MANAGEMENT 455 COMPETITIVE STRATEGY
CAMERON SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Fall, 2014
Professor: Dr. Robert Keating
Office: Cameron 200L
Phone: 962-3069
E-mail: Keatingb@uncw.edu
Office hours: M-W 10:00-2:00, T 9-12
or by appointment
Required texts:
(1) E-Book package from McGraw-Hill. Go to www.bsg-online.com to register after
I have given you the code to enter.
Course Description: Senior-level capstone course in management strategy and an integration of
the various business functions. Case analysis, discussion and presentations are utilized to integrate the
business functions into a comprehensive approach for strategic decision-making, planning for
competitive advantage, communicating decisions and effective implementation of strategies.
Course Prerequisites: MGT 350, MKT 340, POM 370, FIN 335, BLA 361, ECN 324 and senior
standing. Should also have at least nine hours completed in your major.
Course Philosophy and Objectives:
The central theme for this course in competitive strategy is that a company’s chances for sustained success
are greatly improved when managers (1) have an astute, timely strategic ‘game plan’ for running the
company, and then they (2) implement and execute the plan with great proficiency.
This course will provide students the opportunity both individually and in teams to apply business and
management concepts to real problems and policy issues for a variety of organizational situations. Students
will be required to analyze, discuss, and make recommendations and decisions based on available facts and
information consistent with sound business concepts. The available information is, like the real world, not
always complete. The course has three specific learning objectives:
(1) Introduction to the theories, concepts, and models used in modern strategic management.
(2) Introduction to strategic decision making under uncertainty
(3) Integration of functional areas of business in developing and implementing top level strategic
decisions
Topics and Concepts
Topics covered in this course will include:
(1) Industry structure and the evolution of industries. The generic strategies of firms.
(2) Industry power
(3) Diversification theory, joint ventures and strategic alliances
(4) Use of formal planning systems
(5) Innovation, technology strategy and strategy in global enterprises
(6) Politics and culture of a firm
(7) Implementation of strategies and dealing with change
(8) Topics of interest-NAFTA, European community, China’s impact
(9) Social responsibility and ethics
This course strives to encourage creative and critical thinking skills, use of intuitive problem-solving, and
the application of team management and oral presentation skills.
Class Policies
In courses such as this the nuances of the topics are only discovered with complete preparation and
attentiveness during class discussions and presentations. For this reason several policies have been
developed to facilitate the learning process:
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Late assignments are not accepted
Attendance is expected and is critical to performance in this class. Class participation of readings
is expected. No participation, no “A”, it’s that simple. After the first absence your letter grade
will be affected. We only have 20 classes so each one counts as almost a full week of regular
classes.
Students will be placed in three or four person teams for the case analysis and critique. In any task
requiring more than one person to complete, problems in equity of workload can occur. Teams
will be required to complete a evaluation form on each of their teams members regarding both the
amount and the quality of their work. If a team member is not performing, inform the instructor
immediately.
Makeup exams are rare
The highest standards of grammar, spelling and punctuation are expected on all written
assignments.
Classroom climate: please use good manners at all times—respect for the other person’s point of
view is important. We can disagree and still be civil.
Please turn off all cell phones!
Be on time for class.
UNCW practices a zero-tolerance policy for violence and harassment of any kind. For
Emergencies contact UNCW CARE at 962-2273, Campus Police at 962-3184, or
Wilmington Police at 911. For University or community resources visit
http://uncw.edu/wrc/crisis.htm
Readings
In addition to the readings in the text, I will assign a series of readings from popular journals that can be
accessed from the library. You will be responsible for downloading and reading them, identifying key
points the article is making and looking at the implications for senior level managers in guiding their firms.
Participation
It is vitally important that you come prepared to discuss the chapters, readings and cases in the class.
I will be randomly calling on students for their opinions and views and it is embarrassing to say you didn’t
read the material. The simplest to be prepared is to make notes that you can refer to in class. It is also a
great to prepare for the exams.
Academic Honesty:
As a student at UNCW, you are pledged to uphold and support the UNCW Student Academic Honor Code:
The University of North Carolina Wilmington is a community of high academic standards where academic
integrity is valued. UNCW students are committed to honesty and truthfulness in academic inquiry and in
the pursuit of knowledge. This commitment begins when new students matriculate at UNCW, continues as
they create work of the highest quality while part of the university community, and endures as a core value
throughout their lives.
Guidelines in support of the Honor Code, including definitions of cheating and plagiarism, may be found
at:
http//www.uncw.edu/policies/documents/03_100finalhonorcode_aug2009.pdf
Grading:
There will be several methods of grading criteria:
Chapter quizzes 12 of them
Exams: two at 100 points each
Individual case analysis
Participation-includes analysis of readings & in class cases
Oral presentation of case
Written team case
Total
200
200
150
50
150
150
900
Accessing HBR:
Go to library home page
Look at the tabs above the search box and click on Books & More
Click the radio button for Title
Type in HBR (Type only HBR, not the full title) and click Go.
Click on the link to HBR
Click on the Business Source Complete
This takes you to the record for Harvard Business Review database. Here you click the link to search
within the publication or you can select by year, volume and issue (0n the right side of the page).
Assignments--Tentative
8/20 Introduction and course preview, Teams
Chapter one-What is strategy and why is it important!
Reading: Becoming a leader: Early career challenges faced by MBA graduates.
Academy of Management Learning & Education, 2011, Vol. 10 (2) p.452
Reading: How Google sold its engineers on management. HBR Dec. 2013 p.75
Chapter one quiz due 8/22 at 6pm
8/27 Reading: HBR: The big lie of strategic planning, J/F, 2014 p. 79
Reading: HBR, J/F, 2011 Reinvent your business model before it’s too late p.80
Reading: HBR, J/F 2011. When your business model is in trouble p.96
Reading: Fortune, 2/25/2013. Your business model doesn’t work anymore, p.42
Chapter two-Charting a company’s long-term direction: Vision, mission,
objectives and strategy
Reading: Fortune: Oct. 7, 2013 IBM’s massive bet on Watson p.81
Reading: HBR, Sept. 2012 Simple rules for a complex world p. 69
Reading: HBR: 2013 Dec. Analytics 3.0 p.65
Chapter two quiz due at 8/29 at 6pm
9/3 Chapter three- Evaluating a company’s external environment
Reading: HBR, March, 2013 Big bang disruption p.44
Reading: KPMG-Clarity in the cloud (sent via email)
Chapter three quiz due 9/5 at 6pm
Simulation review
9/10 Chapter four-Evaluating a company’s resources
Reading: HBR: Nov. 2010 Stress test your strategy
Reading: Strategy & Business: The end of competitive advantage
Chapter four quiz due at 9/12 at 6pm
Decision 11 due-practice
9/17 Chapter five-The five basic competitive strategy options
Reading: HBR, 2012 Sept. Bringing science to the art of strategy p. 57
Chapter five quiz due 9/19 at 6pm
Case Analysis exercise
Decision 11 due
9/24 Chapter six-Supplementing the chosen competitive strategy
Reading: HBR 2011, Nov. The great repeatable business model p. 107
Chapter six quiz due 9/26 at 6pm
Decision 12 due
10/1 Exam # 1, Chapter 1-6
10/8 Chapter seven-strategies for competing internationally or globally
Reading: HBR, 2012 Nov. p.77 Does management really work?
Chapter seven quiz due 10/10 at 6 pm
Decision 13 due
Individual case analysis due
10/15
Chapter eight-Diversification strategies
Reading: Academy of management perspectives, August, 2009. Managing
Strategic alliances: what do we know and where do we go from here? P. 45
Chapter eight quiz due 10/17 at 6 pm
Decision 14 due
10/22 Chapter nine-strategy, ethics, and social responsibility
Reading: HBR 2011 Nov. How great companies think differently p. 66
Chapter nine quiz due 10/24 at 6 pm
Decision 15 due
10/29
Chapter ten-Building an execution capable organization
Reading: HBR, 2008 June The secrets to successful strategy execution p. 61
Chapter ten quiz due 10/31 at 6 pm
Decision 16 due
11/5 Chapter eleven-Managing internal operations
Reading: HBR 2014, J/F The new patterns of innovation p.86.
Chapter eleven quiz due 11/7 at 6pm
Decision 17 due
11/12 Chapter twelve-Corporate culture and leadership
Reading: HBR, Sept. 2011, The higher ambition leader p.95
Reading: HBR, May, 2014 Blue Ocean leadership p.60
Reading: HBR: 2013, J/F Strategic leadership: The essential skills p.131
Chapter 12 quiz due at 6 pm
Decision 18 due
11/19 Emotional intelligence discussion
11/26 Off-Thanksgiving
12/3 Exam # 2- chapters 7-12
Strategy game papers due
12/10 Oral case presentations—all team written cases due