44285 F14 Coleman
MIS 44285 Fall 2014
CRN 16156
Integrated Business Policy and Strategy
Kent State University
Time: Thursday 5:30 -8:15pm
Classroom: College of Business Room 200
PROFESSOR: Robert Coleman
E-mail: rcolem12@kent.edu
Phone: 440-463-1811
Office Hours: TBA
READING MATERIALS:
Required: Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization Concepts and Cases, 10th edition,
2013, Hitt, Ireland, & Hoskisson
Hardcover or E-book is available but must have access to 10th edition cases
Hardcover ISBN: 1111825874
E-book(Cengagenow) ISBN/access code: 9781133495161
Supplemental readings are found on Library E reserves. Password provided in class.
Optional/Recommended: Access to contemporary business news articles through the Wall Street Journal
or Business Week so current events can be included in class discussions.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The fundamental purpose of the firm is to create and sustain competitive advantage enabling it to earn
superior returns for its multiple stakeholders. Strategic management provides the framework and tool set
to analyze complex business situations and make optimal decisions to enable the company to win against
its competition. This course will combine theoretical concepts and practical application to improve your
ability to conduct strategic analysis and sharpen your executive decision making skills. It will explain
how and where companies choose to compete and the critical success factors related to both strategic
decision making and effective implementation. We will examine how strategic challenges and
approaches are different for individual business units, corporations, and diversified international
enterprises. The overall perspective taken is that of the general manager who is charged with optimizing
the total organization effectiveness as ultimately measured by generating sustainable above market
growth and profitability. This course will challenge you to integrate and synthesize previous learning’s
from multiple business disciplines and improve your understanding of what ultimately leads to long-term
business success.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES/OUTCOMES:
(1) Gain working knowledge of important and influential strategic management principles, concepts,
models, and tools.
(2) Demonstrate ability to apply strategic management learning’s to actual business cases resulting in
insightful analysis, conclusions, and recommended actions.
(3) Strengthen ability to concisely communicate your thoughts both verbally and in writing while
also constructively engaging colleagues in group discussions and decision making.
(4) Develop the mindset and capability to truly think strategically when approaching critical
decisions with long-term consequences.
CLASS FORMAT:
Course will consist of a combination of lectures, case analysis/discussion, case write-ups, team-led case
discussions, and exams. Each week you will be assigned a chapter to read and study/discussion questions
to prepare. Most weeks a new case will also be assigned. My lectures will review and extend what you
have read with three primary objectives:
(1) Reinforce main concepts
(2) Discover and clarify any questions and misconceptions
(3) Explore current, real-life examples of the topic whenever possible
The cases provide actual business situations requiring the application of the concepts and tools. Cases
will be utilized in several ways as follows:
(1) There will be full class discussions with my role being the discussion facilitator guiding the
process and asking questions. Students are expected to actively participate by being fully
prepared, engaging in the material, and taking ownership for active class discussion.
(2) Formal case write-ups due at the beginning of class will be assigned two times and represent 20%
of the overall grade. We will discuss the cases with the full class that session, but I will provide
additional feedback on the write-ups the following week.
(3) Teams will be assigned and be required to present one class case discussion with all team
members participating.
Discussion questions and required case analysis and deliverables will be provided when actual cases are
assigned.
WORK EXPECTATIONS:
Thoughtful preparation in advance for all chapter and case discussions is critical to maximize the benefit
of the group interaction and learning process. Everyone is required to prepare and bring their study
question and/ or case analysis answers for each session. Frequently I will collect these ( in class only) and
they will count toward your overall participation grade.
For each class session, you are expected to be prepared as follows:
(1) Have read the assigned chapter and case
(2) Prepared answers related to the study questions and/or case analysis
(3) Actively participate in class discussions
Ask questions
Lead a discussion
Contribute to a discussion
Be prepared to be called upon
Active in-class engagement represents a significant portion of your grade. Participation credit will be
evaluated based on:
Knowledge of assigned readings
Evidence of analysis related to cases
Active listening and constructively challenging others
Ability to discern facts from opinions
Supporting conclusions with facts and analysis
You must be an active, effective, and consistent contributor to get a good participation grade by the end of
the term. I will be keeping track of individual contributions with the aid of assigned seating and credit
participation as follows:
Absent: (-2) points. Attendance is very important for effective group discussion. Everyone will be
granted one unexcused absence but beyond that it will compromise the participation grade.
Present/Prepared: 1 point. Completing the assigned homework which will be frequently collected (in
class only) is a source of participation credit. However, your submittal must show true effort and
comprehension of the material to receive a point of credit.
Session Contributor: 2 points. When you contribute (voluntarily or prompted by the professor) useful
ideas, questions and /or comments in class you will get additional credit for the session.This will be based
on quality and not quantity of inputs. Be prepared and plan to contribute to every class.
Your final participation score will be the sum of your points in all sessions. I will provide an indication
of your score at mid-term but will not be updating it weekly.
Full term Participation points will correspond to the following grades:
21+ A
16-20 B
11-15 C
6-10 D
< 6 F
Expect to invest a minimum of four hours to prepare for each class and more when formal case write-ups
or team-led case facilitation is due. The text, assigned articles, and lectures will all be key sources of
exam questions so plan to read the weekly assignments.
GRADING:
Examinations: 60%
First Exam 20%
Second Exam 20%
Final Exam 20%
Case Write-Ups (2): 20%
Participation: 10%
Team Presentation 10%
GRADING SCALE:
Grading will be on a +/- scale as follows:
93.34 - 100.00% A
90.00 - 93.33% A-
86.67 - 89.99% B+
83.34 - 86.66% B
80.00 - 83.33% B-
76.67 - 79.99% C+
73.34- 76.66% C
70.00 - 73.33% C-
66.67 - 69.99% D+
60.00 - 66.66% D
00.00- 59.99% F
Final grades will be converted to GPA using the University guidelines.
4.0 A
3.7 A-
3.3 B+
3.0 B
2.7 B-
2.3 C+
2.0 C
1.7 C-
1.3 D+
1.0 D
0.0 F
CASE WRITE-UPS:
Case reports are intended to be executive summaries focused on your analysis, conclusions, and
recommendations so refrain from repeating the case background and information already provided. The
reader is primarily interested in you effectively answering the discussion questions by:
(1) Utilizing appropriate strategic management concepts and tools
(2) Demonstrating insightful analysis of facts to draw well-supported conclusions
(3) Presenting arguments succinctly in a clear, brief, persuasive executive summary
Format:
Include cover page with case title, your name, date
Use 1” margins and 12 font
Not to exceed four pages (including cover)
COURSE POLICIES
LATE ASSIGNMENTS:
Assignments may be turned in prior to the due date for full credit. Late work without advance
arrangements due to special circumstances will receive no credit. Assignments are due at beginning of
class on the date noted.
MISSED CLASSES:
Missed classes will directly impact your participation grade. In case of unavoidable absence, contact your
team members for any notes and assignments.
MISSED TESTS:
It is your responsibility to be in class at the assigned date and time for each exam (unless arrangements
were made in advance for an alternative time—see Test Make-up Policy below). In order to adhere to
standards of professionalism and academic rigor, as well as out of fairness to students that meet course
requirements, there will be no make-up tests for missed exams. The only exception to this policy might
be under the rare circumstance of a last-minute emergency (i.e., accident, sudden illness, etc.)-see
“unplanned absences” below.
TEST MAKE-UP:
Since tests are scheduled during regular class periods or during the exam week, there should be no time
conflicts with other classes. Hence, make-up tests will be arranged only under extenuating circumstances
that justify your absence. There are two types of justified exam absences:
Planned absences: If you do have an unavoidable time conflict (e.g., job interview trip,
intercollegiate sports team travel), speak to me well in advance of the scheduled test date to make
arrangements for an alternate time. There will be no make-up tests provided due to planned absences
unless arrangements are made with me at least a week in advance of the test date. Also, no make-up test
will be permitted more than one week after the regularly scheduled test date.
Unplanned absences: If an unplanned circumstance (i.e., illness or medical emergency) were to
occur that makes you unable to attend an exam, you (or someone on your behalf) must get in touch with
me as soon as possible, via phone or e-mail (indicating a phone number where you or the contact person
can be reached). You will also need to provide a doctor’s note or other proper verification of the
confining emergency. Make-up tests will be provided only if and when your inability to physically attend
the scheduled exam has been established. UNIVERSITY POLICIES
University Policies
Academic Honesty: Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic
work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit. In addition, it is considered to
cheating when one cooperates with someone else in any such misrepresentation. The use of the intellectual
property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense. It is the University's
policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course. Repeat offenses
result in dismissal from the University.
Withdrawal Deadline: For Fall 2014, the course withdrawal deadline is Nov 2, 2014.
Disabled Students: University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided
reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented
disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to
make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments. Please note, you must first verify your
eligibility for these through Student Accessibility Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit
http://www.registrars.kent.edu/disability/ for more information on registration procedures).
Enrollment/Official Registration: Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in
classes. You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Student Tools on FlashLine) during the
first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section. Should you find
an error in your class schedule, you have until Sept 7 to correct the error. If registration errors are not
corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially
enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class
in which you are not properly registered.
Graduation: If you are eligible to graduate, it is your responsibility to apply for graduation before the set
deadline (May Graduation: Apply before September 15th August Graduation: Apply before December
15th December Graduation: Apply before March 15th) If you apply after the deadline you will be
assessed a $200 late fee. Please see your academic advisor as soon as possible if you are uncertain as to
your progress toward graduation. To apply for graduation complete the following steps: Log onto your
Flashline account 1. Click on the Student Tools tab, 2. Look in the Graduation Planning Tool Box, 3.
Click on Application for Graduation. If an error message appears, you must contact your advisor.
Outcomes assessment is a requirement for M&IS 44285, Business Policy/Strategy. Therefore, if you are
enrolled in this course during the current semester, you must complete two outcome measures as part of
your class, regardless of when you are actually graduating. More information will be shared by your
professor during the summer session. Completion of the two measures is required for you to receive your
final grade in M&IS 44285.
Note: Material in syllabus should be considered nominal and subject to change due to various constraints
such as weather, illness, or other unexpected issues.
COURSE SCHEDULE*
WEEK 1 – August 28, 2014
Read: Course Syllabus
Chapter 1, Hitt et al (10th edition)
Briefing: Course Overview
Lecture: Introduction to Strategic Management
Review Questions: (TBD)
WEEK 2 – September 4, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 2
Preparing Effective Case Analysis, Hitt pg. vii – xv
Lecture: External Environment Analysis
Introduce Porter 5 Forces Model
Review Questions: (TBD)
Assign Case (MGM)
WEEK 3 – September 11, 2014
Case Discussion: MGM (full class)
Read: Michael Porter article” The 5 competitive forces that shape strategy”
Lecture: Porter 5 Forces continued
Review Questions: (TBD)
WEEK 4 – September 18, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 3 and J. Barney article “Looking inside for competitive advantage”
Lecture: Internal Environment Analysis
Review Questions: (TBD)
Assign Case: (Microsoft) for written submission
WEEK 5 – September 25, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 4
Case Write-up Due
Case Discussion: Microsoft (full class)
Lecture: Business Level Strategy
Review Questions: (TBD)
Exam 1 Prep
WEEK 6 – October 2, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 5
Lecture: Competitive Rivalry/Dynamics
First Exam: (Chapters 1 – 4)
WEEK 7 – October 9, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 6
Review Exam Results
Lecture: Corporate Level Strategy
Review Questions: (TBD)
Assign Case: (Reynolds)
WEEK 8 – October 16, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 7 & Ecceles article “ Are you paying too much for that acquisition?”
Case Discussion: Reynolds (full class)
Lecture: Mergers and Acquisitions
Review Questions: (TBD)
Assign Case: (Best Buy) for written submission
WEEK 9 – October 23, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapters 8 & 9
Case Write-up Due
Case Discussion: Best Buy (full class)
Lecture: International and Cooperative Strategy
Review Questions: (TBD)
WEEK 10 – October 30, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 10
Lecture: Corporate Governance
Review Questions: (TBD)
Assign Case: (Foley)
Team Presentation Preparation
WEEK 11 – November 6, 2014
Read: Hitt, Chapter 11
Case Discussion: Foley (full class)
Lecture: Structure and Controls
Review Questions: (TBD)
Exam 2 Prep
WEEK 12 – November 13, 2014
Second Exam ( Chapters 5-11)
Read : Hitt Chapter 12
Lecture: Strategic Leadership/Entrepreneurship
Review Questions (TBD)
WEEK 13 – November 20, 2014
Review Exam Results
Team Presentations
WEEK 14 - November 27 2014 No Class – Thanksgiving Break
WEEK 15 – December 4, 2014
Team Presentations
Prep for Final
WEEK 16 – December 11, 2014
Final Exam 5:45-8:00pm
* All Cases are from the Hitt text , 10th Edition
* Articles are found on Library E Reserves Password is
