The International Business Projects reinforce the CEMS partnership between universities and companies in jointly shaping international management education. The course is designed as a real life learning experience for students. It provides students with a unique opportunity to gain insights into corporate practice. International student teams solve a real business, strategy and/or management problem as a one-term activity tutored by university faculty and the company.

Context

Daimler – CASE Marketing / Sales

Connected, Autonomous, Shared & Services, Electric – Daimler combines all of these CASE future fields in order to transorm itself from an automaker to a mobility services provider. The objective is to create “Intuitive Mobility” with convenient, easy-to-use products and services that make life easier for our customers.

CASE Marketing & Sales is responsible for all sales-related topics that refers to CASE and the product and technology brand EQ. In addition to the sales related topics, the department includes product management for electro cars and charging solutions, marketing communication, as well as after-sales topics and EQ services in the extended ecosystem around the vehicle.

Business problem and assigned task

A research study conducted by Mercedes Benz Market Research shows that the relevance of car ownership remains immensely high for the majority of car owners in all markets and this majority never even questioned their car ownership. However, Mercedes Benz has to develop its USP in order to differentiate from the main direct competitors as well as from new companies in the mobility sector. Although we believe that Exclusive Mobility (car ownership) remains important, customers expect and require a move towards services-oriented car ownership.

Therefore, we think about developing and integrating services bundles in our Product Portfolio. The objective is to keep the customer in the MB ecosystem and as such acquire relevant customer data, maximize cross-selling revenue and create lock-in effects. The task for the students contains the development of services bundles incl. (cross-) industry analysis, competitor analysis, customer analysis, product bundle definition, business model calculation as well as a go-to market strategies and market-entry-options. The three groups will analyze different regions (1. Europe 2. China/Japan/Kore 3. NAFTA (USA, Canada, Mexico)).

The aims of the course are to:

• investigate and structure a complex strategic management challenge that a company faces in its international market environment,
• conduct an in-depth analysis of the current status,
• provide alternative strategic solutions that are viable under the given organizational and financial constraints,
• propose a decision for the most promising solution, and
• support this decision with key arguments based on theoretical considerations and empirical findings.

Participants have to attend min. 80% of the sessions.

This business project uses a combination of discussions with company representatives, feedback sessions, presentations, group coaching and feedback, as well as individual/group work outside the classroom. Groups of students will be formed in the kick-off session.

In a first kick-off session with supervising faculty, the challenges and milestones of the real-life international strategy and/or management case are outlined. At the same time, students are familiarized with the guiding principles of project work, with the project plan and rules in handling supervising faculty/corporate partner interaction.

After familiarizing the students with the international strategy and/or management challenge, contact with the corporate partner is established. In a plenary session, the corporate partner outlines the business challenge from their perspective and provides useful input into the business, the market situation, and the specific challenge to be dealt with.

Subsequently, groups of students work on their assigned real-life international strategy and/or management case the firm is currently facing. Groups collect relevant data through secondary and primary (qualitative and/or quantitative) market research. Based on these analyses, recommendations for the specific international strategy and/or management challenges are prepared and substantiated through theory and market research results.

Throughout the process, various feedback loops (in coaching sessions with the individual faculty supervising group work, in plenary sessions with all groups/academic supervisors (mid-term presentation), or in coaching and feedback sessions with the corporate partner) are installed to make sure that students are on the right track and get the input needed in each project phase.

Results are presented to the corporate partner at the end of this process. The verbal and printed presentations will be assessed. Students will have to actively participate in class, hold group presentations and summarize their findings in a final report.

It is the express policy of the class that no late assignments will be accepted under any circumstances. As this course format heavily relies on personal interaction between students, corporate partner, and faculty, presence in sessions is mandatory.

Assessment

Assessment is based on the quality of the mid-term presentation and end-term presentation, the participation during the classes, group members’ peer rating, and the final report. The minimum score to pass the course is half of the highest score for each of these elements.

Students will be assessed on their ability to

• understand and analyze international strategy and/or management challenges,
• use appropriate analytical techniques and deliver relevant market research information,
• present results in high quality.

This implies an ability to work in teams. Students failing to participate in their teams will lose the marks for that piece of work and thereby fail the entire course.

Group level (70%)

- Tentative presentation (20%)
- Final company presentation (30%)
- Final report (20%)

Individual level (30%)

- Peer review (10%)
- Participation (20%)

Only CEMS MIM students are eligible to tak ethis course. 10 students make a course viable at MSc Level unless Special circumstances prevail. If fewer than 10 students Register, the course will not run.

Consultation:

Univ.Prof. Dr. Jan Hendrik Fisch

E-Mail:  jan.fisch@wu.ac.at,   Tel. 01 31336 5121

Dr. Edith Ipsmiller

E-Mail:   edith.ipsmiller@wu.ac.at     Tel. 01 31336 5592