6 ECTS credits
168 h study time

Offer 3 with catalog number 4005346FNR for all students in the 2nd semester at a (F) Master - specialised level.

Semester
2nd semester
Enrollment based on exam contract
Impossible
Grading method
Grading (scale from 0 to 20)
Can retake in second session
Yes
Taught in
English
Faculty
Faculty of Social Sciences & SolvayBusinessSchool
Department
Business
Educational team
Elvira Haezendonck
Fiona Maureen Courtens
Alain Verbeke (course titular)
Activities and contact hours
26 contact hours Lecture
13 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
129 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study
Course Content

The structure of the course is as follows.

In the first part, the main building blocks of a unifying framework are introduced. This framework should allow students to grasp the essence, in strategy terms, of what happens in a complex international business setting. The framework also suggests the way forward, so as to improve MNE performance in terms of value creation and satisfying stakeholder goals across borders. 

In the second part, we revisit the best international business articles published in prestigious publications such as the Harvard Business Review, the Sloan Management Review and California Management Review since the 1980’s. During the lectures in the second part, various case studies are discussed to confront students with practical applications. Also, findings from the relevant academic literature are introduced to ensure that students are exposed to a broad spectrum of strategic management insights, from highly theoretical to highly practical.

Course material
Handbook (Required) : International Business Strategy, Rethinking the Foundations of Global Corporate Success, Alain Verbeke and Ian Lee, 3rd, Cambridge University Press, 9781108738378, 2021
Additional info

The actual class sessions aim to provide a conceptual synthesis of the course materials, with presentations by the instructors and their teaching associate, followed by class discussions. 

The instructors will go systematically beyond the required readings and present materials criticizing or augmenting the substance of the required readings.
 

Teaching Methods

·         Lecture: collective contact-dependent moments during which the lecturers engage with learning materials

·         Seminar, Exercises or Practicals (Practical): collective or individual contact-dependent moments during which the students are guided to actively engage with learning materials/cases – upfront preparation may be requested

·         Independent or External Form of Study (Self): independent study

This description of the teaching methods is indicative.

REGULAR AND WORKING STUDENTS

Lecture: 26 hours

Practical: 13 hours

·         discussions of different cases

Self: 129 hours

·         preparation lecture, amounting to 2.5 hours per chapter: 42.5 hours (17 x 3 hours)

·         preparation cases before the class discussions, amounting 1,5 hours per case: 45 hours (30 x 1,5 hours)

·         individual preparation related to recent cases (critical monitoring of the international business activities): 2 hours

·         preparation exam: 40 hours (5 days of 8 hours)

o    theory: 32 hours

o    case exercises: 5 hours

o    additional undiscussed cases: 3 hours

WORKING STUDENTS

Contact the lecturers in the first 2 weeks of the classes.

Learning Outcomes

Algemene competenties

The purpose of this course is not to add an incremental ‘international dimension’ to the discussion of a set of conventional strategy problems.  Rather, the goal is to explain what is at the heart of a successful international business strategy, thereby outlining the foundations of global corporate success.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Written Exam determines 70% of the final mark.
Other Exam determines 30% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Written Exam with a relative weight of 70 which comprises 70% of the final mark.

    Note: Written Exam with a weighting factor of 70 and thus 70% of the total final mark.

Within the Other Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Case preparation with a relative weight of 30 which comprises 30% of the final mark.

    Note: Case preparation, in group or alone, with a weighting factor of 30 and thus 30% of the total final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

Examination will take place through a written exam which consists of three parts:

·         Open questions

·         1 case study with open questions related to the case and the theory, and

·         Multiple choice questions. The questions will typically address the main content of the chapters of the book

Allowed unsatisfactory mark
The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context

This offer is part of the following study plans:
Master of Business Engineering: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)
Master of Business Economics: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)
Master of International Business: Standaard traject
Master of Business Engineering: Business and Technology: Standaard traject
Master of Teaching in Economics: standaard traject (90 ECTS, Etterbeek) (only offered in Dutch)