Postgraduate Course: Modelling Business for Strategic Impact (MBA) (CMSE11233)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | This course develops analytical skills needed for leadership in business improvement: understanding a business process; modelling it graphically; analysisng its current performance; identifying current limitations, pitfalls and constraints to reach better performance; identifying opportunities for process improvement; quantifying the potential impact of such improvement options; setting the agenda towards process improvement; and controlling implementation of the set agenda. Opportunities for development of leadership through analysis will be emphasised by the students having to work in a project team to analyse a real world problem provided by a partner organisation, and by having to recommend suitable solutions and pathways to continuous improvement to the client. In this groupwork, the MBA students also have the opportunity to test their learning from the core courses taught in Semester 1 on a full scale business problem. |
| Course description |
The taught component of the course will provide students with the needed quantitative and qualitative modelling and analysis methods, for them to successfully tackle the given problem, with a focus on the former (i.e. quantitative content) but also with an important role played by the latter (i.e. qualitative techniques), especially in the first phases of the project work.
The partner organisation providing the problem to be analysed will be chosen by the courses lecturer prior to the start of the course. The problem area to be studied will likely be related to service operations or manufacturing/logistics/distribution operations, and the level of analysis should be both strategic and mainly quantitative in nature. Depending on availability of suitable partner organisations, other problem areas as requested by students taking this elective might be considered, as long as the core component of the problem to be studied is centred on ¿business processes¿.
Syllabus:
Business processes as collections of entities and resources
Techniques for problem structuring
Process mapping techniques and related graphical modelling languages
Multi-Criteria Decision Making and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (and related software, if needed)
Discrete Event Simulation and the Rockwell Arena software
Design of Experiments, Statistical Process Control and the Minitab software
Student Learning Experience:
There is one real world problem area, provided by a real client organisation. Students are members of a project team, working on the given problem for the duration of the course. They interact with a member of faculty. The teams work with the client organisation, ahead of the start of the course, to select a challenging enough problem area for the project (that is also aligned with the technical content of the course). Students learn a range of quantitative and qualitative methods in a computer lab setting, in a small group (the project team), with a hands-on approach, using commercial software (6 x 4 hour sessions). The member of faculty supervises the work of the project team throughout the semester and provides the project team with additional directions (as needed) to existing material that could be relevant to help them to complete the project successfully.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | For Business School PG students only, or by special permission of the School. Please contact the course secretary. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2015/16, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
| Course Start Date |
11/01/2016 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
100
(
Lecture Hours 24,
Summative Assessment Hours 26,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
48 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
100 %,
Coursework
0 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Class Project Report - 70%
Individual Report - 30%
TheClass Assessment (70%), is in turn subdivided into:
- A Class Project (written) Report, including relevant Appendices and an Engagement File (50%)
- A Class Presentation to the client, in the presence of the course lecturer (20%)
Individual Assessments, i.e. an Individual (written) Report from each student, also called reflective piece (30%)
The Engagement File is a file containing the collection of materials presenting clear evidence of the group's engagement with the client. This is to include copies of correspondence and replies, internal memos within the group, minutes of meetings with the client and the team and any interim reports produced. The file should be saved as an electronic file on Learn.
On a weekly basis students must individually record their thoughts on Learn (in a so-called e-journal), commenting on their progress over the previous two weeks, the challenges they are experiencing, how the project is contributing to their skills/learning and any methodological or ethical issues which have arisen. Each weekly entry of the e-journal may not exceed 250 words. These records must be completed and be attached as an Appendix to the student's reflective piece¿, but they will not be assessed. Only the main body of the reflective piece will be assessed instead.
The Class Project Report must not exceed either 5000 words or 15 pages in length, whichever the more restrictive. Tables, Figures, Appendices and the Engagement File to be excluded from the word count.
Individual Reports must not exceed 1000 words in length.
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| Feedback |
All students will be given at least one formative feedback or feedforward event for every course they undertake, provided during the semester in which the course is taken and in time to be useful in the completion of summative work on the course.
Feedback on formative assessed work will be provided within 15 working days of submission, or in time to be of use in subsequent assessments within the course, whichever is sooner. Summative marks will be returned on a published timetable, which has been made clear to students at the start of the academic year.
Feedback comprises: formative feedback on students¿ understanding of the techniques discussed in the course, provided by the lecturer during lectures and software tutorials; formative feedback on status of the group work, during the 1-hour meetings with the Lecturer supervising the project; summative and formative feedback on group report, provided by both the client and the course lecturer; summative and formative feedback on group presentation to client, provided by both the client and the course lecturer; and summative feedback on individual reflective pieces, provided by the course lecturer.
Students will be provided with electronic written feedback for all coursework. Coursework and exam scripts cannot be taken away by students. Students who wish to view a marked piece of coursework or an exam script, should contact the programme support team to arrange a time.
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| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Understand and critically discuss the strategic role of quantitative methods for business process modelling and continuous process improvement, and the tight link with more qualitative methods for problem structuring/understanding.
- Understand and critically discuss the key ¿ingredients¿ of all business processes: entities (i.e. information, materials, energy) and resources (i.e. people, physical and financial assets, etc.).
- Understand and apply the main methodologies to structure real world business problems (e.g. Soft Systems Methodology).
- Understand and discuss critically the most relevant methodologies for multi-criteria decision making (e.g. the Analytic Hierarchy Process) and their role in supporting shared views in decision making within organisations.
- Understand and discuss critically the main techniques and graphical modelling languages available to map business processes.
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Reading List
The following textbooks provide more detailed explanations of the main techniques and software tools used in the course. They will be made available in the Hub for consultation.
Law, A.M (2014) Simulation Modeling and Analysis, 5th Ed, McGraw-Hill
Kelton, W.D., Sadowski, R.P. and Zupick, N.B. (2015) Simulation with Arena, 6th Ed, McGraw-Hill
Montgomery, D.C. (2012) Design and Analysis of Experiments, 8th Ed, McGraw-Hill |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Cognitive and Subject Specific Skills:
Apply project management basic concepts, ideas and techniques, as well knowledge from core courses taught in Semester 1, while working as a project team on a real world business modelling, analysis and improvement project.
Apply the correct blend of intuitive reasoning and of the quantitative and qualitative modelling and analysis techniques discussed in the course, as required by the specific real world business modelling and analysis project, to draw-out sound conclusions and feasible recommendations.
Skills of argument development and persuasion, both as a project team and as individuals.
Skills of working in a project team to reach a common goal, including ability of individual members to exploit their relevant prior experience and knowledge in a way that it helps the project team to reach the common goal.
Transferable Skills:
Client relationship skills - The ability to build and sustain a mutually satisfying and professional client relationship, through communication, negotiation and flexibility.
Ethical conduct - The ability to undertake research and deliver a project in a responsible manner which treats all stakeholders (e.g. client, colleagues in the project team) with respect and in accordance with professional codes of conduct.
Ability to deliver value - The ability to interpret and see beyond client requirements, identifying what is relevant to the client¿s value proposition.
Adaptability - Participants will need to respond appropriately and professionally to unforeseen circumstances and be able to negotiate with the client to reach an acceptable solution should any such disruption take place.
Presentation skills - The ability to present clearly and persuasively to the client and respond appropriately to questions that may challenge the assumptions, evidence and conclusions from the work of the project team.
Report writing skills - The ability to write a business report clearly and succinctly, making appropriate use of relevant academic frameworks and supporting evidence, but at the same time easy for the client to comprehend
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| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Maurizio Tomasella
Tel:
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Kate Ainsworth
Tel: (0131 6)51 7761
Email: |
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