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2026/2027  MA-MMBAO2601U  Strategic Management

English Title
Strategic Management

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 4 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Part Time Master
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Autumn
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Master of Business Administration
Programme Master of Business Administration
Course coordinator
  • Marcus Asplund - Department of Economics (ECON)
  • Marie Louise Mors - Department of Strategy and Innovation (SI)
Main academic disciplines
  • Strategy
Teaching methods
  • Face-to-face teaching
Last updated on 22-06-2026

Relevant links
Learning objectives
To receive the grade 12, the students needs to be able to:
  • - Discuss and apply the logic of key models, frameworks and analytical approaches covered in the Strategic Management course.
  • - Analyze the competitive situation in a market.
  • - Analyze the competitive position for a firm in a market..
  • - Predict the evolution of a market and firms' competitive position.
  • - Outline and analyze the organizational factors of relevance to strategy implementation
  • - Outline and analyze a firm's business model
  • Build a consistent and logical conclusion that follows from the analysis organization.
Examination
Strategic Management:
Exam ECTS 4
Examination form Home assignment - written product
Individual or group exam Individual exam
Size of written product Max. 10 pages
Assignment type Project
Release of assignment Subject chosen by students themselves, see guidelines if any
Duration 48 hours to prepare
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) Two internal examiners and one external examiner
Exam period Winter
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Description of the exam procedure

The exam is an individual 48 hour take-home exam based on a case that is provided by the lecturers. The use of generative artificial intelligence is not allowed on this exam.
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

For each topic there is a short introduction covering the basic theory and concepts used. However, most of the lectures are spent discussing the assigned cases and exercises. It is imperative that you have read the cases before class and tried to answer the assignment questions. You should be prepared to clearly state your answers to the assignment questions and defend your positions.

 

The aim of the Strategic Management course is to provide you with both a strong theoretical understanding and a practical grasp of the basic analytical tools in strategic management. In this course, you will apply the theoretical insights to practical case studies and in-class group exercises that serve to create a thorough foundation for dealing with strategic management.

 

The course intends to extend your knowledge to help you define and assess the quality of a firm's business model and competitive strategy. Nurturing a sound understanding of the fundamental principles and concepts inherent to strategic management should help you formulate evaluate and implement strategies that help firms gain competitive advantage. The course emphasizes practical application of theory. 

 

Strategic management analysis assumes that most resource and product markets are fundamentally imperfect and are not necessarily in competitive equilibrium. In fact, they would often seem to be in a state of permanent disequilibrium. Opportunities constantly emerge when industry conditions change, or when innovating firms change these conditions. Firms achieve competitive advantage by understanding these conditions and opportunities, by designing strategies and organizations that match their capabilities to available opportunities and by executing well. We will therefore also discuss your roles as general managers in organizations and how you can manage and implement strategy.
Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Classic and basic theory
  • New theory
  • Teacher’s own research
  • Methodology
  • Models
Research-like activities
  • Analysis
  • Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
  • Students conduct independent research-like activities under supervision
Description of the teaching methods
The course is structured in 12 sessions where each session is focusing on a specific topic
The course has diverse teaching methods using lectures, cases, readings, and discussions. The class meetings are interactive and require ongoing engagement of the students. This includes preparation of the reading materials for each class. The students are expected to have read and prepared the teaching cases for each session.
Feedback during the teaching period
The interactive case discussion format allows for continuous feedback. The students are expected to attend class, be prepared and participate in the case discussions. The students will receive answer guidelines for the final exams.

Student workload
Lectures 40 hours
Preparation 40 hours
Examination 20 hours
Last updated on 22-06-2026