COMPETITIVE STRATEGY

The course is intended to offer students advanced knowledge of strategic management. By tackling real-world challenges in various industries, students will learn how to create a strategic plan through a in-depth analysis of the external environment and the firm's resources and capabilities.

Students are expected to have a basic understanding of strategic management, as well as the main principles of accounting and microeconomics. Without this knowledge, students may struggle to keep up with the course.

The course aims to equip students with an advanced, theory-based approach to strategic planning. This will enable them to create comprehensive corporate and business strategic plans through internal and external analysis.

Strategic Analysis. • What is strategy. • Firms' external analysis: macro-environment analysis. • Firms' internal analysis: competitive advantage, resources and capabilities, value chain. • Strategic positioning — business level: cost and differentiation. • Corporate level: vertical integration; value proposition. • Additional topics in strategy. ** This program can be altered during the course. Dates and monitored activities can also be altered during the semester. Any change will be previously informed.

Strategic Management and Competitive Advantage, Concepts and Cases, 5th edition. Jay B. Barney, William S. Hesterly. Additional readings (slides, papers and cases) distributed via Luiss Learn.

Traditional teaching through lectures will be complemented by case studies discussions, practical exercises, assignements (group works) and seminars with business experts and key figures. Students’ participation during lectures is strongly encouraged.

The exam consists of: (i) 1 group assignment that counts 30% for the quality of the project, the quality of the text, and the quality of the oral presentation. (ii) 1 mid-term exam that counts for 40% of the final grade. (iii) A final written exam or a second mid-term exam that counts for 30% of the final grade. The final evaluation will consider the level of comprehension and familiarity with the basics of strategic management and the knowledge of essential principles discussed in class. It will also take into account the ability to think logically and critically and the proficiency in presenting findings and conclusions effectively during the course. Additional points or penalization can be applied based on the performance and participation during the entire course. Non-attending students will receive a final exam (100% of the final grade) based on all the material uploaded in Luiss learn (slides, papers and cases) and on the book: Economics of Strategy - David Dranove, David Besanko, Mark Shanley, Scott Schaefer (Full text).

Students that are interested in the final thesis should proof a good knowledge of the Luiss Library Guides on: - How to prepare a bibliography - How to write a thesis - How to access to electronic resources - Discovering online resources - Finding journals and journal articles - Getting started with the Luiss Library Discovery Students who fail to demonstrate a thorough knowledge of these guidelines will not be eligible for the final thesis assignment.