Marketing Planning and Strategy (5cr)

Objectives (course unit)

This course provides the knowledge and skills to write a complete marketing plan with a competitive strategy and appropriate actions. The idea is to integrate the knowledge of different marketing aspects in a strategic and understandable way. The course approach is practical, including exercises and team work.

After completing the course, the student will be able to:

Derive the marketing strategy from the business strategy.
Write a consistent marketing plan based on the strategy.
Analyze external environment, customers and competitors.
Make a marketing budget draft.
Take a leadership role in multicultural team in a professional manner.

Content (course unit)

What is a competitive strategy?
How to analyze external environment, customers and competitors?
What does the marketing plan consist of?
How to use the strategic tools of marketing ?

Exam schedules

An exam about the theoretical foundations of marketing planning on week 41. Resits on general exam dates 23.10. and 13.11.

Assessment methods and criteria

Participation in the study conversations 30% and exam 30%.
Writing and presenting the marketing plan in teams of 3-4 members 40% including active participation in the team work.

Assessment scale

0-5

Teaching methods

Contact teaching and study conversations
Assignment

Learning materials

Main textbook: Hooley - Piercy - Nicoulaud: Marketing Strategy and Competitive positioning, Prentice Hall, 2008 (4th edition) or newer (5th edition).
Marian Burk Wood: Marketing Plan Handbook, 5th edition, Pearson

Student workload

33 h of contact teaching, 102 hours of independent work, 135 hours altogether.
The students will have weekly study conversations about the text book. The conversations require pre-reading of the textbook chapters and preparing study questions to Tabula in advance. 6 study discussions altogether. Missed study conversation must be replaced with an extra assignment.
During other classes the student teams work with their marketing plan –project and have a possibility to have coaching from the teacher.

Content scheduling

The course consists of two parts:
1. Studying marketing strategy by reading the textbook (Hooley-Piercy-Nicoulaud) and participating the weekly study conversations (mandatory participation)
2. Writing a marketing (action) plan in 3-5 member multicultural teams. Writing the plan will require students' independent work and regular team meetings also outside the class hours. There is a 3 hour time block on Mondays from 2pm to 5 pm reserved for the team work and the students are requested to allocate this time to their calendars.

Completion alternatives

None

Practical training and working life cooperation

The student teams have a possibility to find themselves a customer company and create the marketing plan for that organization.

Further information

The course starts on TUESDAY 25th of August at 8:30 AM in class B5-31.
PLEASE NOTE that your attendance in the first lesson is absolutely necessary.
For the Friday's class (28.8.) you are required to read the two first chapters of the textbook: Hooley - Piercy - Nicoulaud: Marketing Strategy and Competitive positioning, Prentice Hall, 2008 (4th edition) or newer (5th edition). This book will be read during the course.

Assessment criteria - fail (0) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student must pass both parts of the course to get a final grade. The student may fail the course if he/she misses more than one study conversation and fails to replace it with extra assignment and/or does not participate in the conversations actively. Also if the marketing plan is graded 0 the student will fail the course.

Assessment criteria - satisfactory (1-2) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is actively present in the study conversations missing max.1 and passes the exam with grade 1 - 2. The marketing plan of the student's team will be graded 1 - 2. More precise evaluation criteria for the marketing plan will be given in the beginning of the course.

Assessment criteria - good (3-4) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is actively present in the study conversations missing max 1 and passes the exam with grade 3 - 4. The marketing plan of the student's team will be graded 3 - 4. More precise evaluation criteria for the marketing plan will be given in the beginning of the course.

Assessment criteria - excellent (5) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is actively present in all study conversations and passes the exam with grade 4 - 5. The marketing plan of the student's team will be graded 5. More precise evaluation criteria for the marketing plan will be given in the beginning of the course.