MGMT20135 - Critical Thinking and Managerial Decision-Making

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit is designed to introduce the importance of critical thinking and the benefits of using decision-making processes to assess and solve business, managerial and organisational problems. The key aspects of critical thinking and reasoning, including knowledge, comprehension, analysis, self-reflection and application are considered. You will learn how to critically analyse data and information related to typical business decisions. You will develop significant skills in building effective arguments by constructing, analysing, and critically evaluating the views and position adopted by stakeholders in the process of effective decision-making. The aim is to develop your ability to make effective and timely decisions, to communicate complex concepts and ideas, to influence and persuade others to adopt new strategies when required, and to constructively collaborate with others in order to generate solutions to multi-faceted business problems. You will also be introduced to the decision-making techniques leaders and groups use to solve problems in real-life business situations.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 8
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 2 - 2024

Term 2 - 2024 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney
Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney
Term 2 - 2025 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney
Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney
Term 2 - 2026 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Practical and Written Assessment 30%
2. Presentation and Written Assessment 30%
3. Written Assessment 40%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 25.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 25% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: SUTE student comments.
Feedback
Real-world examples and interactive classes are highly appreciated.
Recommendation
Retain the approach of providing extensive and contemporary case studies and examples, as well as the interactive learning experience.
Action Taken
The unit has continued to integrate real-world case studies and contemporary industry examples into lectures and tutorials to enhance relevance and engagement. Interactive learning approaches, such as class discussions, group problem-solving activities, and scenario-based exercises, have been maintained and expanded. Practical examples from current business contexts were also introduced where possible to strengthen the connection between theory and practice, ensuring students benefit from both applied learning and interactive classroom experiences.
Source: In Class
Feedback
Students demonstrated strong engagement with case studies but occasionally struggled to apply critical thinking frameworks consistently across different scenarios.
Recommendation
Provide a structured checklist or decision-making framework that students can use during exercises to build consistency and confidence in application.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: In Class
Feedback
Some students expressed difficulty linking theoretical models of decision-making with real-world managerial contexts.
Recommendation
Incorporate more industry-based examples, guest speakers, or short simulations to demonstrate how critical thinking frameworks are applied in practice.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: In Class
Feedback
Written assessments revealed that students could identify issues well but occasionally lacked depth in evaluating alternative solutions.
Recommendation
Provide exemplars of high-quality responses and emphasize evaluation criteria during assessment briefings to strengthen analytical depth.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Evaluate and reflect on the importance of critical thinking and the benefits of using decision-making processes to assess and solve business, managerial and organisational problems
  2. Develop a body of knowledge of research principles and methods applicable to key aspects of critical thinking and reasoning
  3. Critically analyse and synthesise complex information, problems, concepts and theories and to apply creative decision-making approaches to address business issues and problems
  4. Develop the capability to make effective and timely decision
  5. Communicate complex concepts, ideas and solutions to specialist and non-specialist audiences with the aim to influence and persuade others to adopt new positions.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Practical and Written Assessment • • •
2 - Presentation and Written Assessment • • •
3 - Written Assessment • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Knowledge • • •
2 - Communication •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • • • • •
4 - Research • • •
5 - Self-management •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility • • • • •
7 - Leadership • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 - Practical and Written Assessment • • • •
2 - Presentation and Written Assessment • • • • • •
3 - Written Assessment • • •