Managers, Leaders in both Private and Public Sector
Further studies PhD

To be considered for admission into the MBA Programme, a candidate should normally:
be at least 30 years of age;
hold a Bachelor’s degree of this University or any other approved university;
have at least five years practical experience in a managerial capacity.
All applicants for admission into any MBA programme must be short-listed and interviewed before the commencement of the session.

Programme Delivery

Teaching and learning methods	Lectures, Power Point Presentation
Assessment methods	Tests. Examinations, Group Presentation, Assignments

Deferment of Studies

An applicant who is offered a place but is not able to take up the offer in that particular year shall apply for deferment of studies. Such application shall be made within one month from the date of offer.

Application for deferment should be made before commencement of the semester.

A student who applies for deferment after having attended some of the modules, shall forfeit the fees paid for the module attended.

Deferment of studies shall be valid for one academic year. Should a student fail to  resume studies at the expiration of the deferment period, such a student shall be withdrawn from the programme

To be readmitted into the programme after deferment, a student must apply in writing at least two months before registration.

Assessment

Examinations shall comprise a written examination and Module work (Assignments, projects )

Students must have attended at least 80% of the lectures for each of the taught modules in order to qualify to sit for the examination.

Students must pass at least 50% of the modules taken in a given part. The pass mark in each module shall be a weighted average of 50%.

Students must pass all modules in one Part before proceeding to the next. The pass mark in each module shall be 50%.

Passing coursework/continuous assessment and the written examination shall be compulsory. Weighting of module work/continuous assessment and written examination in each module shall be 40% and 60%, respectively.

The determination of the overall degree programme aggregate with a dissertation component shall be as follows:

Taught component         80%      270 Credits

Dissertation       20%                  67 Credits

Dissertation

The Dissertation shall constitute the final part of the programme and must be passed with a mark of 50%. Each candidate is required to submit a dissertation of approximately 20000 words on a topic relating to his/her area of specialization and approved in writing by the supervisor.

The Dissertation proposal shall be submitted not later than 2 months before the results of the last written examination are published.

A student shall proceed to Stage IV (Dissertation) only if all the taught modules have been passed.

A student who fails the Dissertation with a mark in the range of 40-49% shall be given the option to resubmit within three months from the date of publication of results. The resubmitted dissertation shall attain a maximum of 50%.

A student who fails on resubmission shall apply to repeat the module.

A student who writes a dissertation will be required to participate in the compulsory oral examination (VIVA VOCE) and it shall constitute 20% of the final dissertation mark.

A student who fails to exercise the options of submitting within three months from the date of publication of results will repeat the Dissertation Stage.

Weighting of the Programmes

The minimum total credits for the Programme shall be broken down as per the table below:

 

Programme	Total Credits per stage				Total  Credits
	Year I	Year II	Year III	Year IV
General Master of Business Administration	100	100	94	-	240
Executive Master of Business Administration	80	80	80	94	334
Master of Business Administration in Strategic Management	80	80	80	94	334

 

In determining a candidate’s degree classification, the parts of the degree programme shallbe weighted as follows:

 

	Year I	Year II	Year III	Year IV
GMBA	34%	34%	32%	-
EMBA	24%	24%	24%	28%
SMBA	24%	24%	24%	28%

Grading System

The Grading system shall be as follows:

 Marks               Description        Grade

 80 – 100            Distinction       (D)

70 – 79             Merit    (M)

60 – 69             Credit   (C)

50 – 59             Pass     (P)

0 – 49               Fail      (F)

Repeating of ModulesIf a student fails the repeat module(s), such a student shall be withdrawn from the National University of Science and Technology MBA programme and can only be re-admitted after an elapse of two years.

Transfer of Graduate Work or Credits From Other Institutions

A student may receive exemptions for work accomplished in recognized institutions upon the recommendation of the Graduate School Board of Studies and the approval of the Academic Board and in compliance with the Zimbabwe Credit Accumulation System (ZIMCATS)
Only courses for which the student received a grade of Merit or higher maybe transferred.
Grades from other institutions may not be substituted for unsatisfactory grades already earned at the National University of Science and Technology; nor may the class grade A and / or B earned at another institution be used to offset a lower grade earned at the National University of Science and Technology.

All transfer graduate work or credits are subject to the following conditions:

The other Graduate School of Business must offer a graduate degree in the field in which the work has been completed.

The other Graduate School must be accredited for graduate study in the field in which the student is seeking transfer by an appropriate accreditation body.

The credit must be recommended by the NUST Graduate School of Business as specifically applicable to the MBA degree programme.

National University of Science and Technology Transcripts for postgraduate degree students at the Graduate School of Business may include statements as to specific courses and titles of graduate courses and grades completed at other institutions.

Syllabi

Details of each module shall be maintained in accordance with the provisions of the General Academic Regulations Master of Business Administration.

Award of the Degree

The MBA degree shall be awarded in accordance with the General Regulations of the marking scheme and classification as distinction, merit, credit or pass.

Year I

SMB 5101: Managerial Economics  [20 credits]

Objective:  To enhance the students’ understanding of Microeconomic theory and concepts and the relation of economics reasoning to managerial decision-making as well as to business questions of public policy.

The module focuses on the examination of economic principles and their applications in management. Areas covered include definition of goals, concepts of optimization, marginalisation and opportunity cost; theory of demand; production cost; market structure and the basic elements of welfare economics.  Questions of wage-price guideline; pollution; and the social responsibility of firms from an economic point of view are discussed.  Economic models and quantitative applications are demonstrated as aid to optimizing scarce or limited resources. 

SMB 5102: Human Resources Management  [20 credits]

Objectives: To outline the origins and development of Human Resource Management, to compare alternative models and explore its relationship to strategy, to assess the role of human resource planning and to examine the methods and process involved in recruitment, selection and appraisal, to study the changing nature of learning, training and development in contemporary organizations, to examine the theoretical foundations of motivation and remuneration strategies and how organizations put these into practice.

Major topics covered:   The module provides an overview of Human Resource Management and has been designed with the needs of the non-specialist in mind.  The emphasis in the lectures and related activities will be on how the various activities involved in Human Resource Management - recruitment, selection, appraisal, training, development and remuneration - can deliver benefits for organizations rather than on imparting practitioners' skills.

SMB 5103: Financial and Management Accounting   [20 credits]

The module aims to provide module participants with an understanding of the theory and practical application of accounting in (a) the preparation of external financial accounts and (b) internally generated management accounting information for decision-making and control within organizations.  The module attempts to develop skills in the analysis of accounting data, as well as a good understanding of the underlying assumption on which the figures are based.

To this end, lectures are interspersed with exercises and case study sessions.  Reading and practical exercises are provided each evening to consolidate the topics covered during the day.

SMB 5105: Marketing Management         [20 credits]

This module aims at providing module participants with a sound understanding of the main concepts and theories of marketing and help them develop the ability to apply knowledge to practical marketing decision-making.  Theoretical concepts are presented using lectures and seminars and participants are expected to follow the recommended readings from key text books and professional journals to augment the learning process.  The module includes the use of case-studies and discussion of current marketing issues to ensure its application to the business environment.

Year II 

SMB 5202: Entrepreneurship   [20 credits]

Aim:  The module aims at helping students develop an understanding of issues, possibilities and challenges in the field of entrepreneurship.

Objectives:   Describe the nature and significance of entrepreneurship; evaluate the paths to entrepreneurship; prepare and critique business plans; distinguish and evaluate the different sources of financing small businesses; and assess the risks facing small businesses and their mitigation.

Areas covered  include:   The role of small businesses in an economy; Characteristics of entrepreneurs and the myths about entrepreneurs; Entrepreneurship and traditional management; Forms of business ownership; Ways of going into business; Business plan structure , uses and preparation; Sources of finance; Business growth models; Causes of small business failure; Risk analysis for small businesses; Women and entrepreneurship.

SMB 5203: Corporate Governance and Leadership [20 credits]

Objective: The main objective of this module is to provide candidates with a comprehensive knowledge of theories, principles and practice of Corporate Governance. It focuses on ethical issues in the conduct and regulation of business. The module equips candidates with a good knowledge of Corporate Governance which should enable them to develop a clear understanding of corporate structures, processes, policies, roles, and responsibilities, crucial for proper direction and control of business and organizations not only for their immediate but also greater stakeholders.

Areas covered include:  Ethical Theories and Principles; Corporate Governance issues relating to: Risk Management, Dealings and Securities, Internal Audit, Reporting of Financial and nonfinancial information, Communication with other corporate stakeholders; Corporate best practices; Organisation Integrity/Code of Ethics; Corporate governance systems and strategies.

SMB 5204: Strategic Management           [20 credits]

Objectives:  To inculcate a deep understanding of the analysis necessary to undertake strategic management decision making. To provide an appreciation of the complex, competitive and general environment of businesses. To allow refinement of the students' analytical decision making skills in complex business situations.

To lead to an understanding of the complex human, organizational and ethical problems often involved in strategic decision-making.

Major topics covered include:   The role of Analysis and Planning; Mission, Objectives, Values; Ethics and Goals; External Analysis - Markets, Industries, Competitors and Stakeholders,  Internal Audits; Capabilities, Value Chains, Resources and Portfolios; Core and Generic Strategies; Structure, Culture and Organisational Design; Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Control; Strategic Group Mapping; Collaborating to Compete; Leadership Strategic Procurement; Market Orientation and Performance; Commitment:  the Dynamics of Strategy, Corporate Social Responsibility, Differentiating Products with Services, Strategic Role of Brand Management, Strategic Management: Some Alternative Views.

SMB 5205: Operations and Information Management  [20 credits]

Objective: The objective of this module is to explore what constitutes world class operations and information management.  The module will therefore cover top level issues such as developing a focused operations and information strategy that is congruent with the company's business and marketing strategies.  To this will be added understanding and practice of key operational techniques to enable delivery of the strategy.  The learning process is facilitated through module readings, lectures, worked exercises and contemporary case studies.

Major topics covered:  Developing a competitive operations strategy, product and service design, Facilities layout; Location planning; Design of work systems; Strategic value of information; Roles and categories of information systems; Supply chain management; Productivity, Project management, Japanese manufacturing techniques, Operations linkages across the business.

Year III

SMB 5301: Competitive Strategy  [20 credits]

The module begins with the application of a few well-known tools to understand the attractiveness and evolution of industries; the extent to which a company has a sustainable competitive advantage; the creation of innovative value propositions; and corporate advantage in multi-business firms. We build up and out from these sessions in order to consider strategy from the perspective of growth (diversification, vertical integration, internationalization) and then from the view of the board and top management.

At the end of the module, you should be able to apply these ideas to profit-making and to non-profit organizations.

The module covers: Origins of strategy; Analysis of attractiveness of the industry; Value-based business strategies;  Competitive advantage; Sustainability; Diversification and growth strategy; Strategies for vertical integration; How emerging market companies enter; Governance and strategy from the Boardroom; Modern game theory; models of competition strategy model options; resource mobilization and action plan development.

Class sessions shall be a mixture of applications (cases and other examples), lectures and group presentations.

SMB 5302: Strategy Implementation and Change Management  [20 credits]

The speed at which change is occurring is faster now than it has ever been in the entire existence of humankind and corporate history. Successful organizations are those that both create and respond positively to change and cultivate a culture of corporate entrepreneurship. The module examines reasons why so many business strategies fail and why some firms are so successful while others are slowly dying; it also looks at the systems thinking and systems dynamics modelling frameworks; in addition, the traditional strategy theoretical frameworks, technological discontinuities, new requirements of doing business, changing customers and changing faces of competition, options to anticipate and manage change, business process re-engineering, implementation failure analysis, decision modelling and tools for integrating strategy across the entire organization. The module also addresses the question of black economic empowerment, diversity policy and women’s participation in the organization as well as current debates and evidence surrounding these issues.

SMB 5303: Corporate Restructuring and Turnaround Management   [20 credits]

Objectives: The primary objectives of the module are: To help students recognize symptoms (and early warning signals) associated with distressed divisions, subsidiaries, or diversified companies (or those on the way to trouble). To help students diagnose the root causes of business trouble. To help them prescribe effective corrective action appropriate to the resources available, in light of competitive intensity, general economic conditions, and other exogenous opportunities and constraints, e.g., technological, regulatory, social, demographic, political, et cetera.

Turnaround Management is about restructuring troubled companies. The module examines turnaround business situations, i.e., established firms experiencing operational, financial and managerial difficulties. It emphasizes the operating manager’s perspective and considers strategy issues as well as financial ones. (In some sessions the creditor’s viewpoint is of critical importance as it affects managerial autonomy.)

Turnaround Management integrates the functional disciplines of the core curriculum: a basic understanding of Accounting and Corporate Finance is mandatory to do the class exercises that use cash flows and ongoing concern projections, debt restructuring and liquidation analysis. Experience in negotiations (to forge creditor relationships) is helpful. The Final Project requires the general manager’s perspective to suggest operating changes as well as use of qualitative and quantitative tools to effect solutions.

Turnaround Management addresses all aspects of managing a corporation in trouble and (with some luck, in the turnaround process). Students will learn to distinguish between troubled firms (that can be repaired) and crisis companies that are unlikely to survive. The module looks at restructuring operations, assets and liabilities, capital structures, organizational issues and strategy.

SMB 5304: Global Corporate Strategy and Governance     [20 credits]

This module brings together the different aspects of global business into a seamless strategy that creates a winning organization. This module deals with issues such as: strategy analysis, market and product research information solicitation and processing, product development strategy, manufacturing strategy, competitive advantage analysis: -national advantage, industry advantages, firm specific advantages (location advantage, firm capabilities), and how to develop firm-specific global advantages, marketing strategy, sales and customer service strategy, making and implementing strategy, balancing global coordination requirements with local responsiveness needs, global risk management, global business corporate governance issues. In general it deals with an organization-wide strategy for global market engagement.

Year IV

SMB 5400: Dissertation [94 credits]

A final component of the programme which requires the student to undertake a research-based project in his/her area of specialisation. Students are required to undergo a one week research methods module before commencement of the project.

Major topics covered include statistical data sources and collection; data presentation; exploratory data analysis; mathematics for business statistics; counting techniques; fundamental principles of counting; permutation and combination; probability theory; random variables and some special distributions of random variables; sampling distributions and estimations; business applications; hypothesis testing; time series analysis and forecasting, regression; correlation and linear programming.

Year I

SMB 5101: Managerial Economics         [20 credits]     

Objective:  To enhance the students’ understanding of Microeconomic theory and concepts and the relation of economics reasoning to managerial decision-making as well as to business questions of public policy.

The module focuses on the examination of economic principles and their applications in management. Areas covered include definition of goals, concepts of optimization, marginalisation and opportunity cost; theory of demand; production cost; market structure and the basic elements of welfare economics.  Questions of wage-price guideline; pollution; and the social responsibility of firms from an economic point of view are discussed.  Economic models and quantitative applications are demonstrated as aid to optimizing scarce or limited resources.

SMB 5102: Human Resources Management  [20 credits]

Objectives: To outline the origins and development of Human Resource Management, to compare alternative models and explore its relationship to strategy, to assess the role of human resource planning and to examine the methods and process involved in recruitment, selection and appraisal, to study the changing nature of learning, training and development in contemporary organizations, to examine the theoretical foundations of motivation and remuneration strategies and how organizations put these into practice.

Major topics covered:   The module provides an overview of Human Resource Management and has been designed with the needs of the non-specialist in mind.  The emphasis in the lectures and related activities will be on how the various activities involved in Human Resource Management - recruitment, selection, appraisal, training, development and remuneration - can deliver benefits for organizations rather than on imparting practitioners' skills.

SMB 5103: Financial and Management Accounting   [20 credits]

The module aims to provide module participants with an understanding of the theory and practical application of accounting in (a) the preparation of external financial accounts and (b) internally generated management accounting information for decision-making and control within organizations.  The module attempts to develop skills in the analysis of accounting data, as well as a good understanding of the underlying assumption on which the figures are based.

To this end, lectures are interspersed with exercises and case study sessions.  Reading and practical exercises are provided each evening to consolidate the topics covered during the day.

SMB 5105: Marketing Management         [20 credits]

This module aims at providing module participants with a sound understanding of the main concepts and theories of marketing and help them develop the ability to apply knowledge to practical marketing decision-making.  Theoretical concepts are presented using lectures and seminars and participants are expected to follow the recommended readings from key text books and professional journals to augment the learning process.  The module includes the use of case-studies and discussion of current marketing issues to ensure its application to the business environment.

Year II

SMB 5202: Entrepreneurship   [20 credits]

Aim:  The module aims at helping students develop an understanding of issues, possibilities and challenges in the field of entrepreneurship.

Objectives:   Describe the nature and significance of entrepreneurship; evaluate the paths to entrepreneurship; prepare and critique business plans; distinguish and evaluate the different sources of financing small businesses; and assess the risks facing small businesses and their mitigation.

Areas covered  include:   The role of small businesses in an economy; Characteristics of entrepreneurs and the myths about entrepreneurs; Entrepreneurship and traditional management; Forms of business ownership; Ways of going into business; Business plan structure , uses and preparation; Sources of finance; Business growth models; Causes of small business failure; Risk analysis for small businesses; Women and entrepreneurship.

SMB 5203: Corporate Governance and Leadership[20 credits]

Objective: The main objective of this module is to provide candidates with a comprehensive knowledge of theories, principles and practice of Corporate Governance. It focuses on ethical issues in the conduct and regulation of business. The module equips candidates with a good knowledge of Corporate Governance which should enable them to develop a clear understanding of corporate structures, processes, policies, roles, and responsibilities, crucial for proper direction and control of business and organizations not only for their immediate but also greater stakeholders.

Areas covered include:  Ethical Theories and Principles; Corporate Governance issues relating to: Risk Management, Dealings and Securities, Internal Audit, Reporting of Financial and nonfinancial information, Communication with other corporate stakeholders;  Corporate best practices; Organisation Integrity/Code of Ethics; Corporate governance systems and strategies.

SMB 5204: Strategic Management           [20 credits]

Objectives:  To inculcate a deep understanding of the analysis necessary to undertake strategic management decision making. To provide an appreciation of the complex, competitive and general environment of businesses. To allow refinement of the students' analytical decision making skills in complex business situations.

To lead to an understanding of the complex human, organizational and ethical problems often involved in strategic decision-making.

Major topics covered include:   The role of Analysis and Planning; Mission, Objectives, Values; Ethics and Goals; External Analysis - Markets, Industries, Competitors and Stakeholders,  Internal Audits; Capabilities, Value Chains, Resources and Portfolios; Core and Generic Strategies; Structure, Culture and Organisational Design; Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Control; Strategic Group Mapping; Collaborating to Compete; Leadership Strategic Procurement; Market Orientation and Performance; Commitment:  the Dynamics of Strategy, Corporate Social Responsibility, Differentiating Products with Services, Strategic Role of Brand Management, Strategic Management: Some Alternative Views.

SMB 5205: Operations and Information Management  [20 credits]

Objective: The objective of this module is to explore what constitutes world class operations and information management.  The module will therefore cover top level issues such as developing a focused operations and information strategy that is congruent with the company's business and marketing strategies.  To this will be added understanding and practice of key operational techniques to enable delivery of the strategy.  The learning process is facilitated through module readings, lectures, worked exercises and contemporary case studies.

Major topics covered:  Developing a competitive operations strategy, product and service design, Facilities layout; Location planning; Design of work systems; Strategic value of information; Roles and categories of information systems; Supply chain management; Productivity, Project management, Japanese manufacturing techniques, Operations linkages across the business.

Year III

SMB 5301: Competitive Strategy            [20 credits]

The module begins with the application of a few well-known tools to understand the attractiveness and evolution of industries; the extent to which a company has a sustainable competitive advantage; the creation of innovative value propositions; and corporate advantage in multi-business firms. We build up and out from these sessions in order to consider strategy from the perspective of growth (diversification, vertical integration, internationalization) and then from the view of the board and top management.

At the end of the module, you should be able to apply these ideas to profit-making and to non-profit organizations.

The module covers: Origins of strategy; Analysis of attractiveness of the industry; Value-based business strategies;  Competitive advantage; Sustainability; Diversification and growth strategy; Strategies for vertical integration; How emerging market companies enter; Governance and strategy from the Boardroom; Modern game theory; models of competition strategy model options; resource mobilization and action plan development.

Class sessions shall be a mixture of applications (cases and other examples), lectures and group presentations.

SMB 5302: Strategy Implementation and Change Management[20 credits]

The speed at which change is occurring is faster now than it has ever been in the entire existence of humankind and corporate history. Successful organizations are those that both create and respond positively to change and cultivate a culture of corporate entrepreneurship. The module examines reasons why so many business strategies fail and why some firms are so successful while others are slowly dying; it also looks at the systems thinking and systems dynamics modelling frameworks; in addition, the traditional strategy theoretical frameworks, technological discontinuities, new requirements of doing business, changing customers and changing faces of competition, options to anticipate and manage change, business process re-engineering, implementation failure analysis, decision modelling and tools for integrating strategy across the entire organization. The module also addresses the question of black economic empowerment, diversity policy and women’s participation in the organization as well as current debates and evidence surrounding these issues.

SMB 5303: Corporate Restructuring and Turnaround Management   [20 credits]

Objectives: The primary objectives of the module are: To help students recognize symptoms (and early warning signals) associated with distressed divisions, subsidiaries, or diversified companies (or those on the way to trouble). To help students diagnose the root causes of business trouble. To help them prescribe effective corrective action appropriate to the resources available, in light of competitive intensity, general economic conditions, and other exogenous opportunities and constraints, e.g., technological, regulatory, social, demographic, political, et cetera.

Turnaround Management is about restructuring troubled companies. The module examines turnaround business situations, i.e., established firms experiencing operational, financial and managerial difficulties. It emphasizes the operating manager’s perspective and considers strategy issues as well as financial ones. (In some sessions the creditor’s viewpoint is of critical importance as it affects managerial autonomy.)

Turnaround Management integrates the functional disciplines of the core curriculum: a basic understanding of Accounting and Corporate Finance is mandatory to do the class exercises that use cash flows and ongoing concern projections, debt restructuring and liquidation analysis. Experience in negotiations (to forge creditor relationships) is helpful. The Final Project requires the general manager’s perspective to suggest operating changes as well as use of qualitative and quantitative tools to effect solutions.

Turnaround Management addresses all aspects of managing a corporation in trouble and (with some luck, in the turnaround process). Students will learn to distinguish between troubled firms (that can be repaired) and crisis companies that are unlikely to survive. The module looks at restructuring operations, assets and liabilities, capital structures, organizational issues and strategy.

SMB 5304: Global Corporate Strategy and Governance     [20 credits]

This module brings together the different aspects of global business into a seamless strategy that creates a winning organization. This module deals with issues such as: strategy analysis, market and product research information solicitation and processing, product development strategy, manufacturing strategy, competitive advantage analysis: -national advantage, industry advantages, firm specific advantages (location advantage, firm capabilities), and how to develop firm-specific global advantages, marketing strategy, sales and customer service strategy, making and implementing strategy, balancing global coordination requirements with local responsiveness needs, global risk management, global business corporate governance issues. In general it deals with an organization-wide strategy for global market engagement.

Year IV

SMB 5400: Dissertation [94 credits]

A final component of the programme which requires the student to undertake a research-based project in his/her area of specialisation. Students are required to undergo a one week research methods module before commencement of the project.