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International Business Strategy
250 words
Individual Reflection on Case Study Discussion – International Business Strategy
This assignment is an individual reflective assessment for the International Business Strategy module. It focuses on developing students’ ability to critically reflect on their learning experiences and identify how learning from classroom discussions can improve their future academic and professional performance. The assessment is based on a Case Study Discussion undertaken during one of the teaching weeks from Week 5 to Week 8. Students are required to select one of the case studies discussed during the relevant seminar sessions and reflect on their learning from the discussion. The case-study discussions provide an opportunity to explore important issues in the business world, apply concepts introduced through Canvas preparation and face-to-face teaching, and exchange ideas with tutors and peers. The reflection therefore connects theoretical knowledge with practical business situations and encourages students to consider how strategic management concepts can be applied to real-world organisations. The reflective task requires students to explain the topic and case study discussed during their selected week, identify what they learned from the discussion, and consider how the experience helped them develop their ability to apply theories to their chosen company. Students should also reflect on their key takeaways, what went well during the discussion, challenges they encountered, and what they would change if they were to repeat the experience. The reflection should be between 150 and 250 words and should use an appropriate reflective framework, such as Gibbs' Reflective Cycle or Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle, to structure the discussion. Harvard referencing should be used where applicable. The assessment develops critical reflection, strategic thinking, international business understanding and the ability to connect academic concepts with practical business cases. The assessment is worth 15% of the module and is submitted through Canvas. The marking criteria consider the quality of reflection, critical analysis, personal learning insights, presentation and structure, intellectual curiosity, referencing, content and discussion.
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International Business / Strategic Management
200 words
Individual Reflection on Tencent’s Strategic Reorganisation and International Business Strategy
This International Business Strategy assessment is an individual reflective exercise based on a case-study discussion undertaken during Weeks 5–8 of the module. Its purpose is to develop students’ ability to critically reflect on learning experiences and use that reflection to improve future academic and professional performance. Students participate in approximately 30-minute seminar discussions in which theoretical concepts from the module are applied to real-world business cases with tutors and peers. IBS-0901-2025-+Reflection2-Ref For this entry, the selected case is Tencent: “third time lucky?”. The case examines how Tencent evolved from a Chinese instant-messaging company into a major technology group spanning messaging, gaming, entertainment, investment and cloud services. It focuses particularly on three major organisational reorganisations undertaken in 2005, 2012 and 2018 as the company attempted to address increasing organisational complexity, coordination problems, changing technologies and new strategic priorities. The 2005 restructuring responded to Tencent’s growing scale by dividing the organisation into major business and platform-development groups. By 2012, further growth and the success of products such as WeChat had created new organisational complexity, leading to a structure organised around seven distinct business groups. The case highlights that this arrangement subsequently contributed to a “silo culture”, creating difficulties in sharing ideas, data, code and customers across business units. The 2018 reorganisation responded to a strategic shift toward the “industrial internet”, including greater emphasis on cloud services, business-to-business solutions and digital transformation. Tencent reorganised around six major groups, including Cloud and Smart Industries, Platforms and Content, Interactive Entertainment, Corporate Development, WeChat, and Technology and Engineering, while also establishing a technical committee intended to improve internal coordination and data sharing. The case asks students to consider both the strategic rationale for each restructuring and whether the 2018 changes adequately addressed Tencent’s organisational challenges. The reflection itself must be between 150 and 250 words. Students should explain what the week’s topic and case study were about, what they learned from the discussion, how the conversation helped them apply theory to their final report, and what key insights they gained. They should also reflect on what went well, what challenges were encountered and what they would change if repeating the session. At least one reflective framework, such as Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle or Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle, must be applied. IBS-0901-2025-+Reflection2-Ref The wider learning outcomes emphasise strategic management theory, internationalisation, internal and external environmental influences, critical analysis of international organisations and the use of analytical tools to evaluate strategic options. The task therefore combines strategic thinking, international business analysis and reflective professional development. IBS-0901-2025-+Reflection2-Ref The accompanying Tencent case specifically asks students to consider why each major reorganisation occurred, whether the 2018 restructuring adequately addressed Tencent’s challenges, and what additional “hard” and “soft” implementation measures might have been necessary. Case+study+7
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Leadership and Professional Development
2,500 words
Leadership Mindset – Professional Development Portfolio
This assessment is a Leadership Mindset Professional Development Portfolio designed to encourage students to think strategically about their career development, align their professional goals and demonstrate leadership potential. The assessment focuses on self-awareness, strategic planning, professional behavioural skills and the ability to develop an ongoing process of personal and professional growth. Students are required to complete a Portfolio through PebblePad, equivalent to 2,500 words. The portfolio is assessed on a Pass/Fail basis and students must complete all required sections before downloading the completed portfolio and submitting it through Turnitin. The portfolio does not require academic referencing because it is a self-reflection and professional development assessment. The portfolio consists of several key components, including a personal SWOT analysis, evidence of communication requesting feedback, a Personal Development Plan (PDP), a CV and a cover letter. The SWOT analysis requires students to identify their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in order to understand their current skills, identify development gaps and recognise opportunities for improvement. Students must also reflect on the Professional Development Pyramid or another suitable professional development model and select three behavioural skills or competencies they wish to develop. Examples include strategic thinking and leadership. Feedback must be requested from four to six people from the student's personal and professional network, such as family members, friends, peers, mentors, employers or colleagues. This feedback is then used to support the student's development priorities. The action-planning section requires students to reflect on the feedback received and identify three development priorities or goals. For each priority, at least two SMART actions must be established. The action plan should include specific steps, timelines and required resources, while also identifying potential obstacles and explaining how these obstacles may be addressed. The goals and actions should demonstrate a clear connection between the student's self-reflection, feedback and professional development objectives. The final reflection considers the value of the PebblePad portfolio process in shaping personal and professional growth. Students are expected to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of self-development and explain how their development process can be reviewed, revised and adapted for continuing professional growth. The assessment learning outcomes focus on reflection on personal strengths and areas for improvement, advanced critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making, intercultural communication, inclusivity and sustainability, interview and presentation competencies, and the ability to articulate an adaptable self-development process. The marking criteria emphasise self-reflection, clarity of goals, strategic action planning, persuasive understanding of professional development, and clear and professional presentation.
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Leadership and Change
3,000 words
Leadership and Change – Reflective Learning Portfolio
This 3,000-word coursework is a reflective learning portfolio focused on leadership, organisational change and reflective practice. The assessment is worth 100% of the module mark and is structured into four individual components. It is designed to assess leadership capabilities such as strategic thinking, emotional intelligence, communication, adaptability, team building, ethical decision-making and change management, while encouraging students to connect leadership theories and self-assessment tools with their own development. Component 1 focuses on individual leadership style and requires students to provide the results of the Fastest MBTI Test and critically reflect on what the outcome means in relation to their preferred leadership style. Students are expected to connect their MBTI results with leadership approaches covered in the module, including the Situated Leadership model. This component represents 20% of the assessment and has a suggested length of 600 words. Component 2 examines team roles. Students must present evidence from their Team Roles Test, identify their preferred team role and explain why it suits them. They must then identify two other Belbin team roles that would be important when building a team and explain their relevance. Connections can also be made between the Team Roles Test, Belbin’s framework and the results of the Conflict Management questionnaire. This component contributes 20% and has a suggested length of 600 words. Component 3 requires students to develop an individual organisational change plan in response to a fictional case study in which ARU is considering the adoption of AI to mark student coursework assignments and examinations. The plan evaluates change enablers and barriers, stakeholder involvement, ethical considerations and resource constraints. Students then develop an implementation strategy using a suitable change-management framework such as Lewin’s Change Model or Kotter’s 8-Step Model, including stakeholder engagement, communication, resistance management and strategies for sustaining change. This component represents 30% and has a suggested length of 900 words. Component 4 is a 900-word reflective account of what students learned about leadership while working as part of a team to design the organisational change plan. The reflection considers how leadership emerged, team collaboration, missing or required roles, conflict management and personal development. Students may structure the reflection using Kolb’s Reflective Learning Cycle or Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle and support their discussion with theories such as transformational, situational and distributed leadership, as well as Belbin’s team-role framework. Overall, the learning outcomes require students to critically reflect on their leadership style, evaluate classical and contemporary leadership theories, understand organisational change processes and develop evidence-based change strategies. The assessment also emphasises reflective practice and personal leadership development through experiential learning in a group setting.
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