Full Time Master of Science in Management program. Core concepts and disciplinary foundations of the courses. Marketing Management Specialization

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1 Full Time Master of Science in program Core concepts and disciplinary foundations of the courses Specialization Courses during the adaptation phase (Pre-Master) Deep Dive Business Strategy Managerial Economics Strategy Statistics & Quantitative Methods for Business I Financial Accounting This experiential learning courses focuses on questions such as how to prepare for and engage in a case based discussion in groups? How do I manifest myself in these discussions? What are my main development areas? And what ambitions and values bind us together as a group? The Deep Dive course is designed to introduce students to all the facets of the Nyenrode Experience and create a common foundation for their learning experience. The complex reality of companies is that current results reflect the things it inherits from the past, while the effectiveness of the current business strategy is only shown in the future. So you can have a company that is producing excellent results but has a poor strategy and, vice versa, a company with poor results that has an excellent strategy. Where would you invest your money? Developing a sound business strategy is crucial for the future performance of a company. For this, students will learn in this course a set of frameworks, concepts and tools that develop a student s ability to craft and evaluate the overarching strategy of a firm. A sound understanding of economic concepts is indispensable for decisionmaking in business. In this course, students will learn key analytical tools for working in competitive markets. What reactions of consumers can be expected based on price fluctuations? What is the influence of market structure on competition and options for differentiated business strategies? How can arrangements in the contracts with employees predict performance at work? For all these questions the main economic concepts will be introduced, illustrated with examples and applied to real life cases. should be much more than a way to influence the buying behavior of consumers. It should be perceived as a strategic approach of adding value to the business by adding value to people s lives. If a company has no purpose, it will not thrive for long. Therefore the process of creating a strategic marketing plan should put all marketing actions in a long term perspective. Main topics that will be addressed and applied to concrete cases are internal and external analysis, value segmentation of markets, brand equity, innovation strategies and different approaches of building and maintaining relationships with customers. Managers who are able to think analytically about management problems have an advantage in finding more effective solutions for the problems they have to deal with. In this course students will learn how to translate decision problems into conceptual models and investigate those models with the main methods from the field of statistics. Due to this focus, this course also stimulates conceptual thinking and a logical analysis of the complex reality of modern business practices. There is a lot to be learned about companies if one knows how to interpret corporate financial statements. In this course, students will learn the accounting process leading to financial statements and the four principle financial statements appearing in corporate annual reports. Main topics are recording 1

2 Operations Organizational Behavior Foundations of Finance Consultancy for Entrepreneurs Academic Writing Skills transactions, adjusting accounts, inventories and cost of sales, plant assets and intangibles and long term liabilities. Whether it is about profit or not-for-profit organizations, the creation and distribution of products and services is the key for the existence of any organization. Operations is all about management of business processes so as to create and distribute the right products of the right quality at the right time for the right customers. For this topics like operations design, process analysis, inventory management and continuous improvement will be discussed and applied to concrete cases. Understanding human behavior is one of the most challenging and crucial aspects of being a good manager. This course introduces students to insight and up-to-date knowledge about effective patterns of behavior, values and attitudes, individual motivation and interpersonal communication and influence. Building on the disciplines of social psychology and sociology, this course triggers students to recognize mindsets and build skills to understand the ways in which organizations and their members affect each other. Both large and small companies are faced regularly with decisions that have a huge impact on its functioning. Managing the financial resources linked to these decision are an often underestimated, but crucial part of managerial decision making. How to estimate the value of financial contracts? How do financial markets evaluate financial investments and the related risks? Where should companies get their financial resources needed for their strategic plans in order to optimize their return on investment? Based on experiential learning, this course will enhance the ability of students to identify critical questions when exploring a business issue. For this, each group of students will be linked to a company and investigate a concrete management problem. Students will be challenged to understand the root causes behind the management problem, think critically about the different influences and develop reasoned positions for their conclusions, but also specify recommendations on implementation. Although management is not (yet) perceived as a profession, there is a growing body of knowledge about the effectiveness of different management methods and approaches. In an academic study it is crucial that students learn right from the start how to analyze and critically evaluate these publications. The course on academic writing skills will teach students these skills as well as comparing and contrasting different articles in order to write an integrated, coherent synthesis in proper English. Courses during the main phase (all specializations) Economic Environment Implementation Every organization is heavily influenced by developments in its environment. Whether it is about changes in governmental policies, monetary policies, scarcity of resources, social movements and so on. The impact of these changes varies over countries and over sectors. This course is designed to teach students to think systematically about the challenges brought about by macro-economic developments and how it may affect strategy and profitability of international operating companies. Launching new products and services are an integral part of organizational renewal and innovation. In order to do this successfully it is crucial to understand the behavior of consumers and know how to influence this with a targeted marketing mix. In this course students learn how to develop a value 2

3 Managerial Accounting Statistics and Quantitative Methods in Business II Entrepreneurship Supply Chain Managerial Finance / Corporate Finance Business, including the study trip Business Ethics proposition for target customers and supply chain partners and apply this in a marketing plan. Timely and detailed information about the performance of organizational units provides an important foundation for managerial decision making. However companies can control and manage costs in many different ways. This course provides students with the oversight of the alternative costing me thods and how the resulting cost information can be used for planning and control and for better decision-making about the implementation of the business strategy. This course provides a continuation of part I of the Statistics and Quantitative Methods in Business. A special focus is on techniques for forecasting and simulation and the use of SPSS and Excel as tools for evidence based decision making. Entrepreneurship is about opportunity. It is the process of seizing or creating opportunities without regard to the resources you currently control. This course aims to help students develop and systematically apply an entrepreneurial way of thinking that will allow them to create and identify business opportunities that may be successfully commercialized. This will be applied both in the context of startup businesses as well as acting more entrepreneurial and innovative in the big business ambiance. Many new initiatives and innovations are started and executed also in existing companies! Supply chains are becoming increasingly global due to global sourcing, manufacturing/service facilities world-wide and/or supplying products to the global market. This requires cooperation, coordination and collaboration among the multiple companies within supply chains. His course provides students with the insight and methods to assess the influence of power differences in a supply chain, the impact of the internet and develop collaborative strategies for improving cooperation. Whereas the course on operations management has a focus on the internal operations of a company, this course focuses on the external operations in the entire supply chain. Financial issues permeate the firm and therefore require financial competences of managers across a wide range of functional areas. The emphasis in this course is on mastering valuation concepts, strategies for financial planning and investment decision tools by learning their application as well as limitations. At the end of this course a student should be able to develop a financial strategy that supports the corporate goals of value-creation and growth. Whereas the course on Economic Environment takes an external perspective, the course on Business takes a managerial perspective. How does the shift of balance of power and competitiveness between emerging and mature economic powers influence the daily practice of companies? What are the motives to go abroad? What is the best location choice? How to manage the related risks? By answering these questions, this course elucidates and applies the main theories on international growth strategies, decisions on entry models and global sourcing decisions. Furthermore these concepts are studied in reallife during the international study trip that is organized by the NCV. Therefore the study trip is an integral part of this course. Business ethics is the study of ethical dilemmas in business. Studying business helps managers make ethical decisions that are legitimate and hence support the license to operate of firms. This is especially important in a globalizing, transparent and rapidly changing world. How can we move beyond the enlightened behavior of a few companies towards a sustainable economy? How 3

4 Business Law & Institutions Fit for Communication Skills Foundation for Career Reaching the Top Program of Excellence (optional) Research for can we bridge the gap between our long term aspirations as citizens and our short term behavior as consumers and voters? And what does all this mean for leadership? In this course on business ethics this kind of questions are addressed, based on an understanding of the fundamental connections between business, the environment and society. and make compelling arguments. Legal arrangements fulfill a crucial role in the coordination of activities were many parties engage with possibly conflicting interests. In this course students will learn how corporate law can contribute to the resolution of the inherent conflicts of interest between the various stakeholders of the corporation. Therefore the main legal organizational forms will be discussed, including rules that must be observed in international transactions. Furthermore students will learn the main responsibilities, rights and obligations of the various corporate bodies in order to come to good corporate governance structures. Fit for refers to a good balance between physical and mental health. Or as it was stated in a famous Latin quotation Mens Sana in corpore sano ( A sound mind in a healthy body ). It is the objective of the Fit for course that all students engage in physical activities and to facilitate reflection on personal competences based on experiencing these activities. For the latter objective activities are selected that have to be performed in teams. Effective management and effective communication skills go hand in hand. All students will already have developed their own particular strengths in effective communication. Based on a learning by doing approach, this course aims to raise awareness of those areas and those where they need to increase their effectiveness. The main topics addressed are persuasive public speaking and negotiating. The main objective of this course is to build a foundation for lifelong career management of students. It aims to prepare students for the job market of tomorrow but also to help students to discover their long term career goal. It is designed to help students gain better insight into themselves, their competences and ambitions. Further objectives are to inform students of various career possibilities and to connect them to relevant companies. The course Reaching the Top is a series of lectures given by guest speakers. All guest speakers are selected because they achieved something special in their career, symbolizing the Top. For example entrepreneurs who started their own enterprise, managers who have climbed the corporate ladder or volunteers who achieved something remarkable in a non-profit organization. In each of the sessions the focus will not only be on the top but especially on what it takes to reach the top. The guest speakers personal stories, including their passions, obstacles and moments of glory will be the main topic for the presentations and discussions in this course. The Program of Excellence is targeted at the most talented and motivated students who would like to increase their knowledge and gain insight in practical application of theoretical concepts. Therefore this course will focus on interactive sessions with guest speakers with a strong emphasis on real-time projects and problems of existing companies. Preparing students to conduct and academic thesis projects starts already at the first day of the MSc study. It is first of all about a mindset to learn from the knowledge developed by academic research in order to have a solid foundation for making decisions (evidence based decision making). This course aims at 4

5 Business Administration Thesis study, including company project integrating the learning in the MSc study in order to provide students with the knowledge necessary to undertake and evaluate research projects to aid managerial decision-making. For this, students will learn how to translate a management problem into a research objective and related research questions, be able to justify the research methods chosen to answer the questions and to write a report showing the whole chain of evidence for the derived conclusions and recommendations. Towards the end of the MSc program, students should be able to demonstrate their ability to identify and solve complex managerial problems for companies during an end-of-study master s thesis project. All students have about three months to analyze a problem about the management of business, preferably in an international setting, apply academic knowledge to solve practical managerial problems and write their thesis based on their findings. This is not only a way to prove that they master an academic view on management but also a chance to show to future employers how they have learned to add value to a company by making a sound analysis and deriving relevant conclusions and recommendations. Specialization courses Channels and Retailing Brand Innovation and New Product Development Organizational Dynamics & Change & Consumer Behavior The retail industry is confronted with a continuously changing environment due to globalization, associated changes in consumer demand and intensifying competition. This cannot be addressed with ad-hoc reactions to changing consumer demands. It requires a thorough analysis and rethinking of the underlying business models that are apt to deal with the challenges in this changing environment. Since the 1980 s the importance of branding has been rising and today a brand may constitute large part of the value of a company. By buying a brand, consumers buy promised benefits created by the efforts of the company. Big brands are bought by more consumers, bought more frequently, often at a higher price. This course will address how manufacturer and traders can successfully use brand management, by applying behavioral perspectives on brands, by managing brands and by valuating the strength of brands. In order to stay competitive organizations have to innovate their products, services and organizational processes. However, research shows that the majority of the innovative ideas never make it to commercial success. This course familiarizes students with the theoretical and managerial aspects of innovation management and new product development. The practical or managerial aspects concern the development of a new service or new product, and to write an introduction plan for the new product or service. An organization is a group of individuals working together in order to achieve specific collective goals. In order to understand an organization thoroughly and to be able to make an organization effective, it is therefore critically important to understand the behavior of the people within it. The purpose of this course is to study how characteristics of individuals, groups, work situations and the organization itself affect the way members (inter)act within their organization and how this in turn - affects the organization's performance as a whole. This course builds upon the previous courses on marketing strategy and marketing implementation and strengthens the application of these concepts in an international setting. For this, students will expand the marketing management acumen for a business in a global environment and understand 5

6 Procurement & Sales in Value Chains Intelligence the concepts in the context of a variety of regions and countries. In today s (global) economic and financial crisis purchasing is even more important than ever before. Only focusing on getting the product or service for the lowest price is already becoming old fashioned. Purchasing is becoming a partner in business development by exploring the supplier knowledge and experiences. Suppliers are expected to act as partners, sometimes even providing solutions that will improve their clients competitiveness. The orchestration of all these aspects can make the practical application of purchasing management quite complex. In the value supply chain there are at all companies sales and purchasing roles. Sales can be seen as the mirror of purchasing. In this course students learn the main concepts to look at interorganizational cooperation through both a sales and a purchasing lens. Many companies spend a huge part of their budget on marketing, but how much evidence do they have on the effectiveness of the marketing investments? This course will provide students with insights in how performance of marketing strategies can be measured and controlled and what kind of intelligence a business needs to organize related to the information a business needs to know to measure the right items! By means of accounting frameworks and practical cases important marketing topics like pricing, promotion and distribution are linked with typical accounting concepts as product costing systems, planning and control, relevant costing, the relationship between costs & product pricing & profitability and the allocation of costs. 6