• Definitions, functions and properties of MKT Channels
• Supply chain analysis
• Distribution channels analysis
• Applied methodology in the selection, design and development of MKT Channels
• The role of MKT channels in the formulation of corporate strategic decision making 
• Analysis of distribution channels based on:
  • Company’s business activity (SIC)
  • Market structure and relative positioning of the company
  • Comparative analysis of their impact on the company’s systemic and business risk
  • Corporate strategic decisions
  • Market segmentation
• Integrated management systems of ΜΚΤ channels for various types of organizational structures

Marketing Channels and Distribution Management aims to review the relevant bibliography and studies on supply chain, channels of distribution and their management, and role in industrial and consumer marketing. A comprehensive analysis of the various categories of marketing channels and their role in the decision-making process of the firm in combination with the relevant marketing mix elements are the main focus of the course. The structure and operational properties of MKT channels are analysed, as are their contribution, in the form of value added, to end product/consumer (user). The role of modern technologies in the dynamic development of MKT channels based on the MKT principle and according to the life cycle stage of the firm are also discussed. In addition, the internal and external factors that determine the selection of MKT Channels based on the business activity (Standard Industrial Classification or SIC) are examined through the use of case studies. Detailed analysis of MKT channels economics, based on the functions of each one, reveals their contribution to the final price of the product/service and their impact on the required sources of funds at the corporate level. Finally, the course explores: a) the role of MKT channels in the economic growth of a country; and b) the importance of selecting the appropriate financial instruments (trade finance related) which result in the reduction of a company’s leverage ratio and the increase of a company’s current assets liquidity.  

On successful completion of the course students are expected to be able to:

• have knowledge of the terminology, principles and theory of MKT Channels and their management within a firm’s decision-making process;
• identify and analyse the various MKT Channels within the strategic decision- making process of the company and interpret MKT channels based on the company’s dynamic formulation of short- and long-term objectives;
• correlate a company’s business activity, market structure and available resources with the selection and management of MKT Channels;
• select the appropriate MKT channels based on mutually exclusive alternative choices and on budgetary cost benefit analysis for each MKT channel;
• apply the required methodology in the management of MKT Channels, taking into account the turbulent global economic environment and the role of MKT Channels in the company’s risk management;
• formulate well-documented and substantiated proposals to the company for the selection, development and evaluation of the MKT Channels that are employed and their integration into the company’s dynamic decision-making models; and
• manage MKT channels as a monitor of the company’s relationship with the market and as valuable input in a company’s strategic decision evaluation process.