Responsible Strategy

In this module you will learn about the context of responsible strategic thinking, how to identify and explore sustainable business opportunities as a source of competitive advantage. You will gain an appreciation of the overarching principles of setting and executing a responsible and sustainable organisational strategy. Within the setting of these strategic objectives, you will understand how the associated responsible decision making will impact on both internal and external stakeholders. Your learning will span across private and public sector organisations, MNEs and SMEs and how each of different organisations and industries interact with the responsible and sustainable business opportunities and challenges.

Responsible Marketing Strategy

The module provides students with a comprehensive understanding of concepts, theories and techniques in the context of strategic marketing, responsible marketing and sustainability. The intension is to support the development of knowledge and skills required to undertake strategic analysis of markets and organisations and formulate a competitive, responsible marketing strategy. A contemporary approach to marketing is adopted throughout the module, as you will have the opportunity to learn and discuss the concepts that have changed the way we perceive marketing today. In doing so you will examine, both theoretically and practically, a number of areas associated with responsible marketing strategies, such as:

Theme 1 Contemporary Strategic Marketing

• ◈ Marketing Audit and key trends that impact on marketing and the society
• ◈ Contemporary Marketing Research and Planning
• ◈ New product development and Disruptive Innovation
• ◈ Service-Dominant Logic and Value co-creation/Co-destruction
• ◈ Developing and implementing appropriate marketing strategies and metrics

Theme 2 Responsible Marketing

• ◈ Ethics and Sustainability in a marketing context
• ◈ Responsible Marketing strategies and Sustainable Development Goals
• ◈ Sustainable Consumer Behaviour and Ethical Consumerism
• ◈ Sustainability, Ethics and New Media
• ◈ The Future of Sustainability and Responsible Marketing

On completing the module, you will be able to critically evaluate the usefulness of marketing knowledge in the context of responsible business and sustainable consumer behaviour and apply theory to develop appropriate marketing strategies. You will also develop the skills required for effective Integration of learning from marketing and other business areas into a plan for solving business problems.

Digital and Data Driven Marketing

This module is designed to develop your skills in understanding how one-to-one forms of marketing communications, across offline and online channels, can be combined into an overall campaign to generate new customers and enhance existing relationships. To do this, the module is broken into three distinct themes:

• ◈ Principles of Direct and Digital Marketing:
In this part of the module you will cover the fundamental practices in the direct marketing field, which will include acquisition and retention strategies, customer profiling and segmentation, database marketing, permission marketing and personalisation, relevant legislation and campaign testing.

• ◈ Digital Media:
In this section you will explore the range of communications media available, ranging from traditional offline channels (such as direct mail and telemarketing) through to the ever-growing range of digital media options (including social media, email, web design and mobile commerce).

• ◈ Campaign Planning:
Here you will be introduced to the principles of campaign design, from initial context analysis and goal setting through to campaign implementation and evaluation. You will be encouraged to combine different marketing communications tools as part of an integrated campaign and consider campaign budgeting and measurement.

Dissertation

The dissertation module aims to equip you with the necessary intellectual and practical skills for undertaking an individual student-led, ethical investigation into an applied business (or the named degree) problem or issue. In addition, the dissertation aims to equip you with key transferable, employability skills, including: time management, project management, communication (written and verbal), negotiation, persuasion and influence, discovery, initiative, creativity and innovation in problem-solving, and analysis. This module provides you with the opportunity to examine, in depth, a business-management challenge of direct interest and/or that vexes you within your work or social life. Following initial weekly lectures and seminar workshops, which provide an introduction to undertaking Business-Management research, you will work with a supervisor to identify a suitable research area, to generate empirical (primary) or secondary data, to analyse this data and to draw theoretically informed conclusions.