BCS Written Management study plan
BCS Written Management · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 8 hours per week
Strategic Management and Business Planning
Define strategic management and its core frameworks (SWOT, PESTLE, Porter's Five Forces) in your own words.
Analyse a real organisation's strategic position using at least two frameworks.
Distinguish between strategy formulation and strategy implementation.
Draft a one-page strategic analysis of a chosen organisation.
Your checkpoint
A one-page strategic analysis document (approx. 500 words) applying SWOT and PESTLE to a real organisation.
Organisational Behaviour and People Management
Explain key motivation theories (Maslow, Herzberg, Vroom) and their practical implications.
Compare different organisational structures (functional, divisional, matrix) and their suitability.
Evaluate the role of team dynamics and leadership styles in performance.
Apply a motivation theory to a workplace scenario and propose improvements.
Your checkpoint
A 600-word case analysis of a team performance issue, recommending motivational and structural changes.
Strategic Management and Business Planning & Organisational Behaviour and People Management
Integrate strategic and people considerations by drafting a strategic HR plan for a given business scenario.
Assess how organisational culture can enable or hinder strategy execution.
Identify stakeholder impacts of a strategic decision using a stakeholder map.
Synthesise findings into a coherent argument.
Your checkpoint
A 800-word integrated report linking strategic goals to people management practices for a chosen organisation.
Financial Management and Budgeting
Explain budgeting processes (incremental, zero-based, activity-based) and their pros and cons.
Interpret key financial statements (income statement, balance sheet, cash flow).
Calculate and interpret basic financial ratios (profitability, liquidity, gearing).
Prepare a simple budget for a department or project.
Your checkpoint
A completed budget spreadsheet with variance analysis and a 300-word commentary on financial health.
Project and Programme Management & Information Systems Strategy and Governance
Outline the project lifecycle and key project management methodologies (e.g., PRINCE2, Agile).
Develop a project plan with scope, schedule, and resource estimates for a small project.
Explain the purpose of IT governance frameworks (e.g., COBIT) and their role in aligning IT with business.
Evaluate risks and controls in an information systems context.
Your checkpoint
A project charter and a one-page IT governance assessment for a hypothetical project.
Change Management and Organisational Transformation & Risk Management and Business Continuity
Compare change management models (e.g., Kotter, Lewin) and their application.
Identify sources of resistance to change and strategies to overcome them.
Describe the risk management process (identification, assessment, mitigation) and business continuity planning.
Conduct a risk assessment for a change initiative.
Your checkpoint
A change management plan (500 words) including a risk register with at least five risks and mitigation actions.
Operations and Service Management & Professional Ethics, Governance and Stakeholder Management
Explain operations management concepts (capacity, quality, process design) and service management principles.
Discuss ethical decision-making frameworks and corporate governance structures.
Analyse the role of stakeholders in governance and ethical dilemmas.
Apply an ethical framework to a business case.
Your checkpoint
A 600-word ethical analysis of a governance dilemma, including stakeholder mapping and recommendations.
Strategic Management and Business Planning & Organisational Behaviour and People Management & Financial Management and Budgeting & Project and Programme Management & Information Systems Strategy and Governance & Change Management and Organisational Transformation & Risk Management and Business Continuity & Operations and Service Management & Professional Ethics, Governance and Stakeholder Management
Review all domains using summary notes and practice questions.
Complete a timed mock exam under exam conditions.
Identify weak areas from the mock and revise those topics.
Consolidate key models and frameworks into a one-page cheat sheet.
Your checkpoint
A mock exam score report with a personalised revision plan for the final week.
Milestones
Week 2: Successfully explain strategic and people management concepts to a peer without notes, and receive positive feedback on the case analysis.
Week 4: Achieve at least 70% on a self-made quiz covering domains 1-3, and produce a budget that balances.
Week 6: Complete a risk register and change plan that a mentor rates as 'ready for implementation' with minor comments.
Week 8: Score at least 60% on the mock exam and demonstrate improvement in at least two previously weak areas.