Learning outcomes / skills: 

Students can identify the principal factors underlying corporate leadership with particular focus on internationalization, recognize the various global challenges faced by managers and leaders today, and give examples of organizations dealing with the various challenges of businesses globally. Once completed this module students will: 

• • Demonstrate a critical understanding of the complex nature of the global business development environment and how the social, economic and political factors have influenced, and continue to influence, global business and especially internationalization. 
• • Develop a sound understanding of the major theories and application types of leadership. 
• • Be aware of the role of personalities, regional cultures and organizational behavior and their interaction with leadership. 
• • Evaluate and apply learned concepts and theories. 

Competence Profile (Content and Methods). Students are trained: 

• • To understand the use of leadership models and concepts in crafting international strategies 
• • To integrate the different views on leadership. 
• • To analyze the various conflicting stakeholder interests in the context of leadership styles and management theories. 
• • To become aware of how different cultures and resources directly and indirectly influence leadership and the evaluation of leadership styles in various countries. 
• • To recognize the benefits and difficulties of adapting and adopting leadership techniques and systems from another culture. 

Competence Profile (Cross-functional) 

Teamwork: Students will be assigned to teams, with case assignment, for analysis and class presentation. Students not responsible for case presentation on that specific day will be expected to have analyzed the case and be prepared to ask questions. 

Case studies: The context of international management issues will be covered and discussed though lectures, cases, note sets, and readings. 

Action Learning: Assigned cases and readings will be the responsibility of the student and may not be part of the classroom lectures. Students are expected to have read the class text assignments and be prepared to discuss the contents in detail. 

Contents: 

The module is designed to develop an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the major leadership issues businesses are confronted with when developing and operating in global markets. It is devoted to the theoretical and applied aspects of corporate leadership. A special focus is put to the global context of leadership application. It introduces key theories of international leadership, including the determinants and the impact of leadership models. Business environmental issues such as business ethics in the global leadership context are also discussed. The theoretical understanding is illustrated and examined by reference to the examples of countries, international institutions, industries and companies. 

Individuals as Leaders 

• Introduction to the leadership theory 
• Traits and Ethics 
• Behavior and Motivation 

Team Leadership 

• Communication, Coaching and Conflict Skills 
• Leader-Member Exchange and Followership 
• Self-Managed Teams 

• Culture, Ethics and Diversity 
• Change Management 
• Crisis Management and Negotiation 

Deployed methods of business administration: 

• Models and Methods of analytics (research- and analytic models): 
• Content discussion and delivery follows a case-based research philosophy. Cases will be used to support student learning. 
• Quantitative-empirical methods (comparative – statistic, mathematic methods, data analyses): 
• In selected cases qualitative, inductive theory will be used to display the critical deficits in using (historical) data only. 
• Qualitative-interpretative methods (expert interview, surveys, standardized inquiry): 
• Current research findings will be continuously used in class to provide frameworks and content focus. 

Methods of Teaching and Learning:

Prerequisites include: In order to successfully pass this module you need to have a sound understanding of business and strategy as well as appropriate English language skills. The seminar is open to qualified Erasmus students. 

The pedagogical approach for this class will include interactive lectures, case analysis and group work. Class participation is expected as a part of the learning process. You are encouraged to bring in relevant current event updates and articles to share with the class. In class activities students will analyze corporate actions, successes and failures, strategy effectiveness, profit results, in view of corporate objectives. We will use the Moodle learning platform to distribute course material. 

The assessment will be through participation and a final assignment. Assigned readings will be the responsibility of the student and may not be part of the classroom lectures. Students are expected to have read the class text assignments and be prepared to make quality comments during class discussions. 

The course also includes an (optional) Off-Site Excursion to intensively work on applied trainings in order to develop applicable skills. 

Literature: 

Lussier, R. and Achua, C. (2016). Leadership, 6e, Cengage, ISBN 978-1-285-86635-2 

Peng, M. and Meyer, K. (2019). International Business. 3e, Cengage, ISBN 978-1473758438 

Hill, C. (2009). Global business today. 6e, McGraw Hill, ISBN 13-9780073381398 

SUPPLEMENATARY READING AND MATERIALS The Economist, Business Week, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal. 

Corporate Annual Reports 

Class Handouts, Readings, Journal Articles and other business publications as announced in class. 

In addition to the above texts and materials, several articles and multimedia presentations are recommended. These will be listed in the updates on Moodle.