Management MSc

Cranfield University

The aim of the Accounting and Finance module is to introduce a number of traditional and contemporary accounting approaches that will increase the visibility of financial information and support management decision making. It aims to integrate basic financial knowledge in the management of a business organisation.

Business analysts are frequently asked to gather, review and analyse business and industry data to produce robust, meaningful recommendations to senior managers. This requires the combination of a range of knowledge, skills and behaviours. For instance, the selection of quality data, building reliable databases and models, applying statistical models, deriving and communicating meaning from the findings.

To introduce the concepts and techniques of Microeconomics (e.g. market analysis, price theory, rationality) and Macroeconomics (e.g. inflation, exchange rates and interest rates) in a way which provides a core foundation for later applied financial analysis in a range of other core and elective courses on the MSc in Finance and Management and MSc in Investment Management.

In the Context of the Financial markets, it is imperative that you become aware of the fundamental principles and concepts pertaining to Economic Theory per se. Studying economics not only provides knowledge for making decisions but also offers a tool with which to approach questions such as the desirability of a particular financial investment opportunity, the benefits and costs of alternative careers, or the likely impacts of public policies.

This is an integrative module allowing students to develop management consulting skills and apply their learning in a practical manner. It will use the insights generated through ECC to explore the cultural nuances of the company/national culture relevant to the case company. Students will work in their consulting teams and will role-play as a management consulting team, competing against the other teams. All teams will address the same business challenge: a genuine business issue in a particular company. Students will have a set of taught sessions on the ‘art and craft’ of management consulting. In parallel, they will work with their consulting teams to address the case company business challenge. They will engage with the problem; gather the relevant data; use appropriate tools/frameworks and propose innovative, pragmatic and achievable solutions. This module is key to enhance the students’ ability to analyse management challenges, to use consulting insights and processes effectively in order to perform better during their company-based internships.

Organisations are run by and for people, and the success or failure of an organisation depends on the people in that organisation. It is rarely an absence of planning that causes organisational difficulties; rather it is the failure of management in understanding and managing complex personal and interpersonal systems that can lead to significant problems. Similarly, an acute and critical understanding of these dynamic relationships can lead to profound and enduring success and benefit for the individual, the team, the organisation and wider society.

Success in management, particularly at senior levels in organisations, depends on understanding organisations, the people in them and the relationship between the internal and external environments within which they exist, and in ensuring that they work effectively.

In this module students will be introduced to various aspects of people and organisations. This module combines models, theories and ideas from organisational behaviour, psychology, and sociology in order to provide students with a basic understanding in recognising, understanding and utilising what has been termed the "human factor" in organisations; including ways of conceptualising organisations and how people behave within them. We shall consider the impact of the external environment, and address notions of organisational change.

This module is necessarily an introduction; further suggestions of reading and of consequent activities will be provided.

It may also be that students will wish to undertake a project in this area; several of the faculty involved will be pleased to discuss this with you

This module is concerned with managing the organisation’s key resource – the people who work for it. It aims to help learners understand how effective people management can contribute to develop and sustain organisations. The module aims to develop an insight into the complexities of managing people in a changing environment. The focus of the module is to help learners understand the relationship between people management and organisational performance, including managerial roles, and sustainability challenges, emphasising the crucial links and responsibilities of line managers.

The module will provide an introduction to the main activities associated with resourcing, developing and day–to-day management of people in organisations. It is not the intention of the module to develop human resource management specialists, but rather to provide a general introduction to the people management issues that concern all managers.

The module will draw on key academic contributions in the broad field of people management, including current research being carried out by faculty in the School of Management. Throughout the module, sessions will be highly interactive in order to develop critical insight and core skills in the people management field.

The module is primarily designed to provide you with an understanding of what is required to undertake successful academic studies and to conduct research in business contexts considering that todays’ managers:

• are paid to make decisions
• are expected to make ‘informed’ decisions (i.e. based on evidence)
• are evaluated on the basis of the outcomes from their decisions

Therefore, understanding the process of producing evidence will ensure you have the core skills to inform management decisions.

Strategic Management is concerned with the future direction of the organisation and finding and sustaining best fit with its environment - determining its scope, establishing objectives and formulating strategies to achieve them. In order to do this, strategic thinking must understand the needs and priorities of the organisation, to anticipate and react to changes in the organisation's environment, to identify and harness the organisation’s most advantageous resources and capabilities, and to account for all stakeholders who are impacted by the organisation's practices. Incorporating a systems thinking approach to organisations and their environments, this module emphasizes the strategic significance of societal contexts and the broader ecological sphere.

Strategic Management is a dynamic, interdisciplinary, thought-provoking subject and activity. It is part science and part art. It is both analytic and creative. There is no one best way to approach strategy, no 'one size fits all'. Context is king. We learn how to develop bespoke strategies befitting different forms of organisation across various contexts. The aim of this module is to build confidence in undertaking these strategic activities, so that distinctive Cranfield learners can form and communicate a credible and believable view of an organisation’s future direction.

Many people work internationally and/or in highly diverse settings in multicultural teams. Leaders who are able to understand their own cultural values, norms and preference, who are able to recognise and interact successfully with people from other cultures have an advantage in our globalised world. In short, cultural understanding, adaptability and intelligence are highly advantageous. This module explores management and leadership issues arising from working with different cultures in a domestic or international context and enables students to more successfully manage a range of cross-cultural challenges. It does so using a blend of practical examples, research-based theories and experiential teaching methods. Crucially, this module enables students to perform better in their internships as they are extremely likely to work in highly diverse teams.