Strategy Syllabus
Strategy
B01.2301
Fall Semester, 2011
Professor: Robert Salomon
Office: KMC, 7-59
Phone: (212) 998-0223
E-mail: rsalomon@stern.nyu.edu
Website: www.robertsalomon.com
Office hours: W 10:00am-12:00pm; OR by appointment
________________________________________________________________________________
COURSE OVERVIEW
This course focuses on issues related to strategy, both business and corporate. We will examine how
firms should structure their operations to compete effectively in the marketplace, how firms can
organize their activities to achieve profitability, and why some firms earn above-average economic
profits while others do not.
Some of the specific business strategy questions we will address include:
1. What role does industry structure play in profitability?
2. How does competition influence profitability?
3. What are the generic strategies that firms use to position themselves for profitability?
4. How can businesses exploit their internal resources and capabilities to achieve profitability?
5. What role does innovation play in the pursuit of profitability?
Some of the specific corporate strategy questions we will address include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why are firms sometimes better than markets for organizing transactions?
What determines firm boundaries?
Why do we have multi-business firms?
How do multi-business firms create or destroy value?
How are multi-business firms managed?
Obviously, the answers to these questions are interrelated, and not mutually exclusive. Moreover,
the managerial decisions and actions that underpin such decisions materially affect not just the
success, but also the survival of business enterprises. The hope then is that this course will help
students develop managerial skills in the formulation and execution of strategies, and to introduce
1
Strategy Syllabus
students to a set of analytic tools that aid them toward that end. The ultimate goal is to gain insight
into how to optimally manage business units to generate sustained competitive advantage.
REQUIRED READING



Cousepack (Coded CP in schedule)
NOTE: The coursepack includes a textbook entitled Corporate Strategy: A Resource Based
Approach, by D.J. Collis and C.A. Montgomery (it is coded CM in schedule)
Blackboard articles (Coded BB in schedule)
COURSE STANDARDS
The greatest value from graduate education is seldom realized immediately upon graduation. Such
value is realized over a lifetime, and comes not from having a “bag of tricks” but rather from
developing analytical, and problem-solving, skills. One of the most valuable abilities that you can
develop and sharpen in graduate school is the ability to think critically and strategically, and to
speak and write in a logical and compelling manner.
Accordingly, this is not a lecture course. You are responsible for a large portion of your own
development. You are required not only to attend classes, but also to carefully prepare for
each class and contribute actively to class discussion.
COURSE GRADING
Grading will be based on the following:
Participation (and in-class activities)
Individual Short Assignments
Group Assignment
Individual Final Assignment
25%
20%
30%
25%
Participation. I will use a number of in-class activities to explore concepts and tools used in the
course. Your effort and contribution on these activities will determine your participation grade. I
will cold-call students frequently, and at random.
Individual Short Assignments. You are required to complete two (2) short individual assignments.
The short individual assignments should be typed single-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman
Font, with one inch margins all around. Your assignment should be no longer than 2 pages.
Individual Final Assignment. You are required to complete one (1) final assignment. The final
assignment should be typed single-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman Font, with one inch
margins all around. Your assignment should be no longer than 5 pages – excluding title page,
references, and exhibits.
Group Assignment. You will work in groups of 3-5 to submit one (1) group assignment. The
deliverable will utilize the tools and concepts of the class. It will require case analysis. A good case
analysis should include (but is not limited to) the following components:
2
Strategy Syllabus
1. Brief Introduction & Key Issues
Identify the key issues involved
2. External Analysis
Macro-environment analysis
Analysis of environmental trends
Porter’s 5/6 Forces
Competitor analysis
3. Internal Analysis
Assessment of firm’s strengths and weaknesses vis-à-vis competitors
Sources of competitive advantage/core competences
Sustainability of advantages
Financial statement analysis – i.e., what financial statements say about firm health
4. Analysis of the business strategy of the firm
Identify the firm’s strategic positioning
Analyze how that strategy is aligned with, and how it has helped, achieve firm goals
Describe how/if the identified strategy creates value
5. Recommendations
Make specific and actionable recommendations
Justify the recommendation
Analyze how this recommendation helps the firm achieve its corporate-level strategy
Consider implications for the firm’s financial standing
The group assignment should be typed single-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman Font, with 1
inch margins all around. Your analysis should be no longer than 5 pages – excluding title page,
references, and exhibits. Exhibits should be on their own pages, following the references. All
exhibits should be referred to in the text of the analysis. You do not need to repeat information from
the case in your analysis – you should write your analysis assuming its reader has read the case.
All of your work (individual and group) must be original. You should not use material that is
beyond the scope or time frame of the case! While you may supplement financial information
provided in the case (for example, with financial statements from competitors, etc.), you should be
careful that the data pertains to the same years covered by the case. Any external information used
must be properly referenced. Failure to properly reference any external source constitutes
plagiarism. To avoid any confusion over the originality of your group work, your team should work
alone, and should not utilize any analysis found on the web, performed for previous classes, or from
any other source.
The individual and group homework assignments must be handed in to the instructor in hard copy
at the beginning of class on the date it is due. I will not accept electronic copies of the homework
assignments. Note: I will not accept late assignments. Further, I reserve the right to submit the
case analyses to plagiarism-detection programs.
***PLEASE NOTE: At the end of this course you will be asked to evaluate your
contributions, and those of your colleagues, to the group assignments. You will also be asked
to evaluate class participation. These evaluations will be used to scale individual grades.
3
Strategy Syllabus
COURSE COMMUNICATION
A Blackboard website has been created for this course. You should check blackboard on a regular
basis. The course syllabus, group membership information, lecture notes, class discussion questions,
assignment information, and general course announcements will all be posted on the site.
OTHER ISSUES
Honor Code: Please remember that you are governed the MBA Honor Code. Moreover, every
student is obligated to report any suspected violation of that code. You can find more information
on the MBA Honor Code at http://w4.stern.nyu.edu/scorp/committee.cfm?doc_id=4797.
Students with Disabilities: If you are having trouble in class, I want to know about it as soon as
possible. I will do my best to help students who, despite a sincere and solid effort, are experiencing
difficulty. If you have a qualified disability and will require academic accommodation during this
course, please contact the Moses Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD, 998-4980) and provide
me with a letter outlining recommended accommodations.
Electronic Device Policy: Laptops, cell phones, smartphones, recorders, and other electronic
devices may not be used in this class.
Important Dates to Remember:
Individual Short Assignment: Due Class 5
October 10, 2011
Reading: Back Bay Battery
Question available on Blackboard
Individual Short Assignment: Due Class 6
October 17, 2011
Reading: Progressive Insurance
Question available on Blackboard
Group Assignment: Due Class 8
October 31, 2011
Case: Nucleon, Inc.
Question available on Blackboard
Individual Final Assignment: Due Class 13
December 12, 2011
Case: Newell Co.
Question available on Blackboard
COURSE SCHEDULE
See Attached
4
Strategy Syllabus
SCHEDULE
BUSINESS STRATEGY MODULE
Class
Date
1
9/12
Topics and Reading Assignments
Intro/What is Strategy
Part 1 – Reading: What is Strategy? (CP)
Part 2 – Reading: Wal*Mart Stores, Inc. (CP)
2
9/19
External Analysis
Part 3 – Reading – Five Forces that Shape Strategy / Ratios Tell a Story (CP)
Part 4 – Reading – Intel Corp., 1968-2003 (CP)
3
9/26
Internal Analysis
Part 1 – Reading – Look Inside for Comp. Adv. / Value Chain / Positioning (BB)
Part 2 – Reading – Apple Computer, 2006 (CP)
4
10/3
Competitive Rivalry
Part 1 – Reading – Anticipating Competitive Dynamics (CP)
Part 2 – Reading – Dogfight Over Europe: Ryanair (CP)
5
10/10
Innovation and Creative Destruction
Part 1 – Reading – Creative Destruction (CP)
6
10/17
Part 2 – Simulation – Back Bay Battery
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT DUE!! SEE QUESTION ON BLACKBOARD!
Summary and Review
Part 1 – Guest Speaker TBD
Part 2 – Reading – Progressive Insurance (CP)
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT DUE!! SEE QUESTION ON BLACKBOARD!
5
Strategy Syllabus
CORPORATE STRATEGY MODULE
7
10/24
Boundary of the Firm
Part 1 – Reading: Chapter 5, pp. 116-135 (CM)
Part 2 – Reading: Vertical Integration: Fisher Body/GM Revisited (BB)
8
10/31
Resources and Rents – Scale and Scope
Part 3 – Reading: Chapter 2, skim; Chapter 3; Chapter 5, pp. 135-146 (CM)
9
11/7
Part 4 – Reading: Nucleon, Inc. (CP)
GROUP ASSIGNMENT DUE!! SEE QUESTION ON BLACKBOARD!
Diversification
Part 1 – Reading: Chapter 4 (CM)
Part 2 – Reading: Vivendi: Revitalizing a French Conglomerate (CP)
10
11/14
Modes of Diversification
Part 1 – Reading: When to Ally and When to Acquire (CP); Managing Strategic
Alliances, pp. 45-51 (do not read sections on capability) (BB)
Part 2 – Reading: Honda-Rover: Crafting an Alliance (CP)
11
11/28
Mergers and Acquisitions
Part 1 – Reading: Are You Paying Too Much for That Acquisition? (CP);
Economist Article (BB)
Part 2 – Reading: DaimlerChrysler Post-Merger Integration (CP)
12
12/5
Internal Growth and Corporate Governance
Part 1 – Reading: 3M, Profile of an Innovating Company (CP)
Part 2 – Reading: Chapter 8 (CM); Economist articles (BB)
13
12/12
Corporate Governance and Review
Part 1 – Guest Speaker TBD
Part 2 – Reading: Newell Co. (CP)
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT DUE!! SEE QUESTION ON BLACKBOARD!
***This schedule is a guideline only. I reserve the right to change the schedule as necessary.
6