Strategic Management - Laurence Marsh University of Texas, El Paso

Course Description :

This course is the CAPSTONE^®; course for undergraduate management studies. The purpose of this course is to understand the basis of key corporate, business, and functional level decisions and how these decisions affect the organization as a whole. The central concept is to understand how these decisions determine the competitive strategy and long-term survival of the organization.

This course will use an integrative and interdisciplinary approach to address strategic decisions and apply general management principles to these decisions. The student should come away from this course with an ability to assess the strategic situation of an organization and generate recommendations for action by the organization using a strategic assessment framework. The student should also understand how strategic decisions affect managers at all levels of the organization and in all functional areas.

You must be a graduating senior to take this course.

Course Format

This course is an integrative course designed to fully utilize the skills acquired in your previous business studies. This course will use text readings augmented by topic readings and case analysis. This course will also involve a complex business simulation to reinforce the concepts of strategic management. Reading assignments must be completed prior to class meeting in order to enhance understanding of the concepts discussed and increase the quality of the discussion. Given the complexity of the business cases, there can be more than one correct answer and this complexity enhances the potential for developing analytical skills. Class discussion will be maintained in a respectful, professional manner in order to provide all students with a positive learning experience.

This class is WebCT enabled and it will be the primary mode of communication for the class. Some assignments and reading may be distributed via WebCT.

Teaching Objectives

This course is the last course for your business studies and is an important part of your educational process. The AACSB objectives related to this course are listed on the last page of this syllabus.

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to accomplish the following:

• Critically diagnose strategic and organizational problems at various levels.
• Apply assessment techniques to competitive environments and industry analysis.
• Evaluate the resources of an organization to identify competitive advantages and disadvantages.
• Identify the role of the manager in formulating and implementing strategy.
• Understand the issues regarding ethics, globalization and technology in strategic decision-making.
• Develop and implement a strategic plan based on critical analysis of the organization, the industry, and the competitive environment.
• Convey analysis in a coherent, organized manner in oral presentations and written reports.

Course Evaluation

Exams 30% (3 Exams)

Individual Assignments 30% (Case Analyses, Article Reviews, etc.)

CAPSTONE^®; Business Simulation 30% (Reports, Presentation, Firm performance)

Participation 10%

Total 100%

Grading Criteria: A 90% - 100%

B 80% - 89.9%

C 70% - 79.9%

D 60% - 69.9%

F 59.9% and below

Class Assignments

Exams

There will be two exams during the regular class meetings covering all material related to the course including the textbook, class discussion, and individual assignments. The exams will be in the multiple choice format. The dates of the exams are listed in the class schedule. The final exam will consist of an assessment tool which will test students on strategic management concepts and the CAPSTONE^®; business simulation. This assessment will be administered during the period scheduled for the final exam for this class.

Individual Assignments

Individual homework assignments will be assigned during the course which will consist of case analyses, article reviews, and additional assignments include individual exercises with the CAPSTONE^®; Business Simulation. These assignments will form the basis for class discussion to reinforce course concepts. The assignments are due on the dates listed in the syllabus.

Participation

Participation will be graded on attendance and participation in class activities. The instructor will assess the contribution of each student to the class based on participation in class discussions. Contributions will be assessed on relevance to current discussion and incorporation of course concepts.

CAPSTONE^®; Business Simulation

The CAPSTONE^®; Business Simulation will be the group project in this class. Students will be formed into management teams and given a simulated company to run for a number of rounds representing years. Teams will be given access to the simulation program and upload decisions to the system which will evaluate the results. Teams must manage the company through the rounds and produce reports as listed in the class schedule. The project will culminate in the team presenting the results of their management decisions in a simulated shareholder meeting. Team will also produce a management report which will explain management decisions and assess performance for the firm. The length of the presentation will be approximately 30 minutes. The written report will be between 10 - 15 pages long (double-spaced, 12pt font) excluding attachments and references. Presentation dates will be assigned later in the semester. More information regarding this assignment will be forthcoming as the semester progresses.

Grading for the group assignment will include a separate participation component. Each group member will confidentially evaluate the contributions of other group members. These evaluations will be incorporated into the grade for the assignments and used to scale the grade given to individual student for the group work. Failure of a group member to be present for the group presentation will result in that member receiving not credit for the presentation.

Late Assignments, Make-up exams and Presentations

Assignments are due at the before the end of the class period on the due date. Late assignments will be accepted but the grade will be reduced. Assignments will be accepted via electronic means prior to the due date. Make-up exams can be taken but arrangements for a make-up exam must be made prior to the exam date. Participation in group projects is vital; therefore, failure to be present for the group presentation will result in the absent member receiving no points for the presentation.

Academic Honesty

Because this course involves the synthesis of raw information into analysis, it is vital that all sources used are referenced and that proper sourcing guidelines are followed. Your grades will be based on the quality of your analysis; therefore, it is imperative that I am able to discern your original ideas and contributions from the ideas of others. To do that, proper referencing is a must. UTEP Policy also states:

Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials attributable in whole or part to another person, taking and examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or attempt to commit such acts." (Regent's Rules and Regulations, Part One, Chapter VI, Section 3, Subsection 3.2. Subdivision 3.22)

Because scholastic dishonesty harms the individual, all students, and the integrity of the university, policies on scholastic dishonesty will be strictly enforced.

Additional Information

Important Dates

Late registration ends Friday, January 19

Census Day Wednesday, January 31

Spring Break March 12 - March 17

Course Drop Deadline Friday, March 23

Cesar Chavez Day (Classes held) Saturday, March 31

Good Friday (No Classes) Friday, April 6

Last day of Class Thursday, May 3

Dead Day Friday, May 4

Please turn off (or to silent mode) any cell phones, pagers, Blackberry's, etc during class as a courtesy to your classmates.

CLASS SCHEDULE

WEEK OF	Tuesday	Thursday
January 16	Course Intro/Admin	The Nature of Strategic Management Readings : Chapter 1
January 23	Strategic Management Case Analysis Readings : pp. 334-347 Case: Robin Hood (in class) Intro to CAPSTONE®;	Computer Lab 1030-1150
January 30	The Business Mission Reading : Chapter 2 Video Case	Case: Scaffold Plank Computer Lab 1030-1150
February 6	The External Assessment Readings : Chapter 3 Practice Round 1 due	Case: Walmart in Mexico
February 13	The Internal Assessment Readings : Chapter 4 Practice Round 2 due	Case: GM
February 20	Strategies in Action Readings : Chapter 5 Practice Round 3 due	Strategies in Action Chapter 5 (cont.)
February 27	Strategy Analysis and Choice Readings : Chapter 6 Competition Round 1 due	Exam I
March 6	Hi -Tech Strategies Competition Round 2 Due	Article Review Mission/Vision Statements Due
March 13	Spring Break	Spring Break
March 20	Global Strategies Competition Round 3 Due	Group Work Day
March 27	Case: Whirlpool Competition Round 4 due	Strategy Implementation Readings : Chapter 7
April 3	Strategy Implementation Chapter 7 (cont.) Competition Round 5 due	Strategy Implementation Readings : Chapter 8 Competitive Analysis Due
April 10	Strategy Implementation Chapter 8 (cont.) Competition Round 6 due	Article Review
April 17	Strategy, Review, Evaluation, and Control Readings : Chapter 9 Competition Round 7 due	Exam II
April 24	Group Work Day Deadline for Final Uploads	Team Presentations
May 1	Team Presentations	Team Presentations Written reports due
May 10	Final Assessment 10:00 - 12:45

This schedule is subject to change

1. AACSB LEARNING OBJECTIVES RELATED TO MANAGEMENT 4300
2. BBA students will assess an organizations strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and will integrate these factors into a viable strategic plan.
3. BBA students will analyze a firm's financial and accounting information identifying firm strengths and weaknesses and will develop suitable strategies to improve corporate performance.
4. BBA students will recognize, measure, and analyze market demand for a product or service and will integrate this analysis into an effective marketing strategy.
5. BBA students will understand the role of financial markets and institutions in our economy and will integrate these monetary factors into an effective decision-making process.
6. BBA students will employ information technology to collect and evaluate business data to support the formulation of organizational strategies based on the results of their analysis.
7. BBA students will employ production operation models to supply chain problems and will recommend the operating strategy that maximized shareholder value.
8. BBA students will integrate decision processes and models from management, marketing, economics, finance, and accounting into the value creation process
9. BBA students will apply quantitative methods and frameworks to business problems and will incorporate the results of analysis into operating strategies.
10. BBA students will write concise, clear business reports.
11. BBA students will prepare and make a persuasive, professional speech on a current business topic.