Beslut och riktlinjer

Kursen ges inom ekonomprogrammet samt som fristående kurs. Kursplanen är fastställd av styrelsen vid Företagsekonomiska institutionen på delegation av samhällsvetenskapliga fakultetsnämnden. Kursplanen träder i kraft 2011-08-29

Mål

The course covers two parts: 1) Marketing, Organisation and International Business and 2) Bachelor Thesis.

Marketing, Organisation and International Business:
The key objective of this part is to present a comprehensive overview of challenges facing a firm/organisation in a global context, in terms of marketing and organising as well as international strategy and expansion. We present and analyse theories and academic research in these fields, including ongoing research at the Department of Business Studies in Uppsala.
Upon completing the part, the student will be able to:
• understand, communicate and discuss concepts and perspectives related to marketing, organisation and international business theory
• use the interdisciplinary insights from marketing, organisation and international business theory, and critically reflect on these, to analyse firms/organisations in a global context
• identify and formulate the importance of different stakeholders for the global firm/organisation
• understand the implications of different national and transnational systems and cultures on, and relate these to, the behaviours, structures and strategies of firms/organisations in a global market
• use acquired skills when conceiving and implementing marketing research and marketing strategies and tactics
• discuss ethical dilemmas of firms/organisations acting on a global market
• identify and define a problem and collect and analyse relevant data in order to solve the problem.

Bachelor Thesis:
The aim of the thesis is to develop the ability to make and report scientific investigations by integrated and advanced independent work built upon the knowledge and skills aquired from the part Marketing, Organisation and International Business. The ability to make scientific investigations includes the ability to discover possibilities, identify problems, collect relevant information, formulate problems, and solve them with the aid of scientific methods. To do this, many skills are required, such as methodological knowledge, the ability to think in terms of models – making conscious and explicit simplifications – and the ability to recognise and treat problems from different perspectives. The ability to report scientific work means being able to write lucid and interesting reports, as well as making oral presentations. Both the work itself and how it is presented should be adapted to the problem and the user.
After completion of the part the student should be able to:
• understand different science-theoretical and methodological starting-points
• independently and critically examine different theoretical and empirical phenomena
• discover and handle problems and alternatives with a starting-point from different perspectives and methodological frames of reference
• practically carry through investigatory and examination work based on science
• orally and visually as well as in writing present arguments in an objective, interesting, and convincing manner.

Innehåll

Marketing, Organisation and International Business:
Most firms and organisations today are affected by globalisation, the process leading toward increasingly interdependent markets, networks and flows of information and people worldwide. A good understanding of how the complexities of this context affect today’s firms and organisations is vital for those working in and studying them.

In the first section of the part, students will analyse the concepts of “market” and “product” and will develop a market plan for a product in a specific firm/organisation. They will then analyse aspects related to the internationalisation of the product/firm. The impact of different cultures will be discussed, followed by a section about organising in a global context, where knowledge development and transfer and human resource management are among important issues. In the last section of the part, organisational responses to pressures in the global environment will be analysed. The impact of contemporary global ideas such as corporate social responsibility and transparency will be discussed and students will perform a stakeholder analysis of a given organisation.

Bachelor Thesis:
Within the framework of an independent project, the participant will choose different ways to identify, delimit, and study problems, as well as ways to transmit findings to the reader. This includes problem definition, discussions of methods and models, data collection, oral and written reports, and revisions both of early drafts and of the final version of the report. The independent project is normally carried out in groups of two students. The final work should be a completed whole.

Undervisning

Marketing, Organisation and International Business:
The language of instruction is English. The part takes a problem-based learning approach and it builds on central concepts and issues identified by the students, within the framework of the assignments given. Based on their input, a combination of lectures/guest lectures, seminars/web seminars with student-based activities as well as problem-based assignments and written reports will be used to further develop the students’ insights. Students will work in study groups, and active participation is required in all course elements. The work is partilly integrated with the thesis part.

Bachelor thesis:
The language of instruction is Swedish. The largest share of the part consists of independent work in teams. Teaching includes seminars (obligatory), lectures and tutorials.

Examination

The course consists of obligatory parts. The final grade of the course is determined after taking into consideration the different parts of the examination. Grading criteria are presented in the study guide provided at the start of the course. Grades will be given in accordance with the Swedish grading system. The following grades will be used: VG (pass with distinction), G (pass), and U (fail). Assignments and exams handed in late will not be graded except in special circumstances. Required supplemental work, if any, must be completed and handed in in accordance with the study guide; otherwise the entire part (all assignments included) must be redone the following semester, provided there is space in the course.

Evalutation of the 15 credit Marketing, Organisation and International Business part includes written and oral assignments as well as a written exam. Examination includes both individual and team-work elements.

Evaluation of the 15 credit Bachelor Thesis is primarily based on the final version of the report, but also made on other seminar activities, such as presentation and defence of reports, criticism of and comments on the work of other participants, and contributions to discussions. The obligatory thesis requirements also contain a methodological part consisting of lectures, seminars and exercises. Approved participation in this methodological course corresponds to 1,5 credits of the total 15 credits. The final grade of the thesis will not be registered unless all obligatory parts of the thesis part are completed. The grade Pass with Distinction is awarded only to theses that are evaluated at a final seminar and the revised version is handed in during the actual course period. The right to be supervised ends at the final seminar.

The final grade of the entire course is determined after taking into consideration the different parts of the examination.

Uppsala University does not accept cheating and plagiarism. Suspected incidents of cheating or plagiarism are reported to the Disciplinary Committee of the University, which may issue a formal warning to the student or expel the student from the university for a limited period of time.

NOTE: Only completed courses can be recognised in your degree.