Specialisation academic year 2016/17 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Head of specialisation: Marie Brechbühler Peskova The option in international management is designed for students to develop an understanding of the distinctive problems that arise in international business and to develop strategic decision-making skills in relation to those problems. Management and business are global especially in Switzerland. Expanding business across borders is a reality not only for large enterprises but also for middle-sized and small companies. Being successful in the international environment requires not only a solid basis of business and management knowledge but also a global mindset and the practical skills to deal with cultural diversity. Therefore the specialisation of International Business Management is a general one with an international context. The demands placed on international business and therefore people who work in an international environment are multifaceted. Our International Business Management specialisation is designed from the ground up on relevant areas a company which interacts internationally is faced: Managing Strategies Aim of these two major modules is to get an understanding of the development of global operation strategy, internationalization strategy, the choice of the target market(s) and formulating of market entry strategies. The theme of the integration of sustainability as a part of the global business strategies will be took into account with a focus on the environmental, social and economic impacts. Managing People The aim of these two major modules is to create an understanding of the challenges that multinational companies face in managing their global workforce, and how to turn them into success by applying HR key practices on the organizational level, team level and individual level. The modules will build upon a process perspective (from national HRM), yet go beyond it and also introduce international HRM. Managing Marketing Aim of these two modules is covering the theory of trade patterns and characteristics of larger economic areas in the world and emphasizing forms of internationalization for a firm regarding the international marketing strategies. Topics like planning and conducting basic international market research will discussed and a further focus is on applying main sales-tools supporting prospecting to finalizing and evaluation of international business deals. Managing Organizations Aim of this module is having a closer look at operation management as a key competitive advantage in organizations. In the global economy international joint ventures need to know about risks and opportunities of supply chains. There will be addressed sustainability issues in International Business Management - Specialisation academic year 2016/17 1
terms of materials and resources management as well as labor conditions. Students will acquire a broad spectrum of functional skills in these relevant international business foundation subjects, learn international applications of theory to equip the student to perform management tasks and manage projects in globally oriented organizations, develop the human relationship skills necessary to competently act in a multicultural business environment, and integrate methods and technologies to enable the student to competently navigate in a complex and dynamic global economy. MBM1 - International Expansion Strategies Managing Strategies Students will understand the phenomenon of globalization and internationalization of the markets as well as of the enterprises. Furthermore, they will learn and understand the process of developing strategies for international expansion of an enterprise. This includes the development of the strategy on a corporate level as well as on the level of each subsidiary including the choice of the target markets and formulating of market entry strategies. Students will also learn from a number of real cases presented by practitioners. Each international markets entry mode (such as export, joint venture, licensing, etc.) will be illustrated by a real case and an experience of a practitioner in a quest lecture. Such as e.g. entry of a pharma group into a Japanese market grounding a joint venture with a local partner. The guest lectures are accompanied by the theoretical background of these international markets entry modes. The students will work on a case study of a company expansing internationally as an exam assignment of this module. MBM2 - International HRM Managing People: Going International - International HRM Students will understand the principle dilemmas of going "glocal" in HRM and the drivers as well as the need for an international perspective on HRM. Differentiating national from international HRM and identifying as well as discussing the main tasks associated with international HRM will be covered within this modules topics'. Students will know why a cultural context for HRM is important. Furthermore this module provides the student with an understanding of different organisational structures and set-ups how to organise and implement international HRM. The student will learn how to apply the foundational practices of international HRM with an international perspective on the key HR processes. Finally the assessments of how multinational companies can impose consistent HR approaches in different cultures and countries will be discussed and analyzed during this module. Content of the module: International Business Management - Specialisation academic year 2016/17 2
Recruitment in the global talent and labour market Performance Management in multinational coorporations Global Leadership development and learning strategies International compensation & reward schemes and strategies Working in and with different cultures Global career management International HR strategies and organizational structures MBM3 Global Sustainable Strategies Managing Strategies: Global sustainable strategies - acting as a globally responsible enterprise The students will understand the importance of the integration of sustainability as a part of the global business strategies. Students will learn to assess enterprise's environmental, social and economic impact, and identify the improvement potential that could be used to strengthen the enterprise's market position. Students will learn based on a lot of practical examples and discussions of a challenges companies face when moving towards corporate sustainability. Next to the expert inputs on life cycle assessment and in sustainable investment, there will also be a practitioner presenting a sustainability strategy of a Swiss chocolate producer. The module is based on case study learning and sustainability business simulation. MBM4 International HRM Key Practices Managing People: Being international - Key practices and skills in international HRM The module will go beyond a HR process perspective and will focus on the key challenges that multinational companies face in managing their global workforce: Students will understand the drivers of managing a global workforce, and the challenges that may occur. They learn how to apply international HRM key practices at the organizational level, team level and individual level. This also includes the assessment of success factors to implement strategic HR practices in an international context. Content of the module: International HRM at the organizational level: Ethical Leadership Diversity & Inclusion Change management in an international environment International Business Management - Specialisation academic year 2016/17 3
International HRM at the team level: Leading virtual and dispersed teams International HRM at the individual level: Global leadership competencies Identifying and developing global talent Developing global competencies, learning strategies and e-learning IBM1 - International Marketing Managing Marketing: Internationalization of business The module will provide the student with an overview of trade patterns, trends, tendencies and characteristics of larger economic areas in the world. The students will aquire a basic understanding of main barriers to international trade as well as main conditions and terms regulating international trade. Students will develop an understanding of how to plan and conduct basic international market research. Furthermore they will be provided with tools to develop product-, pricing-, and communication- as well as distributionsolutions specifically for international markets. IBM2 - Global Supply Chains In this module, we have a closer look at today s globalized supply chains which drive multinational companies as well as Swiss SMEs. Students learn about risks and opportunities of these supply chains in various industries. We discuss current trends in supply chain management and international operations management. We address sustainability issues in terms of materials and resources management as well as labor conditions. Case studies from multinational companies will be used to get an insight in today s material and knowledge flows. Main content of this module: Introduction to supply chain management Global logistics and operations Sustainability: materials, labor conditions Case studies and student groups research projects International Business Management - Specialisation academic year 2016/17 4
IBM3 - International Sales Managing Marketing: International Sales After completion of this module students will be able to apply main sales-tools supporting prospecting to finalizing and evaluation of international business deals. Students will have aquired the competencies to describe various stages in a customers purchasing process and to handle question techniques to plan and manage meetings with customers and potential customers. Students will have learned to extrapolate customer value (-s) from a solution derived from a customer's current situation (need or problem). The module will provide knowledge of prognosticating and evaluating (outcomes of) sales activities, identifying critical aspects in managing sales related projects in an international environment. Students will learn to construct a formal written business proposal as well as presenting and arguing for such a proposal. Students will be able to describe important differences in business culture and codes of conduct in major economic regions of the world. Career prospects for assistance As the global economy continues to expand, the demand for employees with an international business background is higher than ever and expected to increase especially within an internationalized economy like Switzerland. As a specialist who understands the diversity of international business and is armed with a strong knowledge in international business management the student can enlarge his/her employability in the global job market and can be a valuable part of global ventures. The Bachelor s degree with a specialisation in International Business Management gives the student a wide range of professional perspectives. Typically a student will work in international companies and institutions afterwards. Popular career areas for graduates of a B.Sc. with an International Business Management focus encompass: International HRM International business consulting International project work International sales or marketing International auditing International Business Management - Specialisation academic year 2016/17 5