| CODE | BEM2001 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Geopolitical and Economic Contexts of Contemporary Organisations | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Business and Enterprise Management | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit provides a broad overview into the geopolitical and economic issues faced by modern organisations, with a particular focus on businesses. The unit will consider today's connected, globalised business world as a function of various social, political, and macroeconomic factors, both domestically and across the world. In its delivery, the unit will consist of a mix of lessons relating purely to geopolitics and others specifically to economics, especially at the beginning of the unit. These two topics will be brought together, and addressed as one, at various instances across the study-unit such that from the second part of the study-unit onwards, the intertwined impacts of these topics is analysed collectively, with examples from recent history. In the lectures related to geopolitics, the study-unit shall provide an overview of the different characteristics of world politics and international relations and how these differ with the geographical location of a country or territory. The main actors involved in such relations will also be discussed, including governments but also international organisations such as the United Nations, the World Economic Forum and the World Trade Organisations. This study-unit shall also provide an overview of the tools which countries have at their disposal when tackling international affairs. The most current and relevant geopolitical issues over recent history, will also be discussed marking their significance and impact on organisations. In the lectures related to economics, the unit shall provide an overview of the basic economic theories relevant to organisations, at a local and international level, including markets, customer demand and consumer confidence, supply theories, commodity prices and resource costs, competition and product differentiation, economic growth, inflation, interest rates, employment and demographics. These lectures shall provide the drivers, opportunities and threats to globalisation, international business, and foreign direct investment. Lastly, the unit shall also delve into foreseen geopolitical issues and manners in which organisations may be future-proof. Study-unit Aims: - To introduce students to the international political dimension of economics. - To provide an insight in the geopolitics and economics and their impacts on countries and organisations. - To provide students with an overview of the most relevant and current geopolitical and economic issues. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Demonstrate how organisations are being driven by pressures related to technological advancement, climate changes, global health crises, food insecurity, poverty, competition for resources, and other events; - List and outline the actions which countries take in international politics and their ensuing impacts on economies; - List and outline the actions which organisations may adopt in the face of changing geopolitical and economic trends. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Analyse the link between national/international political dynamics, the economy and organisations; - Critique contextual, historical and political perspectives to enable critical thinking and problem solving. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Readings: - Cohen, S. B. (2014). Geopolitics: The geography of international relations. Rowman & Littlefield. - Beugelsdijk, S., Brakman, S., Van Ees, H., & Garretsen, H. (Eds.). (2013). Firms in the international economy: Firm heterogeneity meets international business. MIT Press. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Kirsten Maria Cutajar Miller |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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