Business Management BSc (Hons)

On this module, you'll learn a range of skills required to function effectively as an independent self-learner. You'll develop both practical and academic skills that are essential for you to be successful in your chosen business undergraduate degree. The module will equip you with skills that can be used in modules throughout your chosen degree. The focus of the module includes: the use of information technology and associated software packages, presentation skills, problem-solving, both individually and in teams, critical analysis, critical writing and referencing.

Contemporary workplaces are increasingly complex: workers' roles are multifaceted and often difficult to define. As a result, supporting, developing and managing people at work is becoming more demanding. This module addresses this challenging context by considering work as consisting of the dynamics between people, work and society, and will encourage you to be critical by exploring theories and workplace practices through the lens of sociology and psychology. This module will explore the nature of work and society and will draw on theories associated with the nature of work, organisation and management. There will be a historical and critical review of schools of thought and key writers, which will introduce you to the tradition of social science theory and practice. You will be encouraged to think about issues associated with class, gender, race and identity and how these are linked to the notion of ‘work’. You’ll be able to explore what ‘work’ means; why do people work; and what are the different types of work that occur. The module will focus on issues of industrialisation, deindustrialisation, notions of career and identity and places and spaces of work. A major part of this module is the discussion of innovative and new ways of looking at work through the lens of sociology and psychology. You’ll explore sociological ways of seeing work and organisations and understanding the relationship between work, organisations and society more generally. As the module will focus on the wider context of work, and take into account the societal challenges associated with changing patterns of work, you’ll be prepared for the new realities of work. This includes working practices such as distributed, networked organizations; management consultancy, as well as more conventional organisational work practices.

This module introduces you to the fundamentals of economics and focuses on applying key economic insights to business and management. First, the module focuses on microeconomics - the decisions and behaviour of individuals and firms. The economic principles underlying the determination of price and output, firm costs, industrial structure and market failures are outlined. Next, the module focuses on macroeconomics - the economy at national and international levels - and its impacts on business behaviour. You’ll learn how the key macroeconomic variables (inflation, unemployment, and so on) influence business activity and government macroeconomic policy.

The contemporary global business environment is full of risks and opportunities. This module explores the importance of those risks and opportunities for the decisions that companies make. You will explore the legal, ecological, political, economic, and technological factors that shape business decisions. Attention will also be paid to the competitive environment and how this interacts with globalisation, and technological and social change to create complex strategic options. The importance of country attractiveness and contemporary trends in the global economy will also be considered. Assessment is by group discussion, individual research blog, and an essay.

This module aims to give you a sound grasp of the basics of financial reporting (context, purposes, and regulatory framework) through introducing the principal concepts of financial accounting. The preparation of principal financial statements will also be explored. This module is also designed to introduce you to key management accounting skills necessary to support decision-making.

Management in practice is about supporting people to work effectively in different organisational contexts. Regardless of your technical area, type of organisation or job position, you will need to manage your relationships with colleagues, managers, subordinates and customers. This module will equip you with knowledge and skills to help you understand how people and organisations function at individual, group and organisational levels based on the latest academic evidence.

This module will present you with a foundation in the core theories and models of marketing, from a bottom-up perspective. The module will instil in you an understanding of how marketing operates as a key functional area within business and how it critically interacts with other areas such as accountancy, human resource management and business management throughout all business sectors.

This core module introduces you to the various methods of undertaking business research - vital tools for anyone hoping to pursue a career in business. The module covers a range of qualitative and quantitative research methods. It’s a practical module informed by theory and real-life examples, which’ll help you to explore the philosophical debates underlying business and management research and consider how they relate to our understanding of knowledge and business practice. You’ll be encouraged to develop your ability to critically assess both the theory and practice of business and management research and to reflect on your own learning and development. This module will help you think about a final project and give you confidence in using research methods.

This module will develop your skills and knowledge surrounding entrepreneurship and business start-up. The core to this module involves developing an understanding of the key stages associated with a business start-up. You’ll explore the practical skills required to establish an entrepreneurial venture and the processes associated with: the management of the elements connected with business planning; for example, creativity, management and leadership, building key business relationships, financial planning, sustainability and understanding the importance of setting and achieving realistic goals.

This module provides an introduction to the economics of international trade. It seeks to equip students with the theoretical knowledge to explain the patterns of global trade and to explore policy issues relating to international trade. The module will introduce classical theories of trade - including the Ricardian theory of comparative advantage and the Heckscher-Ohlin model - as well as more modern approaches based on increasing returns and imperfect competition. Students will develop the ability to analyse the economic effects of trade policies such as tariffs, subsidies, import quotas and strategic trade policy. Both the efficiency effects of trade policy and the political economy of who wins and who loses are examined. Students will also develop an understanding of why countries join international trade agreements, of the costs and benefits of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements such as NAFTA and the European single market, and of the role of the World Trade Organisation in the management of international trade and the settling of trade disputes.

The people in an organisation are its greatest assets - managing this important resource is increasingly recognised as a complex and vital task which is central to the success of any business. This module introduces you to the context, theory and practice of human resource management (HRM) with particular focus on how HRM can contribute to improving organisational performance. In order to explore the impact of HRM on performance and enable you to critically engage with this question, the module is designed as a step-by-step process focusing on the following three elements: understanding HRM, understanding organisational performance by exploring theoretical perspectives on how organisations can improve and sustain performance and research and theory linking HRM with organisational outcomes and improved performance. The module is assessed by means of an essay and extended case study report.

Project management is a key skill for any future professional to acquire, at some stage in your career you will be involved in delivering or working on a project. This module focuses on providing a sound basis for managing or working on projects. In essence, the concept of managing a project hinging on one quite basic principle, managing the triangle of: quality of the project outcomes, cost and time. In practice, this is a complex juggling act. The module covers: the major process groups of the Project Management Body of Knowledge; the importance of stakeholder and risk management; scheduling and costing; monitoring and controlling techniques, including cost control, time management and resource optimisation; improving the success of projects; and the principles of agile project management. Assessment is by two pieces of coursework: a project schedule and discussion of stakeholders and risks, and a limited time case study problem.

On this module you will learn about the shift towards more environmentally, socially and economically responsible business practice and in particular focus on the drivers behind this shift. Furthermore, you will explore the concept of global responsibility and citizenship and growing business arguments for including a consideration of sustainability in all business practice. The module examines our increasing recognition that as individuals and businesses we have responsibilities as 'global citizens' in ensuring a more sustainable future. Assessment is an online referenced blog.

Strategic Management is a fascinating discipline that studies the long-term purpose and direction of organisations, by looking at how to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. The first part of the module focuses on core frameworks and analytical techniques that will enable you to assess the resources and capabilities of organisations in relation to the conditions of the industry and the macro environment, and stakeholder pressures. The module concludes with the evaluation of business-level and corporate-level strategies, providing a springboard to the Advanced Strategic Management module in the final year, focused on strategic implementation.

This module introduces you to how an organisational strategy takes shape and what strategists actually do. The module is organised around five themes. Firstly, it focuses on the evaluation of strategic options in terms of suitability, acceptability and feasibility. Secondly, 'intended strategy development' versus 'emergent strategy development' is examined as two broadly different approaches of strategy development. The third theme covers the role of organisational structures and systems in strategy development. The fourth theme is the leadership of strategic change. Lastly, the module discusses the practice of strategy. You'll learn about practical examples associated with Strategic Management together with key problem-solving skills.

The Law impacts upon every aspect of the domestic and international business environment. This module is an introduction to a broad range of legal issues including the nature and sources of Business and Employment Law in England, the Law of Contract, the Law of Tort, in particular, negligence and vicarious liability, the rights of employees and workers and discrimination in the workplace. Assessment is by means of a 3,000 word assignment. This will comprise an essay on a legal topic and a case-study report on a workplace scenario.

This innovative and exciting career-focused module will help you develop the employability skills and capabilities that are needed to compete successfully in the graduate labour market whilst seeking to provide you with knowledge, support and insight into the contemporary world of work and the business market. The module will also develop your skills and is therefore practical and engages you in case study exercise, real-life scenarios, audit and skills testing techniques and invites external guest speakers and employers to provide insight and input. The lectures and seminars will provide key inputs to help introduce you to fundamental employability concepts, insights and techniques, drawn from the world of business and management, but also from other disciplines such as sociology, social psychology and the humanities.

Economic and political aspects of the European Union are explored on this module. You will be introduced to important areas of EU policy affecting, for example, the extent and pace of EU enlargement, the competitiveness of the EU, and migration. This module also explores the reasons for economic integration, and the costs and benefits of the single currency. The EU is constantly evolving and this module will reflect this in its use of contemporary events and current controversies.

In an increasingly global business environment, those involved in international business and management must develop the insights and skills to interact with customers and stakeholders in a culturally sensitive way. The module introduces and examines the work of important researchers in the field such as Hofstede, Hall, Watson, Tayeb, Holden, Hampden-Turner and Trompenaars. It explores the application of these theories to decision making at an organisation level. Presenting cultural diversity as a central element in the phenomena of business change and organisational development through the use of case studies and interactive scenarios. It draws on the diversity of the student group as a resource and attempts to generate dynamic learning experiences.

Climate change and sustainability offer both challenges and opportunities for economies and business across the world. This module is a “step” into addressing the requirements of private and public sector organisations looking for graduates with knowledge, skills and attributes related to environmental and sustainability issues. It develops a hands-on approach to sustainability by focusing on the development of an environmental management system (EMS) for the students’ households. It is expected that this module can contribute to the students’ wellbeing, while reducing their carbon footprint and creating sustainable transformations and pro-environmental behaviour. This module aims at developing creativity, responsibility and future-thinking amongst the participants: its ultimate goal is to enhance the students’ participation in a highly competitive job market and the opportunities for green and responsible entrepreneurship. The main pillars of this module are as follows. A. Action Learning & Reflective Practice: This module encourages students to start working on their assessment from day 1, offering a wide variety of tools to record their progress in the implementation and monitoring of their environmental management system. B. Creativity and Use of Technology: This module relies on the students’ creative skills in the use of social media and use of digital learning platforms such as Canvas. C. Employability: At the end of this module students will be able to identify and provide evidence of a wide range of skills and attributes for future jobs and enterprises. Overall aims at encouraging the ability for self-reflection and a commitment to life-long learning becoming and acting as responsible citizens. This module is approved by Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA), which means that upon completing it, you are entitled to a free student membership (of £25 value). The perks include access to extra resources, such as webinars, publications, networks and more. It can not only enhance your academic performance, but also differentiate you from other graduates and help you launch your career in environmental sustainability.

Undertaking a Major Project allows you to engage in a substantial piece of individual research, and/or product development work, on a selected topic within the broad business and management field, relating to your particular interests and background, although closely linked to our wide range of staff interests and research. You will have many group sessions to support your project, plus the supervision by an academic member of staff. The project also encourages students to share ideas and approaches. The chosen topic will be in your course subject area and require you to identify/formulate problems and issues based on a range of topics provided by conducting a literature review and evaluating information. You will investigate and adopt a suitable desk based methodology and determine solutions, perhaps developing hardware, software and/or media artefacts as appropriate. You will critically appraise and present your findings, reflecting upon the limitations of your research and the research process.