Describe how the different perspectives of social science disciplines inform strategic management
Select a small firm ‘START UP’ of your choice in the business to business or business to consumer sectors’ and present it as a case study. The case should be around 500 words and should cover the vision and mission set for the new venture. In addition produce an outline business plan for the next five years. Cover the nature of the business start-up, the objectives for the next five years, capital requirements (investment and working capital) and likely sources of such capital. Fully justify the vision and mission you set for the business in the case and explain how you will evaluate, monitor and control events in order to achieve the objectives set. Produce a time plan for the first five years in the form of a Gantt chart or a Critical Path Analysis chart. The small firm concerned can be an existing firm. It can be located in any country e.g. your ‘home country’ or in the UK. If you do not have an actual existing firm to analyse and discuss you can put forward your own idea for the creation of a business start up and use this for assignment 1.
Total 2,000 words – 100% of the available marks for assignment 1 – present in report format)
Learning Outcomes to be achieved: L1, L2, L3, L5 and L7 (see Learning Outcomes listed below).
Module Learning Outcomes to be Assessed:-
Learning Outcomes for the module are coded L1 to L7 below.
Upon successful completion of the module the students will be able to:
L1. Identify and determine the driving forces in a new venture.
L2. Analyse how successful entrepreneurs and investors create, find, and differentiate profitable and durable opportunities; in particular, how they tell these opportunities apart from just “other good ideas”.
L3. Evaluate and determine how successful entrepreneurs and investors create and build value for themselves and others.
L4. Identify and determine the necessary financial and non-financial resources available for new ventures; the criteria used to screen and evaluate proposals, their attractiveness and risk, and know how to obtain start-up and early growth capital.
L5. Determine the critical tasks to be accomplished, the hurdles to be overcome during start-up and early growth, and what has to happen to ensure success.
L6. Apply the opportunity screening criteria to actual start-up ideas, and subsequently develop a business plan suitable for presentation to investors and industry participants.
L7. Develop and analyse integrated financial projections for a start-up venture.
QUESTION ONE
Use a specific small firm venture and develop this venture as a CASE STUDY. Cover the history, nature of the business, target markets, the objectives, vision and mission set for the venture.
Use appropriate analytical frameworks in the work in the outline business plan. Demonstrate and employ your knowledge of entrepreneurship and your entrepreneurial skills developed on the course. Demonstrate a good grasp of entrepreneurial theory and practice.
Fully justify the vision and mission you set for the business and explain how you will evaluate, monitor and control events in order to achieve the objectives set.
Provide conceptual models and academic frameworks should be used to support the points made in the outline business plan where appropriate.
Consider the capital requirements (investment and working capital) and likely sources and the vision and mission set for the new venture.
Produce a time plan for the first five years in the form of a Gantt chart or a Critical Path Analysis chart.
ASSIGNMENT 2
Learning Outcomes to be achieved: L1, L2, L3, L4 and L6 (see Learning Outcomes listed above).
Subject:
Evaluate how a small start-up company entrepreneur might make effective use of personal contact networking in the first five years of the firm’s growth path. Pay particular attention to the use of digital and mobile technologies in the formation and management of such networks.
Task:
Demonstrate how a ‘start-up’ company might use personal contact networking to help achieve sales growth and the acquisition of necessary resources, including knowledge resources, during the first five years of its growth plan. Pay particular attention to the use of digital and mobile technologies in helping you to achieve your personal contact networking aims. Use examples in your work as a vehicle for discussion.
Total 2,000 words – 100% of the available marks for assignment 2 -present in report format)
• Demonstrating and employing your knowledge of entrepreneurship and your entrepreneurial skills developed on the course within the assignment. Demonstrate a good grasp of entrepreneurial theory and practice in the construction and content of the business report on achieving an effective personal contact network as an aid for a new venture.
• Appreciate that one of the key competences of successful entrepreneurs, especially in the ‘start-up’ stage of their business is the ability to create and maintain personal contact networks.
• Appreciate that a further skill identified by many writers on entrepreneurship is the ability for entrepreneurs in a business ‘start-up’ situation to be able to acquire resources, not just financial which is obviously important and imperative but also in other areas such as equipment, transport and crucially advice (Shaw, 1995, 2001, 2013). They are able to do this in a way that many would consider to produce the use of resources in excess of what they deserve or what would normally be thought possible. The ability to command the use of such resources are thought by many to be the direct result of the entrepreneurs skill in developing, using and maintaining effective personal contact networks (Chaston,2013).
• Be aware that many writers’ especially Hill and Pell (2003) see the establishment of such personal contact networks as a form of ‘master mind’ which allows the entrepreneur to secure synergistic, cumulative wisdom and intelligence on a whole range of topics salient to the successful operation, survival and commercial prosperity of the new ‘start-up’ enterprise.
• Pay particular attention to the use of digital and mobile technologies in the formation and management of such networks.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the fact that many studies point to the relationship between the successful construction and maintenance of the personal contact network and the survival and growth of the small ‘start-up’ firm, especially in the first five year term alluded to by Scott and Bruce (1987) in their small firm growth model which is the subject of assignment one.
• Understand that the development and management of personal contact networks and their ‘master mind’ potential and power is seen by many writers as a key competence to survival and small firm growth (Dennis, 2011; Hill and Pell, 2003).
• Conceptual models and academic frameworks should be used to support the points made in the report where appropriate. Write in report format and produce a report of professional quality in terms of content, structure and standard of presentation.
• Students’ are expected to make use of specific examples in their work.
ASSIGNMENT STRUCTURE
Please ensure that your assignment has:
• A table of contents
• A list of figures and/ or list of tables where appropriate
• Introduction/ Executive summary
• Literature Review- and Critical Analysis
• Conclusions
• References / Presentation
• Bibliography
• Appendices if appropriate
Part -2:
1. Description of Assessment Requirements: Individual Written Assignment
Strategic Management
Schools of strategy can be divided into two categories: prescriptive and descriptive. Critically analyse these schools and make an attempt to develop a hybrid model that you would recommend to a company with global aspirations.
Learning outcomes:
After completing the module, the student should be able to:
• Explain the aims, concept and role of strategic management
• Evaluate the debates surrounding contemporary strategic issues
• Identify and discuss different levels of strategy
• Describe how the different perspectives of social science disciplines inform strategic management
• Appreciate the implications of various perspectives for theory and management practitioners
General Guidelines:
• Consider Mintzberg’s schools of strategy and Whittington’s classification of strategic perspectives in your analysis
• Do not describe the schools but engage in a critical debate
• Critically consider the extent to which their classification of strategic perspectives needs to be modified in the light of contemporary research
• Refer to peer -reviewed academic journal articles to reinforce your analysis
• Use relevant business examples in your analysis
Group Assignment
As a team of strategy consultants, you are required to conduct research on a company of your choice that has experienced performance success in recent years as measured by quantitative and qualitative data, relative to other firms in the industry. Drawing on relevant models, concepts and theories covered in this module and those gathered from your extensive group and individual research attempt the tasks below:
Task 1
Conduct an environmental and competitive analysis of the firm and explain whether its success is strategically sustainable.
Task 2
Identify and discuss the possible strategic options that your chosen company could follow in order to break away from its current industry and open up new market opportunities in spite of its current success. Justify your argument.
