Prior coursework in organization (e.g., on the bachelor level) and knowledge concerning business case analysis. For students who also take the course ‘Foundations of Organization’ in their studies, it is highly recommended to take ‘Foundations of Organizations’ before (rather than after) this course.

The course advances students’ knowledge and understanding in two interrelated domains: (1) “corporate strategy”, i.e., how multi-business organizations compete as a collection of multiple businesses; and (2) “organization design” that enables the implementation of such strategies. The course focuses on the question how firms can gain corporate advantage, i.e., advantage by competing as a collection of multiple businesses, and on the appropriate organization design to implement such strategy. The course enables students to apply advanced analytical frameworks to concrete organizational settings in order to analyze corporate strategy and organization design. The course also puts an emphasis on existing theories and how they can be used to inform an advanced analysis.

The analytical approaches and principles introduced in this course can be used in the context of a master thesis and in management or consulting. The course is complementary to the course “Business Strategy”, which concerns how firms gain and sustain competitive advantages in a market.

The course starts from the question how organization design can enable coordination and cooperation necessary for creating and appropriating value, and how firms can maintain coordination and cooperation when circumstances require organizational adaptation (such as growth or adoption of a new technology). The course then covers different ways in which multi-business organizations can compete as a collection of multiple businesses, including diversification, vertical integration, and different approaches to managing multi-business firms

The aim is that students, by participation in this course, can:

* Puranam, Phanish & Bart Vanneste (2016): Corporate Strategy – Tools for Analysis and Decision-Making. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge ISBN 978-1-107-54404-8

* Selected articles and case studies. Will be announced at the beginning of the course. About 700 pages in total.

 

Supplementary reading:

* Robert Grant, Contemporary Strategy Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 9th edition, 2016, combined text and case version ISBN: 978-1-119-12084-1 (also used in the Business Strategy course)

Spring.

3 hours weekly in 15 weeks.

The learning activities include lectures, case-studies, student presentations, and in-class discussion in English. Students must actively engage in class discussions and successfully complete their assignment in order to achieve the learning goals.

Most lectures are structured to facilitate a discussion-based atmosphere in class. This includes a student presentation of a case, the critique of this presentation by other students, which is guided and moderated by the lecturer. The lecturer also offers a case analysis and compares various approaches to analyzing corporate strategy and organization design; all of which are also discussed with students. Finally, a case’s particular insights are more broadly reflected using corresponding theories and frameworks.

The learning activities result in an estimated distribution of the work effort of an average student as follows:

Lectures: 45 hours.

Preparation (classes and case studies): 140 hours.

Preparation for case presentation/discussion: 20 hours

Preparation for exam: 60 hours.

Exam: 5 hours.

Total: 270 hours.

Ordinary examination in June.

Reexamination in August.

The form of the reexam is subject to change. This will be announced 14 days befiore the reexam takes place.

Registration for the course is automatically a registration for the ordinary examination in the course. Cancellation is not possible. If the student does not participate in the examination, the student will use an examination attempt.

Before taking the exam the student has to pass one assignment (course no. 8904612) that is given in the beginning of the semester.

If this requirement is not met, the student cannot participate in the exam and one attempt has been used. Fulfillment of the exam requirement is only possible prior to the ordinary exam. Participation in the re-exam thus requires that the exam requirement is met prior to the ordinary exam.

Deviations may be granted by the teacher provided there is a reasonable cause.

The compulsory assignment:

Duration: Approximately 20 hours. Submission date will appear on the examination plan.

Location: Home assignment.

Internet Access: Necessary.

Hand out: The course page in Blackboard.

Hand in: Via SDU-assignment in the course in Blackboard.

Exam Aids: All exam aids allowed.

The assignment is written in a group but is evaluated individually. The group members must prepare a statement that outlines each individual's contribution to the assignment. The assignment is evaluated internally on a pass/fail basis.  The purpose of the assignments is to test the student's analytical skills in the course subject.

Written exam (PC).

Duration: 5 hours written exam.

Location: The examination takes place at SDU. Students using own computers. Exam monitor must be active during the exam.

Internet Access: Allowed for accessing Blackboard to hand-in finished exam paper. The internet may not otherwise be accessed during the exam.

Hand out: In the examination room.

Hand in: Via SDU-assignment in the course page in Blackboard.

Extent: Maximum 7 pages, 1.5 line spacing, 12 pitch font, 1 inch margins, excluding references.

Exam Aids: Study materials such as books and students own notes are allowed. Students own files saved on the computer may also be used. It is not allowed to access online material such as online e-books, files saved in online services, online dictionaries etc. during the examination. It is not allowed to communicate during the examination.

Internally evaluated for guest and exchange students.