Humanities modules assessed in semester 10

The "Business Strategy" and "Entrepreneurship" modules are designed to enable students to:
- gain a better understanding of the company's strategic choices and direction
- understand the marketing approach
- make business creation less dramatic by learning how to set up their own company.

Corporate strategy and marketing (J.-P. Guichané, J. Cruz)

Two "Business strategy and marketing" modules, corresponding to 5 x 4-hour sessions, are offered. The second module focuses more on innovation, to avoid similarities with certain specialization courses. Students will be assigned to modules 1 or 2 depending on their specialization.

Assessment is the same for both modules.

Module 1

Objectives

    - Understand the company's strategic choices through management choices.
- Understand the tools used to make strategic decisions.
- Identify the fundamental pillars of corporate strategic analysis
- Link corporate strategy to financial analysis
- Understand basic marketing concepts.
- Appreciate the use and usefulness of marketing research
- Link product sales management to technical management.
- Understand the development of the marketing mix.
- Understand the integration of a marketing approach applied to a product or service sold.

Contents

1) The company's strategic choices

    - Essential terms and concepts: competition and competitive analysis, competitive advantage and positioning... macro-environment analysis
- The pillars of corporate strategy: management and its choices, history and culture, products, customers, competitors, influencers, technology, human resources, financial analysis, management and organization
- Tools: BCG matrix, DAS, external and internal diagnostics, SWOT, strategic commitment plan...
- Notions of diversification, expansion, specialization, globalization...
- Acquisition strategies, strategic alliances and relational strategies. Alternative strategies.

2) Marketing: approaches and applications

    - Concepts: fundamentals, the notion of product and/or service, the market and customer behavior, the business environment.
- Sales research: notions of market research, qualitative and quantitative research, brand awareness and image.
- Product management: ranges, brands, product lines, life cycle... .
- The marketing mix: rationale and components (product, price, communications, advertising, distribution, non-media and media communications)
- Strategic marketing and its specific features in industry and services.

Module 2

Objectives

   - Imagine and validate an innovative offering concept with the market.
- Build a global strategy (or business model) around this concept.
- Build a project plan from concept to commercial success.
- Study the economic and financial performance and ROI of such a project.
- Present and convince decision-makers and financial backers of the project.

Contents

Il s’agit d’imaginer un nouveau produit capable de répondre à un besoin peu couvert par le marché et qui pourrait être porté par une entreprise existante (réelle ou fictive), de réaliser des démarches permettant de valider la pertinence de ce concept, puis de transformer cette nouvelle offre en une stratégie (business model) et en un plan d’actions capable de lui faire atteindre le succès commercial et un positionnement de choix sur le marché. La priorité sera donnée à la construction d’une stratégie (cible, offre <> besoin, modèle de production, modèle de commercialisation, modèle économique…) et sa validation par le marché.

Evaluation (4 ECTS)

Case studies of corporate strategy and marketing plans applied to a chosen company will be carried out in groups.
Groups will produce a written dossier and present a strategic diagnosis and a marketing mix application on a product or service sold in connection with the chosen company.

Entrepreneurship (E. Astien and J. Cruz)

Objectives

    - Make setting up a new business easier
- Understand the mechanisms involved in setting up a new business
- Learn about business strategy and management
- Strengthen your business management skills

Contents

    - Presentation of entrepreneurship (and testimonials if possible) 4h
- Serious game (8h): the marketing game
Follow a methodology to build a business model
Position a product on a market
Apply simple representation and analysis tools
Build a draft business model

Evaluation (2 ECTS)

Serious game simulation.