International Business

with a Foundation Year

Unlock your potential and gain the essential skills for academic success at university. You’ll develop effective study habits, learn to manage your time, and gain strategies for independent learning. You’ll conduct academic research, by learning to find, evaluate, and use academic sources, while avoiding plagiarism. Your writing skills will be developed through extended writing activities, referencing, proofreading, and editing. You’ll also improve your communication skills by learning how to structure a presentation and use visual aids. You’ll develop your critical thinking through analysis, evaluation, and argumentation. By the end of this module, you’ll be building towards working at Level 4. 

How do businesses operate today? What are their key functions and how are they organised? Most importantly, what do managers need to know in order to make sound decisions?

You’ll develop a broad understanding of essential business management and accounting models, exploring theories that are integral to how businesses work. By looking at fundamental business strategies and different tools of analysis – like break-even calculations, ratio analysis, capital appraisal models, and decision trees – you’ll develop your understanding of the basics of business and start building up your skills in Excel.

Dive into a project that sparks your curiosity and hones your academic skills, as you choose a topic you're passionate about and transform your research into a compelling essay. This module allows you to develop and apply the learning from your Autumn term module 'Academic Skills Development'. You will improve your research and writing skills further and refine your use of sources. While you conduct your reading and research, you’ll engage in reflective practices improving your ability to assess and evaluate your learning using various reflective models. Independence and time management are key skills you’ll develop as you navigate this module.

To maximise your experience, you are expected to prepare and actively participate in our regular tutorials. These are designed to provide invaluable opportunities to seek guidance and develop your project.

Throughout the course, students actively engage in discussions and practical applications, preparing them to confront complex global economic challenges armed with a data-driven approach. By the end of the course, students emerge equipped with the necessary skills to analyse economic data effectively and contribute meaningfully to informed decision-making in the global economic landscape.

How do companies measure, assess and communicate their financial performance? Managers prepare, read and interpret financial information daily and they use it to communicate company financial results to a variety of stakeholders.

In this module you’ll learn how sole traders and limited companies record accounting transactions using bookkeeping and how they summarise and report their financial results to external stakeholders using financial statements. You’ll also gain essential knowledge of the regulatory framework of financial reporting which guides the process of preparing annual reports for a variety of companies.

By the end of the module, you will have developed the analytical skills needed to both prepare and analyse financial statements. This will enable you to holistically assess company financial performance and provide recommendations, an important skill in your future career.

What knowledge and skills you need to succeed in a globalised economy? You'll learn about the key drivers of the global economy, the global sustainability, social, cultural, economic, international trade, investment and political environments, and how to identify and mitigate the risks associated with operating in unpredictable environment.

You'll gain important insights into the social, political, economic and technological issues related to business that are essential to pursuing a career in multinational corporations and understanding the world around you. Your understanding of the global business world will help you develop analytical skills to turn data into valuable information for business decisions and position yourself for success in international business.

Develop the communication, leadership and professional skills needed to succeed in international business. Build your confidence in teamwork, negotiation and decision-making while learning to work effectively across cultures.

Develop the research, analytical and critical-thinking skills to understand international business environments. Learn to evaluate information, explore global trends and turn evidence into insights that support informed business decisions.

This module aims to equip you with the knowledge and skills to identify, analyse, and evaluate ethical issues in business. Through critical reflection and analytical argumentation, you’ll develop the ability to articulate your views and critique opposing perspectives on ethical matters.

The focus of this module is on gaining an in-depth understanding of business ethics and cultivating critical thinking skills, enabling you to emerge as a conscientious leader in your field. Corporate social responsibility and sustainability are central themes due to the growing interest and expectations from stakeholders on environmental and social performance.

You'll cover essential theories such as utilitarianism, deontological theories, corporate social responsibility, and the triple bottom line, applying these concepts to real-life business situations through case studies.

International business is vital for companies around the globe. In a dynamic and interconnected world, how can managers explore the opportunities and ensure a successful international expansion?

You’ll master the theories and skills you need to analyse the external environment and conduct international business successfully. Through exploring these theories, you'll understand how to implement the most effective human resource management, marketing, supply chain management or financial management strategies.

You’ll gain the skills and knowledge to scan international expansion opportunities, decide on a new target market and design a strategy for a successful expansion abroad. This is key for you to launch a successful, global career in business.

To manage operations globally, you need the ability to critically evaluate how supply chains function and how the operations of individual organisations that operate across borders are managed and can create value for them and other firm- and non-firm actors.

You'll learn to adopt a global perspective on supply chain management and assess the complex systems of operations through the angle of global value chains management. You will further discover the ways such systems are managing so that they lead to various types of upgrading - economic, social, environmental and technological. Collaborate with other students on your course to analyse the value chains of real-world multinational companies and report on them, developing the skills and experience you need to kickstart a career in operations management.

International Marketing offers companies the opportunity to expand their business and reach new customers on a global scale. You’ll learn how to identify and evaluate new market opportunities, assess different ways to enter potential markets and appreciate the range of influences that exist in the international marketing environment that might require adaptations to marketing strategy and programmes. By taking a problem solving approach to the opportunities and challenges international marketers face, you’ll learn how to apply key international marketing theories and frameworks to help you demonstrate and develop the essential critical thinking and analytical skills needed in today’s workplace to justify your decision-making.

Are you interested in starting your own business? What are the tools and skills you need to do so? Why are startups becoming more popular? We’ll delve into the social and economic changes that have raised the status of enterprises, small businesses, and entrepreneurial ventures in the global economy.

We’ll consider entrepreneurs, their characteristics and motivations, and the barriers and issues that they face when planning and establishing a new startup venture. You'll learn what makes new ventures grow and succeed, and evaluate the practical decisions that entrepreneurs need to make to maximise the chances of their business succeeding.

Excel is the industry-standard software for data processing and modelling, so gaining a strong working knowledge of it enables you to bring immediate value to a business and / or management role. By working on realistic problems and skill exercises, you will learn key Excel and spreadsheet modelling techniques, gaining real hands-on experience that will enable you to use data effectively to support decision making.

By the end of the module, you will be able to use Excel competently for business reporting, modelling, and forecasting. You will understand how to gather the right and relevant information; analyse it; ensure it can be trusted, and how to demonstrate its value in the context of making business decisions. In this way, you will build the confidence to present your insights clearly to managers, stakeholders, business leaders and non-technical audiences, making you a valuable asset to organisations committed to data-driven and evidence-based decision making.

What is the impact of a changing world on cross-border management? How can culture, organisation, communication, leadership, and ethics be managed effectively in different locations? The current era offers unprecedented excitement and opportunities for learning. 

You'll gain a comprehensive introduction to the latest research on cross-cultural management. Based on critical analysis of the assumptions underlying various approaches to studying national cultures, you’ll apply frameworks to understand cross-cultural issues managers in international organisations may face. Some of the topics you’ll study include different approaches to cross-cultural management, cultural frameworks and how to apply them, the role of the global manager, and global management challenges. 

Experiential learning and teamwork are integral to the module and the teaching is highly participative. You’ll participate in various group exercises including an assignment in partnership with Kelley School of Business in the USA. This active experience working with peers and with another international institution helps you make rapid progress in your understanding of cross-cultural management, giving you an edge in the job market.

How do multinational organisations make big-picture decisions about managing their global portfolios? How do they gain sustained advantage over their competitors? You will learn about how multinational enterprises design and manage their operations across borders handling the tensions between their headquarters and their subsidiaries to get results on a global scale.

Gain insight into strategic decision-making by looking at internationalisation strategies, managing strategic alliances and mergers and acquisitions, as well as diving into risk management, knowledge creation, divestment, and corporate social responsibility on a global scale.

You’ll round out your learning by understanding international business in a strategic way while mastering sought after communication skills through the support provided for assessments on the module. This will give you an extra edge in the job market after graduation and set yourself up for an exciting and successful career in international business.

Global trade and finance are rapidly growing fields, with increasing demand for skilled professionals. This is your chance to join these in demand professionals and kick start your career.

You’ll learn to think critically about complex issues in global trade and finance gain the knowledge and skills you need to navigate the global markets and make informed and sustainable business decisions. You’ll explore different types of global trade and how to finance them, including exports, imports, and cross-border investments. You won’t only make rapid process in expanding your knowledge, you’ll be able to apply this knowledge to solve real-world problems.

By completing this module, you demonstrate to potential employers that you have a deep understanding of the global economy and the financial markets, making you a more attractive candidate for roles in international business, trade finance, and investment banking.

Explore how leaders respond when organisations face uncertainty, change and disruption. You’ll consider how to make decisions, lead people and help organisations adapt when the usual ways of working are challenged.

Explore the emerging challenges and opportunities shaping international business, from geopolitical tensions and changing trade relationships to sustainability and new technologies. Examine how organisations adapt and respond in an increasingly complex global environment.

Do you have what it takes to be a management consultant? Do you have the skills to be able to respond to the real-world problems that businesses are facing today? On this module, we'll work with real businesses who want the help of groups of KBS students to solve the challenges that they currently face.  Through a series of workshops you'll come to understand the consultancy process and develop key consultancy skills as you master the art of responding effectively to a brief from a business. Working in a group of your peers, you'll bring different skillsets from your studies to bear on solving business problems like designing a marketing strategy, advising on recruitment processes, or support meaningful performance management and financial evaluation etc. Put a capstone on your studies with a project that has real world impact.

Is there a topic that you are passionate about and what to understand better? This module will provide you with the opportunity to apply your learning, experience, skills and curiosity to a variety of contemporary business and management issues. You'll develop a research project on a topic of your choosing with support from a series of workshops that cultivate key research skills like scoping a project, using databases to do secondary research, asking good interview or survey questions, coding data that you've collected, and reporting professionally on your findings. You'll also be allocated a supervisor in your field who will work to support you in shaping and completing your project. Gain sought after skills in independently scoping, researching, and reporting on a problem to prepare you for a career in consultancy or postgraduate study.