Module Identifier MBM9230  
Module Title MANAGEMENT RESEARCH PROJECT  
Academic Year 2002/2003  
Co-ordinator Mr Ian V Thomas  
Semester Semester 3 (Summer)  
Co-Requisite MBM9130  
Mutually Exclusive MBM9160  
Course delivery Other   4 Hours Workshops + ongoing contact throughout the programme  
Assessment Semester Assessment   One management report, not in excess of 7000 words The report can be structured in such a way as to either be comprised of 25% of each of the four key subject areas (Economics, Human Resource Management/Organisational Behaviour, Financial Management/Management Accounting and Marketing) or to focus in more depth on one or more of the key subject areas.   100%  

Learning outcomes

On completion of the project, students will be able to:

Brief description

This module will offer the opportunity for students to gain specific in-depth knowledge in a particular subject area encompassing each (or a selection of) the four key areas of business (Economics, Financial Management/Management Accounting, Human Resource Management/Organisational Behaviour and Marketing.) Students will be required to research their chosen subject/topic with relevance to a particular company, organisation or institution prior to the production of a management style report, in less than 5,000 words and not in excess of 7,000 words (including appendices).

The Report should not simply ‘describe’ the company/organisation/institution (although aspects of the Report will inevitably provide some description of, for instance, financial data and product-market strategy); examiners will seek to specifically award grades to students that address the following:

1. Critical analysis of the company/organisational/institutional ‘situation’
2. Demonstrate the use of tools, techniques, frameworks and analytical approaches to diagnose the company/organisational/institutional situation
3. Demonstrate an appreciation of ‘time’—illustrating the dynamic elements involved in strategic and organisational evolution (students are strongly recommended to consider the longitudinal issues—over time—rather than purely adopt a static viewpoint of the issues today).   
4. Use appropriate referencing (both managerial and academic sources) so as to anchor analyses to literature—rather than make the project ‘self-opinion-based’.   

Students should appreciate that this assignment is deliberately “broad” – there is no definitive structure and the scope given in the brief above is designed as integral to the assessment process. This latitude provides an opportunity for students to compile the most incisive report that analyses the company/organisational/institutional situation. An implicit part of the assessment is that students devise the structure that they feel is most appropriate to their critical analysis.

Aims

By the end of this module students will have:

Focused on:
a) a specific company, organisation or institution and/or

b) a management related issue, event or problem (other than that covered in the co-requisite module MBM9130)

AND

Investigated the theory and practice of the specific management issue, event or problem selected using the existing professional, academic and prescriptive literature in each (or a selection of) the following business sub-disciplines:

1. Marketing
2. Human Resource Management / Organisational Behaviour
3. Financial Management / Management Accounting
4. Managerial Economics

Content

Transferable skills

Reading Lists

Books
Edward De Bono. (1990) Six Thinking Hats. Pengiun (1985)
Michael Doherty. (1998) Write for Business: Skills for Effective Report Writing in English. Longman
Clive T Goodworth. (1991) The Secrets of Successful Business Report Writing. Oxford
Charles Handy. (1989) The Age of Unreason. Arrow
A D Jankowicz. (2000) Business Research Projects. Thomson
Shirley Kuiper. (1999) Contemporary Business Report Writing. London
Charles Leadbeater. (1999) Living on Thin Air. Penguin
Paul Myners. The Myners Report (2001) to H M Treasury). (download 201 pp from www.treasury.gov.uk) and consultation documents
Andrew St George. (1995) Clear English. Bloomsbury
Andrew St George. (2002) How to Buy a Business. @www.christie.com
Strunk & White. (1959) Elements of Style. Macmillan
Style Guides from:. The New York Times (1976), The Economist (1986), The Times (1992), The Financial Times (1993).
Students will be expected to research material relevant to their chosen subject area via electronic and other sources.