions; nature and techniques of financial controls; investment appraisal; raising finance; allocation of resources; use of working capital.

* Marketing Planning and Promotion

As an essential element of the management of organisations, marketing is significant as a theoretical and practical base for all managers. Whatever their specialist roles, all managers should be aware of the nature of the markets served and the relationships with their customers, since these factors have an impact on the ways in which all operations are planned and managed.

The strategic nature of marketing; market segment characteristics; bases of consumer behaviour; elements of marketing plans; assessing marketing opportunities by using market information; marketing mix; use of controls in marketing; integration of marketing communications; promotion and communications; integration of marketing policies with other management functions; applying marketing and customer communications to particular company situations and public sector organisations; setting a promotion plan; identifying the promotion mix; measuring the cost effectiveness of promotion; relating sales and promotion policy to market size and structure.

* Management Information and Communication Systems

Successful organisations depend upon the quality of the information available and the system of communicating both within the organisation and externally with suppliers and markets. Thus the technology employed is a crucial factor in effective management. It is therefore imperative that managers understand and are able to use this technology to enhance the quality of their decision-taking.

The dependence of management decision on information and communications systems; the strategic role of MICS; the technological features of MICS; innovation in MICS; the formation and integration of functional management policies; evaluation of MICS; the limitations of systems; the differing needs of organisations according to size, structure, technology employed and markets served; use of systems for control purposes; private and public sector management applications; developing MICS capabilities and knowledge management; e-commerce applications.

* Human Resource Management

This module introduces the nature of corporate culture and change in organisations and the roles played by managers, individuals, groups and teams. It is also designed to develop an understanding of both the strategy and operational aspects of the management of human resources in organisations, and also the ways in which the quality of HRM affects all the functions of management.

The nature of HRM and the principal problem areas; significant functional areas of HRM; human resource planning; organisational change and human resource deployment; causes of conflict and methods of resolution; nature of organisational culture and the factors contributing to it; individual perceptions and motivations; HRM and impact on other management functions; HRM and teams; career development and promotion of personal skills; strategy of HRM.

* Research Skills and Project Management

This module provides a grounding in project planning, literature review and the principles of research methodology as a preparation for undertaking the major project as a culmination of the programme. The module covers the selection of an appropriate topic for the dissertation; methods of identifying and recording primary and secondary sources of information; strengths and weaknesses of different types of research methodology; methods of referencing information gathered from published work; compiling a bibliography; effective presentation techniques including a logical connection between objectives, methods, evidence and conclusions.

* Dissertation

Managers should be capable of investigating the nature of optimal solutions to a major business problem (or set of related problems) in one company or a number of companies operating with similar technologies or in similar markets. Such an investigation encompasses knowledge acquired from the subject matter of the taught modules of the programme and also methods of research of both a primary and a secondary nature.

The dissertation element of the MBA programme involves the preparation and presentation of a project of approximately 15,000 words in length directed towards the identification of a significant business problem of a company or industry and recommendations for policy making and action based upon a thorough examination of evidence and information relevant to the problem. The dissertation will also contain an examination of the published literature and will select a methodology appropriate to the problem investigated.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS - MBA PROGRAMMESAn applicant must normally have obtained: * A recognised Bachelor degree at 2.2 or higher classification or an equivalent qualification;Or * An NQF Level 6 qualification;Or * The Greenwich School of Management Diploma in Management Studies (DMS).AndApplicants are required to have a minimum of two years managerial experience.AndIf your first language is not English you will be required to demonstrate English Language proficiency at IELTS band 6 or above. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 6 IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more. Work Experience At least 2 year(s) of work experience is required.