COURSE NUMBER: EWMBA 299M-1 

 

COURSE TITLE: Marketing Strategy 

 

UNITS OF CREDIT: 2 units 

 

INSTRUCTOR: Peter Wilton

 

E-MAIL ADDRESS: wilton@haas.berkeley.edu

 

MEETING DATES: Thursdays 9/1, 9/8, 9/29, 10/6, 10/13, 10/20, 10/27, 11/10, 11/17, 12/1                                     

 

CLASS WEB PAGE LOCATION:  bCourses

 

PREREQUISITE(S): EWMBA 206 Marketing Organization & Management

 

CLASS FORMAT: lectures, cases, marketing simulation

 

REQUIRED READINGS: Text book, course reader, MarkStrat Simulation manual

 

BASIS FOR FINAL GRADE:

The course grade will be determined as follows:

Individual assignments & class participation:                                  50%

Group assignments, including MarkStrat simulation:         50%

 

CAREER FIELD: This course will be useful for those interested in strategic consulting, marketing, technology, product management, M&A.

 

ABSTRACT OF COURSE'S CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES: 

 

COURSE BENEFITS: WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS COURSE

 

Students taking “Marketing Strategy” will gain first-hand experience in:

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT IS THIS COURSE ABOUT? - COURSE OVERVIEW

 

This course provides the opportunity to sharpen strategic analytic skills by exploring in greater detail selected concepts covered only briefly in the core MBA functional courses, and by introducing additional frameworks specifically addressing strategic decisions; those decisions having a long-term impact on the organization and which are difficult or costly to reverse.   Topics to be covered include, but are not limited to:

 

              understanding the process of strategy formulation and strategic thinking

              strategic market planning frameworks

              causes of strategic decline and failure

              strategic growth options and their relationship to profitability

              business context analysis and scenario planning

              managing evolutionary versus disruptive strategic change

              organizational responses to environmental uncertainty

              identifying and articulating unique customer value propositions

              aligning internal operations with external strategic vision

              causes of strategy underperformance: the “strategy-to-performance” gap

              understanding the process of strategy formulation and strategic thinking

              valuing strategies

              building strategic capability; the build/buy/ally decision

              managing strategic alliances and partnerships

 

 

The course is cross-functional in its focus, attempting, where appropriate, to integrate marketing, financial, and operational strategy issues.

 

In order to provide a sense of realism, the course will introduce important concepts through lectures, case studies, and a dynamic marketing strategy simulation game known as MARKSTRAT.     Competing in teams throughout the semester, students will have full responsibility for all aspects of competitive strategy and business performance in a dynamic market environment.   

 

What makes the MARKSTRAT simulation challenging and rewarding is the uncertainty associated with overall market conditions, the volatility of each firm’s operating environment, the unpredictability of competitors’ intended strategies, and the responses of competitors to other firms in the industry.     Students are assured of a series of unanticipated market and competitive developments which will test and sharpen their strategic market planning skills in a real-world, dynamic, market environment.

 

Finally, to add to the realism, the class may occasionally be addressed by outside guest speaker(s) with substantial experience and success in marketing strategy.    Attendance at these guest lectures is a requirement of the course, notwithstanding that regular class times may need to be adjusted in order to accommodate the schedules of guest speakers.

   

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH:

 

Dr. Wilton teaches strategy, marketing, and international management in the Haas School of Business at the Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley.   He has also served as a Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, and on the faculties of Duke and Purdue Universities in the United States, Macquarie Graduate School of Management, the University of Melbourne, and the Australian Graduate School of Management in Australia, as well as the executive programs of the University of Michigan, the University of Chicago and Pennsylvania State University.

 

He has been the recipient of numerous awards and fellowships for his work in management, including several from the prestigious National Science Foundation, as well as the Marketing Science Institute.    He has been the recipient of the Australian Overseas Fellowship in Management and the Market Research Society of Australia Prize.  In the US, he has been recognized by Business Week magazine as one of the country’s leading business instructors.  In addition, he has been recognized in the "Who's Who" Registry of Leading American Executives. Most recently, Dr. Wilton received recognition from the International Society for Performance Improvement for “outstanding instructional intervention”.   Dr. Wilton has published widely, his articles on management appearing in numerous leading journals, including the Journal of Marketing Research, Management Science, the Journal of Consumer Research, the Journal of Retailing, the Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, European Research, and elsewhere.

 

In addition to his teaching activities, through his private consulting company known as ORBIS Associates, Dr. Wilton also provides a range of strategic management and executive development services to a list of clients representing diverse industries and regions of the world.   As a specialist focus, Dr. Wilton actively assists organizations to develop effective profitable growth strategies through the design and deployment of integrated innovation, business development, and customer loyalty architectures.

 

Dr. Wilton began his professional career with Colgate Palmolive (Australia) Pty Ltd, where over a period of several years he managed a variety of established household products groups and new businesses.    He has also served as Chief Operating Officer for Myer Pacific Holdings N.V., a private equity firm holding a portfolio of controlling, pro-active, investments in companies ranging from digital imaging technology, to laser cutting machinery for the heavy engineering industry.

 

Dr. Wilton has served as an Officer of the San Francisco professional chapter of the American Marketing Association, responsible for all professional development programs, and as a Director of the Australian-American Chamber of Commerce in San Francisco.   Dr. Wilton holds a Bachelor of Commerce (1st Class Honors) from the University of New South Wales in Australia, and a Ph.D. in Management from Purdue University in the United States.

 

Dr. Wilton has been a Director of Musica Viva, a leading performing arts organization in Australia.   He has also provides strategic assistance to arts performance organizations in the United States, most recently Cal Performances (University of California, Berkeley) and the Major University Presenters collaborative.