Assignment:
Critically examine the relevance of established marketing theory in an entrepreneurial micro/small/medium enterprise, (MSME) context and discuss, in light of current literature, whether there is a basis for developing new thinking at the marketing/entrepreneurship interface that better explains marketing practice in such a context and even beyond. Programme participants are encouraged to identify and ‘interview’ someone they know. It may be someone from their village, town or city, someone local. It should be someone who has established a social enterprise, a charity perhaps, or a new business venture or who has successfully grown a small business to medium size. You are asked to seek an opportunity to examine with that person, in critical detail, their approach to marketing practice in their enterprise.
Likely actions for the Programme Participant to take: To identify someone as the key case-study and to make contact with them, to arrange to them, albeit, in these challenging times, virtually, and to interview them. To undertake this interview the Programme participant will need to develop a series of interview topics distilled from extant research to guide the progress of the interview. It will then be essential to transcribe the details of the interview prior to analysis of the contents. (Keep your transcription available secure as you may be asked to make it available to your lecturer as a part of the assessment). Following an analysis of the content of the interview the Programme participant is required to present a coherent response to the challenge posed in the assignment, namely to ritically examine the relevance of established marketing theory in an entrepreneurial micro/small/medium enterprise, (MSME) context and discuss, in light of current literature, whether there is a basis for developing new thinking at the marketing/entrepreneurship interface that better explains marketing practice in such a context and even beyond. The Programme Participant might also want to meet, again virtually, with members of any group he or she has been a member of during their Masters programme to discuss and more specifically test their thinking and to identify appropriate topics for an interview based on their combined knowledge of the literature.
