The arrival of the standardized three year bachelor degree as the European undergraduate norm, the outcome of the Bologna Agreement, has widened the scope for textbooks which deal with European business issues. There is consequently a wider spread of demand, beyond the traditional Anglo-Saxon countries, for English language business and case books. The target market is therefore undergraduate students completing a course in strategic management or international strategic management. The undergraduate students will probably be in the final year of a bachelor in business degree in a European university. This book is astandard strategic management text and case book, with the accent on the cases. The main themes of business strategy theory will be covered, but the objective is to link the themes or topics to a description of their effect on European firms, i.e. at the relevant point in the case. The book is very definitely about implementation and then tying the implementation into the theory.First, the cases will be the star of the show, appearing at the beginning of each chapter; at the chapter opening there will be an illustration box on one page, with a mini case example that highlights the main theme of the chapter; this will be followed by some key learning points for the student before the main caseis presented. The main case will then be presented with highlighted links to different themes throughout; the relevant theories and themes are then discussed in the theory section of the chapter. The chapter closes with a Summary, student assignment, and suggested reading. In the Introduction to the book the authors explain how to use the book:'We recommend that you start off each topicby reading the case first. The first reading should be thought of as an introduction to the topic. The case should be read without any attempt to form opinions, collect data or make notes. The cases are all interesting stories and sothe first reading should be an armchair introduction to a ripping yarn, to paraphrase the Nike slogan: just read it! By starting the sequence in this way, the student obtains a gestalt of the case, which can be fleshed out later. We then recommend moving to the theory section of the chapter and working throughthe models and discussions, in your own individual way. There are colour coded links from the theory section back to the case. Here we recommend you, at that point follow back the link, and catch the connection to the current theory topic, returning back to the theory at the end of the linked case section. By the end of each theory chapter you will have been led through a series of theory to case connections. To test your acquired knowledge we suggest you now take each learning objective, both main and subsidiary, and see if you can find non-highlighted links between the objective and an example from the case. This is a difficult exercise and you may not be able to find additional links, do not despair, the attempt will have forced you to hone your analytical skills and helps digest the points covered.' Finally, the cases will emphasize Europeanrelevance, so they will be about companies in Europe or European companies outside of Europe, encompassing international strategy issues as well as purely domestic ones."
- ISBN: 978-1-4051-6107-7
- Editorial: Wiley-Blackwell
- Encuadernacion: Cartoné
- Páginas: 352
- Fecha Publicación: 23/05/2009
- Nº Volúmenes: 1
- Idioma: Inglés