This course has three objectives:

1. To provide conceptual tools for analyzing firms’ behavior about internal organization, strategy, and management, and the external competitive environment.

2. To examine the variety of firms by sector, size, and location.

3. To develop capabilities in applying operational tools and methodologies for analyzing and managing firms.

• The first part of the course analyses the fundamental elements of the firm, its interaction with the external environment and the main types of firms.
• The second part of the course focuses on the company's strategic management, examining business growth processes and key decisions regarding corporate and competitive strategies.
• The third part explores the main paths of business growth, considering both external behaviour (internationalization processes, social responsibility) and internal organization. Emphasis is placed on managing technological innovation, operational activities (purchasing, production, logistics) and market interactions (marketing and distribution).

Knowledge and understanding: students must gain a solid knowledge and a clear understanding of business management contexts and approaches.

Applying knowledge and understanding: students must be able to apply their acquired knowledge to analyze specific problems related to various contexts, considering firms of different sizes and resources while taking into account different competencies.

Making judgments: students should be able to use their acquired knowledge both conceptually and operationally, exercising independent judgment and applying various competencies in different business contexts.

Communication skills: students must master the technical language of business management to communicate effectively with specialized stakeholders (managers, experts, academics), while also developing relational and communication skills for engaging with non-specialized audiences.

Learning skills: students must develop strong learning abilities to pursue independent study and further their understanding of key business management topics in their professional environments.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

• Manager testimonials
• Business cases discussions

Teaching

The course incorporates various teaching methods:

• Lectures
• Individual and group exercises, along with report writing
• Oral presentations of exercises and discussions of business cases
• Manager testimonials

Innovative teaching methods

The in-person teaching method will be enhanced with group exercises and in-depth studies based on problem-solving, which students will carry out using the university's Moodle platform.

Attendance

None

Course books

• Selected translated chapters from: Tunisini A., Ferrucci L., Pencarelli T. (2020), Economia e management delle imprese. Strategie e strumenti per la competitività e la gestione aziendale, Milano, HOEPLI 
• Slides provided by the professor
• Papers provided by the professor

Assessment

The assessment consists of a written test with 5 open-ended questions on topics covered during the course. Responses will be evaluated based on knowledge of the subjects, completeness, and clarity of presentation.

Students must answer the questions to demonstrate:

• Their ability to contextualise and apply the studied concepts.
• Their mastery of the topics addressed during the course.
• Their ability to apply these concepts to analyze, critically evaluate, and solve problems related to economics and management.
• Their ability to present arguments rigorously and concisely within a limited time, using appropriate terminology.

The final evaluation will consider:

• The assessment of each exam question, with up to 6 points per correct answer.
• Additional work completed during the course (for attending students), which can contribute up to 2 extra points.

Students will have 90 minutes to complete the written test.

.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

None

Attendance

None

Course books

• Selected translated chapters from the text: Tunisini A., Ferrucci L., Pencarelli T. (2020), Economia e management delle imprese. Strategie e strumenti per la competitività e la gestione aziendale, Milano, HOEPLI 
• Slides provided by the professor
• Papers provided by the professor

Assessment

The assessment takes place through a written test consisting of 5 open-ended questions on the topics covered during the course. The evaluation of the responses will take into account the degree of knowledge of the topic, the completeness, and the clarity of exposition.

The student must answer the questions to demonstrate:

• Their ability to frame the studied concepts;
• Their mastery of the issues and concepts addressed during the course;
• Their ability to apply these concepts to understand, critically evaluate, and solve situations and problems related to the economics and management of companies;
• Their ability to explain their arguments rigorously and concisely within a limited time, using appropriate language.
• The assessment of the student's level of preparation will consider the evaluation of each individual exam question (maximum 6 points for a correct answer), and the work done by the student (if attending) during the year (up to 2 additional points added to the final evaluation).

  The time available to answer the written questions is 90 minutes.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

None