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Free University of Bozen-Bolzano

Lab in Business Consulting

Semester 2 · 25454 · Master in Accounting and Finance · 3CP · DE


This course gives students the opportunity to apply knowledge from previous studies to real consulting projects for client firms, in some cases in collaboration with peers from Baruch College. It combines analytical work on strategy, structures, and processes with the development of communication, teamwork, and negotiation skills in cross-cultural settings. Students learn the role and methods of management consultants by interpreting client needs, designing solutions, and presenting results to external stakeholders. Teaching includes kick-off sessions, weekly guidance and feedback, and a final presentation before clients, lecturers, and fellow students.

Assessment offers two options:
A. active participation requiring engagement in weekly sessions, client interaction, a written report, and team presentation;
B. self-study option based on a scholarly review paper in German plus a written exam

Lecturers: Michael Claus Erhard Nippa

Teaching Hours: 36
Lab Hours: -
Mandatory Attendance: Mandatory for the 75% of the course

Course Topics
The objective of this laboratory is to apply and thereby broaden students´ skills regarding analyzing and crafting strategies, organizational structures, processes, information management and corresponding technologies. Additionally, soft-skills and interpersonal ability to communicate and negotiate should be developed and/or improved. Students –ideally in collaboration with a similar cohort from Baruch College– will be assigned to specific business problems of firms and conduct consulting tasks that include application of knowledge acquired in previous courses especially in the BAC track of the Ms A&F or comparable majors. Through presenting the results of the consulting work in front of clients, lecturers, and fellow students communication skills are enhanced. • Role and functions of management consultants • Methods, instruments, and tools of management consulting • Communication with clients • Reporting and presenting results

Teaching format
Some basic introductory sessions, frequent weekly feedback with client firms and lecturer and (re)directing sessions, final presentation preferably in front of clients; roundtable discussions and self-reflection.

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.

Additional educational objectives and learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding: Knowledge of key aspects of management consulting and methodological approaches Applying knowledge and understanding: Applying this knowledge through interpreting the task, setting up a project, collaborate with team members and the client, to presenting results Making judgments: Ability to comprehend the clients’ needs and restrictions, to choose appropriate methods and presentation tools. Communication skills: Learn and practice to communicate effectively with client, team members, and supporting lecturing staff. Experience cross-cultural teamwork and environments. Learning skills: The need to gather and interpret data from different sources to solve or at least illustrate management problems advances learning skills. Interpersonal communication skills; presentation and negotiation skills

Assessment
Option A - Attending/active: Efforts and engagement shown ‘in-class’, during kick-off meetings, weekly ‘Jour-Fixe’ sessions, and in the client-student (consulting) communication and collaboration; demonstrated ability to access internal and external data-sources to solve the problem (30%), final report (50%), and team presentation (20%). Option N - Non-attending/no participation: Quality of a scholarly review article (20 text pages; approx. 10,000 words plus references, appendices if needed) on topical issues relevant for example to the consulting sector. Topics are only assigned by the lecturer at the beginning of the semester at the explicit request of the non-attending student. The student can submit non-binding suggestions. The due date of the work will be the exam date. A brief ‘contract’ based on an exposé provided by the student will be signed or agreed upon by the candidate and the lecturer. It is expected that the student shows exceptional effort for being provided an exception, i.e. non-attending. Knowledge of the basic literature listed below is required as well as proficiency in writing scholarly papers. The paper has to be written and presented in German and counts for 80% of the course grade. The remaining 20% is based on a written exam (MC; closed-book) in German.

Evaluation criteria
Option A - Attending/active participation: See above; clients’ satisfaction and evaluation; breadth and depth of analyses; quality of report (content and formal requirements); quality of presentation (content and presentation skills) Option N - Non-attending/no participation: Content (complexity and difficulty), structure, comprehensiveness, writing, quantity and quality of scholarly sources used, and formal issues (e.g. citation and layout) – in short rigor and relevance and quality of presentation (content and presentation skills).

Required readings

Grant, R.M.: “Contemporary Strategy Analysis”, 9th ed., Wiley (ISBN: 9781119120834)

Nippa, M. & Petzold, K. „Functions and Roles of Management Consulting Firms - an Integrative Theoretical Framework.“ In: A.F. Buono (Ed.), Developing Knowledge and Value in Management Consulting: Research in Management Consulting, Volume 2. Information Age: Greenwich, CT: pp. 209-230.



Supplementary readings

Nippa, M. & Schneiderbauer, D. (2004) „Erfolgsmechanismen der Top-Management-Beratung. Einblicke und kritische Reflexionen von Branchenken-nern.“ Physica: Heidelberg, Berlin.



Further information
Since the majority of the course consists of external customer- and peer-oriented teamwork, their assessment of individual performance—in addition to continuous assessment in the consulting process—is included in the overall assessment. Free riding or dropping out of teamwork during the course should be avoided out of solidarity with the other students.


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

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