Mini MBA in Business Management Training Course

Participants can diagnose external pressures and competitive forces affecting strategic choices.

• PESTLE analysis identifies political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental drivers
• Porter’s Five Forces assesses rivalry, entrants, substitutes, buyers and suppliers
• Competitor profiling compares strategic groups, capabilities, pricing and market positioning
• Market attractiveness assesses growth, margins, barriers and regulatory conditions
• Scenario planning tests strategic assumptions against plausible external developments
• SWOT converts external findings and internal evidence into prioritised strategic issues

Participants can formulate strategic choices and translate them into coherent priorities.

• Strategic intent defines mission, ambition, scope and non-negotiable organisational values
• Porter’s generic strategies distinguish cost leadership, differentiation and focused positions
• Value-chain analysis locates activities that create cost advantages or customer value
• Strategic options evaluated using suitability, feasibility and acceptability criteria
• Make-or-buy decisions compare capability requirements, economics, control and supply risk
• Strategy maps connect strategic objectives through cause-and-effect relationships

Participants can define target customers and construct evidence-based value propositions.

• Market segmentation groups customers by needs, behaviour, value and accessibility
• Target-market selection evaluates segment size, profitability, fit and competitive intensity
• Customer personas capture jobs, pains, gains, buying criteria and decision roles
• Value proposition design matches offerings to priority customer needs and outcomes
• Customer journey mapping identifies moments of truth, friction and service failures
• Net Promoter Score distinguishes promoters, passives and detractors within customer feedback

Participants can build a marketing plan linked to growth, retention and profitability objectives.

• Marketing objectives specify target segments, revenue outcomes, timing and measurement methods
• The marketing mix aligns product, price, place and promotion decisions
• Pricing approaches compare cost-plus, value-based, competitive and penetration pricing
• Sales funnel metrics track conversion, pipeline value, acquisition cost and retention
• Channel strategy balances direct sales, partners, digital channels and service capacity
• Campaign evaluation compares incremental revenue, margin contribution and marketing spend

Participants can use economic reasoning to assess pricing, demand and resource-allocation decisions.

• Demand analysis examines price sensitivity, income effects, substitutes and customer preferences
• Elasticity calculations estimate volume changes following price or demand shifts
• Marginal analysis compares additional revenue, additional cost and contribution consequences
• Opportunity cost identifies benefits forgone when scarce resources support one option
• Market structures influence pricing power, entry barriers and competitive behaviour
• Supply-demand shifts explain changes in prices, volumes and market equilibrium

Participants can interpret core financial statements and identify management issues requiring action.

• Income statements distinguish revenue, gross profit, operating profit and net profit
• Balance sheets explain assets, liabilities, equity and capital employed
• Cash-flow statements separate operating, investing and financing cash movements
• Ratio analysis assesses profitability, liquidity, efficiency and financial gearing
• Working capital links receivables, inventory, payables and short-term cash needs
• Management accounts compare actual results, budget figures, variances and forecasts

Participants can prepare financial assumptions for budgets, cost decisions and investment proposals.

• Budget construction links sales volumes, staffing plans, operating costs and capital needs
• Fixed, variable and semi-variable costs support cost behaviour analysis
• Break-even analysis calculates required volume, contribution margin and safety margin
• Variance analysis separates price, volume, efficiency and spending differences
• Net present value discounts future cash flows for investment comparison
• Sensitivity analysis tests financial exposure to volume, price, cost and timing changes

Participants can diagnose process performance and select practical operational improvement actions.

• SIPOC mapping defines suppliers, inputs, process steps, outputs and customers
• Process mapping exposes handoffs, delays, rework, bottlenecks and control points
• Capacity analysis compares demand, available resources, utilisation and queue effects
• Lean waste categories identify defects, waiting, motion, inventory and overproduction
• Root cause analysis uses the Five Whys and fishbone diagrams
• Standard work documents sequence, timing, quality checks and escalation requirements

Participants can manage operational risks using structured controls, quality methods and continuity plans.

• Risk registers record causes, events, consequences, owners, controls and treatments
• Risk matrices score likelihood, impact, velocity and residual exposure
• Three lines model clarifies management, oversight and independent assurance responsibilities
• ISO 9001 principles connect customer focus, process control and continual improvement
• Failure mode and effects analysis prioritises process failures before implementation
• Business continuity plans define critical services, recovery objectives and response actions

Participants can organise strategic initiatives into deliverable-focused implementation plans.

• Project charters define objectives, scope, sponsors, constraints and success measures
• Work breakdown structures divide outcomes into manageable deliverables and work packages
• Critical path analysis identifies dependent activities and schedule-sensitive milestones
• RACI matrices assign responsible, accountable, consulted and informed stakeholders
• Change impact assessments identify affected roles, processes, systems and behaviours
• Kotter’s eight-step model structures mobilisation, communication and sustained change

Participants can set expectations, develop people and address team performance issues.

• SMART objectives connect individual accountabilities to business priorities and measurable outcomes
• Situational leadership adapts direction and support to competence and commitment
• Delegation agreements clarify outcomes, authority, boundaries, resources and review points
• Feedback conversations use SBI: situation, behaviour and impact evidence
• Performance coaching applies GROW: goal, reality, options and way forward
• Team norms establish decision rules, meeting discipline and mutual accountability

Participants can identify cultural, ethical and governance factors affecting management choices.

• Schein’s culture model examines artefacts, stated values and underlying assumptions
• Ethical decision tests consider legality, fairness, transparency, consequences and duties
• Corporate governance separates board oversight from executive management responsibilities
• Conflicts of interest require disclosure, recusal, documentation and appropriate escalation
• Psychological safety supports speaking up, learning from errors and constructive challenge
• Inclusion practices reduce bias in recruitment, meetings, decisions and performance reviews

Participants can design performance measures that support strategic and operational control.

• Key performance indicators distinguish leading indicators, lagging indicators and diagnostic measures
• Balanced Scorecard perspectives connect financial, customer, process and learning objectives
• Dashboard design prioritises decision-relevant measures, trends, thresholds and accountable owners
• Data quality checks assess completeness, accuracy, timeliness, consistency and validity
• Variance review meetings turn performance gaps into owners, actions and deadlines
• OKRs align ambitious objectives with measurable key results and review cycles

Participants can assess innovation opportunities and test assumptions before committing resources.

• Design thinking frames user needs before generating possible solution concepts
• Business Model Canvas tests customer segments, channels, revenues and key resources
• Minimum viable products test high-risk assumptions with limited investment
• Innovation portfolios balance core improvements, adjacent opportunities and new ventures
• Digital transformation cases assess process automation, data use and customer experience
• Stage-gate reviews determine whether concepts proceed, pause, pivot or stop

Participants can communicate recommendations clearly to senior stakeholders and decision-makers.

• Pyramid Principle structures recommendations, supporting arguments, evidence and required decisions
• Executive summaries state the issue, recommendation, benefits, risks and next steps
• Stakeholder communication plans match messages, channels, timing and feedback mechanisms
• Data storytelling combines relevant charts, business context and management implications
• Difficult conversations prepare facts, interests, options, boundaries and follow-up actions
• Meeting facilitation uses agendas, decision logs, action owners and deadlines

Participants can build, review and present a complete business improvement proposal supported by integrated analysis.

• Problem statements define the performance gap, customer impact and strategic relevance
• External analysis summarises market forces, competitors, risks and critical assumptions
• Strategic options compare customer value, feasibility, financial return and implementation risk
• Financial case presents costs, benefits, break-even point and sensitivity assumptions
• Implementation roadmap assigns milestones, owners, dependencies, governance and change actions
• Balanced Scorecard measures financial, customer, process and people outcomes
• Executive presentation defends recommendations against stakeholder questions and alternative choices