GRA 6342 International Business Environment
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APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2013/2014
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GRA 6342 International Business Environment
Responsible for the course
Heidi Wiig Aslesen
Department
Department of Innovation and Economic Organisation
Term
According to study plan
ECTS Credits
6
Language of instruction
English
Introduction
Learning outcome
The purpose of this course is to give a balanced and empirical perspective on the topic of globalization focusing on the longer-term underlying processes of global economic change in which currents events can be better understood. One aim of the course is to demonstrate the fundamentally relational nature of globalization processes by focusing explicitly on global production networks (GPN) and global innovation networks (GIN) and to emphasize the power-laden dynamics of the interactions between companies, political systems, consumers, labour and civil society organizations – and their geography – highlighting both the institutional and spatial context of globalization. Another aim is to give insights into new empirical developments and to incorporate new ideas on the shaping and reshaping of production, distribution and consumption in the global economy. The third aim is to provide arguments about the impacts of globalization processes on people, places and the environment and the more ethical aspects of globalization processes. In general this course will provide students with dynamic perspectives on how the global economy works and what its effect are. There will be a special focus on emerging economies, especially China.
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in Business or eq. qualifying for admission to the MSc Programme
Compulsory reading
Books:
Dicken, Peter. 2011. Global shift : mapping the changing contours of the world economy. 6th ed. Sage. 550
Other:
SELECTED ARTICLES
Recommended reading
Course outline
The course covers 4 main topics; 1) The shifting countours of the global economy 2) How the actors, institutions and processes that make the global economy interact to produce global production networks 3) Case studies of different sectors to illustrate ways in which these processes actually operate 4) Winning and losing in the global economy and how nations and regions are able to capture value in global networks.
During the course there will be an intensive one-week study trip to Shanghai with lectures at Fudan University and company visits in the area. Students must be aware that cost for and connected with the trip to China is not covered by BI Norwegian Business School and students are expected to cover this cost themselves.
Computer-based tools
It's learning and the Internet.
Learning process and workload
A course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of 160-180 hours.
Lectures, cases, group work and discussions.
Please note that it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on the course homepage/It's learning or text book.
Examination
The evaluation process is composed of 3 elements:
1) The student’s participation in the classroom through presentations, discussions and hand-in assignments given in class (20%)
2) A mid term paper (30%), written individually.
3) A term paper (50%), written individually or in groups of max 3 students.
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.
In this course class attendence is mandatory. Unexcused absence can result in a lower score. 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.
Examination code(s)
GRA 63421 continuous assessment accounts for 100 % of the final grade in the course GRA 6342.
Examination support materials
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.