040221 KU Global Strategy (MA) (2020W)

(1) Written Examination
There will be a comprehensive written exam. To assess the learning accumulated during class discussions. The exam. will constitute of multiple choice questions, True/False questions and one essay question.
(2) BRICS ProjectBrazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are being profoundly debated these days as the emerging economies with enormous opportunities for the global business organizations. The purpose of the BRICS project is to provide the students with an opportunity to examine the nature and dynamics of international business activity in these four markets. In this assignment, teams of 3-4 students will act as IB consultants to devise/propose a global strategy for a business organization doing well in Austria for anyone of the BRICS countries. The scope/size/origin of the organization does not matter - it could be as small as a retail chain like Coffee day or Türkis or as large as Siemens or Red Bull - what counts the most is the technical accuracy (i.e., how well did the team use the global business concepts learned in the class). The deliverable of this team project would be a 15-20 page, 11 Time New Roman fonts, single-spaced term report. The report should clearly describe the IB plan with a thorough and informed analysis and critique. At the minimum, the report should include: a brief history of the organization; the SWOT/environmental analysis; the competition in the target market; the preferred entry mode along with the rationale for choosing this mode; preferred organizational structure along with the rationale for choosing this structure; the grand corporate strategy; and the HR and marketing strategies.
(3) Class participation
The classes would be conducted digitally. A student needs to be (virtually) present for at least 50% of the time in each class in order to earn the points stipulated for class participation.

Written Exam: There will be a final comprehensive written exam. To assess the learning accumulated during class discussions. The exam. will constitute of multiple-choice questions, True/False questions, and one to two essay questions.
Midterm Exams or Case Study Assignment: Dependent on the situation, students may have to participate in a mid-term exam or work in teams consisting of up to 4 students for this assignment. If I decide to assign cases, students will be assigned up to three comprehensive cases encompassing the dynamics of international firms. They will analyze these cases and would present their own assessment and solution(s) to the issues discussed in these cases while making an appeal to the different theories/phenomena/concepts discussed/debated during the lectures. The students are required to work only on any one of these cases if the group size is up to 2. If the group size were 2+, they would have to opt two of these three cases. The deliverable of this assignment would be 8-10 pages, 11 Times New Roman, single-spaced report for the first/single case. For the 2nd case, at least 5 more pages must be added. Nevertheless, it is not the quantity but the quality of argument that would matter the most during evaluations. The deadline for the report submission (per email) is 30.01.2020 (23:59 CET)
Public Lectures: Public lectures are an integral part of this course. If held, in these lectures, experts from the relevant field of the study provide discussions on the various topics/aspects relating to the global business. If held, the participation/attendance during these lectures is strongly encouraged, with one bonus point (per public lecture) added to your aggregate score for participation in these lecturers. Students are advised to check, from time to time, the latest announcements on these lectures at http://im.univie.ac.at/windsperger/im-public-lectures/?no_cache=1