APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2013/2014

GRA 6341 Developing and Implementing International Marketing Strategies

Responsible for the course
Carl Arthur Solberg

Department
Department of Marketing

Term
According to study plan

ECTS Credits
6

Language of instruction
English

Introduction
Globalisation of markets and industries forces firms to take an active stance to international markets. This course addresses the process that firms undergo in their international marketing endeavour and treats critical issues in developing and implementing marketing strategies in international markets.

Learning outcome
At the end of this course students will through cases and theoretical discussions have a thorough understanding of stratgic challenges facing firms in international markets. They will also through lectures and negotiation gamesbe able to identify relevant problem areas in international contracts and relate them both to the strategic alternatives open to the firm and to their legal consequences.

Prerequisites
A bachelor degree qualifying for admission to the MSc Programme

Compulsory reading

Other:
A collection of scientific articles and readings. Examples of journals: European Business Journal, Management Research News, Journal of International Marketing. A list of compulsory readings will be provided on It's learning or in class.
During the course there may be hand-outs and other material on additional topics relevant for the course and the examination.


Recommended reading

Course outline
1. Introduction. (Week 1)
- Presentation
- Course format and course overview
- Assignments, cases, group formation etc
- Decisions in international marketing, market information and learning.
2. Development of international marketing strategy (Week 2-6)
- Globalisation and marketing
- Strategic thrust of international marketing
- Entry modes in international marketing – an overview
- Standardisation and adaptation in international markets
- Monitoring international marketing / relations with network partners
3. Implementing international marketing / commmercial agreements (Week 7-12)
- Introduction to negotiations
- Contracts and contract law
- Jurisdiction/choice of law
- International conventions
- Contract theory
- Contract stages and clauses – general overview
- Guest lectures from industry
4. Negotiation seminar (Week 13)

Computer-based tools
Itslearning
Marketing and legal data bases

Learning process and workload
A course of 6 ECTS corresponds to a workload of 160-180 hours
The course will be carried out through lectures and seminars covering the above issues. The course is based on extensive case work, which entails active class participation throughout the term. Three cases will be followed up in section 3 of the course (commercial agreements) and will constitute the background for the negotiation seminars (section 4).

Examination
The evaluation will be based on four elements:
1. Class participation where active contribution in the case discussion is expected (20%),
2. Term paper (max 10 pages). Students are asked to analyse market prospects in one foreign market for a product/service of a firm of their choice. The term paper may be written in groups of no more than three students. Individual hand-ins are accepted. (30% of the grade).
3. Negotiation seminar (30%). Students will form negotiation teams and represent “their” firm in (re)negotiating contracts with their partner in foreign markets. The negotiation seminar is based on some of the cases dealt with in the course prior to the seminar. Number of students per team (3-4) will depend on the size of the class.
4. A three hour written exam (20%).

Specific information regarding student evaluation beyond the information given in the course description will be provided in class. This information may be relevant for requirements for term papers or other hand-ins, and/or where class participation can be one of several elements of the overall evaluation.

This is a course with continuous assessment (several exam elements) and one final exam code. Each exam element will be graded using points on a scale (e.g. 0-100). The elements will be weighted together according to the information in the course description in order to calculate the final letter grade for the course. You will find detailed information about the point system and the cut-off points with reference to the letter grades on the course site in It’s learning.

Examination code(s)
GRA 63411 continuous assessment accounts for 100% of the final grade in the course GRA 6341.

Examination support materials
A bilingual dictionary.
Exam aids at written examiniations are explained under exam information in the student portal @bi. Please note use of calculator and dictionary in the section on examaids

Re-sit examination
It is only possible to retake an examination when the course is next taught.
The assessment in some courses is based on more than one exam code.
Where this is the case, you may retake only the assessed components of one of these exam codes.
Where this is not the case, all of the assessed components of the course must be retaken.
All retaken examinations will incur an additional fee.

Additional information
Honor Code
Academic honesty and trust are important to all of us as individuals, and represent values that are encouraged and promoted by the honor code system. This is a most significant university tradition. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the ideals of the honor code system, to which the faculty are also deeply committed.

Any violation of the honor code will be dealt with in accordance with BI’s procedures for cheating. These issues are a serious matter to everyone associated with the programs at BI and are at the heart of the honor code and academic integrity. If you have any questions about your responsibilities under the honor code, please ask.