Our experts
The MSc has input from faculty and the CIPD – we’re confident you’ll find it rewarding, and develop advanced skills and competencies.”Ödül Bozkurt
Senior Lecturer in International Human Resource Management
Ms Angela Baron
Teaching Fellow in Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management
Dr Odul Bozkurt
Senior Lecturer in International Human Resource Management
Research interests
employment studies, globalization and work, Green Economy, international human resource management, Japan, repair work, retail employment, skills and employment, social class and employment, Sociology of work and organizations, UK retailing, vintage sector
Dr Benjamin Everly
Senior Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour
Research interests
Diversity management, gender and management, Intergroup relations, Race and gender equality
Dr Chidiebere Ogbonnaya
Senior Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour/Human Resource Management
Dr Natalia Slutskaya
Senior Lecturer in Work and Organisation Studies
Dr Elaine Swan
Senior Lecturer in Human Resources and Organisational Behaviour
Course enquiries
+44 (0)1273 872668
pg-bam@sussex.ac.uk
Research Project in Human Resource Management
- 45 credits
- Summer Teaching, Year 1
In this module you have to see through an independent piece of research, starting with a research question and ending in the presentation and critique of findings.
To start off, you identify a strategic business issue and formulate an HR-related research question after rigorously reviewing and understanding existing research and literature.
You're assigned a supervisor and they work closely with you to develop the project and write up a 12,000-word Management Research Report. This must clearly outline the theoretical approach and foundations of the project, analyse data and generate well-supported insights linking theory and data. It must also recognise shortcomings and develop concrete HR-relevant proposals.
You are expected to draw on your entire training from the first two terms of the academic year, using both substantive and methodological knowledge from completed modules. You are then expected to develop the research project and essay based on your theoretical and empirical interests.
You're expected to independently work on all steps of the research and collect data as you go, although the nature of this data and how you collect it is down to you.
You will also deal with research access and ethics approval processes.
Research methods can include:
- face-to-face interviews
- focus groups
- participant and/or non-participant observation
- archival research
- discourse analysis
- textual and statistical analysis.
Developing Skills for Business Leadership
- 15 credits
- Autumn Semester, Year 1
This core module is principally concerned with the development of a range of definable skills that are key to successful management practice and effective leadership. These include thinking and decision making skills, the management of financial information including working with costings for proposed initiatives and managing budgets, a range of team working and interpersonal skills, and others associated with developing personal effectiveness and credibility at work.
The module also aims to develop more specialised skills that are particularly important to effective higher-level people management and provides opportunities for applied learning and continuous professional development. Critical reflection on the relationship between theory and practice is particularly emphasised via the consideration of case studies rooted in real-world contexts.
Employment Relations
- 15 credits
- Autumn Semester, Year 1
The core aim of this module is to study different facets of the employment relationship from a social, political, economic, legal and psychological point of view. This module will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the world of work and debates on employment relations’ theories and policies, incorporating a critical, international and comparative perspective. It will enable you to understand, analyse and evaluate competing theories associated with employment relations’ strategies and their outcomes on organisational climate, employees and management.
The module provides opportunities for you to critically apply the activities, knowledge and skills required for employment relations practices in a variety of public, private and non-profit organisational contexts, and will enable you to review and critically evaluate the roles and functions of different stakeholders in employment relations and the structures and processes required to understand the nature of the employment relationship.
You will also be able to assess the impact of contextual changes on workplace practices and institutions and gain insights into the creation and implementation of effective employment relations’ processes and policies. The module requires you to reflect critically on theory and evidence from an ethical and professional standpoint and provides opportunities for applied learning and continuous professional development.
International Human Resource Management
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
Learn about concepts, issues and debates around human resource management and employment relations within the context of the growing internationalisation of business.
Look at the implications of the rise of multinational corporations and foreign direct investment for employment, and the particular challenges of managing a workforce across national borders.
You will adopt a comparative perpective for the discussion of varied human resource practices across different national contexts.
This module weaves together two key themes: international differences in HR management, and the HRM practices of corporations that operate in multiple countries.
Topics may include:
- specific HRM function areas (such as pay/rewards systems, working time, employee voice at the company or sector level)
- variability in the interpretation of high performance HRM systems
- global diffusion of HRM practices
- different 'home country' effects shaping MNC employment practices
- international assignments as an HRM tool
- gendered dimensions of MNC HRM practices
- the role of culture in global diversity management
- corporate social responsibility issues
- global talent management
- implications of outsourcing and off-shoring for HRM.
Leading, Managing and Developing People
- 15 credits
- Autumn Semester, Year 1
In this module, you look at the key issues in people management and development.
You examine contemporary research on employment and effective approaches to human resource (HR) and learning development (L&D) practice.
You focus on the links between people management practices and positive organisational outcomes and research that highlights major changes and developments in practice.
You also look at the debates surrounding theory and practice in specific fields including:
- leadership
- flexibility
- change management.
You will develop the skills to become an effective manager, and HR specialist - learning to manage people fairly and increase levels of engagement, commitment, motivation and performance.
Research Methods for HRM
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
Learn how to collect, analyse, interpret and write up a wide range of data, including:
- qualitative data (such as interviews)
- quantitative data (such as questionnaire surveys)
- secondary data (such as company documents or industry reports).
You study the rationale behind a variety of research methods, and discover why particular approaches may be appropriate in different circumstances.
You also learn how to design a research project - from your initial idea through to creating research questions, reviewing previous research in the field, designing your research approach, data collection and analysis.
Strategic Human Resource Management and Employee Engagement
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
Learn the strategic approaches involved in managing human resources and employee engagement.
You study how human resource strategy is formulated and implemented into an organisational setting, and gain an insight into the strategic management of people.
You explore the link between strategic Human Resource Management, employee engagement and organisational performance, and learn about the key factors involved in the design and delivery of an engagement strategy.
Topics include:
- the strategic context of Human Resource Management and engagement
- corporate strategy, strategic Human Resource Management and organisational performance
- the strategic role of the Human Resources department
- Human Resource strategy development and implementation
- employee engagement concepts and ideas
- designing and delivering an employee engagement strategy.
Talent Management
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
In this module you will trace the historical development of people working in HR as well as academic interests in talent management. It also reviews debates around the concept.
It then looks at a range of HR resourcing activities as part of a larger general study. These include both practical aspects of recruitment and selection, employee retention and dismissal along with strategic aspects in the context of international employment markets and global competition.
The module adopts a critical and comparative perspective in discussing key issues related to talent management.
You should end up with the knowledge and skills to carry out activities including HR planning, job design, recruitment, selection, induction, retention, succession planning and dismissal to a high standard.
Possible lecture topics include:
- Employment Markets and Regulations
- Recruitment and Selection
- The New Employee
- Flexibility
- Employer Branding
- Human Resource Planning and Succession Planning
- Dismissal, Redundancy and Grievances
- Managing Diversity
- Talent Management Strategies
Work, Employment and Human Resource Management in Context
- 15 credits
- Autumn Semester, Year 1
This module introduces you to the core issues HR managers deal with as part of the larger social, economic, cultural and political contexts of the modern world of work and employment.
You will pay close attention to both the socio-historical development of dominant forms of work organisation in capitalist economies and also the contextually embedded and variable nature of employment relationships.
You'll be shown how the HR function is affected by both internal and external factors across organisations large and small – profit-seeking, third sector, public sector and multinational.
You will examine internal and external factors, including:
- understandings of HR
- the practice of HR professionals
- the transformation of dominant HR practices
- the organisational position of the HR function
- the nature and history of modern management paradigms
- the dynamics of markets and pressures for competitiveness in markets
- demographic, social and technological changes that transform work and labour markets
- the flows induced by globalisation and their impact on the policies of national and transnational governance structures.
Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
This module is aimed at students on the range of 'conversion' type of MSc programmes across the department and is delivered in the International Accounting and Governance programme as a core. The focus is on contemporary perspectives and practices within the broadly defined areas of Corporate Social Responsibility and Governance.
The module starts from the premise that CSR is a contested, problematic and developing area of study. There is an acceptance that an understanding of ethical frameworks is required to inform debate on this subject and that research generated evidence and insights are necessary to substantiate assertion.
The focus is also practical, and you will individually undertake research into an organisation's orientation and practice towards its stakeholders. A critical and questioning approach to this will be encouraged and required to 'see beyond' the often platitudinous veneer that can characterise this relationship.
Throughout the module the emphasis will be on devloping your own coherent and informed view of matters such as corporate and governance, together with issues of professional ethics within a globalised context. In particular, we examine the extent to which corporate governance practices are moving towards convergence.
The coursework requires you to work individually to produce a case study analysis of contemporary stakeholder issues and to thereby further your understanding and exercise research skills and judgement. Supporting and underpinning this is a week by week seminar programme requiring you to ascertain and appreciate your own and others' 'ethical profiles', locate and interpret research-based insights and undertake case study analysis of organisational practices and professional ethical dilemmas.
An examination will test your grasp of relevant concepts, theory and ability to apply insights.
Management of Negotiation
- 15 credits
- Spring Semester, Year 1
This module equips you with the knowledge, understanding and skills to manage the negotiation process at the tactical and strategic levels. Managing negotiations is inherently interdisciplinary and multi-functional, therefore the approach is integrative. Organisational, behavioural and psychological elements are studied together, with the objective of improving the effectiveness of negotiations.
The principal argument is that the main techniques are common to all negotiations, however organisational, behavioural and psychological considerations constrain choices and actions in specific contexts.
The module provides you with a broad understanding of the negotiation process and the development of negotiating strategies and tactics across a range of contexts. Conceptual foundations are studied and combined with role play and live scenario building (including video feedback), enabling you to formulate and explore ideas, and providing opportunities to extend your negotiating skills.