International Business Strategy

• Credit value: 15 credits at Level 7
• Convenor and tutor: Dr Odile Janne
• Assessment: a two-hour examination (100%)

In this module we focus on the strategic challenges confronting firms which compete in the global economy. The module is designed to strengthen your analytical skills and prepare you to work in an international business, facing the challenges of a complex global and interconnected world. It aims to provide a thorough understanding of the key strategic issues confronting managers of multinational corporations, both within the business enterprise and in the global marketplace.

We will focus on corporate strategy for worldwide operations and go beyond the buzzwords often associated with discussions of globalisation and global strategy. This module provides the tools and insights needed to identify and analyse key international business strategic issues.

Indicative syllabus

• Exploring and exploiting national differences
• Leveraging resources and capabilities across national borders
• The internationalisation process and foreign market entry
• The formulation of international and regional strategies
• Innovation and learning in multinationals
  
• Corporate social responsibility across borders

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• identify and understand the key issues in international business strategy
• use the conceptual and analytical tools of strategic management and economics to the greater understanding of international business strategy
• appreciate alternative patterns of strategies, structures and operations, appropriate in different international contexts and changing market conditions
• address the management of the greater complexity that accompanies international operations
• analyse case studies of strategies in business organisations in the context of the relevant concepts and theories
• engage in independent research and practically apply the knowledge and skills acquired during the module.