INDUSTRIAL DYNAMICS AND GLOBAL ECONOMIC CHALLENGES

The course aims to provide students with knowledge about the evolution of market and industrial structures and how firms' strategies adapt and develop within those structures. We will study how firms’ strategies and performances are dependent on territorial and industrial contexts and at the same time how those strategies may support new industrial and territorial competition. We will analyze who are the relevant players within the global economy, who are the winners and who are the losers. Particular attention will be given to recent global challenges in specific industries and the competition coming from new emerging economies.
The course will deal with national and international experiences of organization of production and innovation, and industrial differences in the modes of globalizing those activities. Empirical cases will be discussed in a comparative perspective along time and space. Different types of policies supporting firms’ internationalization and development strategies will be introduced.

1. Knowledge and understanding
- framing theoretically and empirically the evolution of market and industrial structures along time and space
- framing firms’ strategies and competition within specific industrial and territorial contexts
- learning about the innovation system supporting agglomeration economies and specific industrial evolutions
- understanding how global challenges are determining new competition strategies at the level of the firm and the level of the industry.
- understanding the sectorial differences in the modes of globalizing innovation and production

2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding
- understanding the main characteristics and evolution of markets and industries
- identifying the best strategies at the level of industry and at the level of the firm to face ongoing processes of globalization
- knowing how to distinguish who are the winners and who are the losers within the global market competition
- learning how to adapt theories to real situation
- being able to identify the effect of policies on firms’ strategies and on industries

3. Ability to judge
- being able to critically assess the advantage and disadvantage of operating in specific industries and markets.
- being able to critically assess the advantages and disadvantages of firms operating alone or within networks of firms

4. Communication skills
- students will learn how to present and discuss specific cases and to critically assess theories and policies.

Students are encouraged to take the Microeconomics exams before this course

Contents I module
- Evolution of theories within industrial economics and the new empirical approach
- Market structures (particularly imperfect competition/entry strategies)
- Classification and evolution of industries, life cycles and recent industrial trends
- The evolution of firms’ strategic behavior within industrial structures (from traditional advantage to new competitive advantages)
- Industrial localization and territorial competition (advantages and disadvantages of agglomeration economies; national and regional innovation systems in a comparative perspective)
- Policies for industrial and regional development

Module I:
Lipczynski, J., Wilson, J.O.S, Goddard, J., 2017. Industrial Organization: Competition, Strategy and Policy, 5th edition. Pearson

Further information related to the referral text (e.g. chapters) and other readings will be provided during class

Not attending students: Written exam (100 percent of the final grade)
Attending students: Written exam (50 percent of the final grade) and laboratories (50 percent of the final grade)

The course is held on campus. The course includes lectures and workshops with group presentation and discussion (workshops only for attending students).

English

Due to the health emergency situation the programme and the exam may change.
Please register also on MOODLE

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Cities, infrastructure and social capital" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development