Syllabus

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Learning outcomes for this course, upon successful completion, include the ability to: 1) understand distinctions between business marketing and consumer marketing, 2) comprehend the theoretical and practical knowledge of understanding business buyers, purchasing practices, and buyer-seller relationships in organizational and cultural contexts, 3) apply general marketing principles and systems to business marketing, and 4) identify and assess solutions to business marketing problems.

Credits: 6

Schedule: 25.07.2022 - 12.08.2022

Teacher in charge (valid for whole curriculum period):

Teacher in charge (applies in this implementation): Joan Lofgren

Contact information for the course (applies in this implementation):

Course Instructor: Sanjit Sengupta, sanjit.sengupta@gmail.com

Office Hours

Monday – Thursday 1-2 PM

Sanjit Sengupta (Ph.D. 1990, University of California, Berkeley) is Professor of Marketing at San Francisco State University. He teaches courses in Strategic Marketing, High-Tech Marketing, and Business-to-Business Marketing. Prior to joining San Francisco State in Fall 1996, Dr. Sengupta was an assistant professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he received two teaching awards. He has taught in many executive development programs in the USA, Finland and South Korea. His research interests include new product development and technological innovation, strategic alliances, sales management, and international marketing. His research has won a few awards and been published in many journals including Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Marketing, and Journal of Product Innovation Management. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Sengupta worked in sales and marketing for Hindustan Computers Limited and CMC Limited in Mumbai, India.

CEFR level (valid for whole curriculum period):

Language of instruction and studies (applies in this implementation):

Teaching language: English. Languages of study attainment: English

CONTENT, ASSESSMENT AND WORKLOAD

Content

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  An examination of the formulation and implementation of marketing strategies for non-consumer products and services. Encompasses marketing practices that enable a supplier firm to understand, create, and deliver value to other businesses and to capture some of that value for their own organization.

Assessment Methods and Criteria

• applies in this implementation

  Grading
  Course Requirements	Weighting (%) or maximum points
  Class Participation	10%
  3 individual written case memos (3 x6.66%)	20%
  3 Group case presentations (3 x 6.66%)	20%
  Mid-term Exam	20%
  Final Exam	30%
  Total	100
  Conversion scale   Final grade (official scale) 90 - 100 5 80 - 89 4 70 - 79 3 60 - 69 2 50 - 59 1 0 - 49 0

  
  

Workload

• applies in this implementation

  ECTS STUDENT WORKLOAD

  This course is a 6 ECTS unit course, following the ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) guidelines of Aalto University School of Business. The number of hours the average student is expected to work in the course is 160 (including in-class and out-of-class work).   Types of Hours Number of Hours Contact hours (on- and off-campus): 45 Out-of-class hours:   115 Work with course materials, eg required reading  95 Exam preparation  10 Individual research & writing  10 Team projects (meetings, research, preparation, etc.)    Other ()          Total of all student workload hours   160

  
  

DETAILS

Study Material

• applies in this implementation

  Textbook Business-to-Business Marketing, FIFTH EDITION, by Ross Brennan, Louise Canning, Raymond McDowell, Sage Publications, 2020.   Cases Farm Electronics HubSpot and Motion AI Johnson Controls International PLC: Managing Strategic Accounts   PowerPoint slides and other course documents will be posted on the course webpage in mycourses.aalto.fi

  
  

Substitutes for Courses

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Substitutes for Courses

Prerequisites

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Prerequisites

SDG: Sustainable Development Goals

9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

FURTHER INFORMATION

Further Information

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Teaching Period:

  Course Homepage: https://mycourses.aalto.fi/course/search.php?search=MLI26C681

  Registration for Courses: In the academic year 2021-2022, registration for courses will take place on Sisu (sisu.aalto.fi) instead of WebOodi.

  The course is only for the Mikkeli Campus students and the registration is done at the Mikkeli study office.

• applies in this implementation

  Individual Case Memo   For the three cases due on August 1, 8, and 11, each student will write and submit a two-page memo using the MyCourses platform. The memo should be written according to BScBA style guide.    The case memos should have 3 sections: problem definition (from the point of view of the protagonist), analyses (strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions) and recommendations to solve the defined problem. A recommendation could be one of the alternative solutions you have discussed or a combination and address how the solution may be implemented. Think of yourself in the role of a staff member or consultant advising the protagonist when you write the memo. These should be uploaded in MyCourses by 8:45 AM on the date of the next scheduled class. Please read the note, Introduction to the Case Method, carefully in the next section.   Introduction to the Case Method[1]   The case method of instruction has been used successfully to train students and managers since the early part of the last century. The goal is to develop an ability to reason effectively when dealing with specific problems. Appropriate use of theory and acquisition of procedural skills are also important goals. You may be familiar with case method of learning from earlier classes but it might be worth our time to emphasize some important aspects. The two main components of the case method of instruction are the case and the students.   The Case   A case is a written account of an actual situation that raises problems that the protagonist (usually a manager) in the situation must solve. The case contains background information on the objective of the activity, its size and location, and the people and institutions involved. Within this context, the case relates a series of events and issues that confront the protagonist. The problem may not be defined clearly. An important part of a general management education is to develop an ability to determine what the problem is as well as the best course of action for its solution.   The aim of a case is to present facts that were known or available to the case protagonist and which formed the basis for his or her analysis and decision. The decision is typically not described in the case; rather the development of decisive courses of action is left to the student. If a decision is indicated in the case, the discussion often focuses upon an analysis of the validity of the decision.   A case may be only one or two pages in length, or it may run to 20 pages or more. It may contain organization charts, excerpts from surveys, statistical analyses, and other supplementary data. In relating events leading to the administrative difficulties, the case may impart substantive information about techniques, procedures, systems, organization structure, environmental conditions and other facts. Since a case is an account of an actual experience and since all experiences are unique, at least in terms of some of their details, it is important that the case be concerned with major issues that underlie executive action, such as strategic planning, product line management or product development.   The Students   A case is read by students prior to its discussion in class. The facts of the case are appraised in the discussion. Participants in the discussion not only suggest the course of action they would recommend but defend their analysis and course of action. Although the discussion of many cases may lead to a decision accepted by a majority of the class members, the discussion is not necessarily intended to culminate in any one approved solution; there is no one correct answer.   In preparing the case, the student does more than analyze the specific problem involved. Typically, the student will relate the case problem to problems he has encountered in his or her own experience. The student's view of the case may be prejudiced by their experience. Thus, in the discussion, the individual participant may find that the opinions of other members in the class differ sharply from their own. An individual may learn, through the comments of others, that she has overlooked certain salient points. Another may find that he has weighed one factor more heavily than other members have. This interaction of presenting and defending conflicting points of view causes individual members to reconsider the views they had of the case before the discussion commenced. It leads to a clearer perception of the problems, a recognition of the many and often conflicting interpretations of facts and events, and a greater awareness of the complexities within which management decisions are reached.

  
  

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  [1] Bernhardt, Kenneth L. and Thomas C. Kinnear (1991), Cases In Marketing Management, 5th edition, Boston, MA: Irwin. Adapted from writings by Schrieber, Hunt, McNair, Newman, Planty, Smithet al.

  
  

Details on the schedule

• applies in this implementation

  Course Schedule
  Session # and Date	Topic/s	Assignment/s
  Session 1: Monday, July 25, 9:00-12:00 Deduction due to an absence on the first day of the course: 5 points (on a 100-point scale) will be deducted from the student’s final raw score before converting it to the final grade.	Introduction to the Course and Participants
  Session 2: Tuesday, July 27, 9:00-12:00	Business-to-Business Markets and  Discussion: B2B Snapshot 1.1 Air Products   Marketing Buyer Behavior Discussion: B2B Scenario 2.1 Broken Glass	Read textbook Chapter 1 including B2B Snapshot 1.1 Air Products         Read textbook Chapter 2 including B2B Scenario 2.1 Broken Glass
  Session 3: Wednesday, July 28, 9:00-12:00	Inter-Firm Relationships and Networks Discussion: B2B Scenario 3.1 Dealing with Power Asymmetry   Responsible Business to Business Strategy Discussion: B2B Scenario 4.1 A Trip to Varishta	Read textbook Chapter 3 including B2B Scenario 3.1 Dealing with Power Asymmetry           Read textbook Chapter 4 including B2B Scenario 4.1 A Trip to Varishta
  Session 4: Thursday, July 28, 9:00-12:00	Researching Business to Business Markets Discussion: B2B Scenario 5.1 What Should Dan Mcintosh Do Next?   Business market segmentation Discussion: B2B Snapshot 6.2 The Devil Is In The Detail	Read textbook Chapter 5 including B2B Scenario 5.1 What Should Dan Mcintosh Do Next?           Read textbook Chapter 6 including B2B Snapshot 6.2 The Devil Is In The Detail
  Session 5: Friday, July 29, 9:00-12:00	Prepare memo on Farm Electronics case	Read case, Farm Electronics
  Session 6: Monday, August 1, 9:00-12:00	Group Presentations: Farm Electronics Case   Market communication	Upload Farm Electronics memo to the course webpage before 8:45 AM     Read textbook Chapter 7
  Session 7: Tuesday, August 2, 9:00-12:00	Mid-Term Exam, 75 minutes (short essay questions testing knowledge and application of concepts covered in Chapters 1-7)   Relationship communication Discussion: B2B Snapshot 8.3 Up Close and Personal	Read textbook Chapter 8 including B2B Snapshot 8.3 Up Close and Personal
  Session 8: Wednesday, August 3, 9:00-12:00	Relationship Portfolios and Key Account Management   Discussion: B2B Scenario 9.1 Barbara Learns About Customer Portfolio Analysis	Read textbook Chapter 9 including B2B Scenario 9.1 Barbara Learns About Customer Portfolio Analysis
  Session 9: Thursday, August 4, 9:00-12:00	Guest Speaker: Petteri Jalonen, Growth Marketing at Matchmade
  Session 10: Friday, August 5, 9:00-12:00	Prepare case memo  on HubSpot and Motion AI case	Read case, HubSpot and Motion AI
  Session 11: Monday, August 8, 9:00-12:00	Group Presentations: HubSpot and Motion AI Case   Managing product offerings	Upload HubSpot and Motion AI memo to the course webpage before 8:45 AM     Read textbook Chapter 10
  Session 12: Tuesday, August 9, 9:00-12:00	Routes to market   Discussion: B2B Scenario 11.1 Hungry Caterpillar	Read textbook Chapter 11 including B2B Scenario 11.1 Hungry Caterpillar
  Session 13: Wednesday, August 10, 9:00-12:00	Prepare case memo on Johnson’s Controls case	Read case, Johnson’s Controls
  Session 14: Thursday, August 11, 9:00-12:00	Group Presentations: HubSpot and Motion AI Case   Price Setting in Business to Business Markets	Upload Johnson Control’s memo to the course webpage before 8:45 AM       Read textbook Chapter 12
  Session 15: Friday, August 12, 9:00-12:00	Review   Final Exam, 90 minutes (short essay questions testing knowledge and application of concepts covered in Chapters 7-12)

  
  

Description