Awards
Target Award
Programme Offerings
Full-Time
Educational Aims of the Course
The programme is designed to give students a critical insight into the nature of scholarly business learning at masters level. It starts by examining what is meant by studying and learning at masters level and goes on to examine the skills and knowledge required to perform successfully at this level as a scholarly business practitioner. The context for this learning is a critical examination of organisational context and its impact on leadership, knowledge, and professional learning. Scholarly business practice is developed through an exploration of the major arguments surrounding the nature of leading and the diverse views on how professionals learn within their occupational contexts. At a time of increasing public debate about the nature of executive behaviour and in particular the area of leadership, it is important to engage with the arguments about the nature of what we do as professionals including the complex social, political, economic and ethical practices which are at the heart of organisations and leadership behaviour. This will be of particular value to students in their professional practice and in their transition into scholarly-practitioners. Highlighting and making explicit the nature of masters level learning in the context of scholarly business practice provides a sound foundation for the MBA. The content and learning processes in this module are intrinsic to the conceptual frameworks and learning approaches underpinning the MBA programme design. Effective leadership is a key contributor to organisational success. It therefore behoves those in leadership positions to fully consider theories and ideas of leadership as well as their own leadership motivations and behaviours. This module starts with a focus on the individual and in developing a critical self understanding as this is the cornerstone of good leadership. To do this students will explore theoretical perspectives of leadership, critically reflect on leadership in their own context and on their own approach to leadership. Part of this process includes developing a comprehensive development plan to improve leadership capabilities and to future-proof for the post MBA landscape. In addition students will consider psychological and behavioural factors that impact on the engagement of others, enhancing their ability to motivate, foster collaboration and communicate with colleagues, teams, and other stakeholders to achieve organisational success.
Learning Outcomes
Teaching, Learning and Assessment
The teaching will be delivered via the 7000LODSLA 30 Credit module which will be delivered via block teaching and through hybrid delivery. The University’s VLE (Canvas) will be utilised to allow teaching and additional supporting materials to be readily available off-site and provide a means for participants to maintain contact. A strong emphasis is placed on recognising that the workplace is an important place to learn, learners will integrate key concepts and theories, assessing the impact of these on their own working environment and reporting back on their findings. In addition, the teaching approach will utilise a ‘flipped learning environment’. The flipped learning approach provides learners with materials including articles, journals, and videos to engage with prior to the class. Learners are then required to complete set activities and questions and bring their learning, research, and answers to the classroom ready for discussion. This ensures that class time can be used for deeper and more meaningful learning and debate and maximises learning opportunities. A variety of technologies may be used to support this including videos, interactive simulations, an online survey or quiz or taking part in collaborative online discussions via the VLE.
The assessment for the module will be via a piece of coursework in the form of a 4500 word Portfolio.