ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
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- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2022/2023
- Teacher
- UGO RIZZO
- Credits
- 6
- Didactic period
- Primo Semestre
- SSD
- SECS-P/06
Training objectives
- The general objective of the course regard the learning of the following topics:
- the market and the theories of the firm;
- the organization of the firm;
- evolution of the market and its characteristics following the spread of information and communication technologies;
- strategies that maximise profitability and efficiency while minimising costs;
- what a balance sheet is and its purposes;
- what an intellectual property right is and the strategies to protect inventions;
- the entrepreneurial process;
- environmental economics and cost-benefit analysis;
- firm sustainability and growth strategies
At the end of the course the student has acquired the following skills:
- comprehension of how the market works and firms objectives identification;
- identify the best strategies in order to maximise profitability and efficiency while minimising costs;
- the influence of information technologies on the organization of work and the market;
- basic comprehension of the balance sheet and assessment of the profitability of a product or firm;
- protect an invention selecting the best form of protection;
- tools to comprehend firm organization and strategic decisions;
- firms sustainability processes comprehension;
- carry out a simple cost-benefit analysis Prerequisites
- None.
Course programme
- The course aims to address some main macro-themes, each of which will be delineated in several sub-themes. The various topics of the course will be addressed from both a theoretical and an applied point of view (exercises and case studies), where possible specifically addressed to issues that have to do with intense computing in a broad sense.
The macro- and sub-themes in which the course is divided are the following.
1. The market. 4 hours
Concepts of supply and demand, general equilibrium. Market failure concept and examples. Concepts of public good, externalities, redistribution with applications to the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector.
Main theories of the firm (agency theory, resource based view, transaction costs).
2. ICT, the market and the organization of work. 6 hours
Influence of ICT on the evolution of the market and work organization. Concepts of ethics, privacy, network effects, markets with network externalities, platform economics.
3. Innovation. 10 hours
Concepts of invention and innovation; sources of innovation and technological curves.
Intellectual property: economic foundations; investment in research and development; effects and strategies of intellectual protection.
4. The financial statements. 4 hours
Concepts of double entry, financial statements: income statement, balance sheet, explanatory notes. Reclassification of the income statement and balance sheet.
Budget analysis: profitability and liquidity analysis.
5. Strategy. 3 hours
Business development strategies.
The concept of marketing and marketing management.
6. Growth. 3 hours
The growth of the company: strategies, methods, mechanisms.
Corporate finance.
7. Entrepreneurship. 8 hours
Definitions, examples and case studies. The process of forming a business idea: examples and exercise of making a business model canvas.
Policies for entrepreneurship.
8. Environmental economics and sustainability. 10 hours
Outline of environmental economics. The cost-benefit analysis for the evaluation of an investment / policy. Valuation of non-market assets. Coase theorem and Kyoto Protocol.
Corporate sustainability. Corporate sustainability concepts. Mechanisms and processes for the implementation of sustainable processes within the company. Didactic methods
- Lectures
Learning assessment procedures
- The objective of the exam is to verify the level of achievement of the previously indicated educational objectives.
The exam is written, lasting 1 hour, consisting of a part with multiple choice questions and a part with open-ended questions in which the student chooses a question out of two proposed questions. (In the event of a pandemic and non-in-person exams, the exam will consist of an oral exam).
The part of the exam with multiple choice questions aims to verify that the students have learned the main concepts dealt with in the course. The open-ended exam part aims to verify that students have understood the functioning of the main constructs addressed in the course and / or are able to solve the economic problems faced during the course.
Each part counts for 50 percent of the final rating.
For attending students (by attending students we mean students who attend at least 75% of the lessons in the presence) a group exercise in class is foreseen: realization of a business idea through the application of the business model canvas and presentation through the 'pitch' formula. The carrying out of this test will give the right to an increase in the exam score up to two points compared to the mark obtained from the written test. Reference texts
- Teaching materials are:
Russo, A., Vurro, C.. Economia e Management delle Imprese. 2018. McGraw-Hill Education, Milano. CAPITOLI: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Schilling, M.A., Izzo, F. Gestione dell'innovazione. Quarta edizione. 2017. McGraw-Hill. CAPITOLI: 2, 3, 9.
Acuti, D., Aiello, G., et al. Marketing e creazione del valore. Seconda Edizione. 2018. Giappichelli. CAPITOLI: 1.
Turner, R.K, Pearce, D.W., Bateman, I. Economia Ambientale. 2003. Il Mulino. CAPITOLI: 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11.
Slides provided by the lecturer
Optional in-depth texts:
Further material provided by the lecturer
