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Business Strategy (BUSA90026)
Graduate courseworkPoints: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
January
April
June
July
Overview
Availability(Quotas apply) | January April June July |
---|---|
Fees | Look up fees |
Formulating, or contributing to the formulation of, the business strategy of the firm is one of the key roles of a General Manager or Chief Executive. It involves not only integrating and coordinating the activities of different functional areas, such as marketing, operations management, accounting, human resource management and finance, but also a conscious building and sustaining of the firm’s competitive advantage (s), and making critical choices as to which products, markets and segments the firm should compete in. As a result, the manager needs to have a clear understanding of the factors and forces which shape the success (or failure) of the firm and the industry. This subject provides an introduction to the frameworks and tools commonly used in developing and assessing business strategies. It is also intended to develop the student’s decision-making skills from the perspective of top management.
Intended learning outcomes
Desired outcomes right after taking Business Strategy:
- The student should be able to competently analyse a firm's competitive strategy: articulating the firm's competitive environment, how the firm is positioned relative to competitors/collaborators in the market and along the value chain, how the firm creates and sustains competitive advantage (or fails to do so), how the firm develops and/or acquires new resources and capabilities in order to remain competitive.
- Example outcome: If given a case study (e.g., from HBS) or an article about a company (e.g., from HBR or The Economist), the student should be able to use concepts and frameworks from Business Strategy to conduct a critical analysis of the firm's strategy, covering the scope stated above.
- Based on the analysis, the student should be able to offer recommendations for how the firm could be strategically positioned/repositioned if necessary, as well as to propose ways in which it might need to change internal resources/capabilities and external linkages in order to fit with the proposed strategy.
Desired outcomes after completing the MBA:
- In addition to the above, the student should be able to link strategy to other areas of management, including marketing, operations, finance, managing people, and innovation.
- This could be reflected in the student having a whole-firm view of strategy, both at the business unit level (business strategy) as well as at the corporate level (corporate strategy).
- One application of this outcome is that the student should be able to demonstrate familiarity when using the relevant concepts/frameworks from Business Strategy to the analysis of cases such as those used for recruitment by consulting firms and other potential employers.
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
Code | Name | Teaching period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
BUSA90001 | Financial Accounting |
January (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
September (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
BUSA90480 | Leadership |
Summer Term (On Campus - Parkville)
September (On Campus - Parkville)
February (On Campus - Parkville)
June (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
|
6.25 |
BUSA90481 | Social Responsibility and Ethics |
Summer Term (On Campus - Parkville)
February (On Campus - Parkville)
Winter Term (On Campus - Parkville)
March (On Campus - Parkville)
September (On Campus - Parkville)
|
6.25 |
BUSA90224 | Managing People |
January (On Campus - Parkville)
September (On Campus - Parkville)
June (On Campus - Parkville)
July (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
BUSA90193 | Managerial Economics |
September (On Campus - Parkville)
July (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
January (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
BUSA90060 | Data Analysis |
September (On Campus - Parkville)
January (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
July (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
Corequisites
Code | Name | Teaching period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
BUSA90093 | Financial Management |
January (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
April (On Campus - Parkville)
June (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
BUSA90243 | Marketing |
April (On Campus - Parkville)
September (On Campus - Parkville)
June (On Campus - Parkville)
January (On Campus - Parkville)
|
12.5 |
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Assessment
Additional details
Geoff Martin:
- Case preparation and discussion (20%)
- Equivalent to 500 words
- Throughout subject
- Syndicate assignments and presentations (up to 3) (20%)
- Equivalent to 2,500 word assessment
- Throughout subject
- Final examination (60%)
- Hurdle requirement
- 2 hours
- End of subject
Kwanghui Lim:
- Case preparation and discussion (10%)
- Equivalent to 500 words
- Throughout subject
- Review questions (10%)
- Syndicate assignments and presentations (up to 3) (30%)
- Equivalent to 2,500 word assessment
- Throughout subject
- Final examination (50%)
- Hurdle requirement
- 2 hours
- End of subject
Brandon Lee:
- Case preparation and discussion (15%)
- Equivalent to 500 words
- Throughout subject
- Syndicate assignments and presentations (up to 3) (35%)
- Equivalent to 2,500 word assessment
- Throughout subject
- Final examination (50%)
- Hurdle requirement
- 2 hours
- End of subject
EMBA:
- Class participation and discussion (15%)
- Throughout subject
- Quiz (15%)
- 1 hour
- Midway through the subject
- Syndicate Project (30%)
- Report (equivalent of 750 word assessment)
- Presentation (equivalent of 750 word assessment)
- Midway through the subject
- Final Exam (40%)
- Hurdle requirement
- 90 minutes
- End of subject
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Quotas apply to this subject
Dates & times
- January
Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 30 hours Pre teaching start date 8 January 2018 Pre teaching requirements students are required to complete approximately 15 hours of readings to prepare for the subject during pre-teaching period Teaching period 15 January 2018 to 22 March 2018 Last self-enrol date 19 November 2017 Census date 29 January 2018 Last date to withdraw without fail 2 March 2018 Assessment period ends 30 March 2018 January contact information
- April
Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 30 hours Pre teaching start date 2 April 2018 Pre teaching requirements students are required to complete approximately 15 hours of readings to prepare for the subject during pre-teaching period Teaching period 9 April 2018 to 14 June 2018 Last self-enrol date 4 February 2018 Census date 20 April 2018 Last date to withdraw without fail 25 May 2018 Assessment period ends 22 June 2018 April contact information
- June
Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 30 hours Pre teaching start date 22 June 2018 Pre teaching requirements students are required to complete approximately 15 hours of readings to prepare for the subject during pre-teaching period Teaching period 27 June 2018 to 2 September 2018 Last self-enrol date 29 April 2018 Census date 13 July 2018 Last date to withdraw without fail 10 August 2018 Assessment period ends 4 September 2018 June contact information
- July
Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 30 hours Pre teaching start date 25 June 2018 Pre teaching requirements students are required to complete approximately 15 hours of readings to prepare for the subject during pre-teaching period Teaching period 2 July 2018 to 6 September 2018 Last self-enrol date 29 April 2018 Census date 13 July 2018 Last date to withdraw without fail 17 August 2018 Assessment period ends 14 September 2018 July contact information
Additional delivery details
This subject is only available to students admitted to GD-BA, MC-BAPT, MC-BAPTME, or students with permission of the MBA Course coordinator
This subject is a quota subject and places are limited. Students may provisionally enrol via the Student Portal, but places are not guaranteed until selection is completed. You will be notified in writing by the Student Centre if you are selected.
The students will be selected on the first come, first served basis. If any student is approaching the course completion date, s/he will get priority in enrolment.
This subject is equivalent to BUSA90027 in MC-BAPTME
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
There are no specifically prescribed or recommended texts for this subject.
- Subject notes
This subject is only available to students admitted to GD-BA, MC-BAPT, MC-BAPTME, or students with permission of the MBA Course coordinator
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Last updated: 3 November 2022