Opinto-opas 2024-2027

The course has the purpose to provide advanced students majoring in international business with an opportunity to develop a special topic of interest in regard to organizing and managing multinational organizations.

This course is directed towards students on advanced level in their Masters Degree Program in International Business and Global Innovation Management. The course focuses on selected issues in the management of the Multinational Enterprise (MNE). Students choose one special topic and develop deep insights into the theoretical background. Students analyze how different theories relate to each other and how they can be used in analyzing given multinational behavior or how it can be applied to the management of the MNE. In addition students develop their own perspective on that topic by synthesizing different concepts.

The content of the course encompasses special aspects of managing the MNE. A list of topics include issues such as: (1) The existence and continuing success of the MNE form; (2) MNE strategy in the global context; (3) Managing the diversity of entry modes; (4) MNE and its knowledge-base; (5) managing MNE subsidiaries and the relationships between the MNE and the HQs; (6) managing the networked MNE, Centre-of-excellence approaches in subsidiary management and subsidiary - subsidiary relationships; (7) managing external networks of the MNE and subsidiary-specific advantages; (8) managing future aspects of the evolution of MNEs; (9) managing change in the MNE and its ever evolving context. In addition, the course looks at sustainable development issues and current affairs that affect international business and the management of the MNE.

Students work independently but in coordintaion within a group and present their findings in a written report which consists of group (i.e. introduction and conclusions sections) and individual (i.e. a specific aspect as part of the overall group report) work elements.

The course is organized as a hybrid course starting out with a joint introductory session and commences in group work which is designed to be developed by virtual means regarding the special topic chosen. This form of delivery has been specified to especially provide students who want to earn credits from distance in their final phase of studies. The course is organized on period IV. Also available during summer period.

A selection of articles provided; own literature research.

The following book provides an overview: Forsgren, M. (2017). Theories of the multinational firm: A multidimensional creature in the global economy. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Preceding studies: Deep knowledge of IB concepts.

0-5

Group and individual aspects of the report are well developed and coordinated. Group components: Introductory section has a sensible research question as basis for the report; a conclusions section responds to that overall research question.

Good group work in addition is qualified as the main research question is further operationalised in specific aspects in the introduction section and taken up in an integrated form in the conclusions section. For the individual component the individual works makes a strong contribution to the specific but also the general research question chosen.

Excellent work presents itself as a well-integrated work, where individual apsects dissolve into the wider group work so that a challenging set of research questions are answered with a high level of critial and creative thinking. This is often achieved by demonstrating an elaborate evaluation of a phenomenon in question (including developing well founded evaluation criteria) and by displaying a high level of synthesis between the specific research questions or challenges, the individual aspects focused on in particular and the derived synthesized understanding of a phenomenon. Such work in addition usually stands out by drawing on rich and well-documented scholarly and practitioner-based literature and sources.

englanti

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Kansainvälinen liiketoiminta

Peter Zettinig

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