Indian Institute of Management Ranchi

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (MBA)

AY 2020-21 TERM - V

TITLE OF THE COURSE: Business to Business Marketing

CREDITS: 3

Name of the Faculty Email Telephone

Faculty Block/Room No. Number
Soumya Sarkar 6th Floor soumya.s@iimranchi.ac.in 609

CONSULTATION TIME FOR STUDENTS

Name of the Faculty Timing
Soumya Sarkar Wednesday 1500-1630 hrs

COURSE DESCRIPTION
The Business-to-Business (B2B) Marketing course deals with business concepts, marketing
activities, management systems, and supporting technologies that can lead to successful
development and effective management of B2B relationships. The course should be of special
importance to individuals interested in business-to-business marketing, and is also
appropriate for those seeking careers in consulting, manufacturing, and in other functional
areas of B2B firms. The course emphasizes the tactical aspects of business marketing as well
as the conceptual and strategic elements. It focuses on a wide range of issues in B2B
marketing, such as nature of organizational buying behaviour, buyer-seller relationships,
customer relationship management, customer satisfaction measurement, business decision-
making process, market orientation, business networks, marketing strategy, marketing
channels, and marketing communications in business markets. Guest faculty from firms will
attend class during the course to address topics of immediate concern to practicing managers.

COURSE OBJECTIVES
The objective of this course is to get a much-enhanced understanding of business-to-
business marketing. It aims to provide a broader perspective of business marketing, away from
the rather limited view of industrial marketing. The students should be able to appreciate the
importance, nuances and characteristics of B2B marketing by the end of this course. At the
same time, the course will delve much deeper into the individual elements of business-to-
business marketing and provide food for thought to the students for their future endeavours.

Learning Outcomes and Associated Measures

Course Learning Outcome Program Level Outcome Assessment Tool(s)

1. Develop an 1.1 Demonstrate Embedded Question(s) in
understanding of the understanding of business mid-term and end-term
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nature of business problems.

markets with regards
to marketing
environment, strategies
and key theoretical
concepts and business
marketing theories
2. Apply theoretical and 2.1 Identify appropriate Embedded Question(s) in
conceptual models to methodology to analyze mid-term and end-term
real life cases, e.g., business problems
using appropriate 2.2 Devise business
theories and solutions by using
frameworks for appropriate tools and
diagnosing business techniques
markets, and for
enhancing managerial
decision-making
3. Ensure the students are 3.1 Recognize cross- Embedded Question(s) in
exposed to local and cultural issues in buiness mid-term, end-term, and
global socio-cultural context. through assessment of
issues before they go projects
out to the world

PEDAGOGY/ TEACHING METHOD

 Lectures
 Case discussions
 Situational simulations
 Group projects

REQUIRED COURSE MATERIAL AND READINGS

TEXTBOOK
Business-to-Business Marketing: Relationships, Networks, and Strategies (Asian Edition) - Nick
Ellis & Soumya Sarkar (Oxford University Press)

READINGS
 Blurring the lines: Is there a need to rethink industrial marketing? (Wind)
 Major Sales: Who Really Does the Buying? (Bonoma)
 An integrated Model of Buyer-Seller Relationships (Wilson)
 How to Segment Industrial Markets (Shapiro & Bonoma)
 Marketing ‘value’ to price-sensitive customers during the Tendering process (Singh,
Nayak & Seshadri)

CASES
 Ingersoll-Rand (India) Ltd.
 Tupelo Medical: Managing Price Erosion
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 Verbeek Packaging Worldwide (A) & (B): The TotPet France Account
 Peak Sealing Technologies’ Product Line Extension Dilemma
 Maersk Line: B2B Social Media

EVALUATION
The students will be evaluated in the course on the following components:
i. Mid-term examination
ii. End-term examination
iii. Case study analyses: The students shall work in groups to analyse cases scheduled for
a certain session and submit a report. This report shall contain the analysis points and
recommendations
iv. Group project: Each group will be given a certain topic/firm to work on and prepare a
report to be submitted at the end of the term. The groups shall also make a
presentation to describe the details of their work to the class and the faculty.

Component Mode Duration Weightage

Mid Term Exam Closed book 1 hr. 30 min 25%
(Compulsory)
End Term Exam Open book 2 hr. 35%
(Compulsory)
Case analysis Take home, 20%
group work
Group Project Group work 20%
Total 100%

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY

i. It may be noted that any kind of copying/plagiarism by any student and/or malpractice in
examinations will be subject to strict disciplinary action under IIM Ranchi rules. If a
student is found guilty in any such case(s), it will be recorded in his/her personal file.

ii. The reports submitted by the students like Summer Project Reports/Term Papers/ Case
Study Report/ Project Report/CIS dissertation paper or any other report will go through
the anti-plagiarism software.

iii. In all cases where the software has reported more than 30% of plagiarism by a student
or group of students, there will be automatic conversion of the grade given in that
component into “F”.

iv. The faculty may even choose to report the matter to the PGP Committee which will
temporarily convert the course grade into “F” or an “I”, issue a show cause to the student
(s) and based upon the response of the student(s) assign any punishment or its
combination from the options below.

a.Expulsion from the Institute

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b. Suspension for a specified period

c.“F” grade in the course concerned
d. Scaling down grades obtained in the specific subject
e.Repeating the course
f. Withdrawal of placement services
g. Suspension, withdrawal or made ineligible for scholarships

For details, kindly refer to PGP Manual.

SCHEDULE OF SESSIONS

Session Topics to be Readings and Book Chapter Assessment

covered in the course Criteria
1 Perspective of B2B Marketing  Blurring the Lines – Wind
 Chapter 1
2 The Market Chapter 2 (Section 2.1)
3 Organisational Buying  Major Sales: Who Really Does
Behaviour the Buying – Bonoma
 Chapter 2 (Section 2.2 to 2.5)
4 Customer Relationship  Integrated Model of Buyer-
Management Seller Relationships – Wilson
 Chapter 3
5  Verbeek Packaging (Case) Case write-up
 Chapter 5
6 Segmentation, Targeting &  How to Segment Industrial
Positioning Markets (Shapiro & Bonoma)
 Chapter 6
7  Peak Sealing Technologies’ Case write-up
Product Line Extension Dilemma
(Case)
 Chapter 7
8 Product Management Chapter 8
9 Ingersoll-Rand (India) Ltd. (Case) Case write-up
10 Services in B2B Chapter 9
11 Channel Management Chapter 4
12 e-Commerce in B2B
13 Pricing  Tupelo Pricing (Case) Case write-up
 Chapter 10
14 Tendering Marketing ‘value’ to price-sensitive
customers during the Tendering
process - Singh, Nayak & Seshadri
15 Integrated Marketing Chapter 12
16 Communications  Maersk Line: B2B Social Media Case write-up
(Case)
 Chapter 11
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17 Group Project Presentations

18 Group Project Presentations &
Course Wrap-up
19 There will be two (2) sessions for guest lectures, which have been left out as session
nos. 19 and 20. These sessions will be finalised based on the availability of the
20
speakers.

Please indicate the changes made in the course outline based on the measurement of
assurance of learning (closing the loop)

Not applicable

Additional Reading(s)

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