Using Live Briefs in Marketing Education: How to Increase Student Employability by Blending Sustainability and Internationalization

Postgraduate students in marketing needed more first-hand learning experiences by addressing live briefs set by clients. The existing curriculum relied on a pedagogical framework using traditional case studies. Furthermore, students did not have many opportunities to work with non-domestic, sustainable brands in a real-life setting. While topics such as sustainable consumption, ethics and corporate social responsibility were covered theoretically in the existing modules, students needed to learn how to apply theory into practice. This chapter describes, examines, and analyses the benefits and challenges of introducing live briefs in marketing education, the challenges faced throughout teaching and group work, and how live briefs had to be implemented in the curriculum to help improve the postgraduate student’s employability skills. Changing consumer behaviour toward more sustainable consumption remains an ongoing concern for existing and prospective marketing professionals, and some employability skills are directly connected to this ongoing concern. Practical introduction of live briefs, supported by domestic and international brands with substantial sustainability agenda, is one solution to enrich pedagogy and learning practices with real-life experiences.