MGC3250

Management in small and medium-sized enterprises

Professor Bernard Barry and Ms Rowena Barrett

6 points
* Two 1-hour lectures per week and one 1-hour tutorial per week
* First semester
* Clayton
* Prerequisites: AFC1021 or AFC1022; plus two second-year MGC subjects.

Objectives On completion of this subject students should have an understanding of the role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Australian economic context; the contemporary public policy framework in which SMEs operate; different forms of ownership structures and the issues associated with each type; entrepreneurial qualities and activities; the practice of managing people in SMEs; and planning and managerial skills needed to successfully operate a SME.

Synopsis This subject will introduce students to the role and nature of SMEs in industrial economies. In doing so the different types of ownership structures of such firms and the types of people who own and manage them will be addressed. Entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial behaviour, family firms and the trend for women to leave large firms to start up their own business will all be considered in this context. In examining the social, human and managerial problems that emerge in SMEs the issues of managerial planning and skills will be examined, particularly as they relate to the management of people at work. Examples of entrepreneurial behaviour and management practice in the SME will be used throughout the subject to illustrate the subject material.

Assessment Written assignment (3000 words) 30%
* Group assignment (1000 words): 10%
* Examination (2 hours): 60%

Prescribed texts

To be advised