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MMBA8106 – Project Innovation and Change

2024 – Term 3, In person-scheduled-weekday, City

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Roger Moser
roger.moser@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to MBA
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit will examine the terminology and concepts relevant to the Project Based Management Approach. It will also explore issues faced by organisations in carrying out projects, and project management competency. There will be a focus on the integrative process of project management, and the key project management knowledge areas as described in the Global Project Management Framework adopted by the Project Management Institute (PMI), Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM), and the International Project Management Association (IPMA). The knowledge and insights gained from this unit will position you well to succeed in managing and executing projects, as well as in employing various project management techniques.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Identify and describe a range of Project Based Management theories.
  • ULO2: Apply theory and frameworks to assess operational, tactical and strategic decisions.
  • ULO3: Integrate contemporary issues into Project Based management decisions.
  • ULO4: Develop skills in Project Based management and governance in cross functional multi-disciplinary projects in organisations.

General Assessment Information

This unit has been conceptually re-designed and the forms of examinations will be slightly adapted to the new teaching approach of the unit. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Project Management Assignment 30% No Week 5
In Class Case Study 20% No Week 7
Term Report 50% No Week 9

Project Management Assignment

Assessment Type 1: Qualitative analysis task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 5
Weighting: 30%

Students will be required to develop an expert-based (Delphi) study approach to test the hypotheses they have developed during the initial weeks of the unit.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and describe a range of Project Based Management theories.
  • Apply theory and frameworks to assess operational, tactical and strategic decisions.
  • Integrate contemporary issues into Project Based management decisions.

In Class Case Study

Assessment Type 1: Case study/analysis
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 20%

This assessment requires students to develop a case study-like situation analysis of the major hypotheses (what must be true?) for their business idea.


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and describe a range of Project Based Management theories.
  • Apply theory and frameworks to assess operational, tactical and strategic decisions.
  • Integrate contemporary issues into Project Based management decisions.
  • Develop skills in Project Based management and governance in cross functional multi-disciplinary projects in organisations.

Term Report

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 9
Weighting: 50%

 

Students will be required to complete a term report of approximately 2000 words.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and describe a range of Project Based Management theories.
  • Apply theory and frameworks to assess operational, tactical and strategic decisions.
  • Integrate contemporary issues into Project Based management decisions.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

See information on iLearn. 

Unit Schedule

See information on iLearn. 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Update Content Description: INNOVATION & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Unit MMBA 8106 Project Innovation & Change has been re-designed to teach you: INNOVATION & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT: Competing on the Rate of Learning

Unit Content: 

FOCUS

Whether you are an entrepreneur, a business development manager or a senior executive, your management success primarily depends on the expertise and experience you have accumulated. However, in rapidly changing business environments, the value of your expertise and experience can drop dramatically. That’s why your innovative and entrepreneurial thinking is today more important than ever.

In essence, your innovative and business development THINKING is your ability to learn! 

  • “But what is learning in business & management really?”
  • You might answer: “Learning new tools, models or frameworks”.

Well, that is partially true, but what does (human) entrepreneurs, managers and executives still differentiate from today’s advanced AI systems?

Their ability to look into the future and imagine and understand (disruptive) scenarios, products and solutions that aren’t based on patterns in the past. This ability requires specific skills:

  • Understanding your decision context and asking the right questions
  • Understanding your default and alternative actions in a decision challenge
  • Formulating precise hypotheses about the future or how to face a specific challenge and either confirm or reject these hypotheses through different testing strategies.
  • Changing the behaviour based on the confirmed/rejected hypotheses.

When you look at recently popular management concepts such as Lean Startup, Design Thinking etc., they all represent in one way or another a recipe to learn respectively how to formulate hypotheses (e.g. about what the customer wants) and how to test them efficiently.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
25/06/2024 Assessment 3 has been formally changed from exam to paper as agreed with all involved parties based on the re-desgin of the unit.

Unit information based on version 2024.04 of the Handbook