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| GEST0233-1 | Marketing : Concepts and Decision Making
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| Duration : | 45h Th |
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| Number of credits : |
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| Lecturer : | Zelal Ates |
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Language(s) of instruction :
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| English language |
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Organisation and examination :
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| Teaching in the second semester |
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Course contents :
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| The focus of this course is on formulating and implementing marketing strategy and seeing how the decisions affecting the marketing mix in dynamic competitive environments and in different states of the product life cycle need to be aligned with that strategy.
This course utilizes experiential learning methods, i.e. a business simulation called MarkStrat, which require students
- to analyze and process information,
- to make reasonable and logical assumptions, and
- to arrive at insightful recommendations on the selection of businesses and segments to compete in as well as the allocation of resources across businesses, segments, and elements of the marketing mix. |
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Learning outcomes of the course :
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| By the end of this course students should be able
- To understand and apply some of the major marketing concepts, i.e. market segmentation, targeting, positioning, product life cycle etc.,
- To analyze the marketing and business environment in which the organization is operating,
- To develop skills to make sound assumptions in dealing with uncertainties, to work in an ambiguous environment and to solve problems with incomplete information,
- To formulate a strong marketing plan and to convert it into a fully functional and coherent action plan,
- To develop teamwork skills through case discussion, writing and group decision-making,
- To develop public speaking and presentation skills,
- To prepare concise and informative reports. |
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Prerequisites and co-requisites/ Recommended optional programme components :
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| Basic Marketing course |
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Planned learning activities and teaching methods :
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| This course has two major pedagogical approaches:
- Lectures/Discussions: Concepts of marketing strategy
- Computer Simulation (MarkStrat): MarkStrat occupies a significant part of the course. Students work in teams of ~ 6 students for this exercise. Each team makes strategic decisions in a competitive and dynamic environment which becomes increasingly complex over the periods. Students must develop a clear and precise marketing process, and work efficiently in a limited timeframe. The performance of each team is assessed at the end of term through a number of market indicators. |
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Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning) :
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| face-to-face |
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Recommended or required readings :
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| Markstrat student handbook |
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Assessment methods and criteria :
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| MarkStrat Quiz (individual): 30% All students must complete a short test on Markstrat concepts and principles.
MarkStrat Strategic Plan (group): 20% Each team is to submit a strategic marketing plan.
MarkStrat Simulation Results (group): 30% The primary measure used to evaluate teams' performance is cumulative ROI. Each team's score depends on how well the respective team performs relative to the other teams.
Final MarkStrat presentation (group): 20% The final presentation should reflect on the decisions that each team made over the 10 weeks of the game and on the insights gained by playing the game.
Class Participation (individual): +/- 2 Points (Bonus/Malus) Class participation is evaluated not only on the basis of volume or extent of participation, but also on the basis of quality. To participate effectively it is essential to read the assigned materials prior to class. |
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Work placement(s) :
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Organizational remarks :
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| Every student needs to acquire a license for the MarkStrat simulation. Students cannot participate in the course without one.
Final note: This schedule is designed to be a guide to the class and may change during the semester. |
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Contacts :
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| For lecture content, please contact Dr Zelal Ates (Zelal.Ates@ulg.ac.be; 04 366 46 95);
for administrative questions (deadlines, sick leave, submission of assignments etc.), please contact Simon Hazée (Simon.Hazee@ulg.ac.be; 04 232 72 25);
for technical questions with regard to MarkStrat, please contact Florence Degueldre (Florence.Degueldre@student.ulg.ac.be). |
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