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Certificate
IHM Growth & Marketing Strategy
Sara Appelqvist
3369
Therese Bohlin
CEO IHM Business School
2025-06-12

Course description

MODULE 1: Situational analysis of the growth opportunities in a product category 
The learning focuses on identifying the company's current business challenge in a specific product category by analysing the strengths and weaknesses of the brand and the performance of the range of products and services offered under the brand name. The learning journey also includes identifying and evaluating the competitive and environmental factors and the buying patterns driving the growth of the level of demand in the product category now and in the future. Observations made and conclusions reached then determine the scope and mission of the marketing strategy.

MODULE 2: Design and implementation of the marketing strategy  
The learning focuses on how to adapt and develop the brand, the product offering and the go-to-market approach to fulfil the marketing strategy's scope and mission. The learning journey includes managing changes in customers' requirements and needs, distribution and media channels’ reach, spending on brand building and sales activation, and the marketing strategies of competing brands. This module also covers various conflicts of interest in the distribution channel and conflicting goals in the organisation when implementing a new marketing strategy.

MODULE 3: Determining the scope and mission of the marketing strategy 
In this module, participants are assigned in groups to independently help an external client with a current market opportunity or a performance problem in a product category. The learning journey includes researching and performing a situational analysis and using these findings to define the business challenge in the product category and recommend the scope and mission of a marketing strategy that will overcome the performance problem or successfully manage the market opportunity of the external client. 

Scope:
The course covers approximately 400 hours, of which about 100 hours are teacher-led. The remainder includes time for private study (recommended time or more) and examinations. 

 

2025-06-12

Examination formats  

Attendance requirements: At least 70% attendance at lessons. 

Knowledge tests: One test in each of modules 1 and 2. 

Grade scale: Pass (E) – Fail (F)  

Individual home assignments: One case assignment paper in each of modules 1 and 2. The case is about a decision situation in a given business context. 

Group project work in module 3: An assignment from an external client in which the decision situation and the business context are undefined. 

Grade scale in the case and project assignments: A (Excellent) – E (Passed) 

 

Reference framework for qualifications SeQF  

This certificate is one of four that constitute the “IHM Business Executive Degree. In 2018, the examination title “IHM Business Executive Degree” was placed at the SeQF 6 level. The learning outcome is equivalent to that obtained via statutory university studies within the “Business Development” subject area. SeQF is the Swedish equivalent of the European Qualification Framework (EQF) for lifelong learning.  

The framework aims to facilitate comparisons between examination titles and qualifications in different countries and between other European education systems. 

The position within the SeQF is sanctioned by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Vocational Education. IHM Business School is Sweden’s first private business school to be granted SeQF 6 level for an examination title outside the statutory education system.

Grades Sara Appelqvist
Subqualification 1:

Grade: A
Subqualification 2:

Grade: B
Subqualification 3:

Grade: A
Subqualification 4:

Grade: 
A
B
A