Module “Retail Management and B2C-Marketing”
Module representative
Professor Dr. Prof. h.c. Bernhard Swoboda (10 credits)
Qualifying goals
After finishing the module “Retail Management and B2C-Marketing”, students should know the strategic core decisions of retailing corporations and the consumer goods industry, and should be able to critically evaluate selected research studies and practical examples. The module focuses on the management of retail corporations (offline, online und omnichannel), with their competitive and corporate strategies, as well as of consumer brand manufacturers, with their international Corporate- und Product-Branding in B2C-Marketing. Students should reflect the respective contents theoretically and practically, and reach conceptual competencies to structure and empirically evaluate complex relationships (e.g., logic of modeling, sampling, measurement, evaluation). Students should increase the conceptual solution skills by examples of studies as well as communication skills by short presentations about scientific studies of international journal. The module prepares the students for the group work within the research project in the following semester (which is constantly offered by the Chair concerning the topics of offline/online retailing and/or international marketing management), as well as for a later empirical master thesis or even a doctorate.
Participation requirements
Formal: none
Content: none
Application of the module (for other programs)
Export module for the master degree programs of business informatics, business mathematics, economics, media science, political science, psychology, and sociology.
Within the module “Retail Management and B2C-Marketing” the Chair offers four alternative lectures, of which two are to be chosen (unless otherwise stated, the first two lectures are relevant):
- Retail Management
- International Brand Management
- International Business Strategies
- Selected topics in Online Retailing and Distribution.
Retail Management
Type
Lecture, 2 hours per week, 5 credits
Lecturer
Professor Dr. Prof. h.c. Bernhard Swoboda
Scheduling
Each winter semester
Content
The lecture contains the strategical decisions in offline, online and omnichannel corporations. Characteristics of strategies and leadership are addressed, and (institutionally) retailing corporations and (functionally) the distribution function within consumer goods manufacturers are focussed. In addition to the fundamentals of offline and online retailing (such as the industry characteristics, development trends, as well as offline business types and online sales types) competitive strategies of offline, online and omnichannel retail corporations (positioning and profiling strategies) as well as general business strategies (diversification, internationalization and verticalization) are addressed. These topics become more complex due to advances in technological and global interdependences. The lecture therefore enables students to critically reflect such strategic issues based on several examples and case studies and provides job-oriented training for management positions in corresponding corporations.
As a basis for this lecture, you will receive a collection of charts and readings.
International Brand Management
Type
Seminar/exercise lecture, 4 hours per week, 5 credits
Lecturer
Professor Dr. Prof. h.c. Bernhard Swoboda/Research assistants
Scheduling
Each winter semester
Content
This seminar/exercise lecture provides an introduction into the brand management and its international requirements. The insights are discussed based on respective research studies on product- and corporate branding or corporate reputation of brand manufacturers as well as on studies on retail branding of retail corporations. Based on the studies the structure of scientific research (focus of the study, research gap and question, contribution to research and practice) as well as the modelling and the corresponding empirical tests (sample, measurement, method, and results) are presented and discussed. The understanding, the presentations and discussions of international studies by students, based on reading of studies parallel to the sessions, characterize this lecture. The principles of the construction of empirical studies and especially the procedure for the empirical model testing are learned using one own calculations in small groups, which are an excellent preparation for the marketing research project in the second/third semester, the master thesis in the forth semester as well as a possible doctorate in this subject.
As a basis for this lecture, you will receive a English collection of charts and readings.
International Business Strategies
Type
Lecture, 2 hours per week, 5 credits
Lecturer
Professor Dr. Prof. h.c. Bernhard Swoboda
Scheduling
Each winter semester
Content
Based on basic literature, students get confronted with the challenges of the ongoing internalization process, whereby international strategies and strategies for selecting and assessing international country markets, as well as entry and operation strategies in host countries or the coordination of foreign business activities, are focused. Manufacturing, retail and service corporations are examined, enabling students to critically reflect these industries. Short presentations of a few research studies based on self-study of international literature are integrated into the lecture.
Selected topics in Online Retailing and Distribution
Type
Lecture, 2 hours per week, 5 credits
Lecturer
Professor Dr. Prof. h.c. Bernhard Swoboda/Lecturers
Scheduling
Each winter semester
Content
This lecture addresses selected topics regarding the online-aspects of retailing or consumer goods distribution. The discussion of current challenges in practice and research is a constitutive characteristic of this lecture, which can also be offered by lecturers (e.g., managers).
