MBM9260 - MANAGERIAL REPORTS

Module Identifier

MBM9260

Module Title

MANAGERIAL REPORTS

Academic Year

2004/2005

Co-ordinator

Mr Elton A W St George

Semester

Semester 3 (Summer)

Other staff

Dr Anita M Rogers, Mr Ian V Thomas

Mutually Exclusive

MBM9160

Course delivery

Other

12 Hours workshop + ongoing contact during the programme

Assessment

Assessment Type	Assessment Length/Details	Proportion
Semester Assessment	One written report not in excess of 7000 words on the subject of managerial skills (to include 2000 words critically evaluating the students own managerial skills capabilities) utilising the knowledge and experience gained during the programme activities as well as researching relevant	50%
Semester Assessment	One management report, not in excess of 7000 words on a specific company or issue within a company covering one or more of the key subject areas: Economics, HRM/OB, Financial Management/Management Accounting, Marketing and Strategy	50%

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
On completion of the reports, students will be able to:
? Gain experience of working within a team in a more effective way via the experience and theory gained during the programme

? Focus on their personal development with regards to their managerial skills

? Critically assess their own and their colleagues managerial skills performance

? Further their knowledge in the theory of team-building, interpersonal communication, leadership and other skills related topics and be able to utilise this knowledge in a practical and efficient manner

? Focus on a specific company/organisation/institution or Management related issue/problem and equip themselves with an increased knowledge and understanding of this field with respect to the four key areas of business outlined previously.

? Gain an awareness of the professional and academic literature available by researching the subject area prior to the writing of the report

? Gain further knowledge and experience by working with the module co-ordinator and/or practitioner during both the research and writing-up stages of the project

? Write the project conclusion in a form consistent with the typical ?management report? format employed in business and industry

Aims

The main aims of the module are to:

Bring together the knowledge and practical experience acquired (regarding the subject of managerial skills and the managerial skills ability of the student and their team) from the Masters programme.
Bring together the knowledge and practical experience acquired during Management Skills events (such as communication workshops, leadership weekends and team-building activities) that are held during the relevant masters programme and apply it in the production of two written reports.
Use the professional and academic literature to extend their knowledge and add to the depth of coverage during the report writing.
To utilise the existing professional and academic literature and their practical business/management experience (where relevant) in order to critically evaluate their personal managerial skills related performance and development as well as that of their team members.

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. Strategy
3. Human Resource Management / Organisational Behaviour
4. Managerial Economics
5. Financial Management / Organisational Behaviour

Brief description

This module will use a series of activities and workshops, delivered during the programme, as points of reference on which to base two written reports. One of these reports will cover the subject of managerial skills (5000 words) which will include the opportunity to critically evaluate their own skills capabilities (2000 words).

The second report will offer the opportunity for students to gain specific in-depth knowledge in a particular subject area encompassing each (or a selection of) the key areas of business (Economics, Financial Management/Management Accounting, Human Resource Management/Organisational Behaviour, Marketing and Strategy.) 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?'rllustrating the dynamic elements involved in strategic and organisational evolution (students are strongly recommended to consider the longitudinal issues'rver 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 'rroad? ? 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.

Content

Report Writing: structure, and style
Managerial Styles
Leadership and Motivation
Delegation
Effective Communication
Recruitment and Selection
Team-Building
Presentations
Research methods
Sources of information
Company/organisational/institutional analysis
Relevant, practical and current theory and practice in the sub-disciplines of:

Transferable skills

Working within a team
Communication skills
Presentation skills
Report writing
Leadership skills
Report Writing
Research skills
Self-management
Analytical skills

Reading Lists

Books
A D Jankowicz (2000) Business Research Projects Thomson, Business Press
J Adair (1997) Effective Team Building Macmillan
J Adair (1986) Effective Team Building Macmillan
M R Belbin (1981) Management Teams: Why they succeed or fail Butterworth Heineman
R M Stogdill (1974) Handbook of Leadership: A survey of theory and research New York: Free Press, London: Collier Macmillan
J Adair (1988) Effective Leadership Pan Books
W David Rees The Skills of Management Thomson Business Press
Andrew St George (2002) How to Buy a Business @www.christie.com
Clive T Goodworth (1991) The Secrets of Successful Business Report Writing Oxford
Charles Leadbeater (1999) Living on Thin Air Penguin
Shirley Kuiper (1999) Contemporary Business Report Writing London
A D Jankowicz (2000) Business Research Projects Thomson
Charles Handy (1989) The Age of Unreason Arrow
Michael Doherty (1998) Write for Business: Skills for effective report writing in English Longman
Andrew St George (1995) Clear English Bloomsbury
Dorothy M Stewart Handbook of Management Skills Gower
Edward De Bono (1985) Six Thinking Hats Penguin
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
Paul Myners The Myners Report (2001) to H M Treasury (download 2001pp from www.treasury.gov.uk) and consultation documents

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 7