Oregon State University

Oregon State University Home Page

BA 569 - Advanced Strategic Management
Spring 2005
[Schedule Page] [Materials] [Grade Sheet]

Noon to 2:50pm & 6:00pm to 8:50 on Tuesdays

Bexell 415

 

 

Jon Down                                            Office Hrs:      M 4:30pm – 5:30pm

Weatherford EG08                                                      Tu 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Phone:   (541) 713-8045                                              W 10:00 am - 11:00 am

down@bus.oregonstate.edu                                         (and by appointment)

 

 

Materials:

·         Course Packet available on-line

 

 

Course Description and Objectives:

 

Advanced Strategic Management is the capstone course in the MBA curriculum. A broad management perspective is taken, viewing the whole organization and drawing on all business functions.  The essence of the course is to understand how business strategies are developed and managed to create value.  We will build on, and bring together, the individual functional pieces that each of you have studied in the MBA program to date.

 

In general terms the objectives of this course are to build on the strategy background you already have (at whatever level that might be), to improve your ability to think strategically and to give you insight on how the components of your MBA program fit together.  We will do a lot of practice applying your knowledge to situations that require strategic thinking and action as an important means of developing your skills and ability.

 

Course learning objectives:

 

1.      Develop your ability to think strategically and gain insight on how to improve organizational performance from a general management perspective.

2.      Develop your leadership ability.

3.      Understand the importance of how all aspects of a firm (such as strategy, structure, systems, people, etc.) interact with each other in determining the level of the firm’s effectiveness and success.

4.      Appreciate the difficulty and specific challenges of transforming “great strategic thinking” into a successful reality.

5.      Practice applying the principles you are learning throughout the MBA program to real world business and other organizational contexts.

 

 

Grading:         Class Participation                   17.5%

                        Five Papers                              25%

                        Report on Business Models     10%

                        Midterm Exam                         20%

                        Final Exam                              27.5%

 

 

Class Participation:

 

It is important for you to participate during class discussions by offering your ideas, insights and questions. By doing so the class will learn from each other and you will be able to practice communication of your ideas. I will grade you both on the quantity and quality of your contributions. In order to create an environment conducive to good discussion I strongly encourage you to be on time to class.

 

As you know we only have ten class meetings, and one of those will be devoted to the midterm.  Therefore, my expectation is that you will come to class having studied the assigned materials and will actively participate in every class session.  About half way through the course I will give you some feedback on your participation grade up to that point.

 

Another means for you to bolster your participation grade is to turn in an optional course journal during our last class. In the journal you should write up your thoughts about the course material, content, format, etc., as it progresses.  This could simply be what you like and don’t like, or how the material might apply to some outside-class aspect of your life, but it should not be a summary of the course content.  Don’t make the journal any longer than eight pages and realize that it only boosts your participation grade in borderline cases (i.e. it is not a substitute for in-class participation).

 

So just in case I haven’t made myself completely clear, please come to class having read and thought about all the assigned material for that day and be ready to say something about it.

 

 

Papers:

 

Please turn in a case analysis paper for at least four of the seven cases assigned throughout the term – plus a paper analyzing The Financier novel. The maximum length of each paper is four double-spaced typed pages.  You may turn in more than four case analysis papers, in which case I will use your four highest scores.

 

Your papers will be graded on a ten point scale. An outstanding paper must communicate excellent:

 

1.      Structure.  Flow from an engaging introduction to a supportive body and end with a clarifying conclusion.

2.      Course Concepts.  Tie your case analysis to the concepts discussed in the readings and in class (provide support for your recommendations).

3.      Relevance.  Address the central issues in the case (or specific issues suggested to you by me).

4.      Grammar.  Be grammatically correct.  You might consider having someone read through your paper before turning it in if you are weak in this area.

5.      Style.  Be interesting for me (or anyone else) to read.

 

Even though I am only asking for papers on four of our seven cases, you should obviously read and analyze all the cases and readings in order to be prepared for our class discussions. 

 

Your papers are due at the end of each class, late papers will be docked 2 points and no papers will be accepted more than one week beyond the class date they were due (it is okay to email me late papers). An important reason for not requiring you to turn in papers for all classes is to not penalize you if some catastrophe strikes that prevents you from turning in a paper. So don’t “waste” your drops and please don’t ask me for any exceptions to the above rules.

 

 

Partner Project: Report on Business Models

 

The “partner project” is an opportunity for you to research (and all of us to see and consider) a variety of business models. By business model I simply mean an explanation of a firm’s (or organization’s) basic strategy for establishing and maintaining an earnings stream (i.e. addresses the questions of: What are we selling? How do we make money? How will we be successful in the future?). If you’d like to report on non-profit organizations tell us about their strategies and how they will be successful in accomplishing their long term goals.

 

You and a randomly assigned partner from class are to seek out two different companies to compare and contrast their business models and performance. Try to find two interesting companies from the same industry. Sources you might use to discover and learn about companies and their business models include the WSJ, business periodicals, the internet, S&P Net Advantage, annual reports, etc.  One cautionary note is avoid using a lot information generated by the company (e.g. off the company website or from company press releases) because this information will almost certainly have a pro-company bias.  And if you decide to report on well-known companies (such as Nike and Adidas) work hard to make the presentation interesting by bringing in information the class will likely not already be familiar with.

 

Your presentation should explain each company’s business model, telling the class how the company does (or will) make money – and how effective they will be at protecting their earnings stream and cash flow in the future. You should also include some type of numerical analysis in your talk. If you are discussing publicly traded companies, give us your pick of the best investment on the day of your presentation. Your talk is limited to a maximum of fifteen minutes for both of you, not including Q & A time. I encourage you to be creative in how you present your companies.

 

On your presentation day you are also required to turn in a three page written summary of your talk and analysis.  The written summary should include a brief bibliography citing all references. Fifty percent of your partner project grade will be based on your combined presentation and the other 50% on your written summary.  Please let me know if you and your partner don’t think you should each get the same grade because one of you contributed significantly more than the other.

 

The day of your presentation has been randomly assigned.  I will make available a company sign-up sheet for you and your partner to identify the companies you will report on – and once a company is on the sign-up sheet it is taken and may not be repeated.

 

 

Midterm and Final Exams:

 

The midterm and final exams will be based on all assigned materials, lectures and class discussions. If you cannot take the midterm at the scheduled time for good reason, then I will assign you a make up research project and increase the grade value of your final exam. The final will be comprehensive, but will emphasize new material covered after the midterm.

 

 

The Financier:

 

As you know, I have assigned a novel written by Theodore Dreiser and originally published in 1912. We will discuss the first half of the book right after the midterm followed by a discussion on the whole book during our last class. I also ask that you turn in a paper (following the standard paper guidelines) at the end of our last class that will count as one of the five graded papers required throughout the course.