Syllabus
Registration via LPIS
This International Marketing Management Elective aims to develop strategic thinking in a global marketing context. It will provide an opportunity to sharpen your verbal and written communication skills. Utilizing a teaching approach that mixes lectures, group workshops, and a computer simulation, you will learn key concepts and tools used in developing global marketing entry and expansion strategies.
During the elective, you will develop a regional market entry and expansion strategy for Latin America. You will simulate seven trading years and the results you achieved will count towards your final grade. To be able to play the Country Manager simulation and to draft an initial market entry and expansion strategy, it is necessary to register for the simulation before the start of the elective.
The instructors will post a guide on how to register on learn@wu approximately two weeks prior to the start of the elective.
By the end of the course students will have understood:
· The idiosyncrasies involved in developing marketing strategies for global markets.
· The interplay between global marketing strategy and corporate structure.
· The role of a category manager for a major consumer products company.
· The peculiarities of positioning in global marketing as well as the strategic need to coordinate marketing-mix across national boundaries
· The implications of future trends on global marketing strategy
Please note that the first session is mandatory. If you do not attend the first session, you will be de-registered from the course. In order to obtain a grade for the course, students must attend at least 80% of the course. An absence of 4 hours is permitted, although it may have negative implications on your participation grade.
Teaching approach for this elective consists of a mix of lectures, group workshops and a computer simulation game.
Grading:
5% Self-administered quiz on the mechanics of the simulation - individual test
20% Group presentation on the intended strategy for the Country Manager simulation
45%· Group performance in simulation
20% Insights from the simulation (retrospective group task)
10% Peer evaluation
The instructors will decide on the size and membership of each group
Essential Preparation
Prior to the first session, you will need to register for the Country Manager simulation and access the case material and country information online. Information on how to register the simulation game will be sent out to your student email account (hxxxxxxx@wu.ac.at) by Interpretive Solutions Inc. a week prior to the start of the elective.
After you have registered on-line, each individual student should carefully read the Country Manager case and take the self-guided quiz on how the simulation operates.
Before/after class and by appointment (IMM secretariat - Ms. Taylor).
For administrative matters please contact:
Dr. Katerina Makri
E-Mail: aikaterini.makri@wu.ac.at
| Instructors Bibliographies |
o.Univ.-Prof. Bodo B. Schlegelmilch, Ph.D., D.Litt., Ph.D. (hon.)
https://www.wu.ac.at/en/imm/about-imm/faculty/bbs-lowercased/
Katerina Makri
| Unit | Date | Contents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Assessing Growth Opportunities in International Markets
We start by discussing how to assess the attractiveness of different geographic markets and the extant competition within a given market.
The second part of the session introduces the key parameters of the Country Manager Simulation and focuses on tools used to assess and fine tune international marketing opportunities.
Workshop 1: Assessing Distribution Channels Workshop 2: Setting Prices in Global Markets Workshop 3: Location of Production Facilities Workshop 4: Key Market Entry Decisions for Latin American Market.
As the workshops are based on the Country Manager Latin America case study, it is imperative that you read the case before you come to class.
Readings:
1) Country Manager Case Study (see online resources) 2) Schlegelmilch; chapters 1, 2 and 3 |
|
| 2 | Presentation of Market Entry Plan and Practice Rounds
The first part of this session explores the advantages and disadvantages of different market entry modes, such as exporting, licensing, franchising, joint ventures or establishing wholly owned subsidiaries.
Next, selected teams will present their key market entry decisions '(see workshop 4 of Oct. 9th). Building on these plans, you will be able to play two practice rounds to familiarize yourslef with the mechanics of the simulation.
18.30 – 19.30 practice round 1 19.30 – 20.30 practice round 2
Please note that the practice rounds do not influence the results you obtain when you play the simulation competitively in class (you start afresh).
Readings:
3) Country Manager – Operations Guide
|
|
| 3 | Country Manager Latin America – Developing a Regional Strategy
WE WILL START THE COMPETITIVE PLAY of the Country Manger simulation. Please note that your group will be graded on the cumulative net profit you achieved at the end of the simulation.
Schedule:
Year 1: 8:30 – 10:00 Year 2: 10:00 – 11:00 Year 3: 11:00 – 12:00 Year 4: 12:00 – 13:00
Lunch
Please note that, at the latest, by the end of year 5, you need to have a market presence in all country markets.
Year 5: 14.00 – 15:00 Year 6: 15:00 – 16:00 Year 7: 16:00 – 17:00
Debriefing |
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| 4 | Presentations of Strategic Trajectories
We start with team presentations. The winning group, the team which has most to learn (we do not call them the “losing group”) and one team representing the middle of the field will be asked to explain the strategies they pursued during the simulation. Please also explain your key marketing mix decisions, including product portfolio choices, pricing, distribution and promotion.
The course closes with a lecture on opposing trends and strategic tensions in the global marketing environment. Whereas trends in the modern age tended to be linear and unidirectional, the trends in our postmodern times are more likely to be paradoxical. Like the Roman god Janus, they have two faces and are seldom simply positive or negative, or universally ´good´ or ´bad´. We look at some of these trends and discuss the implications for global marketing management. Readings: 4) Schlegelmilch; chapter 11 |
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