School of Accounting and Finance
AFM 433: Business Strategy
Spring 2024 Course Syllabus
Course Instructor:
Course Description:
This course focuses on strategic management of the total enterprise. Managers contribute to the organization through their analytical and leadership capabilities as well as their technical expertise. The course provides a framework for developing and implementing strategy that fits the firm's environment, managerial values, and organization.
Course Goals and Learning Outcomes:
Programs delivered by the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) are designed to provide students with the competencies, professionalism and practical experience that they need to excel in their chosen careers. With this in mind, the course was designed to deliver a specific set of the knowledge, skills and competencies identified in the School’s Learning Model illustrated to the right.
This course will focus on developing knowledge and skills from the following four categories:
Understanding Business,
Thinking & Problem Solving,
Communication, and
Leadership and Collaboration.
You will integrate the knowledge and skills to develop competence in strategic thinking. The learning outcomes for the course are as follows:
To assess the alignment of an organization’s mission, vision, and values with its business strategy and its organizational accountability system;
To identify and evaluate an organization’s business strategy and strategic alternatives, specifying the conditions for success;
To describe an organization’s governance structure and the specific roles of the board in strategic management;
To discuss the implications of an organization’s business strategy and strategic alternatives, specifying implementation issues and risk management requirements;
To strengthen thinking and problem-solving skills by learning when, why, and how to apply strategy analysis concepts/tools and design thinking skills; and,
To further develop written communication skills, presentation delivery skills, and teamwork capabilities through deliberate practice.
Course Activities and Resources:
As shown in the Module Map (figure 1) below, the course is structured into 11 weekly modules each aligned with one of the four course learning outcomes.
9 of the 11 modules provide an opportunity to apply the content learned directly to simulations (cases).
Course Support
The benefits you get from this course will depend entirely on what you invest in completing the course. A combined synchronous and asynchronous learning environment can be challenging and an adjustment for many students. This is even more exacerbated in a case-based course. We want you to be successful and have the best experience possible which is why the following resources are available to support you:
You have been assigned a lead TA for your section. These will be identified in an announcement on the LEARN homepage for the course.
Start with the lead TA for your section for all questions.
If you still need help, you can email your Professor directly at [email protected] or [email protected] to answer your questions and/or to set up an appointment to meet by video conference or phone call
Learning in the current environment is challenging. Please don’t hesitate to reach out directly if you need help on any front. We will do our best to help, and can connect you with available campus support resources as required.
Blended Learning Approach
Consistent feedback from our students over the last two terms has indicated that most students prefer the opportunity to learn the course content at their own pace and speed but have missed having live and interactive classes. Therefore, we have planned a blended approach that includes online delivery of the lectures via voice over PowerPoint and then ONE regularly scheduled weekly live class in your assigned sections. The first will be in week one to introduce the course and answer any questions you may have about how the course will operate. In general, the approach in the live classes will be to quickly recap the content covered in the previous week, and then to cover the assigned cases to apply what you have learned.
It is vital that you take responsibility for your own success in the course. Please reach out to your assigned Professor if there is any reason that you feel you cannot be successful. We are here to help.
Course Schedule
The Course Schedule (posted in a separate document in the LEARN Administration folder) identifies specific learning activities for each module and the dates for assigned readings, pre-recorded lecture presentations, quizzes, and team assignments. The typical weekly schedule is as follows (specific details for each week are in the Course Schedule):
Read articles from the Harvard Business Review (HBR) where applicable, which can be accessed for free through the UW Library’s Course Reserves system. See “Course Resources” section below for details.
Listen to the PowerPoint presentations in the weekly Module folder in the Content section of LEARN.
Watch related videos where applicable.
Write the Module Quiz (where applicable) which can be accessed in LEARN under “Submit Quizzes”. 8 of 11 Modules have a Quiz. See “Course Evaluation” section below for details.
Prepare the assigned cases ahead of the weekly live classes and be ready to participate in the class discussions
Attend the weekly live classes the following Tuesday to recap key concepts and apply them in the assigned case discussions
Course Resources:
There is no textbook for this course, but there are assigned readings for most classes and a series of cases that we will analyze over the term. The Class Schedule [Available in the LEARN “Administration” folder and below as Attachment 1] identifies both.
Most of the assigned articles listed in the Class Schedule are sourced from Harvard Business Review and can be accessed for free through the UW Library’s Course Reserves system. When you look at your LEARN course site there is a “Get Course Reserves” widget under the Library Resources section (automatically included on the left side of the course home page). Click on the “Get Course Reserves” link and it will bring you to the e-reserve sign-in where, once you have signed in, you will have access to the electronic copy of the assigned readings.
The assigned cases are protected by copyright and therefore are bundled into a Courseware Package available for purchase through the Ivey case platform. Links will be posted on LEARN.
Course Assessments:
As shown in Figure 2, your grade is based on the following:
Module Quizzes (10%)
There are eight (8) module quizzes in this course that are to be completed individually, plus a practice quiz in week 2. See the Course Schedule for the applicable modules and due dates. A Module Quiz is typically available to be written starting when the module is released at 12:01am on the Friday before the week of the module. The quiz is typically due on Fridays at 9pm, but the specific dates for each module quiz can be found in the Course Schedule. Quizzes can be accessed in LEARN under “Submit Quizzes”.
Each module quiz will test you on the content assigned in the Module Readings of the Course Schedule for that week. Module Readings include the PowerPoint presentations, questions in the PowerPoint presentations, articles, and/or videos.
The quizzes are multiple choice and each quiz contains five (5) questions and you have five (5) minutes to complete it once you initiate it. The top six (6) of eight (8) quizzes completed will count towards your final grade. The two (2) excluded quizzes will be those with the lowest scores, or the ones that you were unable to complete for any possible reason. Quizzes will be automatically graded. Your quiz grade and feedback will be released right after the quiz due date.
In addition, a “practice quiz” will be due in Week 1. This quiz will effectively provide a 9th quiz that can count towards your top 6 if you choose to do the practice quiz and if you do well enough for it to be one of your top 6 quiz marks. Effectively this means that the top 6 will still count but will be chosen from a total of 9 quizzes (8 official quizzes plus the optional practice quiz).
In Class Participation (20%)
A key part of any senior business school course is individual class participation. In this course participation will be tracked by the lead TA and consolidated with the instructor’s evaluation of your “in class” contribution and will map to a range of contribution grades assigned at the end of term:
90-100% - at the instructor’s discretion - attends class regularly, contributes to class discussions most classes, quality of contribution is high (shows insight, moves the conversation, enhances learning experience for all)
80% - attends class regularly, contributes to class discussion most classes
50-70% - attends class regularly, contributes occasionally
0-40% - does not attend class regularly, and/or rarely participates
Your participation grade will come in two parts – an interim grade posted at the midterm will count for 50% of the participation grade, and a second half grade which will count for the other 50%.
In general, you must attend class in your assigned section. If you have a conflict on a particular date (such as an interview) you can arrange by exception to attend another section that day. Email your instructor and your lead TA ahead of time, and then check in with the lead TA of the section you attend at the start of class.
We also anticipate that you may need to miss a class or two during the term. If it’s just one or two classes this will not affect your participation grade, but you must notify your lead TA of your absence and the reason. If you need to miss class for any health-related reasons, including COVID related, you should definitely inform your lead TA and we will exempt you from that class for participation grades.
The University has instituted a self-declaration process for absences. In the event you self-declare an absence you must also inform your lead TA via email in order to be exempted from any missed assignments or class participation. Please note that the above leeway around missing a class or two includes any self declared absences, it is NOT in addition to those.
If for some reason you feel you will be unable to contribute regularly in class please reach out to the instructor at the beginning of the live classes to discuss. Alternate arrangements for participation marks cannot be made after the fact.
Capstone Team Case Assignment (20%)
The capstone activity for the course will be a team case presentation. The case will be developed specifically for the course and for this term. It will be released following the midterm and will be due in two parts.
The first part is a content deck which follows the AFM433 case analysis approach, is worth 12% and will be due at 6PM on Sunday July 21st. The second part is worth 8% and will consist of a 10-minute presentation delivered in class during by your team. Live presentations will take place during the live classes on Tuesday July 23rd. Your teams will be given a specific timeslot for your presentation closer to the date. More detailed requirements will be posted on LEARN when we release the case following the midterm.
Capstone Case Teams
You will be asked to form teams of up to five students for your capstone case assignment in week 3 of the course. We will provide an online facility in LEARN for you to sign up to a team with some of your fellow students. If required we will combine teams of 2 or 3 into a team of five, and if you don’t have a preferred team, we will assign you to one.
All members of a team normally receive the team’s grade for each component of the Capstone case because strategy development and implementation are team efforts, not an individual activity. Should any significant teamwork issues arise, contact your Instructor as soon as the issue occurs and not after the submission has been completed.
Although there will be no formal peer evaluation, the instructors reserve the right to increase or decrease the individual marks of a team member based on feedback from the rest of the team. Please note you must make an effort to resolve any issues within your team, and then to escalate with your instructor in order for peer adjustments to be made, otherwise the entire team mark may be reduced.
Midterm Examination (20%) and Final Examination (30%)
The Midterm Exam is a case exam. You are expected to select and apply appropriate analytical models and communication skills to address the case role and requirement. It will be a 2-hour case exam covering the first 5 modules of the course. The midterm will be administered in person on Wednesday June 19th from 7:00pm to 9:00pm (Waterloo time zone).
The Final Exam is a 2.5-hour in person case exam, and will cover all 11 modules of the course. The date for the final exam will be scheduled by the registrar. You must pass the final exam in order to pass the course.
Normal University of Waterloo academic integrity regulations will apply during the midterm and the exam, i.e. these are your own individual work and you should not communicate in any way with other students during the midterm or the exam. In both cases we will be using Turnitin to verify the originality of your submissions. A separate Instruction sheet will be issued prior to the exam providing further details.
If you miss the Midterm Exam for an approved absence (see SAF policy on accommodations for missed assessments), then you will write a Final Exam for the total of the midterm and the final. If you miss the final exam for an approved reason you will be given an INC grade and will be required to complete the final exam in the following term.
Written requests for re-grading a Midterm Exam must be made via email within one week after the examination has been returned. A written request must be submitted that indicates your reasons for believing that the case solution was improperly graded. The Instructor reserves the right to re-grade the entire examination.
Course Policies
Submission Times
The University of Waterloo is located in the Eastern Time Zone (GMT or UTC-5 during standard time and UTC-4 during daylight saving time) and, as such, the time for your activities and/or assignments are due is based on this zone. If you are outside of the Eastern Time Zone and require assistance converting your time, please try the https://www.worldtimeserver.com/convert_time_in_CA-ON.aspx
Late Submission Policy
The purpose of the Quizzes is to motivate you to stay engaged on an ongoing basis. Therefore, there are NO extensions on these weekly module deadlines although, as indicated in Figure 2, you may choose NOT to submit some without penalty. Failure to submit by the deadline and/or in the case of the Quiz within the 5-minute time allotment, results in an automatic grade of ZERO for that particular Quiz or Team Submission. NO EXCEPTIONS.
The late penalty for the Capstone Case assignment, Midterm Exam and Final Exam is a deduction of 1% for every 1 minute late. NO EXCEPTIONS. An assessment that is late by 100 minutes or more will automatically receive a grade of 0%.
Turnitin Policy
Text matching software (Turnitin®) may be used to screen assignments and examinations in this course. Turnitin® is used to verify that all materials and sources in assignments are documented and that academic integrity exist on both examination and assignment submissions. Students will be given an option if they do not want to have their assignment screened by Turnitin®. If you have concerns about using Turnitin or would like to opt out of using it, please contact your Instructor by the end of Week 1 to discuss alternate arrangements to submit your assignment. Please note that direct use and copying from AI tools such as ChatGPT will also be considered an academic integrity offence.
USE OF CHAT GPT AND OTHER AI GENERATIVE TECHNOLOGIES
Using ChatGPT (or similar tools that generate text, code, or visual images) for content generation and submitting it as one’s own original work is a violation of the University of Waterloo’s Policy 71 (Student Discipline). The use of this technology is strictly forbidden in this course and any violations of this policy will result in immediate referral to the students department for disciplinary action.
University of Waterloo and School of Accounting & Finance Policies
Details regarding School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) policies and University of Waterloo policies can be found on the SAF LEARN site “My SAF Community”. These policies are an integral part of this course syllabus. They have been posted on the SAF LEARN site as they are not course specific but are common for all SAF program courses. Please ensure that each term you are informed regarding these policies. They include but are not limited to:
School of Accounting and Finance Policies:
Accommodations for Missed Assessments
Documentation Requirements Supporting Requests for Accommodation
Recording of Lectures
.
University of Waterloo Policies:
Academic Integrity
Grievance
Discipline
Appeals
Academic Offenses and Implications
Avoiding Academic Offences
Violation of Standards by Another Student
Note for Students with Disabilities
