Subject name

Strategic Planning, General Management and Operations Management
Study
Master in Business Administration
ECTS
3
Four-month period
Second four-month period, second module
Type of subject Compulsory

Presentation

This course introduces students into the formal process of Strategic Management. It provides them with the basic techniques and concepts to allow formulation, evaluation and implementation of strategy in a firm. The course is divided into six units with a strong emphasis on the notions of “strategic position” and “strategic choices”. The first unit presents the basic concepts in Strategic Management. The next two units (2 and 3), feature different aspects of the analysis of the environment, internal analysis, basic values and orientation of the firm and interest group analysis. Unit 4 and 5 revolve around the concept of “strategic choices” at both business and corporate level. Finally, unit 6 explores questions related to the evaluation of a strategy and its implementation such as organizational structure, management processes and strategic change.

Competences

General Competences

  • GC1. To control and to integrate the techniques, instruments and methods of management needed in the development of the professional activity.
  • GC2. To delve into the business management and into the different administration areas.
  • GC3. To know and to value the effects of the different variables in the business administration and in the organized target attainment.
  • GC4. That the students can communicate their conclusions, present their projects, results, plans, the knowledge and the reasons that support them before a specialized or an ordinary public in a clear and in an ambiguity free manner.
  • GC5. That the students are able to integrate their knowledge in the different working areas of the business with information, usually incomplete or limited, in the business environment in order to manage the decision making and troubleshooting processes through complex and multidisciplinary situations.

Specífic Competences

  • SC1. Learning to distinguish within Strategical Planning, General Managing and Functional Managing areas.
  • SC2. Learning the system and working of some of the analysis tools in order to adopt the necessary strategies to obtain competitive advantages.
  • SC3. Understanding the relation between the business targets and the business strategy as well as to learn the follow up strategies and target deviation.
  • SC4. To know the existence, the application, limits and the use of the Information Systems in the decision-making management.
  • SC5. Learning to manage the managing indicator in the business decision-making depending on the same.
  • SC7. To know and to use innovation management techniques. To create temporal competitive advantages by innovation.
  • SC12. To understand the functional organization of the business. Areas interrelation. To identify and to understand the factors and dimensions that belongs to the functional part of the business, and the features of its administration system.
  • SC14. Learning the existence, the applications and the boundaries of the Information Systems and the impact of they have in decision-making, competitiveness and response promptness.
  • SC17. To be able to make a sectorial market research.
  • SC18. To be able to search and structure the information from different sources, to interpret the results obtained and to elaborate commercial reports and marketing plans.
  • SC22. To be able to relate the business management decision-making with the macroeconomic changes.
  • SC23. To know how to use negotiation and leadership techniques to manage teams to achieve specific business targets that had been devolved.
  • SC29. To provide reasonableness and ethical commitment as well as social responsibility in the business management. To know the concept of Social Corporative Responsibility.

Transversal Competences

  • TC1. Interpret, with the necessary means, relevant information, trustful and structured for the decision making and troubleshooting.
  • TC6. To communicate efficiently, in a structured and organised manner, the most relevant aspects of a project.
  • TC8. To ease the process of transition to the business professional career.
  • TC9. To provide the students with learning skills that will allow them to continue their studies in an autonomous manner.

Program

Unit 1. Introduction to Strategy
Introduction
What is Strategy?
Strategic Management
Master Class

Unit 2. Stakeholders, Corporate Government and Corporate Values
Introduction
Stakeholders
The corporate governance
Values, mission, vision and objectives
Corporate Social Responsibility
Business Ethics
Master Class

Unit 3. External and Internal Analysis
Introduction
The general environment
Industries and sectors
Competition and markets
Resources and capabilities of the firm
Capabilities to obtain and maintain competitive advantage
Diagnose of strategic resources and capabilities
DAFO
Master Class

Unit 4. Business level Strategy
Introduction
Strategy and competitive advantage
Cost and differentiation
The strategic clock
Sustainability of competitive advantage
Master Class

Unit 5.Corporate Level Strategy
Introduction
Growth directions
Reasons to diversify
Growth methods
Bibliographical References
Master Class

Unit 6. Implementation of Strategy: The Operations Management
Introduction
Evaluation of strategy
The implementation of strategy
Structures
Organisational processes
Management of strategic change
The operational (functional) strategies
Strategic control: The Balanced Score Card
Master Class

Methodology

Metodología

The different tasks and activities programmed during the semester have been developed with the goal of adapting the learning process to the different capabilities, necessities and interests of the students.

The activities included in the subject are:

  • Practical cases: will provide the student with actual business situations that will need to analyse and, after that, make decisions, evaluate the consequences and alternatives. They will allow acquiring intellectual skills to face sudden situations or to plan action programs adapted to a changing environment where there is no math logic.
  • Participation in events. During the course you will be participating in different events. Some of those events are attendance to online classes, forums, self-evaluation tests.

In the weekly program you can find the specific tasks you need to complete in this subject.

Descarga el pdf de la programación

These activities are combined with the following aspects:

  • Personal Study
  • Tutoring. The tutoring class can be implemented through different tools and means. During the course of the subject, the teacher-tutor plans the individual tutoring on specific days for the resolution of academic-oriented doubts through “Consultation sessions”. Supplementing these sessions, students have also available the “Ask your teacher” forum through which they can formulate questions and check the corresponding answers on general aspects of the subject.  Due to the very nature of the media used, there are no fixed schedules for the students.
  • Mandatory on-site final exam

The hours dedicated to each activity are detailed as follows:

Assignments
Hours
Assistance to virtual classes      
10
Basic material study    
14
Additional resources readings      
9
Task and practice cases      
19
Self-evaluation test     
13
Individual and group tutoring      
13 
Collaborative work, forums, debates, etc.      
12  
Master's Dissertation work development          
-    
Final evaluation          
-    
Total
       
90

 

You can personalize your study plan choosing the type of activity that best matches your profile. The tutor will advise you and help you elaborate your study plan. S/he will always be available to guide throughout the course..

Bibliography

Basic bibliography

The section Basic Bibliography is essential for the course. If any document (reading, article,…) is not available in the virtual classroom, you will have to find it by other means: UNIR bookshop, virtual library…

The necessary texts for the study of this subject have been elaborated by UNIR and are available in a digital format to consult, download or print inthe virtual classroom.

evaluación

Evaluation and Assessment

The evaluation system is based on the following numerical chart:

0 - 4.9

Suspenso (D)

(SS)

5.0 - 6.9

Aprobado (C)

(AP)

7.0 - 8.9

Notable (B)

(NT)

9.0 - 10

Sobresaliente (A)

(SB)

The grade is made up of two components:

calificación

On-site final exam (60%). At the end of the semester, you need to assist a mandatory on-site final exam. You need to pass the final exam so the grade obtained from the assignments (continuous assessment) is summed up to the final grade of the subject. 

Continuous assessment (40%): this type of assessment will be measured through the different assignments you need to complete during the course:

    • Active participation and involvement in forums, online classes.
    • Tasks. The completion of the different activities the students need to send through our virtual classroom such as research, critical thinking, practice cases.
    • Self-evaluation tests. At the end of each unit, students will find a short quiz which will help the students to check the knowledge acquired during the course.

Remember that you can check the points (value) of each assignment in the weekly program.

Assessment method

Min. Score

Max. Score

Participation in forums, classes, etc.

0%

15%

Task, practice cases and activities

0%

15%

Additional readings

0%

10%

On-site final exam

0%

60%

 

Bear in mind…
That if you decide to only take the final exam, you will need to have 5 points out of 6 to pass the subject. .

Professor

José Manuel Garaña

Education: José Manuel Garaña holds a PhD in Economy at URJC University (2016). He previously achieved a Master in Business Organization (2013) at URJC University, a MBA (1998) in Hass School of Business, and a MBA (1994) at Complutense University of Madrid. Before that, he graduated in Communication at Complutense University of Madrid.

Professional experience: José Manuel Garaña has experience in both the business and education fields. He has been working as a university professor at ESIC Business and Marketing School since 2012. Moreover, he has experience as Account Manager at McCann-Erickson (1993-1996) and as International Commercial Manager at Grupo Bergé (1998-2012). And last but not least, since 2012, he is the founder and CEO of Spain International Products.

Lines of research: José Manuel Garaña has published several articles on Internationalization and Dynamic Capabilities, Marketing and Internationalization, and Cultural Marketing.

Tips

Orientación para el estudio

Studying online means you can organize your study as you wish, as long as you meet the due dates of the different assignments (activities, tasks and tests). In order to help you, we propose the following steps:

  1. From our online platform you will have access to each of the subjects you are enrolled. Apart from this, t you can access to the virtual classroom of the master. In this section, you have available all the documents on how to use the different tools included in the virtual classroom, how a subject is organized and you will also have the possibility to organize your study plan with the tutor.
  2. Do not forget to check the weekly program. You will see which part of the content of the course you have to work on every week.
  3. After knowing your work for the week, go to Units in your virtual classroom. There, you will have access to the study material (theory and practice) from the unit you need to study throughout the week.
  4. Start by reading thethe Basic Knowledge of the unit, this section is the basic study material of the unit. Always read the first part of the same, Introduction, as we will show you here all the material you need to study. Visit, as well, the Resources section, you will find here the complementary readings, videos, experiences, etc.
  5. Devote some time when doing the Practical Cases and Test. In the subject Program we will detail which are the corresponding activities for each week and the max. grade you can achieve in each one.
  6. We strongly recommend to take part in the events of the course (On-site virtual classes, debate forums, etc.). To know the exact date for each one of these events you must visit the communication media on the Virtual Classroom. Your teacher and your tutor will inform of the subjects news.
In the Virtual Classroom of the master you will always find available the documentation where we explain how the units are structured and what you will be able to find in each one of its sections: Basic Knowledge, Practical Cases, Experiences, Readings, More Resources and Test.

Remember that in the virtual classroom of the master you can check how the different tools of the virtual classroom work: email, forum, online classes, sending the tasks, etc.

Please, take into account the following tips…

  • Whatever you study plan is, go often to the virtual classroom so that you are always up to date about the course and you are in contact with your teacher and your tutor.
  • Remember you are not alone: send an email to your tutor if you have any doubt. If you attend the online classes, you can also ask your teacher about the contents of the unit. Also, you can always write your doubts and questions about  the contents in the Forum of each subject (Ask the teacher).
  • Be active and participate!  Whenever it is possible, attend the online classes and take part in the forums. The exchange of information, opinions, ideas and resources enrich us and the course.
  • And, remember, you are studying online: your effort and perseverance are the key element to obtain good results. Don’t leave everything to the last minute!!!