MSc Operations and Logistics Management

Key details

MSC OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT

Start Year

2021

Attendance

Full Time

Award

Degree of Master of Science

Duration (years)

Every product or service that comes to market relies on the expert combination of human power, material resources and financial investment. As an MSc Operations and Logistics Management student, you will explore how to bring these elements together successfully. You’ll learn how to anticipate and respond to problems, and how to create order in the most complex of situations.

The course is carefully designed to help you become expert in the primary and supporting activities in a value chain and in operations and logistics management practices. You will study key areas such as inventories, transportation, warehousing, procurement, supply chain and logistics operations, sustainable supply chains and logistics, innovations and technology management, low carbon supply chain and logistics, and materials management.. You’ll also explore the application of technologies to supply chain management.

Our teaching is research-led, ensuring you benefit from the very latest thinking in this rapidly-changing field. Your curriculum will be underpinned by the research of UEA’s respected Innovation, Technology and Operations Management group (ITOM). The ITOM group conducts research and teaching into various aspects of innovation management, technology management and operations management. Rather than relying solely on textbooks, you’ll be taught the latest operations and logistics innovations reported in academic and practitioner journals.

We have strong links to industry and you will also learn from practising experts and guest speakers. This ensures you gain insight into the most pressing challenges facing organisations today.

You will also learn by analysing case studies. In this way you’ll gain valuable insights into real workplace problems and their possible solutions. This study of real-life and created cases means you can fast track to having the kind of industry expertise that might otherwise take years to amass.

Modern business is global and our ability to compete requires experience and knowledge in developing and managing supply chains on a global scale. Throughout your degree you will take an international view, ensuring that you graduate ready to take your skills across borders.

As well as developing essential specialist skills, this course will help you improve key transferable skills, including critical thinking, creativity, problem solving, decision-making, and effective use of information and communications technology. You’ll also build your experience in teamwork, management and giving presentations – including to non-operations and supply chain specialists.

About

On this degree you will be trained to be an industrial problem solver, as you discover the art and science of ensuring products and services are delivered efficiently, effectively, on time, and on budget.

This degree is ideal if you have already studied operations and logistics at undergraduate level and want to take your skills to the next level. Equally, you might have an undergraduate degree in IT, engineering, logistics and operations, finance and accounting or management. Or you might have worked in industry for a time – perhaps in manufacturing or engineering.

This programme is accredited by both the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS). This gives you special privileges for membership of the CILT at either Chartered Member or membership level.

Learners who successfully complete this Master’s programme may also apply for full membership of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (MCIPS).

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Course Reference Number: 1544193

Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the courses listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the regular review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. Changes may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will inform students.

Assessment for Year 1

We’ll assess your knowledge, skills and understanding through 100% coursework – with no exams.

You’ll hand in both formative and summative assessments, which will provide you with extensive feedback to help you identify areas of strength and areas for improvement.

Structure

You will start building your theoretical and practical knowledge from day one. In your first semester you will focus on real problems faced in industry today, investigating different ways to approach these challenges. You will do this across compulsory modules Global Logistics Management, Strategic Operations and Supply Management, and Marketing Theory and Practice.

Then, in your second semester, you will focus on deepening your expertise, learning how to analyse and solve more complex cases. You’ll do this across the modules Strategic Sourcing and Supply Chain Management, and Innovation and Technology Management.

Alongside these, you will also take the Business Research Methods module, which stretches across both your first and second semesters. Here you will develop the research skills needed to excel when conducting your own research in your dissertation.

In your third and final semester you’ll complete your dissertation, with guidance from your academic advisor. This is a substantial piece of personal research where you’ll analyse and present solutions for an operations, supply chain, or logistics problem of your own choosing.

You will have the opportunity to link your dissertation to industry, going out to the field for a real life problem to solve. In the past our students have worked on case studies for companies including UK retail giant Tesco.

Teaching and Learning

You will learn through lectures with leading academics and industry experts. You’ll then take your understanding further with small-group seminars where you will have the chance to engage in more interactive learning, discussing and challenging your own questions and ideas with your fellow students.

Throughout the course you will analyse real and created case studies of increasing complexity, in order to constantly challenge and stretch yourself throughout the course. The case studies are not marked work, but you will receive feedback to help improve your understanding.

All your learning will be focused on developing your analytical and critical skills. That means you’ll graduate empowered to create your own solutions not only to the challenges studied on the course, but also for new challenges that may arise as you progress through your career.

You will also benefit from studying alongside other business students – improving your understanding of other business disciplines and helping you to work with these areas more effectively throughout your career.

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Assessment for Year 1

We’ll assess your knowledge, skills and understanding through 100% coursework – with no exams.

You’ll hand in both formative and summative assessments, which will provide you with extensive feedback to help you identify areas of strength and areas for improvement.

Compulsory Modules

MARKETING THEORY AND PRACTICE

Code NBS-7052A

Credits 20

Develop an appreciation and understanding of the theoretical assumptions, debates and practices that constitute the body of knowledge we recognise as marketing within the profit as well as the public and not-for-profit sectors. Current developments in the marketing discipline will be discussed alongside methodological advances. You will also cover social and technical changes which may impact the future development of marketing theory and practice. Discrepancies in the theory and practice of marketing will be identified and their interplay appreciated.

GLOBAL LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT

Code NBS-7054A

Credits 20

This advanced module will introduce you to some of the latest ideas and concepts related to the global logistics management and the supply chain networks of which they are a part. The focus will be on both the medium to long term planning and design of supply chains and also on their immediate day-to-day management i.e. the focus is both strategic and tactical. You will explore key strategic and tactical decisions faced by supply chain managers, for example, decisions about logistics processes, collaboration, use of information technology, etc. You will cover the following aspects: basic concepts of logistics and supply chain, modes of transport, intermodal transport, international freight management, distribution network planning, material handling, warehousing, and application of different management philosophies. This module is taken in combination with Marketing Theory and Practice and Strategic Operations and Supply Management.

STRATEGIC OPERATIONS AND SUPPLY MANAGEMENT

Code NBS-7056A

Credits 20

This module is about to develop a critical understanding and appreciation of key operations and supply management theories and practices. This module provides an overview of operations management in today’s globalized supply network. Current developments in the operations and supply management discipline will be discussed alongside social and technical changes which may impact the future development of operations and supply management. You will gain a sound understanding of operations and supply management in today’s competitive global environment.

INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT

Code NBS-7055B

Credits 20

Research indicates that innovative firms, those that are able to exploit and use innovation to improve their processes or to differentiate their products and services, outperform their competitors, measured in terms of market share, profitability, growth and market capitalisation. However, the management of innovation is inherently complex and risky. In many cases, new technologies fail to be converted into products and services. In fact, most new products and services are not commercial successes. In sum, innovation can enhance competitiveness, but it also requires a different set of management skills from those doing the everyday business administration within the firms. The first half of the module will cover both economic and managerial aspects of innovation. Students. You will develop an in-depth understanding of key aspects of innovation processes and their institutional and strategic implications. Learning that innovation is a cross-functional task involving all corporate functions like R&D, marketing, production and finance is a central objective of the module. Using exemplary innovation case studies students will first acquire knowledge of key terms and definitions of innovation research. The emergence of systematic innovation in the corporate environment will be discussed by studying the history of certain industries. At the organizational level, ways to leverage innovation internally and with external partners will be analysed. You will learn about different sources of innovation as well as roles and functions in the innovation process. Key concepts like open innovation and user innovation will be discussed thoroughly. Their practical applications and implications will be pointed out. The module will also discuss the issue of how to appropriate the returns from innovation, with special focus on patents and markets for technology. This second half of the module will examine how to introduce technology into organisations, and the associated opportunities and problems. You will be introduced to Information Systems and their socio-technical nature and the process of developing and commissioning information systems and the essential inherent human and managerial issues. You will also be introduced to critical contemporary issues such as Big Data, e-commerce, Knowledge Management, Control and Productivity.

STRATEGIC SOURCING AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

Code NBS-7058B

Credits 20

This module attempts to develop students’ ability to think holistically about the key and emerging issues (theoretical, conceptual and practical) in supply chain management. The primary focus of the module is sustainability and the challenges associated with the development of sustainable supply chains. Students will explore the key challenges in procurement, manufacturing and distribution and the integration of key business processes throughout the supply chain. A variety of techniques for diagnosing supply chain problems and improving supply chain performance will be explored and students will be required to apply one or more of these techniques to assess the performance of and identify improvement projects for a ‘real’ supply chain.

BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS

Code NBS-7064Y

Credits 20

You’ll examine the business research process from start to finish and gain an understanding of how to undertake research to investigate for instance organisational working context, markets, products and services. Dealing with business research questions, research design and data interpretation, both systematically and creatively, is the module’s core aim. You’ll be provided with the necessary training to pursue your MSc Dissertation. Further, you’ll have the opportunity to understand how established techniques of research are used to create knowledge in the discipline. You’ll engage in basic quantitative and qualitative data analysis during classes to enhance your understanding of the research process. The module intends to support you in your summer dissertation work with your research active supervisors towards conducting an independent research project.

POSTGRADUATE DISSERTATION

Code NBS-7069X

Credits 60

This is your opportunity to develop independent research skills on the subject of your choice. Going well beyond the taught modules in the Master’s programme, you will integrate the knowledge you’ve acquired from the individual taught modules and take it forward by developing the necessary skill set to probe a business research problem in-depth and come out with original contributions to business management literature.

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Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring, review and update of modules. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes and their constituent modules, the University will endeavour to consult with students and others. It is also possible that the University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff. In some cases optional modules can have limited places available and so you may be asked to make additional module choices in the event you do not gain a place on your first choice. Where this is the case, the University will inform students.

MSc OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT