Module BUSI4J420: International Business in Context (FT)

Department: Business School (Business)

BUSI4J420: International Business in Context (FT)

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• To contribute to the overall aims of the programme by developing student's awareness of business and management issues in an international context, and their ability to function effectively in the global business environment.
• To visit leading international companies and to understand and evaluate the complex nature of different dimensions of their business in one overseas country.
• To recognise and value the role of national culture and language in the way business operates, and to be able to function in context in a second business language.
• To provide a sound platform for foreign language acquistion by helping students to understand the core structure of the language through the study of grammar and vocabulary.
• To compare and contrast organisations on a specific dimension (e.g. strategy, finance, operations, HRM).
• To develop students' research skills through the production of a detailed case study of leading international organisations, based on desk research prior to the tour and primary research conducted during the tour.

Content

• The module content is divided into three major parts: (1) the pre-tour preparation including language classes, (2) the tour itself and (3) the post-tour debriefing.
• In the pre-tour preparation, students will conduct desk-research. In the tour, students will compare and contrast two organisations for a dimension of the their choice (e.g. strategy, finance, operations, HRM). Prior to the tour, students will research their chosen dimension in groups of 3-4. Students will also study their chosen language to an appropriate level (i.e. Mandarin Chinese, German, or Spanish) and the culture of the country they will visit through weekly classes prior to their visit. The students will produce a 1,500-word formative assignment based on their group’s desk-research (e.g. printed case studies, as well as journals and newspapers) one month before the tour, on which they will receive feedback prior to the tour. A week before the tour, they will submit a research plan describing how they will gather primary data when visiting the companies.
• The tour will involve visits to each of the participating organisations, spread across one week.
• Following the tour debriefing, the group will submit a group summative assignment comprising their final report comparing and contrasting the investigated organisations taking form of a 30 minute multimedia presentation. Each student will also submit a further individual assignment (3,000 words) detailing their own reflections on the experience, how studying the language and the national culture of the country they visited help them during the tour, what they personally learned on the tour, and how they will make use of this experience and knowledge (i.e. the ‘reflective practitioner’ activity). An online debriefing session for all students will be arranged to help them with this task.

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of the module, students should have a critical understanding of:
• How businesses operate in an overseas context.
• What are the similarities and differences among leading international companies in aspects of their organisation.
• How these similarities and differences manifest themselves, how they originated, and their impact on performance.
• How theories and framework can be used to analyse real organisations.
• What are the benefits and limitations of primary research, especially for the production of detailed case studies.
• How the language and culture influence how business operate.
• Students should also have an understanding of basic grammar and an appropriate level of vocabulary sufficient to communicate in tasks requiring a direct exchange of information on familiar topics and activities.

• By the end of the module students should have:
• The ability to put organisational theory into practice.
• Effective group work skills, including collaborative effort in the research, drafting, refinement, and presentation of an assignment, as well as interpersonal sensitivity, which may be across national and/or cultural boundaries.
• Skills in desk research and primary research associated with the production of case studies.
• The ability to appreciate the concept of a ‘reflective practitioner’ and to reflect critically on organizations, as a way of learning and developing.
• The ability to understand and elicit basic relevant and factual information in the target language in simple everyday situations.
• The ability to describe aspects of their background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need through simple verbal and written means of communication.
• An understanding of the chosen language that will allow simple, everyday conversations and texts.

• Written communication
• Planning, organising and time management
• Problem solving and analysis
• Interpretation of data and computer literacy
• Team working
• Interpersonal skills

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• The summative assignments are designed to test the students’ theoretical understanding of their chosen topic, and their ability to apply this to organisations. They also test their capacity for ‘reflective practitioner’ insights, and their language capability.
• On the tour itself, the participating organisations – having been briefed and having agreed on the overall theme of their visit – will be available to answer questions prepared by the students.
• Language and culture will be taught through weekly 2-hour classes in the chosen language

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

1,500 word group assignment. Formative feedback will also be provided on the pre-tour research plan, and the draft project. Regular formative verbal and written assessments in the selected language.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University