The Extended Essay in
IB Business & Management
EXTENDED
ESSAY
Overview…. What the IB Says
An extended essay in business and
management provides you with an
opportunity to carry out in-depth
research in an area of personal interest
relating to business and management.
Basically…..
• The extended essay involves
investigating a real business issue
related to any area of the IB course
• So if you have an interest in a
particular company, industry,
business trend or development
you should be able to make an
appropriate EE title
Some previous topics that students
have investigated….
Steve Jobs leadership
Apple Vs Samsung
Dells falling PC sales
Geely acquisition of Volvo
Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill
Tully’s in Manila
The more high profile your issue is, the more easy it will be to find
sources of information
Picking a topic –What the IB says
You may want to undertake a detailed
investigation into work relating to a specific
regional/national context, or perhaps
practical applications relating to the work of
a particular management theorist.
Basically….
• You need to pick a recent business issue
which you will discuss and apply business
concepts and theories to
• You need to focus your essay on a
particular business (or businesses),
industry, country or theorist
• You need to ensure your essay is focussed
enough so that it can be adequately
answered within 4000 words
• You need to be able to discuss your issue
and come to a conclusion
Choosing a Question - What the IB
says
The extended essay provides you with an
opportunity to develop research skills by reviewing
business theory, concepts and principles, and
critically analysing how these have been put into
practice in the business world and the resultant
impact on business activity.
Basically
Your EE can’t be too general, you have to choose
a specific question to answer
You choose your question, then you have to…
• Research it
• Discuss it
• Apply business concepts to it
• Reach conclusions about it
Example questions…
To what extent does ******** marketing strategy for its redevelopment phase meet the preferences of its customers?
“What motivates employees? Can Herzberg’s motivation theory
help explain the improvement in productivity at XYZ Ltd?”
“How significant has the contribution of Just-in-Time
production been in improving efficiency in the textile
industry?”
“Why has the practice of publishing environmental audits been
adopted more widely in Country X than in Country Y?”
Good question formats…..
• What was the most important factor in ……
• To what extent has ……….
• How important is ……….
Research – The IB says
This will involve broad and
detailed research using a range
of sources.
Basically…..
• Research should be primarily from secondary sources,
with Primary research only being used if it is necessary
• You should aim to find approximately 20 different
sources from a range of different perspectives
• These could be from a mixture of:
• Journal Articles
• Newspaper articles (from different countries)
• Annual Reports
• Printed Sources
• Market Data
• Web sources
Use of Business Tools… The IB Says
The extended essay requires the application of business
theory, tools and techniques to produce a coherent and
structured analytical essay that effectively addresses the
research question.
Basically
• Your discussion can’t just be in general, you must mention the
concepts you have learned as part of the IB course.
• You could also apply tools such as:
– Porter’s 5 forces
– SWOT analysis
– Boston Matrix
– PEST analysis
– Porter’s generic strategies
– Marketing Mix
– Lewin’s forcefield analysis
– Ratio Analysis
– Investment Appraisal
The Process - An Example
Decision to investigate the success of Aldi in the UK following
record sales figures this Christmas
Background research into what information is available on Aldi
and the UK supermarket industry
Decide on title ‘What is the most important factor contributing
to the success of Aldi in the UK’
Thorough research into financial data for Aldi and competitors,
market trends, economic data (at least 20 sources)
More
research if
necessary
Decision as to which factors are to be discussed
Decide what tools/concepts it will be appropriate to use/refer to
Write Essay