Strategy Processes and Practices

(1) ACCT102; and (2) A further 45 points at 200-level or above RP: MGMT344

MGMT 320

MGMT344

Timetable Note

All students are expected to attend all scheduled class sessions, actively engage with course content, actively participate in all course activities, and complete all required tasks by the due dates. The lectures are also recorded and will be available through Echo. However, lecture attendance is highly recommended for a more active and engaging experience.

Course Coordinator / Lecturer

David Stiles

Assessment

Learn Quizzes
Learn quizzes are weekly online tests designed to help test your own individual engagement with and understanding of each of the main topics of the course as you go along. They are based on ‘Required Readings’ (also called Essential Readings in the handouts) described in the lecture schedule below (the core text chapter in most weeks) and the relevant lecture each week – so reading the textbook and regularly attending lectures is essential to successfully completing quizzes. I will provide theoretical and applied questions to make you think about each topic in more depth. All quizzes open immediately after the lecture dealing with that particular topic, starting in Week 2 with the Strategy Processes & Practices quiz. Quizzes are normally open for 7 days after each class (i.e. will close at the start of the following week’s lecture), so be careful not to miss the deadlines. However, to allow extra time for enrolments, book buying etc., there won’t be a quiz due in the first two weeks. The deadline for the first quiz is the beginning of lecture 3 on Friday 12th March. Check the Learn website for each deadline.

You may make unlimited attempts at each quiz, but there is a 30 minute delay between quiz attempts so you don’t just guess at random each time. To make it fair to all, you can’t complete the quiz other than via the facility on Learn or submit a quiz late after the deadline. This is because the quiz answers can be seen by anyone in the class after each deadline expires. There is no quiz after the last lecture.

To allow everyone the same chance for absences and illnesses, late enrolments, etc., I calculate your overall quiz grade based on 7 out of 9 quizzes. This means you can miss up to two quizzes without penalty. Since the main aim is to get you to learn from all lecture topics, it’s a good idea to attempt all quizzes; but not counting two quizzes means your weakest quiz marks are automatically eliminated if you perform badly or are ill/absent.

Marks will be available for each quiz after the quiz closes (i.e. the final deadline for the whole class – not when you complete your own quiz. Otherwise you would know the answers and have a chance to resubmit until you get 100% every time and/or pass the answers on to others).

One warning about the Learn quiz system: Press the submit button! Some students don’t 'close' their quiz responses properly on Learn, but leave answers ‘open’ past the deadline. Submission happens when you press the submit button, so isn’t much of a problem if you make one submission. However, if you make multiple attempts, it is important to press the submit button on your final attempt. Beware: the very act of reopening the quiz to look at the questions means it counts as an attempt and Learn will automatically submit it, even if you don’t want it to. Learn counts the last submission made, not the highest scoring one. That would be far too easy since you could simply attempt it as many times as you like, entering different answers each time until you get 100%! The system doesn’t allow me to override your responses on Learn, so I can’t change the outcome. I have built some slack into the system by only counting your best eight quizzes. However, try to maximise your marks by answering all quizzes - and formally submit your preferred answers.

Obviously don’t consult your classmates on questions or answers, since this will be detrimental to your own learning and will not be a valid indication of whether you understand the course material. In any case, the questions are in a different order each time you open the quiz. This item is not available for special consideration, since it is continuing assessment.

Group Applied Case Analysis Presentations & Reports
In the group project, you will undertake the analysis and presentation of solutions to strategy cases in a small group, honing further your appreciation of strategy knowledge and skills. You will be allocated to a group and it is up to you to be able to function effectively as a team to deliver this assignment. Of the 30% of overall course marks achievable for this assessment, half of marks (or 15% of your overall course mark) will come from the in-class presentation, and the remaining half of marks (or 15% of overall course marks) from the case analysis report. You must submit your presentation slides (PowerPoint only – not PDFs or other formats) electronically via Learn by the start of the session in which you present. The report (.doc or .docx files only – not PDFs or other formats) must be submitted electronically via Learn within 48 hours of the end of the lecture/session. This gives your group some time to respond to issues raised in the presentation; but not enough time to rewrite things entirely - so make sure your presentation is well designed to begin with. A group cover sheet MUST be used for this assignment, attached to the front of your report (not the slides). Please only submit only one set of slides and one report per group. There is also a separate Individual Contribution Form each group member must submit within 48 hours of the presentation, to assess the relative contributions of individuals. You can download both the cover sheet and individual contribution form from separate links on the course Learn front page.

All four items must be submitted through your group’s specific links on the course Learn website. Each group has its own links in the particular section on your topic e.g. the groups presenting on cases concerning culture should submit via their group links in the ‘Culture & Strategy’ section. The individual contribution forms are submitted via a separate link in that same section, so others can’s see them.

All group members are expected to contribute equally to this assignment and those not contributing satisfactorily may have marks deducted - but those engaging fully in the project should experience an interesting learning exercise in developing strategy for a real company.

More details about this assignment, including specific questions and submission dates, are given in a separate document posted on Learn.
Final Exam
The final examination will be a closed book, invigilated, short essay-style, applied 2-hour exam based on material from the lectures and the textbook. The paper tests you on your broad knowledge of strategy issues, concepts and tools from across the course rather than on a single topic. You will need to answer 4 questions from a choice of 6, each from a different topic area. Good answers will use organisational examples to illustrate answers drawn from short and longer case studies in the textbook and class – particularly the case presentations. This means to get higher marks it is a good idea to read/ engage with and understand all cases covered, paying particular attention to the in-class case presentations and reports. Answering the questions after each textbook case isn't compulsory, but might help you to understand and remember the material so it's easier to prepare for class presentations and revise for the exam. As well as the textbook/presentation cases, I also give company examples in the lectures. So, attending classes and taking notes in each session (including the presentations) is doubly important.

More detailed advice on the final exam will be given in the last lecture; so it is vital to attend this session. I have also posted extra practice exam papers on Learn to help you prepare (those before 2016 are not relevant).

Grading
The marks for assessments may be scaled before a final grade is determined.  You should not regard 50% as a pass mark.

Textbooks / Resources

Required Texts

Whittington, Richard et al; Exploring strategy : text and cases ; Twelfth edition; Pearson Education Limited, 2020.

The core text is Exploring Strategy: Text and Cases (12th Edition), Whittington, Richard; Regner, Patrick; Angwin, Duncan; Johnson, Gerry; Scholes, Kevan: Pearson, Harlow, UK: 2020. The cheapest option is the eBook priced at $65 and available at https://www.pearsoned.co.nz/9781292282466

Please buy or consult the textbook in the library, since this is Required (Essential) Reading for this course. Do not get the text-only version (i.e. without the cases) or previous editions, since the material will be incomplete or old. MGMT344 also uses this text, so taking both papers will save you money!

You are also expected to read specific cases (to be advised) from this textbook in advance of each session, beginning in time for Week 2, so that you can discuss these in class & benefit from applied learning. From Week 4 onwards, particular groups will analyse and present these cases; but everyone needs to be familiar with them each week to contribute effectively.  Other material will be posted on the course Learn website.

Course links

LEARN
Coversheets - Group and Individual

Notes

Class Representative
A class representative may be asked to volunteer in the first few weeks of class. Any problems with the course can be raised with the class rep. Their email can be found at UCSA. The class representative will take up any issues raised by class members with the lecturer concerned as they occur.

Departmental Academic Policies
A summary of Departmental academic policies on course grading, special considerations, etc. is available under: https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/business/departments/. The Department assumes that you have read this document.

You should also read the following:
• UC Business School Student Handbook on the UC Business School Students Learn page https://learn.canterbury.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=7744
• General Course and Examination Regulations http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/regulations/general/general_regs_enrolment_courses.shtml

Dishonest Practice
The University of Canterbury considers cheating and plagiarism to be serious acts of dishonesty. All assessed work must be your own individual work unless specifically stated otherwise in the assessment guidelines. Material quoted from any other source must be clearly acknowledged. You must not copy the work of another person (student or published work) in any assessment including examinations, tests and assignments. Any person, who is found to have copied someone else's work, or to have allowed their work to be copied, will receive a fail grade for that piece of assessment and may face disciplinary action which may lead to a fine, community service or exclusion from the university.

IMPORTANT: Where there are concerns regarding the authorship of written course work, a student can be required to provide a formal, oral explanation of the content of their work.

Citations and referencing

Indicative Fees

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.