Global Business Administration (International Tourism and Hospitality Management) MBA

University of Gloucestershire

The purpose of this module is to allow the student to carry out a self-managed piece of work that integrates the knowledge and skills acquired during the previous study within an employability and career development focused framework. It provides students with an opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills to the development of a business plan for the launch of a new business ventureor to the analysis and resolution of the kinds of business and management problems that are encountered in developing a viable and business case. It also provides the opportunity for students to communicate proposed solutions and the underpinning rationale to an audience of potential investors, peers, business professionals and academic mentors.

The module aims to provide students with an applied understanding of business decision making by focusing on behavioural and management science approaches. It utilises these two approaches to evaluate the reality of practical decision making. Emphasis will be on application of various statistical methods to finance data for decision making.

The module explores the global hospitality and tourism industries and their economic and social significance. Different sectors of the industry will be analysed. Key topics such as hospitality and tourism design, planning, development and delivery will be explored from theoretical and applied perspectives.

This module critically explores the nature of the international hospitality and tourism industry as a global phenomenon. Students will be encouraged to critique responsible management within this context, with particular focus on the social, financial and environmental impacts of the hospitality and tourism industries. Students will develop an advanced understanding of organisational and destination resilience planning and how this relates to the critical sustainability agenda at a local, national and global scale, whereby an emphasis is placed on the central roles of systems thinking, innovation and adaptive governance. Relationships between the consumer experience, business-to-business relationships, resilience and sustainability are critically explored. Students will engage in a series of seminars and workshops designed to critique the triple bottom line of organisations and destinations within the global context of the hospitality and tourism industries. Areas of focus will include resilience planning, systems thinking, adaptive governance, innovation, disruptions and wicked problems, responsible management, ethics and moral decision making, the consumer experience, responsible consumption, the wellbeing paradigm and the critical sustainability agenda.

This module critically explores principles and practice of business continuity planning in a global context and in relation to diverse crises and disaster risks. Students will develop an advanced understanding of business continuity planning for organisations and organisational networks at a local, national and global scale. Emphasis is placed on developing advanced professional skills in relation to the planning, management and implementation of complex business continuity projects that involve a high level of multi-agency and stakeholder integration in response to highly contextualised emergencies, large-scale disasters and crises. Students will engage in a series of seminars and workshops designed to critically review contemporary and innovative approaches towards organisational risk and crisis management. Areas of focus will include organisational resilience, disaster risk reduction, business continuity planning, crisis management, leadership and continuous learning.

Project management is key to delivering strategic value within an organisation and it involves time planning, controlling costs, time and quality which are predetermined and defined. Included are also budgetary constraints, risk and the management of stakeholder interests. Projects can range from construction of a new building to the launch of new product, or outsourcing previous in-house functions, to the re-engineering of products, services and processes.

A period up to 12 months of full-time work experience relevant to the student's field of study. During this time, Independent?portfolio of work, taking ownership, leading inquiry while demonstrating investigative skills, demonstrate research skills to identify problem area, student applies learning in real-time independently, demonstrates accurate application of theory to problem solving, evidences professional skills in presenting solutions orally and in written report formats. This 12 month work-placement is embedded within the course allows students to practically apply their knowledge within the industry and further develop their skills and personal employability. Students have the option of a 12-month internal or external work-placement, or self-employed/start-up enterprise route.