Strategy - Classic and Contemporary Views, 15 credits

Main field of study

Course level

Advancement level

Course offered for

• International Business and Economics Programme
• Business and Economics Programme
• Master Programme in IT and Management

Entry requirements

The requirements for entering the course are approved completion of previous courses within the programme.

Prerequisites

Intended learning outcomes

The aim of the course is to enhance students' capabilities to act and work in contemporary and future organizations. A course ambition is to educate discerning consumers of strategic thought, i.e. students able to reflect upon fads and fashions and achievements of management research and writings.

After completion of the course the students will be expected to

• reproduce central strategic concepts and ideas as well as the development of the field of strategic management
• illustrate and explain differences and similarities between major ways of strategic thinking
• be able to compare and relate thoughts and elements from different schools of strategic thinking
• make use of models and concepts
• differentiate between and select appropriate theories and models for different situations

In addition to this the students will have gained experience of working in culturally/ethnically/nationally diverse teams.

Course content

The course contains both classic and contemporary thoughts on strategy. The classic views represent the canon of the field of strategy, i.e. models and concepts that students of strategy are expected to know. In the course, this inevitable heritage of theories and models is complemented with more contemporary ideas on strategy which also serve as a vehicle for challenging some of the classic ideas. The course thus deals with aspects of competitive advantage spanning from companies' internal resources, through the marketplace, to the attention of the final consumer an his/her role in the value creating process.

In the course, the following aspects will be dealt with:

• competition and competitive advantage
• industry analysis
• value creation
• innovation
• resource-based strategy analysis
• dynamic capabilities
• aesthetic and symbolic dimensions of strategy

Teaching and working methods

The course consists of a combination of assignments, projects, readings, seminars and lectures. Student activity is a presupposition. Language of instruction: English.

Examination

The course will be examined through a combination of individual and group assignments. Detailed information regarding form and content of the examination is to be found in the course description.

Students failing an exam covering either the entire course or part of the course twice are entitled to have a new examiner appointed for the reexamination.

Students who have passed an examination may not retake it in order to improve their grades.

Grades

Other information

Planning and implementation of a course must take its starting point in the wording of the syllabus. The course evaluation included in each course must therefore take up the question how well the course agrees with the syllabus. 

The course is carried out in such a way that both men´s and women´s experience and knowledge is made visible and developed.

Department