Henley Executive MBA

Leadership & Personal Development

This module is a springboard into your successful and rewarding MBA journey. It comprises of two parallel streams that lay the foundations of your academic and personal development throughout the program. A number of key study skills techniques will be introduced which will be important for your successful completion of the programme. It will introduce you to a number of themes around leadership and leadership skills that you will continue to develop throughout the whole MBA. It will also include an introduction to the Personal Development process, the second element of this module, which will continue throughout the MBA. The Personal Development process seeks to support and challenge you in all aspects of your growth whilst studying and is a catalyst for reflection on learning from all other modules and aspects of the MBA. The module aims to enable each student to: take control of their future direction, pursue life and career goals, obtain maximum benefit for themselves and their organisations, reflect upon their own learning, performance, and achievement, and plan for personal, educational, and career development.

Managing Processes and Systems

This module focuses on the key principles that underpin the delivery of goods and services by organisations. It takes a systems and processes approach, integrating elements of operations management, information systems management, and project management. Whilst processes are viewed as key enablers of business strategy, the module emphasizes the need to understand such processes in a systemic way. Key topics cover the design, implementation, and ongoing operation of goods and service delivery in a variety of organizational contexts. By the end of this module, you will be expected to critically evaluate the applicability of the module concepts to specific organisational contexts.

Managing Financial Resources

This module covers the topics of financial accounting, management accounting, finance, and microeconomics. It is designed for you to recognize that every aspect of your business has an impact on the bottom line. Organisations that do not effectively plan, control, and monitor their finances are unlikely to achieve their operational targets and strategic business objectives. By the end of this module, you will be in a position to analyse critically the relevance and appropriateness of financial techniques and economic issues within your organisation. 

Managing People

In this module, you will develop an appreciation that people management is a key line manager activity and develop an awareness of the issues and practices that support and hinder the management and development of people and performance in organisations. You will consider the impact of context on managing people and performance, particularly in national, international, and multinational contexts; public and private sectors; and large, medium, and small enterprises. By the end of this module, you will be expected to demonstrate the ability to identify issues and dilemmas in your own workplace based on your understanding of people and performance management, philosophies, and approaches.

Strategy 

This module will enable students to understand and apply the fundamental principles of the strategic thinking process and also to gain insight into the variety of issues and challenges faced by managers of firms. By the end of the module, you will be able to demonstrate a high level of ability and skill in strategic thinking, strategic analysis, synthesis, and decision-making. You will be able to analyze and understand an organisation and its external competitive environment, assess an organisation’s internal value-creating activities and processes, and identify and evaluate appropriate strategic options for an organisation, assessing the impact on competitive position and future performance.

International Business

This module will provide insights into the variety of issues and challenges faced by managers of international firms in the global business environment. The aim is for program members to develop an ability to understand the complexity of international markets and the capacity to successfully manage issues related to international business and strategy. A number of key frameworks will be introduced and applied in developing strategies for international expansion as well as strategies for managing complex operations across national, regional, and global markets. The module also sheds light on the most recent developments in international business.

Strategic Marketing

The Strategic Marketing module is designed to raise your awareness of marketing as both a strategic and tactical function, develop your understanding of strategic marketing the relevance of key marketing concepts, and the importance of ethically and socially responsible marketing strategies. This module will enable you to critically analyze theoretical explanations of marketing situations and assess their relevance, identify factors that drive and influence the development of market structures and the comparative differences across various business contexts, and recognize the nature of relationships and partnerships that are vital to the creation of customer value.

Reputation & Responsibility

The Reputation and Responsibility module will develop your knowledge and understanding of strategic reputation and responsibility management. You will engage in debate and discussion around issues of corporate responsibility, sustainability, and governance and learn about key concepts of how relationships are built and stakeholders are managed. Students will be exposed to a range of tools for the analysis of perceptions related to reputation.

Leadership & Change

The module is designed to introduce students to key concepts, theories, and models of leadership, change, culture and values, capabilities, and approaches that bind these together. This module will prepare you to become a business leader so that you can make appropriate and effective use of different approaches to leadership and change. You will identify your development goals as change leaders and practice the core skills of leading change.

Elective

There is a choice between Elective Options or an International Study Visit. Some elective choices are Creative and Cultural Industries; Corporate Finance and Governance; Sustainability: Critical issues in global development; Social Enterprise; Managing the Brand; Digital Marketing; Designing organisations; Social Enterprise; and Strategic Information Management. Please note that topics are subject to change.

Management Research Challenge

The Management Challenge is a major research-based project investigating a significant management or business problem/issue that leads to actionable recommendations. It requires you to develop and build on key elements of your learning throughout the master's program and apply it within a practical context. In developing the Management Challenge, you are required to undertake a critical and in-depth review of current thinking in your chosen topic area which
forms the basis for an empirical investigation leading to conclusions and recommendations grounded in appropriate evidence. In order to do this effectively, you are expected to develop and apply a research design and techniques that are appropriate to the problem or issue. The aims of the Management Challenge are to build upon the knowledge you have gained during the master program and the application of that knowledge to a specific management problem or issue, formulate logical, appropriate, and actionable recommendations as a result of the investigation, and communicate the findings in writing in a convincing and articulate manner.