20763 - GEOPOLITICS FOR BUSINESS

No background knowledge is required.

Geopolitics, defined as the interaction between the two dimensions of the geographic/physical space and/or "realm" in general, and power, has recently acquired and increasing relevance, gaining growing attention by scholars and academics but also practitioners, commentators, opinion-makers, consultants and not least business leaders. With increasing international political conflicts, organizations need to be managed with suitable and innovative methodologies. The most successful global companies will be therefore those that make expertise in international affairs central to their operations, adopting what can best be described as a corporate foreign policy. Such a policy will have two goals: to improve a company’s ability to operate in foreign environments through effective corporate diplomacy, and to ensure its success wherever it is engaged through careful geopolitical due diligence. It is therefore vital for executives and management students to understand geopolitical events because companies, whatever their location, sector or size, must consider how they are affected when devising strategies. This course aims at introducing students to the understanding of the contemporary geopolitics and geopolitical trends, focusing on the most important areas of emerging geopolitical conflicts, and understanding the nature, and the ways to manage and control, geopolitical instability, treats and risk.

• To understand the trends in geopolitical equilibria in the light of the main interpretative frameworks in the field
• To analyze and discuss the main topics in current geopolitical analysis and research
• To understand the nature of political and geopolitical risk
• To analyze the strategic positioning of companies in relation to geopolitical threats

• To understand and evaluate the impact of political and geopolitical risk on entrepreneurial decisions and logics
• To understand and master the main techniques in order to manage political and geopolitical risk

• Face-to-face lectures
• Guest speaker's talks (in class or in distance)
• Case studies /Incidents (traditional, online)
• Individual assignments
• Group assignments
• Interactive class activities on campus/online (role playing, business game, simulation, online forum, instant polls)

The couse will include 2 or 3 talks by experts in the field and several cases and incidents for discussion.

A group work (case-based) will be part of the final grade as well as a final individual assessment.

Attendance is warmly encouraged. Students will be evaluated though a mix of assessment techniques including a workgroup, a presentation and an (elective) final individual essay (up to 3,000 words, up to 2 additional points) to be agreed upon with the instructor before the midterm evaluations break.

The course includes a midterm and a final exam (Open and/or MC questions). The two grades’ average will account for the 20% of the final grade. The rest will be the outcome of the workgroup (80%) plus an eventual additional score (up to 2 points) of the final individual assessment.

Non attending students will be assessed through a final written exam on the whole program of the course composed by a set of MC questions and open questions. Non attending students will additionally be required to write a 3000 words essay about a book agreed with the instructor.

The course materials include articles, cases and incidents, plus a set of slides provided by the instructor. Teaching materials and reading will be uploaded by the instructor some days before each class.