Bachelor in International Business

The programme has the following aims:

• To enable the study of organisations, their management and the changing external and international contexts in which they operate.
• Equip individuals for and/or development of a career in international business and associated specialized areas in business development, marketing, finance and tourism management at a professional or equivalent level to assume managerial positions in the arena of international business.
• Development of the ability to apply knowledge and understanding of international business and management to complex issues, both systematically and creatively, to improve business and management practice.
• Enhancement of lifelong learning and personal development so as to be able to work with self-direction and originality and to contribute to business and society at large.

At the end of the programme the successful student will have the ability to:

• Demonstrate understanding of management theories, current issues of management, the development of conceptual frameworks to guide their application within organizations operating in an increasingly global and competitive environment.
• Acquire a strong foundation in key functional areas of business management to enable them to succeed as effective managers in an increasingly complex and dynamic environment.
• Exhibit a coherent body of knowledge on economic, ethical, environmental, legal, political, sociological and technological factors together with their effects at local, national and international levels upon the strategy, behaviour and management of organisations.
• Demonstrate command of a range of competencies relevant to cross-border management, including inter-cultural awareness and understanding.
• Acquire and use a range of concepts, tools and techniques for problem solving and decision-making for analyzing complex and inter-related business scenarios.
• Demonstrate and apply critical skills enabling the investigation and evaluation of valid and relevant management issues and practices.

Year 1: 8 Common Core Modules each of 7.5 ECTS

Year 2: 8 Common Core Modules each of 7.5 ECTS

Year 3: 8 Common Core Modules each of 7.5 ECTS

Entry Requirements and Advanced Standing

An applicant may be admitted on the basis of evidence to suggest that he/she will be able to fulfill and benefit from the objectives of the programme and achieve the standard required for the award.

A number of criteria are used in considering admissions to the programme including candidates’ language proficiency, academic and professional qualifications.

The entry requirements for the programme will include the following:-

• A minimum 2 GCE A levels passes, or equivalent qualifications OR
• A recognized University Foundation or Access programme OR
• Demonstration of English Language proficiency with a TOEFL paper based test score of 500, Computer based test score of 173 or Internet based test score of 61, overall IELTS score of 5.5 or other English Language test scores and equivalencies
• Students who are not covered by the above entry criteria will be assessed individually.

Advanced Standing/ Exemptions/ Credits Transfer (APL)

Consideration for the above for students admitted onto the programme may be considered either at the beginning of a programme, or beyond the beginning of a programme, through an assessment of that student’s prior learning, whether certificated or un-certificated. The process for making such a decision is known as the Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) is a matter of academic judgment exercised by the appointed panel considering applications and approvals of APL.

APL provision allows those suitably qualified students to progress partially or full into either Year1, Year2 or Year 3 of the programme.

1. Business Economics

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of basic micro-economic models used in the analysis of markets, firms and industries.
• Demonstrate a basic ability to use simple micro-economic models to analyse real world market and business problems.

Syllabus

• Opportunity cost and production possibility frontiers
• Demand and supply model.
• Applications of demand and supply analysis
• Models of product and cost curves
• Profit maximisation, short run and long run analysis of firm’s strategies under perfect competition, monopoly, and monopolistic competition

2. Principles of Marketing

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Identify the differing nature of customer needs and wants within a chosen marketing environment
• Recognise the important role of market segmentation, pricing, targeting and positioning process in a firm’s sustained success.

Syllabus

• Marketing Definition and Marketing Orientation
• The Marketing Environment
• Overview of Marketing Planning
• Consumer Behaviour
• Marketing Research and Information Systems
• Market Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning
• Introduction to Marketing Mix
• Creating Customer Value

3. Principles of Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Identify and differentiate the managerial functions
• Apply and use the concept of management functions
• Analyze the environment and use it in management activities

Syllabus

• Introduction to Management
• Organization and Environment.
• Foundation of Planning
• Planning Tools
• Organizational Structure and Design
• Communication in Organization
• Leadership
• Managerial Control

4. Business Accounting

Learning Outcomes

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

• Prepare statements of business performance.
• Apply and interpret statements of business performance including using costing information to enhance financial control and decision making.

Syllabus

• Preparation of basic financial statements for sole traders
• Adjustments to those accounts
• Application of these principles to company accounts
• Examining the data presented by companies when reporting financial performance
• Interpreting data and identifying problems
• Identify the differing costs within a business
• Analyse cost behaviour and control
• Prepare and interpret cash budgets as a form of control

5. Quantitative Methods for Business

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of relevant methods for data analysis in business and management.
• Demonstrate an ability to present, discuss and use the results of data analysis for a business decision in a written and professional format.

Syllabus

• Use of measures of central tendency, calculation, meaning and interpretation
• Use of measures of dispersion, calculation, meaning and interpretation.
• Simple index numbers and financial calculations including interest and discounting, their meaning and interpretation
• Basic rules of probability and using decision trees
• Sampling techniques and sampling distribution of means.
• Standard Normal distribution, using Z scores, creating for confidence intervals for estimating means and proportions.
• Types of hypotheses, errors, and simple hypothesis tests of means

6. Business English

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Communicate effectively and appropriately in formal letters, reports and other written texts.
• Demonstrate strong oral language skills.
• Write concise, coherent and accurate business reports in business-appropriate Language.

Syllabus

• Students will be encouraged to apply their knowledge of language in a variety of formal and informal contexts. Importance will be attached to the development of an awareness of language (e.g.: accuracy, register and appropriateness) as well as functional language such as giving information, persuading and negotiating.
• Emphasis will be placed on developing students’ language skills within a business or professional framework. Activities will include structured role-plays, negotiations and discussions, listening to audio, video recordings and online communications.
• Students will also have the opportunity to examine and discuss a number of stimulating and relevant aspects of business and work, e.g.: equal opportunities, technology and the changing workplace, globalisation.

7. Information Systems in Business

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Apply the use of IT/IS applications to facilitate business process.
• Identify the current technology trends and IT.
• Help the organization to evaluate and purchase a new system that is high quality and consistent with business goals.
• Identify the needs of organizations in order to develop the information vision, IT architecture and strategic operational plans.

Syllabus

• Introduction: Business and Information Technology.
• Organizations and Information Technology Support
• Managing Organizational Data and Information
• Functional and Enterprise System
• Strategic Information Systems and Reorganization
• Implementing IT: Ethics, Impacts and Security

8. Developing Learning Effectiveness

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Assess one’s current learning skill sets and apply specific strategies of techniques to enhance further those skill sets.
• Apply appropriate techniques to managing self and time management.
• Acquire analytical and expansive thinking skills required for higher education.
• Acquire key skills in reading, note taking and note making.
• Acquire good academic writing skills and compliance with proper citations and referencing.

Syllabus

• Assessing and Identifying Current Skills Sets.
• The Learning Process, Styles and Strategies
• Systematic Learning System
• Thinking skills
• Note taking and Note Making including Mind Mapping Technique
• Self and Time Management
• Reading and Information search Skills
• Academic and Report writing
• Citations and Harvard Referencing System

9. Managerial Accounting

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able:

• Discuss the concepts of planning and control and how the management accountant can assist the management process now and in the future.
• Select the costing systems that are most appropriate for a given business situation.
• Analyse the impact on management planning and control systems have on managerial behaviour and the organisation’s accounting system.
• Construct, analyse and present a set of budget statements for a range of budget types (fixed, flexible, zero based)

Syllabus

• Cost Accounting Fundamentals: This is an introductory unit which deals with the role of management accountants in the planning and control process. The section covers some of the basic concepts used in management accounting such as the way costs can be classified and reported.
• Cost Information for Decisions: This section deals with how costs are accumulated or allocated to specific products or services within different types of cost systems. This will enable students to decide which particular costing system would be most appropriate for a given business situation
• Tools for Planning and Control: Section three requires you to use your knowledge of costs and systems to prepare, analyse and present budget statements of an organisation. Students will also explore the behavioural implications of budgetary systems. This section also contains a discussion of the contemporary approach to cost control.

10. Marketing Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Evaluate and challenge prevailing marketing theories.
• Discuss, develop and analyse marketing strategies.
• Develop, analyse and present marketing plans and reports.
• Construct, analyse and present a set of budget statements for a range of budget types (fixed, flexible, zero based)

Syllabus

• Marketing Planning Theories and Models.
• Situation Analysis
• Marketing Strategies and Programmes.
• Marketing Organisation and Control.
• Formulating a Marketing Plan.

11. Operations Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Recognise the importance of effective operations management to an organisation.
• Create, maintain and improve the necessary conditions for productive work.

Syllabus

• What is Operations Management?
• Operations and Strategy – including possible contractual/partnership relationships
• Operations Performance Objectives.
• Managing Process Design.
• Managing Quality.
• Managing Capacity
• Managing Materials
• Managing Work and Work Systems
• Managing Change

12. Intercultural Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Gain a better understanding of contemporary management issues from an international and cross cultural perspective.
• Developed awareness and sensitivity to cultural differences in behaviour in order to improve skills for working in multicultural organisations and markets.
• Develop the ability to handle differences in intercultural communication styles, to prevent intercultural conflicts
• Gain a better understanding of staffing, training and compensation issues for global operations

Syllabus

• Introduction to intercultural Management
• Rules of the “social game”
• Intercultural Leadership Management.
• Intercultural Communication.
• Social and Intercultural Competence.
• Intercultural Conflict and Negotiation Management
• Global Human Resource Management

13. International Business Environment

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Understand the context in which international business takes place.
• Distinguish what differentiates international from domestic business.
• Research the international business environment and understand the actors and their interaction in it
• Apply knowledge and skills needed to develop solutions and challenges present in the international business environment

Syllabus

• Introduction to and overview of the international business environment
• The cultural environment
• The political and legal environment.
• The economic environment.
• Government and parastatal influences on trade and investment.
• Corporate trade and investment issues and international marketing
• Business-government relations
• The international financial environment, currency and capital market issues
• International market selection

14. People and Organisation

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Analyze the effect to psychological and social process on process on individual and group behavior.
• Demonstrate the ability to incorporate insights of various influential theories of management and Organizational behavior in work situations.
• Diagnose the cause, consequences, and implication of Organizational decisions and actions to bring about improvements in the organization
• Learn how Organizational change affects all aspects of the organization from the individual to the group to the structure and culture of organization

Syllabus

1. INTRODUCTION

• Management: An applied Behavioral Sciences Approach
• Managing in rapidly changing world
• Challenging and Opportunities for Organizational Behavior.

2. THE INDIVUDUAL

• Personality, Principles, and Ethics
• The importance of Learning
• Motivation.
• Stress Management.

3. THE GROUP

• Teamwork
• Leadership
• Power and Politics
• Conflict and Negotiation

3. THE ORGANIZATION

• Work Design and Technology
• Organizational Culture
• Organizational Change

15. International Marketing

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Analyse Global competitive, economic, social, cultural, legal, regulatory, and financial environments that impact on international marketing management.
• Evaluate issues in the global marketing mix decisions of product, price, place and promotion.
• Appraise Strategic alternatives for global sourcing, and global market entry and expansion, and the factors influencing the choice of these alternatives
• Analyse how multinational firms manage and organise their global marketing activities?

Syllabus

• Introduction to global marketing
• Global marketing planning
• Market environmental scan.
• Global marketing information systems & research
• Global segmentation, targeting & positioning
• Alternative strategies for global market entry & expansion.
• Competitive analysis & strategy
• Co-operative strategies & global
• Product and Pricing decisions.
• Channel decisions.
• Global marketing communication decisions : advertising
• Leading, organising & controlling the global marketing effort.

16. Managing People

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate understanding of the implications of HR decisions on the workforce and the organisation.
• Develop a critical awareness and understanding of current theory and good practice in the management of people.

Syllabus

• Introduction to people management, the importance of the human resource to effective organisational performance; the distinction between specialist HR and line management responsibilities.
• HRP, flexibility, recruitment and selection
• Managing reward, performance & conduct
• Employee development
• Managing health & safety, managing stress
• Diversity management.
• Generating commitment through involvement
• Employee relations
• Contemporary issues.

17. Business Intelligence

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate grounding in the basic principles of ethical business intelligence research practice and communication of analysis to others in organisations.
• Apply Competitive Intelligence (CI) and Counter Competitive Intelligence (CCI) theories to real practices.
• Distinguish the differences between the competitor intelligence and business intelligence functions
• Discuss methods of protecting an organisation’s information assets

Syllabus

• The importance to organisations of being aware of competitor activity and the external factors affecting success.
• The role of counter-competitive intelligence
• Information of value to organisations: external and internal, and its likely availability, covering sources and protections
• The use of online host databases as a CI source
• Web techniques for CI
• The importance of organisational culture and ethical practices while undertaking C1.

18. International Strategic Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Examine the driving forces and importance of regional and global integration within the world economy and their role in shaping international business strategy.
• Consider and assess a wide range of approaches, concepts and models of international strategic management to analyse international corporate structures and business operations.
• Examine and compare a range of traditional and new entry modes to international, regional and global markets
• Using the appropriate theoretical concepts/models and frameworks conduct an audit of an organization’s international strategy

19. Business Planning

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Identify and investigate the viability of a new business venture opportunity.
• Summarise the key issues for a new venture proposal.
• Interpret primary and secondary market research for a new business venture
• Assess the commercial feasibility of a new business venture
• Develop a comprehensive business plan for a new venture

Syllabus

• Entrepreneurs and New Venture Success: This topic explores entrepreneurs, the nature of the new venture creation process and the determinants of new venture performance.
• New Business Opportunities: Examines the sources of business opportunities; and explores processes for identifying new business opportunities. Students will identify business opportunities
• Feasibility Study and Market Assessment: Explores what factors to consider in assessing the feasibility of a new business idea. How to carry out both primary and secondary market research and analysis
• New Business Planning: Overview of the role and structure of a business plan
• Legal and operational issues: Management, legal and operational requirements in starting a new business. Intellectual property; patents, trademarks and copyright protection
• Financing a New Business: Examines the financial requirements of a new enterprise; the possible sources of finance; and how to prepare financial projections (costing and pricing, cash flow, manufacturing accounts, profit and loss account, balance sheet and break-even analysis).

20. Global Supply Chain Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Conceptually link operation with the other business functions with particular reference to the market, finance and measurements.
• Exhibit a critical understanding of the strategic role of the supply chain in improvement within organizations.
• Demonstrate a conceptual and practical understanding of the major approaches to operations improvements and how they related in the context of international supply chains

Syllabus

• Strategic operating management and techniques .
• Integrating marketing, product/process design and operations management
• Logistics and supply chain management – contemporary issues, principles and concepts
• Improvement: managing and reducing variation in supply chains
• Agile supply
• Buffer management.
• Trade-off resolution
• Developing and exploiting strategic supply chain capabilities
• Conceptually integrating operations with sales, marketing, finance & measurements within the supply chain
• International business excellence award models and tools
• International supply chain case applications in service and manufacturing

21. Comparative and International Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Analyse the factors underlying processes of international uniformity and diversity.
• Demonstrate a concrete knowledge of the management practices and organisational forms in a variety of different cultural and institutional settings in Europe, Asia and America.
• Evaluate critically the relevance of different theoretical approaches to comparative management and organisation
• Apply concepts and theories to practical problems of managing local and global organisations within an international context

Syllabus

• Globalisation, management and organization Internationalisation of management and operation.
• Economic, culturalist and institutionalist theories of organisation and management
• Application of discourse theory to local and global management
• Comparative research on management and organisation, with particular focus on countries from Europe, the Americas and Asia
• Problems of managing multinational, international and global organisations

22. Comparative and International Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Evidence critical knowledge of the concept of marketing at the various levels of export, international and global marketing.
• Show a deep understanding of how culture is an important concept to international marketers.
• Demonstrate a critical understanding of the sources of international marketing information (secondary and primary) their uses and limitations.
• Apply knowledge of international marketing principles in order to formulate and develop appropriate marketing and communication strategies at international and global levels.

Syllabus

• Developments in world trade and the background to international marketing, along with external SLEPT factors affecting organizations in international and global marketing..
• Ethical and environmental issues which affect international marketing and sourcing (including fair trade).
• Buyer bahaviour and segmentation
• Market entry and associated information needs and ways of locating that information-secondary and primary
• Development of international marketing strategy, including planning and tactics (covering products services, pricing, distribution etc)
• Issues surrounding international marketing communications (branding, promotions and advertising – B2B and consumer)
• Organization issues and relationship marketing.

23. International Human Resource Management

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• Apply HR theories to HR practice with sensitivity to the international context.
• Engage with debates of aspects of HR practice in an international context.
• Critically analyse HRM rhetoric and practices in an international context.
• Formulate appropriate theoretical and practical solutions to organisational problems in the international arena.

Syllabus

• Introduction to HRM in a Global Context.
• Institutional and Cultural Perspectives: Cross-National Differences in Human Resources and Organisation.
• Globalisation/Internationalisation
• Multinational Corporations
• Staffing the Multinational Enterprise: Expatriation and Managing Across Borders
• International HRM in Practice: Europe and the Americas
• International HRM in Practice: East Asia and Developing Countries.
• Comparative Employee Relations
• Migration and Labour Markets
• The International Division of Labour and Labour Standards

24. Business to Business Marketing

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

• • Analyse and distinguish the nature, scope and differential properties of business to business marketing with business to consumer marketing.
• • Apply appropriate tools and techniques to assess market potential, conduct sales forecasting and evaluate the market segmentation.
• • Critically examine the context in which business to business marketing decisions are formulated and implemented.

Syllabus

Section 1

• Characteristics of business markets.
• Differences between business and consumer marketing management.
• Differences in the business marketing mix
• Nature of business market demand

Section 2

• Components of an effective marketing intelligence system.
• Demonstrate familiarity with accessing and using secondary sources..
• Differentiate between market potential, sales potential and market demand
• Estimating market demand

Section 3

• Calculate market potential and conduct sales forecasting.
• Role of market potential determination in planning.
• Market segmentation
• Evaluation the basis for market segmentation
• Role of segmentation in developing marketing strategy particularly creating effective product positions.

Duration of completion: Year 1 to Year 3: 36-48 months
Year 3 Top Up: 12-18 months