|
 Academic Year: |
2014/5 |
| Owning Department/School: |
School of Management |
| Credits: |
24 |
| Level: |
Masters UG & PG (FHEQ level 7) |
| Period: |
Dissertation period |
| Assessment Summary: |
CW 100% |
| Assessment Detail: |
|
| Supplementary Assessment: |
Like-for-like reassessment (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites: |
Before taking this unit you must take MN50166 and in taking this unit you cannot take MN50512 |
| Description: |
Aims: The unit is intended to allow students to conduct research based projects applying the skills, concepts, and techniques acquired in the taught programme to practice based business issues related to sustainability. These include one, a case study of a current management problem faced by a business, and two, a self-managed project. First, the students will be presented with a current business problem for which they will conduct appropriate research, and analyse from a sustainability perspective. This will include analysing multiple forms of data and utilising their knowledge of sustainability concepts to present a viable solution to this management problem. Second, the students will be required to run a real project of their own, with set targets of time and budget. Thus the unit not only encourages students to conduct research and think about real business problems related to sustainability but also encourages reflection on common managerial issues such as group dynamics and project management. The unit aims to allow students to develop further their abilities to: * Apply sustainability concepts to a current management problem * Analyse data * Make informed methodological choices * Present findings of their investigation and analyses. Learning Outcomes: At the end of the unit, students will be able to: * Plan and conduct a research project on practice based business issues * Understand and critically assess the particular challenges confronting sustainability within business * Evaluate the need for and sources of relevant data * Support their arguments with relevant empirical evidence * Interpret the significance of findings from relevant sources of quantitative and/ or qualitative evidence to inform decision making. * Develop viable alternatives and how they would contribute to management thinking and practice * Taking a balanced approach that recognises practical issues but also future trends that organisations need to take into account * Create a plan of action. * Carry out this plan, while responding to new information and other issues that may mean a deviation from the intended outcomes. * Reflect on the outcomes of an activity and the processes that led to those outcomes * Present reflections in written and oral form. Skills: * Ability to select, analyse and present numerical or non-numerical data (F; A). * Ability to synthesise multidisciplinary perspectives on the same problem (F; A). * Reflective practice (F; A) * Action research (F; A) * Project Management (F; A) * Management of teams/groups (F; A) * Decision making skills (F; A) * Presentation skills (F; A) * Writing skills (F; A) Content: Case analysis Students will be briefed on: * Business case - a presentation of a business problem related to sustainability * Case analysis - expectations on academic and practical content in relevant reports and presentations * Writing - help on how to organise and write case reports * Presentations - help on how to organise and create effective presentations, including oral and poster forms * Group work - help on how to select and manage groups Self-managed project Based on the project selection for each group, the content may take different forms, however it is expected that the following steps would be common to all projects: Group formation (self-selected); Identification of suitable project related to sustainability; project briefing (including academic expectations); Conduct of self-managed project - students will be provided with the necessary resources to manage the project well. Part of the requirement will be for students to have a record-keeping mechanism to keep track of progress and to ensure project learning for later reporting. Presenting findings back to peer group and lecturer - students will be given guidance regarding the criteria for a good project presentation. Writing up findings and reporting. |
| Programme availability: |
MN50596 is Optional on the following programmes:School of Management
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