My name is Brett Godfrey, originally from the United States, and I am one of fifty students on the Full-time MBA 2023 cohort at Bayes Business School. Our cohort just finished block one of teaching on the MBA programme, which included the Strategy module, taught by Dr Paolo Aversa.

I love strategy. I have long been fascinated by the study of decision making and resource allocation in the realms of history, politics, sports, and business. Bayes has a strong reputation for corporate strategy thanks to faculty such as Dr Paolo Aversa, and this was one of the many reasons that I chose to attend Bayes for my MBA. I have been looking forward to the Strategy module since the course schedule was announced in the summer.

Dr Aversa's module was excellent. His passion for corporate strategy is all-encompassing, from the reading materials, case studies, and in-class discussions through to the experiential activity and group project. Here are two of my highlights from Dr Aversa's class:

My favourite lecture from the block was a guest lecture by Dr Robert Grant, which included an engaging discussion about analysing resources and capabilities in a corporate strategy context. Professor Grant has made several significant contributions to the study of corporate strategy and is the author of our textbook.

This classroom session was buzzing with activity and participation, and included a fascinating discussion of not just the theory behind how a practitioner goes about analysing resources and capabilities, but also a case study to show how two firms vie for competitive advantage in a modern context.

As a class, we compared the relative strengths of the two firms with their strategic importance to fit their resources and capabilities into a two-by-two matrix. This exercise and learning was a valuable framework that has helped me shape a new outlook on not just how businesses operate, but on how I can more effectively operate as a member of an organisation, a member of a study group, and how I can better leverage my key strengths for personal and professional growth.

The module concluded a group project called Integration Week – a competitive rivalry analysis – in which our study group worked together to utilise the strategy tools and techniques that we learned in class. We chose to focus our analysis on two brand name luxury fashion houses.

In addition to comparing the two firms head-to-head, we also conducted an industry analysis that allowed us to better categorise the relative strengths and weaknesses of all the players in the market. We wrapped up the project by providing a recommendation to the firm that we had identified was in the weaker position. Our team included financial projections and assumptions based on our research and analysis. As none of us in the group had previous experience in retail or luxury goods, it was a fascinating and fast way to apply the learnings from the lectures, readings, and discussions during the Strategy module while also learning about a new sector.

The Full-time MBA programme is off to a strong start, and I cannot wait to see what Block Two has in store for us.