MGT8002 Examination guidelines The MGT8002 exam covers Modules 3 – 4 of the course contents. The exam questions are focused on application of theory (as outlined in the Module outcomes in the Study Book) to the Home Pharmaceuticals Fitness Club case study. There are ten (10) questions worth a total of 50 marks and you are required to answer all questions. You have two hours to complete the exam and it counts for 50% of your overall mark for this course. The following topic areas are included:
Competitive advantage: theory
Capability gap analysis
Identify and assess organisational capabilities related to the case (Home Pharmaceuticals and competitors), and understand how they link to competitive advantage.
Capabilities/KSF analysis
Identify and assess KSFs and match them with organisational capabilities (related to the case). See Appendix 1, Figures 3.7 and 3.8 of Study Book Module 3. Understand how the ratings of the capabilities/KSF analysis (Fig 3.8) lead to the development of strategies to grow the business and improve competitive advantage.
Strategy development: Corporate and business-level strategies
Develop corporate-level and business-level strategies for Home Pharmaceuticals applying the Product/Market grid analysis (Fig 3.4 Mod 3 Study Book) and Generic Strategies analysis (Fig 3.3 Mod 3 Study Book). You need to be able to recommend specific strategies for Home Pharmaceuticals going forward; provide a clear rationale for why you choose these strategies and explain details of the strategies. For instance; if you choose a Market Development strategy for Home Pharmaceuticals, you need to identify the new market and be able to provide details of how this strategy will work for the business (products, services, customers, position in the industry, etc).
Strategy evaluation models
Identify and apply models of evaluating strategy (See Module 4 Study Book, Sections 4.2 and 4.3). The readings linked to Module 4 are important to provide you with more detail and examples of models that are used for evaluating strategy.
Although the exam questions are focused on the case study, it is crucial that your answers have a theoretical foundation. To be successful in this examination, you do need to study the theory (Study Book, prescribed text and readings) and base your responses and application on what you have learned in the theory provided to you in this course. Closer to the exam date, I will post a recording to show you exactly how to use the figures that I referred to in the bullet points above. For now, focus on studying the course materials related to Modules 3 and 4.