| Unit name | Sustainability Management in Practice |
|---|---|
| Unit code | MGRCM0038 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Lamb |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Management - Business School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
The unit is aimed at helping students to bridge the gap between university and graduate job. It has been carefully designed to help students to make the transition from abstract theory to applied sustainability management practice. The unit uses teaching methods especially selected for their effectiveness in learning, practicing and gaining confidence in sustainability skills. The unit will centre on project-based learning, with students applying their knowledge and skills to a focal organisation working on environmental and social causes related to sustainability. This will be the starting point for students to explore the issues raised in a global context, sharing their wider experience of similar issues and enriching the experience of fellow students. Students will develop skills recognised by governing bodies, employers and academics as important in sustainability management roles across industries. These skills include scenario development, change management, stakeholder engagement, data visualisation and evidence-based decision making.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This unit provides students with applied sustainability practice, through learning experiences that directly support and evidence core employability skills. The optional unit complements knowledge acquired in the mandatory units which precede it in the MSc International Business and Strategy: Global Challenges programme, such as Global Strategy, Global Challenges and International Business Perspectives in a Turbulent World. Yet, it is a self-contained unit and does not require any pre-requisite understanding. The unit bridges the gap between sustainability theory and practice and will be of particular interest to students wanting to transition into sustainability roles or develop transferable skills.
An overview of content
The unit aims to integrate learning from earlier units and prior experience, so students become knowledgeable about the issues and challenges surrounding the practice of sustainability management today and in the future. It will develop new knowledge and skills in problem solving; data collection, analysis and visualisation; change management and decision making within the context of sustainability. The unit also extends students’ knowledge of concepts of particular importance to sustainability management including complex or ‘wicked’ problems, technocratic and participatory methods of knowledge gathering and sharing, and communicating with a range of stakeholders and audiences through different communication channels.
An overview of content
By the end of the unit, students will be able to relate theory to practise and will have a broad understanding and insight into important skills for sustainability management in the private, public and third sector (charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups). Students will also be able to evidence practical experience in producing outputs such as online written articles, stakeholder maps, engagement plans, presentations and visual representations of data.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the unit students will have learned to:
This unit provides students with learning experiences that directly relate to the skills that developing. Learning will be delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, games and simulations, discussion groups, practical sessions and other learning opportunities.
The assessment for this unit has two elements:
The group element demonstrates students’ ability to practice skills in, verbal and visual communication and clear presentation of an argument underpinned by data. The individual element demonstrates a student’s ability to critically reflect on the skills they developed, the relationship between theory and practice and communicating this with a wider audience. A full explanation of both assessments will be covered in the unit content including academic and practical guidance on how to develop the group (poster presentation) and individual (blog post) assessment elements.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Group presentation - There are opportunities for students to work on their group activity provided in the teaching time. They have a formative opportunity to present their work in progress to staff and other students in week eight.
Individual Blog Posts - Students have three opportunities to give and receive feedback on their individual blog posts in weeks three, five and seven. Links to their online blog posts in MS Sway will be made available for students to read and provide comments and formative feedback to each other in a MS Teams environment. Students will be encouraged to edit and improve their first three blog posts based on the peer feedback they have received on their formative blog posts when creating their summative ones.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The final summative assessment will be in week eleven.
Group presentation - delivery of the group presentation with Q&A and one-page summary (50%)
Individual blog posts - the submission of a final individual MS Word document including the three previous blog posts together with the addition of the fourth and fifth blog posts (50%).
When assessment does not go to plan
In the event of a student not completing the original assessment or requiring re-assessment then the reassessment is as follows:
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. MGRCM0038).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
