MBA Online

ICS , Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy
[Term 3] Competitiveness of Firms & Clusters (Y. Ishikura) (2009/Term 3&4 (Spring&Summer))

Today, competitiveness is discussed extensively at multiple levels: the level of the firm, city, region, and/or country. There are many competitiveness rankings available, addressing different levels, such as the Global Competitiveness Report by the World Economic Forum. Competitiveness has become an important issue not only for the firm but also the nation/city/region, partly because of the advancement of ICT (Information & Communication Technology) and of globalization.

This course explores the determinants of competitiveness and economic development viewed from a bottom-up, business perspective. While sound macroeconomic policies, stable legal and political systems, and investment in human and physical capital create the potential for competitiveness, wealth is actually created at the business level. The sophistication and productivity of firms, the vitality of clusters, and the quality of the business environment in which competition takes place are the ultimate determinants of a nation’s or region’s productivity. Wealth is created not by governments, but by companies in the private sector.

This course covers both developing and advanced economies, and addresses competitiveness at the level of nations, regions, or cities within nations, clusters, and groups of neighboring countries. A major theme of the course is that competitiveness and economic development are affected by circumstances and policies at all of these levels.

The course is concerned with the role of government, and also with the roles of firms, universities, and other institutions in determining competitiveness. In modern international competition, the roles of these constituencies have shifted and expanded, and the traditional separation between them has worked against successful economic development.

Under these circumstances, business executives today are expected to play a more active role in shaping the business environment, which determines a nation’s, region’s, or city’s productivity. They are expected to have global and inter-disciplinary perspectives. They can no longer be concerned only with the domestic market or their industry. As world trade continues to increase, an open system for innovation is becoming more prevalent, and financial trouble originating in one market can affect the world very quickly.

Business executives can no longer focus only on the bottom line, as “companies can help create a better society while improving their bottom line, by focusing on contributions aligned with their core competencies and corporate missions…” (quoted from the WEF 2008 summary, Corporate Global Citizenship in the 21st Century”). As was pointed out at the WEF annual meeting in 2008, the collaboration of businesses, governments, and NGOs is perceived to be critical in resolving global issues, such as energy and the environment in today’s globalized world.

This course attempts to address these emerging issues facing future leaders, whether they are in companies, governments, other institutions, or civil society organizations. As such, this course is different from most MBA courses in the following respects. First, it is not purely a management course, but a course focused on economic development and prosperity. While it explores implications for companies and the new, expanded role of business executives, the course discusses the roles of other important constituencies, such as government and social entrepreneurial organizations.

The ability to mount and sustain a competitiveness improvement strategy for a nation or region is a daunting challenge. Thus, the course will explore not only theory and policy, but also the nature of the organizational structure, institutions, and processes required for sustained improvements in competitiveness.

Some of the questions which have emerged from past attempts to deal with the issue of competitiveness, economic development, and prosperity include the following:
• How can the economy move from one that is resource-based (such as those dependent on oil and other natural resources) to one that is investment-based and diversified?
• How can we create an innovative economy?
• How do we make these changes happen, as the process of improving competitiveness involves many diverse organizations with different agendas, mentalities, and thought processes?

The course was originally created by Professor Michael E. Porter at the Harvard Business School. It is offered not only in the Harvard University community, but also simultaneously by professors at other universities around the world.
Course Structure

The course consists of Three Modules. Module I discusses Firms, Industries, and Locations. Module II covers the Microeconomic Business Environment, which is the main topic of the course. Module III refers to the Economic Strategy for Nations, States and Regions. Advanced topics will be covered as well.

The course will build on topics such as “firms and industry competition” (covered in the Competitive Strategy course in Term 1) and problem definition and implementation (covered in the Problem Solving course in Term 2). The course will also touch upon issues such as the Mission, Vision, and Value of individual leaders, which will be covered during the Knowledge Week offered in June.
Teaching Method

The course will be taught using the case method, together with readings, lectures (both real and virtual), and guests (both real and virtual).

As it is a joint course with HBS and other institutions throughout the world, content is shared via the Internet.

We will show some videos of Michael Porter’s lectures and of the guests at the Harvard Business School. In addition, we plan to have some guests just for ICS.

ICS , Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy

[Term 3] Service Management (Y. Fujikawa) (2009/Term 3&4 (Spring&Summer))

This course is designed for future business leaders who seek opportunities in the fastest-growing sector in the world economies. Today, the service sector accounts for 60-80% of the GDP among many developed countries, and services’ role is ever growing in many of the emerging economies in Asia and beyond. This global trend toward a service economy is driven not only by the growth of the service industries (including, but not limited to, education, entertainment, finance, health care, hospitality, IT-based, and retail) but also the expansion of service’s importance within non-service businesses (e.g., manufacturing, agriculture, forestry, fishing, etc.).

Services are different from goods in many aspects: among others, they are intangible (i.e., it is difficult to assess their qualities); perishable (i.e., they cannot be produced in advance and stored on inventory); simultaneously produced and consumed (i.e., buyers and sellers create value jointly); and heterogeneous (i.e., it is difficult to control qualities). Such unique properties pose distinct challenges and opportunities in managing service businesses. Using case materials, related readings, and individual/team assignments, this course intends to aid students in the following:
• Gaining an in-depth understanding of the unique challenges involved in managing service organizations
• Acquiring analytical skills for effective planning and execution of service businesses
• Fostering an active, constructively critical posture as customers of service businesses, with an aim to stimulate real-world service providers to improve service quality
Course Structure

Three management disciplines—Marketing Management (MM), Human Resource Management (HRM), and Operations Management (OM)—play central and interrelated roles in meeting customer needs in service businesses. Reflecting this interdependency among the three key functions, the course is structured as follows:

Module 1 introduces a few overarching frameworks of the course, such as the 7Ps of service management, strategic service vision, service profit chain, and gaps model of service quality. Module 2 lays out basic elements of service marketing by extending the 4Ps of marketing and CRM issues to service settings. Module 3 focuses on an additional P—people—by delving into HRM issues in service businesses. Module 4 moves on to two more Ps—process and physical environment—by examining process fundamentals of service operations. Throughout the course we will repeatedly visit the importance of aligning the three key disciplines of service management (MM, HRM, and OM).
Teaching Method

The primary teaching approach is the case method. In addition, there will be individual and team assignments.

Cases. Cases will be selected from a diverse set of business contexts: B2C and B2B, high-tech and low-tech, entrepreneurial and established, and East and West. Throughout the semester we will explore cutting-edge examples of service breakthroughs, many of which employ unique business models and technologies for innovative ways of addressing customers’ unmet needs. We will also discuss issues in the globalization of services, with particular emphasis on service businesses that attempt to expand from Asia to the world (and vice versa).

Individual Assignments (Letter Writing Campaign and POA Memo). Taking an active stance on the issue of service quality, you will be writing (and actually mailing) two letters to two different service organizations with which you have recently interacted as a customer: one letter is for complaining about a service failure, the other for extending congratulations on a service excellence. The purpose of this individual assignment includes providing you with an opportunity to apply your analytical skills in a practical situation, supplying valuable feedback to the service organizations, and learning from real-life examples about how organizations address customer complaints and act on letters of praise. More details will be provided on the first day of the course. In addition, you will be writing a POA memo for one of the cases to be discussed in class.

Team Assignments (To Be Determined). In order to facilitate the collective learning process among yourselves, you will be assigned to a team project. The details are still being explored at this moment (it also depends on how many of you are taking this course), but possibilities include running a service company in an electronic simulation program, conducting a short field project on a real-world example of service innovation or service globalization, and/or presenting a team analysis to lead a case discussion.

The Executive MBA Program School Algerian affairs is aimed at executives with high growth potential and entrepreneurs. It provides a relevant answer to the training needs of Algerian enterprises in the context of globalization of trade. Organized as a 3-day seminars held every 3 weeks, it is perfectly balanced and suited to the pursuit of an occupation.

Implementation of the program

This program takes place over a total period of 18 months, in line with international standards. It includes:
480 hours of instruction in four core competencies
A study tour of 10 days in France (Marseille and Paris)
A project consultant, developed throughout the school under the mentorship of a teacher. This project gives rise to a defense jury and aims to promote the implementation of the various achievements of the program in a professional environment.

The diploma offered at the end of this training is co-signed by the directors of four schools in our consortium, to ensure excellence in training.

The working methods applied during the training are at the cutting edge of modernity and the entrepreneurial reality: working groups, case studies, presentations, sharing of experiences in order to provide all participants with the broader analytical management practices.