The Modern Business Enterprise module aims to:

1. provide students with a sound understanding of modern economic approaches to corporate organisation and behaviour.
2. build upon the year 2 modules in Microeconomics and year 3 Industrial Economics and explore modern explanations of firm behaviour.
3. introduce students to the information and decision problems facing modern business enterprise, and to examine possible solutions.
4. familiarise students with various elements of corporate economic strategy particularly relating to mergers, vertical integration, joint ventures, franchising, and internationalisation and the role of these elements in meeting business objectives.
5. give students an understanding of theoretical and practical perspectives on both the process of business growth and the constraints on growth.
6. encourage through teaching and learning student transferable skills in areas such as data collection, analysis and reporting. 

A    Knowledge and Understanding:

• be aware of the economic theory appertaining to the nature and behaviour of stakeholders within modern business enterprise, and be able to analyse and describe the information asymmetries occurring between conflicting groups.
• be familiar with different forms of corporate organisation, and be able to describe how different organisational structures come into being and evolve.
• be able to demonstrate how different information and decision problems in a modern firm affect corporate structures.
• recognise the potential and limits of economic principles as an aid to understanding the behaviour of modern business enterprise.

B    Intellectual Skills:

• be able to apply logical analysis to business economic problems.
• be able to evaluate strategic economic issues facing modern business enterprise.

C    Discipline Specific Skills:

• be familiar and competent to research statistical, textual, and internet sources relating to modern industries and their development through time.
• be able to analyse the economic basis of corporate economic strategy as it relates to areas such as internationalisation,  restructuring, rationalisation, and general business growth.

D    Transferable Skills:

• be read extensively, and be able to collect, organise and analyse data.
• be familiar with key IT resources for research purposes and to inform classes and assignment work.
• be confident in developing individual ideas, setting personal course goals and schedules.

The module will be delivered through a mix of large & small group face-to-face sessions, including, where relevant, supporting digital learning activities and/or recordings

Successful completion of the continuous assessed work requires students to write up an essay answer based on lectures and class material.  Students will demonstrate understanding of the theoretical foundations of the course, and they must demonstrate that they have researched the topics extensively.  A list of core readings appertaining to the assignment is provided to students at the start of the module. However, students are also encouraged to find their own literature sources and develop them, hence developing transferable research skills.  The essay question requires students to focus and organise their material in a concise piece of work.

The examination component is a single section, with essay questions that cover the whole of the course material.  Students choose three questions.  The exam is designed to test knowledge acquired by students over both the semesters.

The Modern Business Enterprise module examines modern economic approaches to corporate organisation and behaviour.

The Nature of Modern Business Enterprise and Key Perspectives

Modern approaches to business organisations in the context of problems with neo-classical assumptions. Alternative business objectives and managerial theories of the firm. Neoclassical model and theories of economic organisation, factors contributing to market failure, transactions costs analysis and alternatives, the price mechanism and coordination within the firm and the market, bounded rationality and private information.

Moral hazard problems, controlling these problems in firms and markets, incentive contracts, and organisational design. The control of managerial discretion and the market for corporate control.

The Structure of Modern Business Enterprise

The boundaries and structure of modern business enterprise; information problems and links to internal structures, U form. M form and hybrid structures, advantages and disadvantages of different forms.

Modern Business Enterprise Structures and Cases

Multinational enterprise – theoretical perspectives on international firms focusing on transactions costs, product cycle and product portfolio approaches.

Franchising, growth and theoretical perspectives, factors in success and failure of franchising agreements.

Profit sharing firms, worker –owned firms and management buyouts.

Mergers, takeovers and firm boundaries, competing hypotheses and the market for corporate control, corporate governance systems.

Evolutionary Approaches to Modern Business Enterprise

Darwinian and Lamarkian perspectives, organisational ecology, evolutionary theory of economic change.  Social networks and economic performance.

The Role of the Entrepreneur

Contrasting perspectives following the classical tradition. Small firms, enterprise, and policy.