Overview

This five-day short course will introduce you to macroeconomics, marketing, strategy and product management in the operation of telecommunications enterprises.

The aim is to give you:

• an appreciation of the current ICT (information and telecommunications technology) market
• an understanding of how a telecommunications company can successfully conduct business in this environment

The three perspectives taken are:

• understanding how national economies work and the principles of macro-economics
• an appreciation of differing company strategies and how they're developed
• an in-depth look at marketing and product management

Who this course is for

The course is aimed at graduates working in (or aspiring to join) telecommunications businesses who are seeking a broad business grounding.

You don't need any specific qualifications to take this course.

Course content

1) Macroeconomics

This section will introduce the concept of macroeconomic models. You'll gain an understanding of the macroeconomic view of a national economy and how the individual industries contribute to and benefit from this national system. You'll be able to apply the concepts of GDP, inflation, economic growth, etc, to contemporary real examples.

2) Business strategy

The concept of strategy will be introduced and applied to a network operator (fixed, mobile, voice and data). The various strategy analysis tools will also be introduced and example strategies discussed. You'll be able to apply the following analysis tools: PEST, PUV, Porters 5 Forces, and SWOT. You'll also review current strategic issues and the way in which they lead to decisions that can be brought together to produce a corporate strategy for network and ICT operators, together with implementation choices.

3) Marketing

The generic principles of marketing will be introduced. You'll learn about the concepts of marketing intelligence, segmentation and targeting, the 7 Ps, promotion, channel management, sales and account management, and customer-relationship marketing (CRM). You'll be able to apply these generic principles to the contemporary telecommunications and ICT business environment. The principles and techniques of competitor analysis will be introduced and you'll learn how to evaluate the competitive landscape.

4) Product management

An overview of the principles of portfolio and product management will be presented, together with their relevance to business planning, network planning and capital budgets. Recent practical examples will be discussed. The product life cycle is used as a framework to consider all aspects of product and service management from concept through to product launch, through in-life management to eventual product withdrawal. Certain specific concepts of product management (e.g. pricing and calculating product profitability) will be discussed in the context of the particular challenges of ICT. As well as gaining an understanding of the role of product and portfolio management you'll be able to apply the generic principles specifically to today's telecommunications and ICT industry.

5) Telecommunications and ICT business

This part of the course will set the scene for today's business, covering the types of network operator and the range of competitors. The concept of ICT will be defined, together with the convergence issues. You'll gain an understanding of the interaction of all the factors affecting an operator: macroeconomic, the market place, government policy, regulation, competition, legacy aspects and technology changes, customer expectation and globalisation.

6) Review of the industry

This section will present a quantified view of the industry (telecommunications, e-commerce, internet, and entertainment) from a world-wide perspective. The major cost, revenue, demand, service and technology trends will be analysed and you'll investigate likely future developments. In this section you'll also examine the profound impacts on society, markets and the industry arising from the emergence of new and powerful companies chasing major new revenue opportunities. 

Dates, assessment and certificates

The course runs over five days, with 6 to 8 teaching hours per day. This is followed by a three-hour tutorial.

Teaching will take place in person with some materials available online.

Assessment is by a written assignment.

If you complete the course but not the assignment, you'll receive a certificate of attendance.

If you take and pass the assignment you'll get a certificate stating this, which includes your pass level.

Benefits of taking this course

You can take this course as a standalone (one-off) course, or accumulate it as a module towards an MSc qualification (up to two standalone modules can be transferred towards the flexible MSc degree).

Benefits to employees
The programme offers the opportunity for professional people working in the telecommunications industry to develop their career, be able to respond to changes in their environment, and learn while they earn. It's also designed to give you the opportunity of working towards an MSc qualification from an academic institution whose quality is recognised world-wide.

Benefits to employers
Our flexible CPD courses are delivered by staff with experience both of general business principles and of telecommunications markets and technologies. They enable your company's staff to understand and gain advantage over the competition by tapping into world-leading research and UCL's world-class telecommunications and business expertise.

View the full range of related courses available. 

Learning outcomes

On completion of this course, you should be able to understand:

• value chain analysis, the detailed ICT value chain and the position of telecommunications operators within it
• the macro-economic environment and how it's modelled
• how to evaluate markets, company capabilities, and the strengths and weaknesses of competitors
• how to develop winning strategies in this environment
• the principles of marketing and how to evaluate customer needs/expectations
• the key elements of successful business planning, including strategy, product and portfolio management and how to apply them in a changing world

Course team

Peter McCarthy-Ward

Peter has over 30 years experience in the telecommunications industry. He has worked in product management, marketing, regulation and business strategy and has advised companies and government agencies in the UK, Europe, Africa, Central America and Australia. He's an honorary fellow of the Institute of Telecommunications Professionals.

Course information last modified: 22 Sep 2023, 23:32