Master of Business Administration (Business Analytics)

Unit Description:

When it comes to numbers, there is always more than “meets the eye”. Managers must be able to read the “story” that the balance sheet and income statements talk about a company’s operations in order to be able to use it as a tool for decision-making relating to current assets, current liabilities and the
management of working capital.

This unit will enable students to understand the financial consequences of strategic decisions and equip them with tools to integrate the financial approach into decision-making.

The unit explores concepts and principles of business finance such as understanding financial statements, as well as the time value of money, risk and return, capital budgeting and working capital to provide a foundational understanding of financial management and decision-making in business.

Unit Description:

Working in a global, cross-cultural role requires effective communication with individuals and groups from different parts of the world. The success of a leader depends on his or her ability to work effectively with people who may understand and react to situations differently. Therefore, the ability to communicate and negotiate effectively is a foundational skill for professionals of every type and industry. Everyone negotiates frequently with internal and external customers, suppliers, employees, department leaders, bosses and more.

This unit will allow students to communicate more effectively, identify negotiation opportunities, address conflicts and gain an understanding of the unique challenges that exist when individuals, groups and organisations face potential or existing conflict through the exploration of a broad spectrum of negotiation strategies, new tactics to solve ongoing differences and models for securing cooperation and agreement in competitive environments.

Unit Description:

In project management, understanding the importance and relationship between organisational context and projects is paramount.

In this unit, students will learn the internal and external organisational context in which projects are formed, executed, supported and evaluated. Engagement with project stakeholders and the impact organisational context has on defining the roles, responsibilities and level of collaboration required by a project team for successful project delivery will also be discussed.

Unit Description:

The aim of this unit is to develop a student’s understanding of the influence culture, politics and power have on the behaviour of others in an organisational context. Students will understand the key influences which affect the behaviuour of individuals and teams within organisations, and how these in turn affect them.

This will be achieved through a strong appreciation of working in a team, having a more profound perspective of what makes people and organisations do what they do, and how to adjust one’s own behaviour to reflect the circumstances and situation. Students will be able to undertake the Clifton
Strengths Finder Assessment to help them gain security when working as part of a team.

They will be introduced to agile leadership so that they become aware that leading through difficult times requires agility to leverage, not react to, the turbulence around them, and manage their teams, networks, and themselves by cultivating a flexible, responsive, and collaborative culture at work.

Unit Description:

Tailored to explore business law in an international context, this unit explores the role of law and the legal implications of participating in global business. The unit introduces students to a wide range of interesting concepts explored in a global context including contract law, intellectual property, agency law, employment law and industrial relations, business structures and conflict law.

The unit also covers some of the challenging aspects of business law, with students able to reflect on the consequences and implications of carrying out business in an international setting.

Unit Description:

Data visualisation and business reporting are becoming one of the most important skills in the digital economy. Businesses that are able to capitalise on the increased data within their organizations are able to make agile and robust decisions in a dynamically changing business environment.

This unit will provide the latest concepts, tools and techniques to build and influence the development of a successful data reporting capability. Delivered through an interactive approach with highly-visual content, participants of this course are exposed to basic fundamentals of data, design, narrative and
technology that powers compelling and action-oriented data visualisations. This would aid in effective fact-based decision making which would eventually enable organisations to achieve increased profitability.

Unit Description:

Big Data and Data Visualisation introduces students to the concepts that inform big data analytics and visualisation. It will help students gain insights into how big data drives and supports an organisation’s strategy and how data-centricity helps to make better business decisions.

The unit provides in-depth coverage of business motivations and drivers for big data adaptation, enterprise technologies and big data business intelligence. Topics covered will also include algorithms and machine learning techniques for big data and data science.

Furthermore, students will develop an understanding of data visualisation tools and techniques that will help them present information and data using appealing and informative dashboards. In summary, this unit aims to provide students with an ability to discover trends and outliers in the data using big data and visualisation principles, concepts, tools and techniques through hands-on practice. Students who complete this unit can go on and prepare themselves for CAP exam (https://www.certifiedanalytics.org/for_professionals.php ) and distinguish themselves as professional data analysts.

Unit Description:

Businesses are continually adopting the strategy of business analytics for reporting. Students will demonstrate the ability to produce business reports using business analytics and/or data visualisation. Created as an
opportunity for theory in practice in business reporting, this unit prepares students for the real world and allows for practical experience.

By using skills learned within a range of units using business analytics, students have the opportunity to experience business reporting in a real setting and work to further enhance their theory into practice. They will work with business/industry case studies addressing their business issues and analyse, determine and report recommendations that resolves the issues of the industry client. Students will effectively communicate the results of their work in a business manner and follow structured techniques of communication with data.

Unit Description

To succeed today, managers must develop the resources and capabilities needed to gain and sustain advantage in competitive markets both traditional and emerging. The way in which organisations attempt to develop such competitive advantage constitutes the essence of their strategy.

In this unit, students will learn about strategic management (purpose, how to form the strategy, implementation, target setting, KPIs, strategy review, accountability and strategy re-set once the performance is monitored. The emphasis is on the development and successful implementation of strategies in different types of firms across industries.

Unit Description

Strategy and planning are core to success as an enterprise and business strategy offers the opportunity for organisations to maximise their success and achieve financial goals. On a global scale, businesses can embrace opportunities in emerging marketing through trade treaties, providing greater options for growth and development.

The unit explores economic, cultural, and ethical differences in international markets and showcases the importance of creating an in-depth market entry strategy.

Unit Description

Marketing is far more than just advertising and promotion; it is first and foremost an organisational culture and philosophy that has customers at the centre of an organisation’s strategies and business processes. It is also the strategic analysis of the market environment, including customer, competitor, company, context and collaborator, and then also the strategic execution of segmentation, targeting and positioning, followed by a set of specific strategies in areas such as product, pricing, place (distribution), promotion and people.

Strategic marketing management is a powerful organisational practice and process to best reach and satisfy customers while increasing long-term profitability and productivity. It will also help a business become more innovative and better penetrate a market, and hence achieve desired growth. In this unit, students will learn to prepare an integrated marketing strategy that aligns the business with consumer needs, differentiating it from the competition.

Unit Description

Regardless of size or industry, all businesses must take risks to achieve their goals. Organisational risk management involves the identification, review and monitoring of risks that have the potential to impact a business. By understanding the role enterprise risk management plays in business planning, organisations within the private and public sectors can develop strategies to implement in the event of an organisational risk occurring.

Students will explore what constitutes risk as well as risk as an opportunity based on organisational risk appetite and tolerance. Students will also specifically learn how to identify, manage, report and review risk. Frameworks for assessing and treating risk will also be explored.

Unit Description

Corporate governance provides the structure through which the objectives of a company are set, and the means of attaining those objectives and monitoring performance. Global economic integration has been a key factor in the salience of corporate governance questions making sustainability one of the key issues
facing today’s society. This is underlined by the increasing attention on sustainability issues by governments, media, academics and industry.

This unit examines various contemporary aspects of corporate governance, including issues relating to responsibility, accountability, sustainability, oversight, risk, ethics and incentives. This unit equips students with tools for managing ways to ethically and sustainably lead and behave in organisations, it explores aspects of ethical behaviour, sustainable development, corporate responsibility and stakeholder thinking. It provides tools to help students analyse the impacts of individuals and organisations on the economic, social, and environmental contexts in which they operate and therefore creating effective corporate governance.

Unit Description

In the age of Big Data, companies have more consumer information than ever and they must rely on this data to both target consumers as well as improve their products and services. This reliance on information and data proves the value of knowledge and evidence in decision-making.

This unit enables students to apply different analytical models to explore real-world marketing challenges. From targeted list creation and data segmentation, to testing campaign effectiveness, pricing structures and forecasting demand, this subject allows students to learn how statistics, consumer analytics and modelling can be put to optimal use. They will also learn how to collect, separate and analyse big data.

Unit Description

Students are introduced to two key concepts at the core of real-world analytics namely optimisation and multivariate data aggregation. In this unit, students will develop their understanding of how to make industry-related decisions in business, and the public service using modern real-world analytical modeling techniques to determine real-world solutions.

Students will develop the skills to make effective decisions through mathematical methods in optimization using tools and techniques in a tool such as Spreadsheet. Moreover, students will also develop their learning on the concepts of multivariate functions in order to analyse, describe and interpret a given dataset to accurately determine the relationship between multiple variables which plays an important role in the context of effective business management. Students will be able to communicate the results in the requirement format to the relevant stakeholders within the business.

Unit Description

As well as providing students with further knowledge and skills, MBA5008 provides the opportunity for students’ knowledge, skills and abilities gained throughout the Master of Business Administration (Business Analytics) program to be applied in this major project; especially those acquired in the specialised units.

Students will research an international business strategy by analysing and developing creative, practical, unique and relevant reporting. They will be required to undertake research that includes the application of theory and frameworks for data visualisation methods used to produce business reports. Students will also demonstrate their communication skills, technical competence and expertise.