Course description
Programme Details
The MSc Logistics Management degree programme is distinctly multi-disciplinary and aims to provide you with a framework for improving your own management action and professional practice and hence the quality of the organisation you may work for. The programme provides you with both the systematic acquisition of advanced academic knowledge and the support to explore and develop high level skills in the field of Logistics Management. These skills are becoming more and more important in an expanding market, with the inevitable challenges brought about by the globalisation of operations. The programme aims to act as a catalyst for change at both a personal and organisational levels.
The course is both stimulating and challenging and the friendly Lincoln Business School staff are always ready to give help and assistance when required. On a regular basis you will be able to discuss differing aspects of the course with your module tutors who will also provide you with guidance on your dissertation.
The city centre based campus at Lincoln will provide you with a variety of facilities that will make your stay at the University enjoyable and worthwhile. There is a new library facility with full access to electronic data sources, and good supply of on-campus accommodation. Should you wish to live off campus there is readily available rented accommodation in the city. Those of you with sporting interests are well catered for on campus, whilst if you are interested in more cultural activities there is the Historic Roman city of Lincoln to explore and further a field there is the scenic Lincolnshire Wolds and miles of Lincolnshire coastland to discover.
Course Content
* The MSc Logistics degree programme is offered in three distinct stages:
* Postgraduate Certificate in Logistics Management
* Postgraduate Diploma in Logistics Management
* MSc in Logistics Management
Certificate Stage
* Management of Project and Contract Risk
* Problem Solving and Innovation
* Managing Self and Leadership
* Logistics and Operations Management
Management of project and Contract Risk
Projects, in comparison to normal operational behaviour, induce and manage changes to routine operating circumstances so as to examine the improvements to be gained from the changes. Logistics operations can be evaluated according to success criteria measured in terms of quality, cost and time, as well as other requirements of dependability and reliability. The unit will examine the impact of risk on these five criteria’s. Methods of assessment, monitoring and mitigation to manage the project to a successful conclusion will be proposed and examined by yourself within you own organisation and/or experience.
Problem Solving and Innovation
In organisations, a significant amount of time is engaged in problem (re)solving. With the increasing complexity of organisational life there is a greater demand for novel and original solutions. This unit responds to that demand. The unit combines theory with an exploration of real problem scenarios based on your own experiences. From such an exploration, you will gain theoretical and practical insights that will better prepare you to manage creative processes in current and future organisational settings.
Managing Self and Leadership
This unit is designed to complement and balance the other certificate stage units by providing you with an opportunity to explore the behavioural and leadership aspects of organisational life. A focus for the unit will be the your own experience and you will have the opportunity to examine the extent to which this, together with both organisational behaviour and leadership concepts, provide a vehicle for enhancing your understanding of organisational life. The unit will provide a framework for the development of self-awareness, awareness of self in relation to others and interpersonal and social processes as they impact on leadership and organisational effectiveness. It is intended that the unit will enable you to develop a conceptual understanding but one that is grounded impersonal experience and has practical relevance. It is also intended that the unit provides a vehicle for you to develop your abilities in relation to learning and group skills that have relevance for the programme as a whole.
Logistics and Operations Management
The unit aims to introduce you to the concepts of Logistics and Operations Management and build a framework for this very important function within the supply chain. Logistics and Operations Management is the way organisations produce goods and services. In order to supply customers efficiently and effectively with products and services, companies need to define customer service levels and the best methods for meeting them. They must decide how goods can be transported to the customers or intermediaries; the stock levels and the packaging of the product necessary for the transport system chosen; and where these stocks should be produced and stored. As the competitive environment becomes more volatile and less predictable Logistics and Operations issues can offer the company more opportunities to differentiate itself from the competition.
Diploma Stage
* Supply Chain and Quality Strategy
* Research Methods
* Purchasing and Supply Management
* Strategic Management
Supply Chain and Quality Strategy
Supply Chains can involve the sourcing of raw materials, the sub-contracting of office services or the logistical distribution and transportation of finished products. Their common feature however, is the efficient and effective planning and control from initial source to end consumer. Thus, if planning and control is the process of reconciling demand with supply, then the nature of the decisions taken to plan and control an operation will depend on both the nature of demand and the nature of supply in that operation. Subsequently, this means sharing of ‘quality’ information and regular communication; both internally and externally; in order to integrate activities more closely than if merely markets linked them. The unit is designed to enhance your understanding of the concepts of Supply Chain and Quality Strategies and build a framework for these functions within a Logistics environment.
Research Methods
This unit provides the skills, which will enable you to carry out a research project on a topic of management, which is of relevance to you and your organisation. You will be briefly introduced to the main philosophical traditions of management research. The appropriate use of a range of research methods and techniques within defined philosophical contexts will then be discussed. The ability to not only collect but to interpret, analyse and evaluate relevant data and information will be developed. The requirement to underpin research endeavours by means of a rigorous literature search will be highlighted. The need for you to demonstrate critical and analytical skills, with appropriate theoretical underpinning will be emphasised.
Purchasing and Supply Management
This unit focuses on the external environment which impacts upon the Business and the Logistics manager. There are two themes to this unit:
a) The external environment
b) The financial environment
The unit will provide an introduction to current issues impacting on the competitive position of the organisation. It will provide you with an introduction to financial analysis and statistical and accounting techniques for use by the purchasing professional.
Strategic Management
This unit will introduce you to some of the conceptual, theoretical and contemporary ideas underpinning the study of strategic management. It will provide you with an awareness of topical corporate issues and enable them to synthesize some of the specialist functional knowledge gained in the preceding units. The broad subject of Strategic Management will be covered to an intermediate level with the aim of providing you with a cohesive framework of the overall business activity, thus enabling you to critique your experience in relation to the theoretical concepts and to develop your ability to evaluate the strategy process.
Masters Stage
Preparing for Independent Study
This unit is designed to prepare you for the Dissertation stage of the Masters in Logistics Management degree programme. The purpose of the Planning for Independent Study is to enable you to prepare in depth for the independent study unit Dissertation. You will undertake an in-depth study of a topic of your interest but will be encouraged to explore other learning environments and to take responsibility for its assessment. A Learning Contract will be agreed between yourself and your tutor, which will ensure mutuality of intent, process, practice and mode of assessment.
Dissertation
In this Unit you are encouraged to develop the process and practice of independent learners. A collaborative approach between the tutor and yourself is considered desirable and effective. Such practice involves devising frameworks, which empower you and harness your aims and ambitions, energy and enthusiasm, potential and resources. This Unit is based upon your centred practice; it acknowledges the multiple and complex difficulties of the teaching/learning process and seek to establish significant learning that is meaningful to you.
Assessment
Throughout the MSc Logistics Management degree programme assessment methods are designed to enable you to develop your potential and permit a close working relationship between the learning experience and individual assessment. Assessment strategies will reflect the focus of the programme on independent self-managed learning. You will normally be asked to produce an assignment totalling 4000-5000 words or the equivalent for each single unit on the programme. For your research dissertation you will be expected to do a piece of work totalling 15,000-20,000 words.
Career Opportunities
There has been a recent increase in interest in the subject field of Logistics Management in the UK and globally, from business and government, as well as within the wider context of society and the community. Therefore, employers are increasingly looking to recruit graduates who can demonstrate that they have the skills and abilities to succeed in the workplace. This degree has been devised to give you just that edge. The MSc Logistics Management degree programme is accredited by the Chartered Institute for Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) and the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.
