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Free University of Bozen-Bolzano

Family Business Management

Semester 2 · 25422 · Master in Accounting and Finance · 6CP · EN


The course Family Business Management deals with:
The nature and dynamics of family business
The governance of family business
The management of family business
Succession in family business
The course entails both theoretical lectures and group activities aimed at putting theory into practice for a better understanding of the topic (e.g., case study analysis, role plays).

Lecturers: Paola Rovelli

Teaching Hours: 36
Lab Hours: 6
Mandatory Attendance: Suggested, but not required

Course Topics
The course is divided into 5 modules: - TM1. Introduction to family business - TM2. Dynamics of family business - TM3. Governance in family business - TM4. Management in family business - TM5. Succession in family business

Teaching format
Frontal lectures, group discussions, case study analysis.

Educational objectives
Knowledge and understanding: Master's degree graduates should be able to acquire an advanced level of preparation that allows for an articulate and integrated view of the finance issues of companies, financial intermediaries, financial institutions and markets. These learning outcomes are achieved through an advanced knowledge and understanding - of the economic-financial planning and evaluation of new investments; - of the characteristics associated with extraordinary moments in corporate management, such as capital transactions, recourse to financial markets, mergers and acquisitions, corporate crisis and reorganisation; - the problems and techniques of the organisation and financial management of companies and financial intermediaries; - the fundamentals of corporate finance for the correct application of, for example, decision-making models and financial data and risk management to treasury management; - the management and economic models of the different types of intermediaries, market microstructure, the operational efficiency of financial markets and the impact of financial markets on the economic conditions of intermediaries; - a wide range of investment, financing and risk management instruments, starting with the fundamentals of portfolio diversification and classical asset pricing and risk measurement models; - of the specific finance issues that characterise the profession of Financial Analyst, Portfolio Manager, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Administrative Officer, Controller, Internal Auditor and business consultant." "Master's graduates should be able to acquire an advanced level of preparation that allows for an articulated and integrated view of business management issues and of economic-quantitative, financial and legal disciplines. These learning outcomes are achieved through an advanced knowledge and understanding - of the economic-business models and tools for the management of companies, whether family or small or of international dimension; - of the design and management of institutional and organisational structures inherent to corporate governance systems; - of business tools and processes developed to recognise, understand and guide change and manage the impact of a transition on the organisation; - of efficient communication strategies within the organisation and towards the various stakeholders. - of the management issues that characterise the profession of financial analyst, portfolio manager, risk manager and consultant. Applying knowledge and understanding: Ability to apply knowledge in the area of Management for the critical analysis and formulation of solutions to complex problems in interdisciplinary national and international contexts in small or large organisations Ability to apply knowledge in the area of management to integrate the results of economic and financial communication and quantitative data analysis into business decision-making models Ability to apply knowledge in the area of Management to frame and evaluate organisational situations and problems in a multidisciplinary perspective, integrating business, economic, legal, financial and statistical-mathematical disciplines Ability to apply knowledge in the area of Management to be able to dialogue and interact with the managers of the various company functional areas, with financial markets and with corporate and tax law professionals Making judgements: Ability to apply the knowledge acquired to make managerial and operational decisions and to solve problems in the administration and finance of companies, intermediaries and financial markets, jointly taking into consideration multiple perspectives of analysis, from the economic to the legal, financial, strategic and managerial ones. Ability to select data and use appropriate information to describe a problem concerning the management of companies, intermediaries and financial markets. Ability to relate models and empirical evidence in the study of companies, intermediaries and financial markets. Communication skills: Ability to communicate effectively in oral and written form the specialised contents of the individual disciplines, using different registers according to the recipients and the communicative and didactic purposes, and to evaluate the formative effects of its communication Learning skills: a) ability to use information technology autonomously to carry out bibliographic research and investigations and for one's own training and updating b) ability to identify thematic links and establish relationships between different cases and contexts of analysis c) ability to frame a new problem systematically and to generate appropriate taxonomies d) ability to develop general models from the phenomena studied.

Assessment
- Individual written exam: it consists of open and closed questions based on the theory. - In-class active participation: during the theoretical lectures, students are invited to participate in group activities (e.g., discussions, role play, brief case study analyses). - Group case study analysis: students participate in the Ulysses Contest (https://www.ulysses-contest.eu/); during dedicated lectures, groups of students analyze a family business case study based on assigned questions and by applying the theoretical concepts previously illustrated during the theoretical lectures. Non-attending students have to write to the lecturer at the beginning of the course. These students are evaluated based on an individual written exam. The written exam consists of open and closed questions, as in the case of attending students, but goes deeper in testing non-attending students’ knowledge.

Evaluation criteria
Attending students - 60% Individual written exam It is relevant: quality and clarity of answers based on the knowledge provided during lectures, ability to summarize, evaluate, and establish relationships between topics, and ability to critically analyze family business management. - 40% Group case study analysis It is relevant: quality and clarity of answers, ability to apply theoretical concepts to analyze case studies, participation in group work, and quality and clarity of presentations. - 0-3 extra points In-class active participation It is relevant: participation in in-class discussions, proactiveness during discussions, and quality and clarity of answers. Non-attending students - 100% Individual written exam

Required readings

Readings will be provided in the lecture slides and on the TEAMS page of the course.



Supplementary readings

Supplementary readings will eventually be recommended to the students on the TEAMS page of the course.




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Sustainable Development Goals
This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the following Sustainable Development Goals.

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