BUSI49961 Strategic Management Summative Assessment Brief 2024-25 | NTU

BUSI49961 Brief

The presentation aims to discuss the strategy of a chosen SME (a for-profit organisation) and to evaluate its interaction with the environment. Students will have to identify a potential international target market (i.e. a host Country) and suggest which entry mode is more appropriate for the company to succeed in the specific local conditions. 
Each student has to prepare a 15-minute PowerPoint voiceover presentation. 

BUSI49961 Assessment Task 

The assessment requires you to discuss the strategy of a chosen SME (a for-profit organisation) and to evaluate its interaction with the environment. The presentation will need to include a sound analysis of the company and of the chosen region. In particular, each presentation will explore the following aspects: 

1)Identification and discussion of a chosen company’s strategy; 
2)Evaluation of the competitive dynamics in the industry 
3)Assessment of the macro-environmental aspects in the country;
4)Strategic recommendations to enter a geographical market for the firm.

The purpose of the assessment on this module is to offer you an opportunity to showcase your knowledge and understanding of the material related to the international strategy of organisations, which you have independently studied in support of developing your knowledge and understanding. The assessment also offers you an opportunity to demonstrate your skills and abilities to study and communicate arguments at the master's level. 

The individual coursework task asks you to present a PowerPoint presentation (15 minutes). 

Below, you can find examples of areas to explore within each section. Please note, this is not an exhaustive list; students are expected to go beyond this. 

1. Discussion of the company’s strategy

a) Identification and relevance of vision, mission and values; 
b)An evaluation of previous entry modes of the chosen firm (if any). 

2. Assessment of macro-environmental aspects in the region

a) The influence of socio-demographic trends;
b) The impact of the political and regulatory systems; 
c) The impact of economic and financial conditions.

3. Evaluation of the competitive dynamics in the industry -

a) The analysis of new entrants
b) The competitive nature of the industry  

4. Strategic recommendations to enter a geographical market for the firm.

a) Identify the most appropriate entry mode for the firm;
b) Discuss the alignment of your suggestion to the product/service, the goals and the mission, and the current strategic positioning.

Guidance for Completing this Assessment 

This assessment requires you to discuss the strategy of a chosen SME (a for-profit organisation) and to evaluate its interaction with the environment. 

You may find it useful to work through the following process in preparing for and completing this assessment:

1. Carefully select the SME and your host country, making sure you have adequate information to carry out a thorough analysis of the environment and provide strategic recommendations. 

2. Make sure you have applied the right strategic tools for analysing the environment of the host country. 

3. Practice out your presentation skills, making sure you are audible, and you are well within the time allocated for the presentation. 

4. Prepare your presentation and submit on NOW. You should do this well before the final submission deadline so that you have time to make any adjustments that may be necessary. 

5. Submit your final essay and a separate document with the appendices if you have used AI tool(s). 

BUSI49961Learning Outcomes Assessed

Module learning outcomes 1-5 will be assessed via the individual coursework:

MLO 1:  To be able to clarify the purpose of strategy, its parts and key approaches to strategy development

MLO 2: Critically evaluate strategic management process models, theories and concepts and their application to contemporary organisations operating in an international context, 

MLO 3: Critically evaluate and apply relevant strategic tools to identify external and internal factors and their impact on the strategic responses provided by the organisation's senior managers, 

MLO 5: Verbally and visually, present strategic recommendations to standards expected of a senior manager, 

How Does This Assessment Relate to Future Employment 

The transferable competencies, skills and knowledge gained from completing this assignment, which can be applied to work or work-like experiences, include:

With this assessment, you will gain confidence and experience in carrying out desk-based research with strategic implications. With the presentation task you will develop the ability to disseminate complex ideas to various stakeholders.

Submitting your work

Deadlines are important and must be strictly adhered to. You must submit your assessment on or before the due date indicated in the dropbox and module handbook. Submitting your work after the due date/time will be considered a late submission, and the late submission penalties will be applied in line with the NTU Quality Handbook Common Assessment Regulations (unless you have been granted an extension via a Notification of Exceptional Circumstance application).

All coursework is to be submitted electronically in NOW using the Dropbox facility within the module learning room. There is no requirement to submit a paper copy. Please submit written work in PDF Format. 

For each assignment, you will be provided with a separate folder within your learning room Dropbox, which will normally be open for electronic submission of your coursework until 11 pm on the day of submission. When you submit to a Dropbox folder, you will receive a notification within NOW of your submission and also an email. Please ensure you keep these emails. Technical problems are rare, but should you be prevented from submitting and miss the deadline due to such circumstances, then you should submit your coursework as soon as you are able and email a description of the problem to your tutor (if possible, include a screenshot of the issue). 

To help you manage your submissions within NOW, you can enable a Dropbox instant notification to alert you when the Dropbox folder end date is 48 hours away (in NOW, select ‘Preferences’ and tick the relevant check box for the Dropbox).

BUSI49961 Grading matrix

Your work will be graded utilising the grading matrix below. This provides a standard benchmark against which all assessments are graded. Your final grade will depend on the extent to which you have met the grading criteria.