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Course module: USEMSI
USEMSI
Strategy and Innovation
Course info
Course codeUSEMSI
EC5
Content
Strategic management is a field of study concerned with developing understanding of why some firms are more successful than others. To be successful, the firm’s strategy must permeate all departments and functional areas. As such, this course integrates knowledge and skills gained from your prior studies (e.g., marketing, management, finance, accounting...). To advance students’ comprehension of how a company could potentially outperform its rivals, the present course focuses on the key theoretical ideas and concepts particularly related to competitive advantages and managing innovation. The course provides a contemporary practical overview of how to gain and maintain sustainable competitive advantages over rivals in an international context.
 
The Strategy and Innovation Course is a mandatory course for Business Development and Entrepreneurship and International Management master students.  As an advanced course within the master program, it provides students with an in-depth discussion of the theories and concepts in the area of strategy and innovation. Students are expected to be familiar with the following topics in the field of strategic management before the course starts: mission and vision statements, external and internal analyses of the firm, corporate/competitive/operational strategies, strategic alignment.
 
Learning objectives
By the end of the course the student should be able to:
 
·          Analyse the innovation dynamics at the industry level as well as possible patterns of innovation
·          Critically understand and analyse advanced strategic decisions by indicating their a priori assumptions, benefits, and shortcomings;
·          Learn corporate dynamics and complexities particularly at the international level to create and sustain competitive advantages;
·          Diagnose the reasons for good or bad innovative performance and formulate approaches that boost innovation activities in a digital age;
 
Format
This course involves lectures and tutorials. The lectures consist of 2 X 45 minute sessions and the tutorials consist of 2 X 45 minute sessions. Both lectures and tutorials sessions are largely interactive, particularly tutorials. Plenary lectures are meant to guide students through the literature, with additional tutorials to get a better grip on the theory and practice of managing innovation and strategic management, i.e. using academic articles and case studies.
 
The lectures are organized along key levels of analysis: the firm, the industry and the macro environment. They will explicitly focus on business, corporate, as well as global level strategic management across these levels. Examples will be given from different types of firms (small, large) and industries (like computer hardware, biotech, automobile, and internet industries). Both quantitative and qualitative empirical studies will be discussed. Supplementary to this theoretical part of the course, students will work in tutorials. Tutorials include academic articles, cases, and exercises to help the participants understand how each topic contributes towards understanding of strategic management. In each tutorial, there will be a debate around a particular topic: a set of academic articles and a case study to link the theory with practice.
 
Assessment method
•        Active participation in presentations (10%, individual)
•        Assignment based on company presentation and report / simulation exercises (50%, group)
•        An end-of-term exam on the literature covered during lectures and tutorial classes (40%, individual)

In case online access is required for this course and you are not in the position to buy the access code, you are advised to contact the course coordinator for an alternative solution. Please note that access codes are not re-usable meaning that codes from second hand books do not work, as well as access codes from books with a different ISBN number. Separate or spare codes are usually not available.
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Kies de Nederlandse taal