Business Information Technology MSc

If you would like to integrate management and IT skills, prepare yourself for new developments in digital business, and equip yourself with knowledge highly relevant to these emerging technologies, this Business Information Technology MSc is ideal. It will enable you to bridge the gap between business and IT practitioners, ensuring you are fully conversant with the language of e-business/e-commerce and possess the transferable skills necessary to enhance your career opportunities.

What will you study?

After an induction programme introducing you to the Business School and the expectations and ethos of the course, you will go on to explore how current technologies are being used to provide more-effective management systems. You will gain an overview of what constitutes business information technology and will develop a detailed knowledge of the technology and issues in order to plan, design and predict new document management applications.

You will also gain a solid foundation in practical web programming and related security issues. In addition, you will look at strategies for the exploitation, management and implementation of Internet and e-commerce applications. There will also be an opportunity to specialise via your elective choice and your dissertation.

The consultancy project will develop your management consultancy skills through a live project, the results of which you and your team will present to a client. The dissertation will enable you to explore in depth a business information technology topic of your choice. Recent topics include customer relationship management (CRM) systems; consumer behaviour towards online shopping; information technology outsourcing; strategic alliances; web services; and business process management. For a student perspective, see what our students and graduates say.

Kingston Business School works closely with the business world's principal professional bodies in order to harmonise its education provision with the needs of today's business practitioners. You will learn how to turn theory into practice and gain a qualification that has real value in the real world. Find out more...

Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list. Those listed here may also be a mixture of core and optional modules.

Core modules

• E-Commerce Operations

• E-Commerce Operations

  This module looks at the opportunities and challenges that face managers and organisers who are developing e-commerce initiatives. It provides:

  • a strategic and theoretical framework to help you understand the process of change and competition in e-commerce operations; and
  • and understanding of the operational issues which need to be addressed.

  Areas of study include the e-commerce environment, trends and developments in e-commerce initiatives, marketing, supply chain management, and strategy and planning.

  
   
• Information Resources Management
• Web Information Technology and Services

• Web Information Technology and Services

  This module looks in depth at what underpins the move to automating the web. After studying XML mark-up technologies and standards, you look at applications and  developments in web automation.

  In particular, this includes means of representing information to enable it to be accessed and used by software. Processing information for human consumption becomes just a special case. Advanced topics include web services and semantic web technologies. You also look at what these changes mean for business.

  
   
• Business Information Technology Consultancy Project

• Business Information Technology Consultancy Project

  The Consultancy Project develops your management consultancy skills through a live internet start-up project. It acts as a focus for integrating the taught components of the course enabling you to:

  • apply your internet computing knowledge in a business context; and
  • apply innovative thinking to business problems.

  You will work with a small group of cohorts to design and develop a prototype system for an organisation that wishes to set up an innovative www-based business application. You will produce a business plan and marketing strategy for the application. The project will also enhance management skills such as teamwork, negotiating, presenting to clients, project management, and problem analysis and solving.

  
   
• Strategic Management of Information Systems

• Strategic Management of Information Systems

  This module aims to provide an understanding of the strategic issues involved in the management of IS and IT. You will:

  • develop strategies for the exploitation, management and implementation of internet and e-commerce applications; and
  • gain an overview of the major models found in corporate strategy literature.
  
   
• Business Internet Systems

• Business Internet Systems

  This module aims to provide a theoretical understanding, as well as practical competence, in the techniques of structured systems analysis and design in new and emerging fields of business internet systems.

  Methodologies covered will range from SSADM to Rapid Application Development and Prototyping. You will study software development strategies, specification and design, programming tools and techniques, query languages, systems development management, as well as security and fraud.

  
   
• Project Management

• Project Management

  This module introduces the basic concepts of project management with the emphasis on business related tasks. The students are not expected to have any prior project management experience. The main focus is on planning, monitoring and control of project resources, using standard and popular project management techniques.

  
   
• Research Methods and Dissertation

• Research Methods and Dissertation

  Initially this module will equip you with the skills and knowledge needed to successfully complete a research project.

  You will then investigate a specific business problem via a substantial piece of independent work, which demonstrates your proficiency in:

  • the design of a research project;
  • the application of appropriate methods;
  • the collection and analysis of data; and
  • the presentation of results.
  
   

Option modules

• Strategic Project Management

• Strategic Project Management

  This module introduces students to project management and the role of project managers in an organisational environment. This encompasses a number of strategic issues such as time planning, cost and quality planning when resources have to be shared amongst a number of demanding projects. Risk management is an element of this approach. The teaching approach includes case study and examples of project management, successful and unsuccessful, which have been documented in the past. Group discussion will allow the students to appreciate the subjectiveness of project management in contrast to the scientific approach of project planning.

  
   
• Information Governance and Security

The Faculty of Business and Law runs a number of postgraduate and post-experience open days. Visit us to find out how we can help you achieve your career ambitions.

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If you are combining work and study, there are many ways that your workplace could gain from this course.

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Read what some of our current and recent students think about the course.

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