ECONOMIA E GESTIONE DELLE IMPRESE M - Z

1. Knowledge and understanding. The course aims to provide students with basic conceptual and methodological elements of business economics and management. After providing the knowledge and analysis tools about firms, their relationship with the external environment and the competitive context in which they operate, the course focuses on the strategic choices to achieve firms’ competitive advantage and growth, and on the management of the main business functions. The course aims to ensure that students understand the strategic analysis models and the tools to support decisions for firms’ competitiveness and development.

2. Applying knowledge and understanding. The course aims to develop the ability of students to apply the knowledge acquired to strategic analysis, to the definition of choices and to the management of problematic aspects of business management. They will be able to use tools and models of analysis and to formulate decisions and set up  strategic actions. In order to develop these skills, students may be asked to carry out project activities, analyze case studies, participate in classroom testimonials of entrepreneurs, and develop activities in small groups.

3. Making judgements. At the end of the course, students will have developed knowledge and skills on the strategic management of firms. They will be able to evaluate business opportunities and competitive dynamics, as well as to formulate strategic decisions and plans for the competitiveness and growth of the firm. To this end, students, during the classroom course, may be asked to, for example: analyze and express critical considerations on firms’ strategic choices, on the basis of information about the environment in which they operate and the available resources; recognize and analyze; recognize and analyze critical issues for firms and formulate proposals for the strategic choices to be implemented or to solve them.

4. Communication skills. Students will be able to illustrate conceptual contents of the discipline, models and methods used, critical considerations and proposals with language properties and a logical structure of thought. The students' communication skills, both in written and oral form, will be developed through different types of activities proposed by the teacher, including short oral reports, active participation in the classroom debate on the topics addressed, preparation of written reports or project activities carried out individually or in small groups.

5. Learning skills. During the course, students will develop the ability to learn concepts and analysis tools for business economics and management. Learning is gradual and is favored by the comparison with experiences and examples taken from business realities, by carrying out work in small groups in which students apply management tools and models to concrete cases. Students will therefore be able, independently, to use the learned knowledge to achieve information, analyze, formulate and evaluate strategic choices and problematic aspects in business management.

The course includes mainly lectures and provides for an active participation of students and a constant interaction between students and teacher in the discussion of the topics covered. Activities are also planned such as: the analysis and discussion in the classroom of case studies related to the topics addressed during the lessons; the testimonies in the classroom of entrepreneurs; visits to local companies, as well as the carrying out of thematic insights and/or individual and/or group projects.

Students are invited to read in advance the contents of each lesson, in order to facilitate the understanding of the topics addressed and their discussion in the classroom.

If the course is taught in mixed or distance mode, the necessary changes may be introduced with respect to what was previously stated, in order to comply with the program provided and reported in the syllabus.

None.

The course requires the detailed study of textbooks and additional teaching material provided or indicated by the teacher (e.g. slides, business cases, handouts and additional readings).

Attendance of lessons, although not mandatory, is highly recommended.

The course of Economics and Business Management offers students a basic framework of reference on business management. It provides conceptual and operational tools to support managerial processes aimed both at defining and implementing strategies to obtain a defensible competitive advantage in the reference business, and at defining growth paths for the company, for example through entry into new sectors or new international markets.

Initially, the course explores basic theories and concepts related to firms and strategy, outlining a frame of reference on the system of strategic decisions that characterize firms' management. The concept of strategy is analyzed, examining in particular the processes of elaboration and levels of strategic choices aimed at achieving firms’ competitive advantage and growth.

The relationship between the company and its reference environment is analyzed, from which competitive threats and opportunities can arise. The topic of sector analysis is addressed by referring to theories and models of analysis relevant to management studies. In this part of the course, therefore, the aim is to provide the student with an adequate understanding and knowledge of the conceptual models that study the decision-making process of the company in relation to the structural characteristics of the competitive context, both in the start-up phase of a new business and in the development phase. Management systems and organizational forms fundamental for the effective implementation of the company's strategies will also be analyzed.

Inoltre, il corso approfondisce il vantaggio competitivo delle imprese, esplorandone la natura e le fonti attraverso la prospettiva esterna, basata sul sistema di forze competitive agenti intorno all’impresa, e la prospettiva interna, basata sulle risorse e competenze dell’impresa. Ciò con l’obiettivo di individuare le fonti della competitività dell’impresa, che sono alla base della definizione delle scelte strategiche. Si esamineranno nel dettaglio le strategie competitive basate sulla leadership di corso e sulla differenziazione Si affronterà altresì il tema dell’evoluzione del settore, del suo ciclo di vita e dei cambiamenti strategici e competitivi che tale evoluzione comporta, anche in considerazione dell’innovazione generata o adottata dalle imprese.

In addition, the course deepens the competitive advantage of firms, exploring its nature and sources through the external perspective, based on the system of competitive forces acting around the firm, and the internal perspective, based on the firm's resources and skills. This is with the aim of identifying the sources of firm’s competitiveness, which are the basis for defining strategic choices. Competitive strategies based on course leadership and differentiation will be examined in detail. The issue of the evolution of the sector, its life cycle and the strategic and competitive changes that this evolution entails, also in consideration of the innovation generated or adopted by companies, will also be addressed.

Subsequently, the course deals with group strategies and growth paths of companies. In particular, vertical integration choices, global strategies and the management of multinational companies, the diversification strategy and the management of diversified companies are explored.

Finally, the course aims to analyze the operational processes of companies that offer goods and/or services. In particular, several important business functions will be considered, specifically the design and management of the production process, logistics and distribution, marketing and finance.

-        Book 1: Grant, R., L’analisi strategica per le decisioni aziendali, Il Mulino, Bologna. LAST EDITION, excluded chapter 18.

-        Book 2: Fontana F. Caroli M., Economia e gestione delle imprese, McGraw-Hill Education, Milano. LAST EDITION, chapters: 9-10-11-12.

-        Supplementary materials (lecture notes, slides, case studies, book chapters, articles) provided by the teacher and available on STUDIUM.

N.B. The supplementary materials are an integral part of the program.

In the ordinary sessions, the exam takes place through a written test, consisting of a short paper on the topics of the program, and a subsequent oral interview, which is accessed by students who have sufficiently completed the first test. The final evaluation expressed in thirtieths will be carried out on the basis of the following criteria: knowledge of the topics of the program, appropriateness of the technical language, relevance of the answers with respect to the questions formulated, ability to connect the topic discussed and other topics related to the program, logical ability to argue the assigned topic, ability to contextualize the topic with practical examples.

Students who have assiduously and actively attended the course, participating in the activities proposed in the classroom by the teacher (e.g. exercises, case analysis, group work, simulations), will be able to participate in a dedicated learning assessment test that considers:

- an individual written test, based on the program and consisting of multiple choice and/or open questions, which will take place in the first official exam session.

- the group project work that students are asked to carry out during the course in small groups.

To pass the exam it is necessary to obtain a sufficient evaluation both in the written test and in the project work.

§    - Highlight the differences between differentiation and diversification strategies.

- Identify and discuss the sources of competitive advantage based on cost leadership.

- Analyze  within the 5 competitive forces model, the factors that determine the threat of suppliers.

- Analyze the advantages and disadvantages related to the choices of full vertical integration and partial vertical integration.

- Discuss how to implement the internationalization strategy.

- Illustrate the concept of entry barriers and identify some examples of barriers of competitive derivation.

- Represent the value chain and discuss its usefulness as a tool for strategic analysis.

- Highlight the main differences between corporate strategies and business strategies.

- Discuss the main activities of the marketing function.

- Discuss the role of innovation in the evolutionary processes of the firm

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