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MBAThe University of Hull - The Hull MBA with specialist options

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MBA overview

In summary, to be awarded the Hull MBA students must complete

Eight core modules
Management and Personal Development
Human Resource Management
Marketing
Accounting and Finance for Managers
Operations Management
Management Decision Making: A Systems Approach
The Business Environment
Strategic Management

Four optional modules, currently chosen from
Business and Government
Business Innovation
Corporate Finance
Corporate Leadership and Change Management
Corporate Social Responsibility
Financial Decision Making
Financial Statement Analysis
Information Systems Management
International Business
International Comparative Human Resource Management
International Marketing Strategy
Logistics and Supply Chain Management
Management and Organisational Learning
Marketing Communications
Project Management
Public Sector Management

Research Methods and MBA Dissertation

MBA core modules

Management and Personal Development
establishes the MBA as a vehicle for professional and personal development. It introduces management development as an underlying purpose of the programme in relation to personal effectiveness, management thinking, organisational life and individuals as change agents. The module embraces various views on management and organisation theory combined with each participant's ideas on management.You will be encouraged to locate your own experiences within a historical, cultural 'map' of management thinking while focusing on the development of self-awareness and the skills required for managing in organisations characterised by change and uncertainty.

Human Resource Management
develops students' understanding of the key issues of managing people in the workplace. It combines aspects of HRM strategy and practice, and examines the ways in which elements of HRM affect and support organisational performance, locating the subject in an academic and vocational context. lt also integrates individual, collective, and group and team aspects of HRM. In achieving these objectives there is the opportunity to engage with the principles of 'best practice' and, more importantly, to evaluate the organisational and individual barriers to this, drawing on your own organisational experience wherever possible.

Marketing
introduces key theoretical marketing concepts, and aspects of applied marketing practice, within the context of strategic marketing management applied to different business settings. It provides an appreciation of marketing philosophy and of the practical value of key marketing functions and concepts by developing a critical perspective on how marketing activities can help organisations build strategic and sustainable value, resulting in competitive advantage and sustainable competitive positions in specific markets. Interactive class activities are employed in which students engage in mock-competitive marketing-related activities.

Accounting and Finance for Managers
enables students to understand the work of the accountant and financial manager - but does not make students into accountants. To communicate effectively with specialist staff, all managers must be able to understand financial information and those aspects of accounting and finance of most relevance to the management of corporate organisations. This module covers the work of the accountant and the financial manager and considers the role of corporate financial information in supporting managerial decision making.

Operations Management
develops a holistic and critical perspective on the key changes and trends which have taken place in the management of business operations in recent years. The module builds on the experience and insights of contemporary operations management in business and service organisations, and explores possible strategies for improving them. The module also examines the critical importance of logistics management for modern businesses. It does so by linking theoretical developments with contemporary practices, both in a UK context and internationally.

Management Decision Making: A Systems Approach
introduces core systems concepts and holistic thinking about management decision making and problem solving. Adopting a holistic perspective assists with defining problems, effecting change and developing organisational learning. We consider a range of methodologies and techniques, including metaphors and paradigms. We consider two complementary systems approaches to problem solving: the Viable System Model, which emphasises structures and control systems, and Soft Systems Methodology, which emphasises participation and changing world-views. Discussion of these approaches provides the basis for a review of systems thinking as a means of creating learning organisations, making use of Senge's Fifth Discipline and creative holism.

The Business Environment
introduces the most important aspects of the business environment, including the impact of macroeconomic factors. It gives students a broad survey of the business environment as it impinges upon business decision making, and covers social, political and economic factors. The module thus equips students to

bulletexplain the main social, political and technological factors affecting business in today's environment
bulletcompare the roles of the world's main political, economic and financial institutions
bulletassess the impact of government policy and external shocks on the economy
bulletselect which of these are likely to have the greatest impact on any particular business at a given time, and use this information to inform strategic decision making.

Strategic Management
encourages and develops understanding, synthesis and application of concepts and techniques covered in other modules. This module therefore represents an integrating 'capstone' opportunity for students, who work in groups to achieve this aim and to enhance their teamwork and presentation skills.

Attention is focused on case studies and a business game. A significant amount of time is spent on the analysis of large-scale, complex, unstructured problems, which, among other things, enables participants to draw on techniques and concepts from previous study. As well as encouraging the application of techniques and skills developed during the programme, this arrangement also facilitates work on developing high level transferable skills, such as communication, analysis, problem solving and presentation.

MBA optional modules

The fair-trade cafe in Derwent buildingAlong with the eight core modules, students must also choose four options which allow them to demonstrate the diverse breadth of their business studies or highlight their specialist knowledge in a particular area of business. Modules can be chosen from the selection below.

Business and Government
fosters knowledge and understanding of the ways in which key government policies can affect businesses, their management and the interface with the market. The module also assesses how businesses can and should react to these policies.

Key economic concepts are considered, and topics such as privatisation, economic regulation of utilities and competition policy are included. The focus is on what governments, regulators and competition authorities do rather than on the theories which may underlie their actions. The module makes significant use of group activities such as the setting of price controls for a privatised utility and merger policy between two or more firms.

While emphasis is placed on government activity in the UK, some material considers and compares competition policy within the European Union and the United States.

Business Innovation
is concerned with the role of entrepreneurship in an increasingly competitive world which has a much-reduced emphasis on state industries providing employment. Many countries now have a greater concern for providing the necessary environment for entrepreneurial activity to become established and to grow.

Understanding entrepreneurial development requires an understanding of socio-political and economic events which affect companies in the global economy. It also requires an understanding of how entrepreneurs visualise and commercialise 'value added' in their companies, often through more efficient allocation of human and capital resources.

This module therefore explores a range of aspects critical to innovation and entrepreneurial behaviour; including

bulletinnovation and the role of the entrepreneur
bulletentrepreneurial personality
bulletinitiating entrepreneurs
bulletcorporate entrepreneurs
bulletthe development of corporate cultures which can nurture and sustain long-term innovative practices

Corporate Finance
is concerned with the decisions made by corporate managers with a view to maximising the wealth of their corporate shareholders. It promotes a critical understanding of corporate finance, and enables students to become familiar with the practical problems involved in contemporary financial management.

The current financial environment is an undeniably competitive, unpredictable and complex place. For corporate financial managers such an ever-changing environment presents many problems and raises many key issues. Financial managers therefore require an understanding of and ability to apply a range of practical financial tools and techniques. It is these financial tools and techniques, and their underpinning theories, that form the basis of this module.

The module explores a range of issues related to long-term investment appraisal (including cost of capital issues); the valuation of bonds, equities and convertible securities mergers, acquisitions; and corporate valuations; portfolio theory and risk management; debt policy; dividend policy; and resource management.

Corporate Leadership and Change Management
explores the relationship between leadership skills and abilities and, on the other hand, the continual development and evolution of organisations - including how and why organisations can manage change in response to internal and external pressures. Change is both reactive and proactive, incorporating organisational vision, processes, projects and often politics. Transformation of an organisation requires both individual leadership skills and conceptual understanding of all the elements necessary to ensure change.

Senior managers are expected to provide leadership and direction in the achievement of organisation-wide change. This module provides future senior managers with an awareness of factors that will influence their abilty to act in this way.

Corporate Social Responsibility
encourages students to adopt a critically reflective perspective on business and its role in society. Businesses are being asked to consider the economic, social and environmental impacts of their activities and a broader range of stakeholders are finding ever more creative ways of exercising their power and influence. Rather than simply responding to these pressures, many businesses are driving forwards an enhanced way of doing business - an approach known as corporate social responsibility (CSR).

The module aims to develop a critical and multidisciplinary understanding of CSR that includes: the broader context of business and its social and environmental impact; how to include social and environmental concerns in management decision making and the development of business strategy; sustainable business practices; stakeholder analysis and related issues; and diversity issues and employment practices.

Financial Decision Making
seeks to develop an appreciation of the major types of strategic, operational and ad-hoc decisions that managers need to take in the normal course of business in public and private sector organisations.

Students also develop their abilities to understand and evaluate contemporary theories and empirical evidence concerning management accounting issues, and the techniques that are used to provide relevant management information so that the best options in financial terms can be chosen.

Financial Statement Analysis
employs an international perspective as students develop an understanding of the contexts in which financial reporting information is used, for example by security analysts, and an ability to evaluate the technical and alternative languages and practices of financial reporting.

Students develop the ability to review the contemporary theories and empirical evidence concerning financial reporting that are explored during the module.

Information Systems Management
takes a boardroom perspective on issues related to information and communication technologies (ICT). ICT are clearly a strategic resource and they bring about, or facilitate, major changes in industry sectors, in competitive behaviour and in an organisation's own strategy, structure and functionality. It is therefore necessary for managers to have an understanding of the effective and responsible deployment and management of information systems (IS) in today's global information society. ICT are a significant part of successful organisations, and they therefore constitute a vital field of study for senior managers and represent a major functional area of business operations.

This module aims to develop sophisticated insights into current IS practices and to develop approaches to evaluate claims made by IS suppliers, consultants, practitioners and academics.

Sir Digby Jones opens the Business School's new premises in December 2005International Business
considers the changing international context of modern organisations. Contemporary businesses, even those that operate wholly within their local or national markets, are subject to ever more competitive forces of international origin as a result of increasing market integration both regionally and globally. In turn, regional integration and globalisation are the result of a complex and controversial mix of legal, political, economic, social and technological forces.

More than ever before, senior managers need to have an international perspective, and this module has been designed around three themes that contribute to the acquisition of such a perspective. First the module begins with an analysis of the international business environment and how it relates to and impacts on business. In particular; it engages with the globalisation debate and issues of regulation of business in a world with fewer barriers between markets. Second, the module looks at the firm within its international context, from both a theoretical and a practical perspective, and, unusually, deals with small and medium-sized enterprises as well as with the traditional multinational. Third the module looks at specific issues that impact on the firm as a result of increasing internationalisation. These include issues such as free trade, environmental concerns and the labour market.

International Comparative Human Resource Management
develops understanding of managing human resources in an international context. The recognition of the significance of human resource management for organisational effectiveness has led to a significant increase in interest in human resource management internationally. The impact of globalisation and the increasing significance of the multinational company support this developing interest.

The module takes account of key HRM issues as they relate to the increasingly multinational nature of businesses and is comparative in orientation. This provides a vehicle to compare and contrast some key similarities and differences in human resource policies and practices across a range of international contexts.

International Marketing Strategy
introduces students to the opportunities and challenges that globalisation presents to marketing strategy and practices. Globalisation, in its many guises, is continuing to increase the interdependency and interconnections of national economies across the world. For managers such a trend presents real but demanding opportunities in the form of potential new markets and in market retention. The module helps students to develop the key skills, aptitudes and knowledge to operate effectively in an international environment.

The module also challenges students further by encouraging a critical appreciation of both the global marketing environment and the management process. Central to this is the debate in global marketing management about standardisation versus adaptation.

Logistics and Supply Chain Management
recognises that effective logistics and supply chain management are fundamental to sustainable business growth and core to business success. It therefore offers critical perspectives on the contemporary theory and practice of the subject exploiting the expertise, research and industry links available through Hull's Logistics Institute. Students gain practical knowledge through exercises using case studies and multimedia presentations that reinforce their ability to apply relevant theoretical principles in the context of wider business settings.

Consideration is given to: inventory management; freight movement; procurement and outsourcing; lean and agile supply chain principles; the 'beer' game; supply network design; and supply chain integration and relationships.

Management and Organisational Learning
provides a strong conceptual base from which to develop students' knowledge about the relationship between learning, managing and organising, and uses the expertise within the school's research centre in the subject to show the richness and diversity of academic work in the area. This research centre has a history of strong links to practitioners and the module attempts to set scholarly ideas firmly within managerial and organisational contexts.

Students will develop increased awareness and understanding of this subject as it informs organisation studies; gain insights into learning processes and understanding of different perspectives on management and organisational learning; and be able to reflect on their own experience in order to understand management learning, with an increased awareness of the rational, relational, emotional and political issues it raises and of the implications of non-traditional methods of management education.

Marketing Communications
teaches the importance for organisations of communicating with present and potential stakeholders. The role of communication in the marketing approach adopted by an organisation is critical to its effectiveness. This module allows students to gain an appreciation of how to conceptualise this process and translate it into practical action. Students

bulletexamine the nature, role and importance of marketing communications and promotion management
bulletundertake an examination of the behavioural foundations underpinning marketing communications and promotion management
bulletunderstand the need for interaction between theory and practice in developing any marketing approach which can be seen as integrated

Project Management
introduces the concepts, techniques and practice of project management and illustrates its application in a wide variety of contexts. Managers are required to direct projects which are intended to bring about change, whether in technical or in human aspects of their organisations. The module introduces the ideas of project management, and builds familiarity with the software available to facilitate the process of project management.

The module uses this software to introduce the main concepts of project management and to provide students with the skills of effective project management, which are essential for organisational success.

Public Sector Management
introduces students to the main debates in public sector management that have arguably culminated in a move from 'old' public administration to 'new' public management. While countries across the world have embarked on modernisation programmes in their public sectors, there are unmistakable international trends in public management and these form the bulk of the analysis in the module.

Those taking this module learn how to analyse processes of public sector management, reform and modernisation. They develop their understanding of the similarities and differences among recent experiences with public management reform and modernisation. They develop a clear appreciation of how applied research can be used to enlighten policy making related to the public sector, and become familiar with concepts and knowledge that are applicable to any subject within the arena of public management.

 

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Special Note - The Gulf-based MBA offered through MDCI Ltd is identical to the MBA offered on campus in Hull.  The distance-taught programme in the Gulf is adapted for local delivery by Hull university lecturers, taking into account local work practices, study times and religious observance.  For further information please click here or contact MDCI's offices in the Kingdom of Bahrain or The Sultanate of Oman.

Go to MDCI's main websiteSend enquiries to mdcimkt@batelco.com.bh
 
Last modified: July 09, 2008