MGMT605 Strategic Management for Sustainability Australian Catholic University

Instructions 

This is an individual assessment. This assessment requires you to prepare a ‘self-reflective learning journal’  focusing on any three of these four topics: business strategy, corporate strategy, international/global  strategy and corporate governance. 

The purpose of this assignment is to develop a deeper understanding of the importance of self-awareness  in relation to the positive and dark side of strategic management concepts and theories relating to the four  topics. Your learning journal is based on your insights and provides you with an opportunity to reflect on  the ways in which the issues and concepts raised in the course and self-reading have affect you personally  in your role as a manager. 

The completed assignment should be a maximum of 1700 words and double spaced. Your critical self reflective learning journal is a confidential document. Only your Lecturer-in-charge will read it. 

Process for completing the assignment 

Step 1: Review your lecture slides and textbook resources to review the topics on Business strategy,  Corporate strategy, International/global strategy and Corporate governance. 
Step 2: Choose any three of the above topics that are of particular interest to you. Read the corresponding  textbook chapters and related journal articles on these topics. 
Step 3: 
1) Explain why you think the topics are of particular importance to you as a manager. 2) Reflect on your learning in the strategic management for sustainability unit using your personal  experience. Use the following process: 
3) Choose three strategic management concepts (one from each of the three topics you have  chosen) for analysis. For Example, if selecting Business strategy as the topic you may  indicate that Porter indicates 4 potential generic strategies (Porter, 1980) and you are analysing  the strategic concept of the Broad Differentiation strategy (Porter, 1985). Likewise if considering  Corporate strategy you may focus on such Strategic concepts as Related or Unrelated or  Geographic Diversification or for that matter Merger and Acquisition as a Strategic Concept. You  have possible choices out of Strategic concepts related to topics of international/global strategy or corporate governance.
Step 4: Critically analyse the chosen three strategic management concepts. This may include the pros and  cons of each strategy concept, how the strategy concept may help develop or prevent developing  sustainable competitive advantage. Your analysis should be supported by your research on the three  concepts. 
For your research of these strategic concepts, you can use resources on Harvard Business Review, Financial Times, Forbes and some quality business journals (Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management  Review). 
Step 5: Analyse the implications on environment, society and the common good related to the strategic management concepts and reflect how as a manager you are planning to address the implications on  environment, society and the common good. 
Step 6: Evaluate the strategies used by any companies that are relevant to the concepts you chose. You  can use any company in business world and their strategies as illustration. For instance, Walmart uses cost leadership as its business strategy and it proves it is effective in developing its competitive advantage;  whereas Jetblue attempted to use Blue Ocean Strategy and it turns out it ended up stuck in the middle.