8294 - DOING BUSINESS IN ITALY

Globalization of the world economy is often seen as one of the threats to the competitive position of developed economies. Hence, why do some national industries prosper in the international arena and some don't? Why are some nations gaining market shares on a global scale? With intensification of the international trade and capital flows, the issue of national competitiveness emerges as one of the key topics on the agendas of policy makers and firms.
The aim of this course is to provide students with the analytical instruments that allow them to understand the key underlying factors of a nation's competitiveness and critically evaluate the actual and future competitiveness of nations - based on the example of the Italian economy and its key traditional industries: luxury, fashion and design.

The course consists of the following three modules:

Module 1. Competitiveness of nations: Countries' view. Example of Italy

In this part of the course, we explore the relationship between the national drivers of competitiveness (with a particular focus on the Italian case) and the changing global context. Specific issues which are covered are:

• The globalization of economic activities: trends, determinants and analytical tools
• The evolution of the Italian economy vs. its international partners
• The European picture: Italy within the Economic and Monetary Union
• The global picture: the World Trade Organization and Italy

Module 2. Competitiveness of nations: firms' view. Example of Italy  

This part of the course is dedicated to the assessment of the national factors that contribute to the competitive advantage of firms on the international markets - using the example of Italy.

The following main themes are covered:

• Italy as a Country system: an overview of the Italian economy (industries and regions)
• How a national playing field impacts the international competitive advantage of firms: M.Porter's "diamond" model; example of Italian clusters
• The development of the Italian competitive advantage: the need of shift in the production system and impact on firm's strategies
• Competitive advantage of nations: where and how to compete; predict the behaviour of foreign rivals
• Future competitive advantage of Italian firms: the national agenda. 

Module 3. International competitive advantage of Italian industries: example of fashion, luxury and design pipelines 

This part of the course is dedicated to the analysis of some industries where Italy has an international competitive advantage. The following main themes are covered:

• Italian Fashion System: main characteristics, different companies business models and key competitive variables
• Italian Luxury System, with main reference to jewels, watches, hotels: main characteristics, different companies business models and key competitive variables
• Italian Design System: main characteristics, different companies business models and key competitive variables

Attending students
Students will be evaluated both on a written exam (70%) and group activities (30%) carried out through a common assignment across the three Modules.

Non-attending students
Students will be evaluated on a written exam and a home assignment.  Details will be given at the beginning of the course and will be indicated in the extended syllabus available at ISEA (Istituto di Strategia ed Economia Aziendale) offices and website.

• P. KRUGMAN,  M. OBSTFELD, International Trade, Addison Wesley, 2003, Chapter 5.
• C. ALTOMONTE, M. NAVA,  Economics and Policies of an Enlarged Europe, Edward Elgar, 2005, Chapters 4,5 and 10. 
• M.E. PORTER. The competitive advantage of nations, Palgrave, 1998.
• O. ANNUSHKINA, L. CARCANO, Collection of materials and cases. See the extended syllabus.