MA in Leadership and Management (MALAM)

Transcription

1 MA in Leadership and Management (MALAM) Developing people and organisations for growth Centre for Management, Business and Professional Development Professional Development at University of St Mark & St John 1. Programme Aim The MA in Leadership & Management (MALAM) is designed to develop leadership and management competences in individuals, in order for them to be effective in their respective organisational roles. In particular, the programme is designed to enable students to develop effective, practical management expertise whilst engaging with postgraduate study skills. It focuses on applied learning, encouraging students to relate the new knowledge and skills covered on the programme, to real workplace situations. It therefore addresses the needs of practicing or aspiring managers who require formal development of management skills through a higher degree. 2. What is the context of this programme? The programme consist of a blended mix of taught sessions (evenings and occasionally Saturdays) and self-study over two years, and provides both an academic and vocational basis for existing or aspiring managers. It is therefore important that learners can avail themselves of data and real life situations from their workplace or other organisations, which they are familiar with. On completion of the programme, it is intended that students will have learned both theoretical and vocational skills and knowledge in order to be effective inspirational leaders, who have a sound understanding and application of key management disciplines. 1

2 3. What does the programme look like? The MA in Leadership & Management consists of three stages: Postgraduate Certificate in Leadership & Management, Postgraduate Diploma in Leadership & Management, and Masters in Leadership & Management, with the overall programme consisting of seven modules. Postgraduate Certificate in Leadership & Management Module Reference Module Title Number of Credits LAMM01 Managing in a Strategic Context 15 credits LAMM02 Managing and Leading People 15 credits LAMM03 Leadership in Context: Self and Organisations 30credits Postgraduate Certificate in Leadership & Management Module Reference Module Title Number of Credits LAMM04 Delivering Excellence in Operations 15 credits LAMM05 Sustainable Financial Management 15 credits LAMM07 Research Methods 30credits Masters in Leadership & Management Module Reference Module Title Number of Credits LAMM06 Management research report and implementation plan 60 credits Each stage consists of 60 credits, with the full Masters comprising 180 credits Normally, each stage has to be completed before progressing, although Accreditation of Prior Experience or Learning (APEL) may be given. 2

3 MA Leadership & Management: Modules Details LAMM01: Managing in a Strategic Context the application of introductory concepts relating to organisations and their environments, to include international, industry, competitive, external and internal environments; the nature and purpose of enterprise strategy, competitive advantage, value adding, value chain and innovation in organisational development; the economic analysis of risk taking and impact of government policy and globalisation; the purpose and key organisational resource considerations relating to strategic choice and strategic implementation. be able to provide an in depth critical analysis and evaluation of an organisation s operating environment; be able to systematically analyse knowledge and information effectively in order to assess key aspects of an organisation s strategy in relation to their operating environment; be able to demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of fundamental resource considerations of an organisation s strategic direction and engage with pervasive issues. LAMM02: Managing and Leading People understanding the external and internal pressures for change and assessing organisational change with the focus on people management activities; the application of alternative leadership models and concepts appropriate to change; engaging with the systems and processes that support effective people leadership and management including resourcing, learning and development and performance management; understanding the strategies for creating and sustaining employee attitudes and behaviours to deliver agility in their current and future performance working. be able to demonstrate in depth knowledge and critical understanding of different factors which encourage change and evaluate their impact upon people management activities; be able to provide an informed evaluation of new insights into leadership, the effectiveness of alternative leadership models and concepts in enabling change and key influences upon decision making; be able to formulate and justify an appropriate leadership strategy to bring about an identified change in an organisation. 3

4 LAMM03: Leadership in Context: Self and Organisations Successful completion of this module automatically accredits the learner with the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) for the Level 7 award in Strategic Leadership understanding organisation type, purpose, values and culture their interaction and their impact on the leadership role; engaging with the characteristics of the sector in which organisations operate and their impact on expectations of leaders; recognising the criteria used to judge effective leadership in different organisational types and those knowledge, skills and behaviours that underpin effective leadership behaviour; utilise skills and techniques for evaluation of own personal behaviour and performance in the leadership role. be able to critically compare and contrast theories of leadership to assess their creative validity and utility and their relevance to ethics, values, knowledge, skills and behaviours for effective leadership; be able to analyse a critical incident in order to review organisational leadership performance, based on systematic application of knowledge and understanding of leadership theories; be able to demonstrate how the role of and nature of an organisation, their corporate social responsibility, operating context and external environment affect the leadership and management within it; be able to evaluate own leadership style and recognise its influence on building relationships, influencing people and situations and achievement of desired outcomes; be able to critically reflect on own performance to aid leadership development and implement a plan for modifying own behaviour. LAMM04: Delivering Excellence in Operations the systematic understanding of knowledge and critical awareness of performance and quality management theoretical rhetoric and in organisational practice; consideration of various planning and control activities such as job design, work organisation, capacity arrangement, inventory management and supply chain management; engaging with the systems and processes that link operations management and marketing activities such as market and sales forecasting, production scheduling, enterprise resource management; understanding the strategies for creating and sustaining customer relations through the development of marketing plans. 4

5 be able to demonstrate a systematic knowledge and critical understanding of core operations within an organisation and engage with relevant persistent issues; be able to provide a critical analysis of well known traditional and contemporary approaches to quality management and their utilisation in problem solving of operational matters; be able to significantly evaluate decision making strategies for creating and sustaining customer relations through innovative development of marketing plans. LAMM05: Sustainable Financial Management engaging with the development and application of key financial statements; recognising the nature of financial ratios and their significance in decision making; consideration of the fundamental decision of whether to make or buy; engaging with the utilisation of full costing and marginal costing techniques; appreciating sources of finance and influence upon financial strategy of an organisation. On completion you will:- be able to provide a critical analysis and evaluation of an organisation s financial operating environment through investigation of its key financial statements and formulate business case solutions; be able to comprehensively understand and essentially assess key aspects of an organisation s financial strategy in relation to their sources of finance and the impact on future strategic business direction; be able to demonstrate systematic knowledge and understanding of full costing and marginal costing techniques. LAMM07: Research Methods Commonly-used empirical research methods such as surveys or observational studies; Other empirical methods such as ethnography, autoethnography, autobiography; The interpretation of data, content analysis, semiotics, quantitative analysis; Typical forms of argument based on empirical data, inference, threats to valid argument; Philosophical or theoretical debates about general approaches such as positivism, problems of subjective understanding. be able to evaluate critically a range of methods used in the social sciences; be able to discuss critically methodological controversies and choices; be able to operationalise a problem of their own and develop suitable method(s) to research it be able to offer a rational justification for choosing a method or methods to conduct their own research; be able to offer an advanced and self-critical account of the methods involved in their own proposed research; 5

6 LAMM06: Management Research Report and Implementation Plan This is equivalent to a dissertation and confirms Master level and is assessed by a 15,000 word Management Research Report and Implementation Plan and presentation engaging with the development and application of relevant theory concepts into practice; recognising the role of project planning techniques such as identification of aim and objectives from topic choice, methodology, contingency planning and timescale development; undertaking methodologies in practice and critically evaluating findings; appreciating how to formulate recommendations and the resource implications for their implementation. be able to demonstrate discrimination in the selection of approaches and evaluation of evidence; be able to design and manage a major investigation of a leadership and management issue to produce lucid findings, conclusion and recommendations; be able to undertake a rigorous, coherent and systematic investigation to address the topic choice; be able to comprehensively understand and critically analyse key theories and concepts in relation to the investigatory leadership and management topic; be able to provide an effective and persuasive presentation of evidence, conclusion, recommendations and implementation plan; 4. Who are relevant learners for MALAM? Learners usually need to be working or have recently worked at a management level or work in an environment where they have contact with middle and senior management. For candidates from the Armed Services the rank of Warrant Officer or above for at least 2 years is required in order to meet with the higher degree learning outcome expectations of the modules. 5. How will learners will be selected for MALAM? Entry to the Programme shall require all applicants to complete an application form which gives a variety of information about the student s work experience, qualifications and motivation. These will be checked by the Programme Manager who must be satisfied that the applicants are at the appropriate stage in their management development to benefit from the Programme, and capable of undertaking a programme of academic work and offer evidence of academic ability and motivation. General admissions requirements of the programme are as follows: A second class honours degree in any subject, or students holding a qualification recognised as graduate equivalent by the University, plus 2 years management experience, at an appropriate level. Candidates without a first degree will be admitted to the programme provided they have at least two years managerial experience, at an appropriate level. 6

7 6. How is the programme delivered? The programme is delivered through a blended learning mode i.e. through use of a virtual learning space and e-portfolio, with the added value of tutor support through face to face meeting, or and telephone. Taught sessions are central to delivery and each module typically has five x 3 hour sessions. These are not only important for learning, but also encourage a dynamic student group, where interaction and knowledge exchange are an important part of the learning process. 7. Dates. The programme is currently running on a cohort basis with January, May and October enrolments. The January course will commence January 14 th

8 8. Course Fee The full course fee for academic year 2013/2014 is 4400 and fees will be reviewed on an annual basis by the University. You can pay for each of the three stages separately at a cost of 1535 per stage. As a part-time student you are eligible for a student loan and for Service personnel, Marjon is approved for ELC (ELC No 4437). Visit for further details on loans. I hope you found this interesting and relevant and I will be delighted to field any queries you may have. Ian Roberts Programme Leader Contacts iroberts@marjon.ac.uk Ext 5001 or Head of Centre for Management, Business and Professional Development David Ward dward@marjon.ac.uk