BA 590 On Campus
Strategic Business Concepts & Applications
Overview
This course is the capstone course of the M.B.A. program. It focuses on competition and competitive advantage and integrates the various functional business disciplines. Strategic decisions are examined in light of the effects they have on organizational performance.
Course Description
Concepts and business strategies focusing on viewing the organization as an integrated whole. Use of integrated management exercises involving student teams working on a business simulation or actual business project aimed at challenges and opportunities facing a business.
Course Objectives
• Understand foundational principles of strategic management.
• Debate competing strategic management perspectives.
• Develop skills in competitive intelligence gathering, interpretation, and application.
• Consider emerging views in strategic management.
• Participate in strategic decision making.
Content Outline
Theme A: Foundational Principles in Strategic Management
Collis, D.J. & Rukstad, 2008. Can you say what your strategy is? Harvard Business Review, April: 82-90.
Hambrick, D.C. & Fredrickson, J.W. 2005. Are you sure you have a strategy? Academy of Management Executive, 19(4): 51-62.
Porter, M.E. 2008. The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, January: 78-93.
Collis, D.J. & Montgomery, C.A. 2008. Competing on resources. Harvard Business Review, July-August: 140-150.
Kaplan, R.S. & Norton, D.P. 2007. Using the balanced scorecard as a strategic management system. Harvard Business Review, July-August: 150-161.
Kaplan, R.S. & Norton, D.P. 2006. How to implement a new strategy without disrupting your organization. Harvard Business Review, March: 100-109.
Theme B: Competing Perspectives of Strategic Management
Mankins, M.C. & Steele, R. 2006. Stop making plans: Start making decisions. Harvard Business Review, January: 76-84.
Bower, J.L & Gilbert, C.G. 2007. How managers’ everyday decisions create or destroy your company’s strategy. Harvard Business Review, February: 72-79.
Decker, C. & Mellewigt, T. 2007. Thirty years after Michael E. Porter: What do we know about business exit? Academy of Management Perspectives, May: 41-55.
Theme C: Competitive Intelligence
Day, G.S. & Schoemaker, P.J.H. 2005. Scanning the periphery. Harvard Business Review, November: 135-148.
Christensen, C.M., Raynor, M., & Verlinden, M. 2001. Skate to where the money will be. Harvard Business Review, November: 72-81.
Ketchen Jr., D.J., Snow, C.C. & Street, V.L. 2004. Improving firm performance by matching strategic decision-making processes to competitive dynamics. Academy of Management Executive, 18(4): 29-43.
Theme D: Emerging Views in Strategic Management
Porter, M.E. & Kramer, M.R. 2006. The link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility. Harvard Business Review, December: 78-92.
Clayton, C.M.Christensen, Baumann, H., Ruggles, R. & and Sadtler, T.M. 2006. Disruptive innovation for social change. Harvard Business Review, December: 94-101.
Seelos. C. & Mair, J. 2007. Profitable business models and market creation in the context of deep poverty: A strategic view. Academy of Management Perspectives, 21(4): 49-63.
Porter, M. & Siggelkow, N. 2008. Contextuality within activity systems and sustainability of competitive advantage. Academy of Management Perspectives, May: 34-56.
Theme E: Strategic Decision Making
Although listed as a separate theme, we will integrate strategic decision making throughout the course using a strategic management simulation. The progression of the simulation begins near the start of the course and concludes at the end of the course.
Simulation
The strategic management simulation allows us to go beyond merely discussing course concepts; it allows us to apply strategic decision making and implementation. The simulation will help us gain competence in each of the course objectives listed above through comprehension of cause and effect in an artificially compressed time period for an electronic sensor manufacturing firm. Specifically, student teams will compete with other teams on 10 performance metrics:
• Profits
• Margins
• Productivity
• Forecasting
• Market share
• Working capital
• Wealth creation
• Financial structure
• Customer satisfaction
• Avoidance of emergency loans
The simulation is approximately $45 and is not available in the WKU bookstore but must be purchased online. Additional details will be provided in class.
Grading
Grading is a mix of a tiered grading system and a performance grading system. That is, students choose the grade they want at the beginning of the course and this guides them in which projects to complete (the tiered portion of the grade). However, the performance portion of the grade requires that students achieve certain levels of competence in lower grade activities (grades of C) to become eligible to raise their grade to a higher grade activities (grades of A or B).
Performance Bonus: If you are on the highest scoring simulation team (including all other student teams and at least one computer team), you add one letter grade to your final course grade. For example, if your team scores highest in cumulative analyst report points (explained in class) and you have completed all other necessary requirements for a B, you receive a final course grade of A without needing to complete the additional work in the A category. If you’ve completed course requirements for a C, being on the highest performing team will move you to a B without completing the additional work for a B.
Please note that this bonus requires that you outperform all other student teams as well as at least one computer team. The bonus is limited to one letter grade; for example, you could increase your grade from a C to a B (assuming all necessary C work is satisfactorily completed) or from a B to an A (assuming all necessary C and B work is satisfactorily completed) but not from a C to an A. To move from a C to an A, the top performing team members would need to complete the B assignments.
Grade of C
• Attend and fully participate in all class sessions. This requires substantial and meaningful participation in class discussions. Simple being present does not count for participation. Although I will “cold call” on students to provide brief summaries of articles, providing a summary is not sufficient to receive credit for participation. Participation requires ongoing participation throughout the discussion.
• Score more simulation analyst points than at least one competitor (NOTE: There will be three student teams and three computer teams).
• Team simulation presentation
Grade of B
• Satisfactorily complete all C requirements.
• Score more simulation analyst points than at least two competitors.
Grade of A
• Satisfactorily complete all B and C requirements.
• Complete a concept integration paper.
Concept Integration Paper
The concept integration paper is a 10 – 12 page single-spaced case comparing three industry competitors by explicitly integrated the concepts from each of the course themes listed above.
Simulation Safety Net (Strategic Analysis Paper)
There is a safety net for those who do not score as high in the simulation as they would like to. You may increase your course grade by one letter grade if you do not score higher than at least one competitor in the strategic management simulation by writing a 5-page, single-spaced, strategic analysis paper (please see the following outline). This can raise your grade from a B to a C. To increase your grade to an A, however, you must complete the concept integration paper described above.
The strategic analysis should analyze one corporation using the following outline:
A) Address all five major components of the Hambrick & Frederickson (2005) paper.
B) Analyze all the major industry forces in the Porter (2008) paper.
C) Complete a resources analysis for each of the three rivals based on the Collis and
Montgomery (2008) paper.
D) Conclude with specific recommendations for the corporation’s long-term strategy.
Absences
Much of the learning occurs in class during the discussions and simulation debriefs. There is no way to recreate these experiences; thus, there is no difference between excused and unexcused absences. Please use your own judgment to determine whether or not your specific circumstance warrants missing class.
Given the interactive nature of the class, an absence is simply an absence regardless of the reason. However, I realize that MBA students have many competing demands on their time. Thus, the first absence does not count against your course grade. After using this first absence, subsequent absences each require a 7-page, single-spaced case due the last day of class--no late work is accepted. Both hard copies and electronic copies are required no later than the beginning of the last class.
Please use the following outline to complete the case.
1. Brief introduction and key issues
2. External analysis
• Macroenvironmental analysis
• Porter’s 5 forces of industry competition
3. Internal Analysis including
• Core competencies
• Value chain synergies
• Strengths and weaknesses
• Sources of competitive advantage
• Determination of sustainability of competitive advantage
4. Financial statement analysis
• What do the firm’s financial statements say about its health? Trends? Comparison to competitors?
5. Business-level positioning strategy of each firm
• What is the overall positioning of the firm is in this particular market?
• How is the positioning strategy supported or not supported by each firm’s functional strategies
• How the positioning strategy influences (or responds to) the competitive and/or cooperative dynamics of the industry. Be sure to include any appropriate quantitative analysis of the advantage this position yields (or fails to yield) over the firm’s competitors.
6. Analysis of the corporate-level strategy of the firm
• Identify the businesses the company is in (or is considering entering), how the businesses are related or unrelated, and whether and how the portfolio of businesses creates additional value. Be specific and detailed. If it is unclear that value is created, try to assess why the firm might have chosen to enter those businesses.
• Identify and analyze the methods of entry the firm has used to enter its chosen businesses. Were the methods of entry used (or proposed) the best choice given the firm’s objectives, environment, strengths, weaknesses, and strategy? Be sure to include any appropriate financial analysis to support your assessment.
7. Recommendations
• Recommendations should respond to the key issues of the case and must be specific and actionable.
• Recommendations must not be obvious “so what” platitudes be consistent with the analysis.