CdLM Business Administration

This module will develop enterprising thinking within our students. We will learn how to look at challenges with a view to not only overcoming them, but also how to exploit the potential opportunities they offer. We will develop a questioning approach to the information that we are given, to be inquisitive, opportunistic and challenging of traditional ways of thinking. We will also explore different ways of knowledge\product creation.

We will achieve these objectives in a number of practical ways. The module will be workshop-based and activity-driven with less emphasis on formal lectures. Students will use case studies, practical exercises and group activities to develop their skills and we will develop their learning through discussion, presentations and self-assessment tools.

This module will also offer a framework to support the learner in successfully assimilating the personal, academic and professional skills required to be effective in the field of business. Academic development will be enhanced in the areas of referencing, research skills, essays and report writing, and presentation skills.  Transferable employability skills will be developed via group interaction, teamwork and individual exercises.

At the end of this module the student will be able to:

L1. Explain the meaning of enterprise and entrepreneurship using examples.

L2. Apply a variety of approaches to solving problems in both team and individual situations.

L3. Describe the enterprising citizen and recognise examples of personal enterprising behaviour.

L4. Identify and discuss examples of entrepreneurial behaviour in organisations.

L5. Demonstrate a range of academic and professional skills required for successful employment in the field of business.

The module combines theoretical frameworks, practicalities and experience the realities of Entrepreneurialism. The module offers different activities such as workshops, guest speakers, etc. In addition to this, access to expertise from a variety of academic staff, entrepreneurs, and support agencies will provide the opportunity to learn and put into practice digital and entrepreneurial skills.

 Attendance to both the lecture and the group session is compulsory, if you want to be undertake the exam for attendees.

Moreover, due to the current situation stem from COVID - 19, the lectures can be delivered by a hybrid mode which calls for a mix of traditional face to face classed accompained by web-based online learning (id est online lectures by the Webex platform and\or recorded lectures released on the Moodle platform). 

RELEVANT NOTE: Due to the current situation, the exam  will be delivered in the oral form by the webex platform until September 2020. Each student who has registered for undertaking the exam will be informed about the details of the webex meeting via email. For further queries, please email Prof.ssa Scuotto at veronica.scuotto@unito.it

For the academic year 2020\2021, the exam will be structured in a mix method form for attendees which requests: 1. the development of a group project; 2. a brief oral exam.

Assessment Outcome Grids - For attendees

Assessment Category 1
Learning Outcome (Footnote B.)	Learning Outcome (1)	Learning Outcome (2)	Learning Outcome (3)	Learning Outcome (4)	Learning Outcome (5)	Weighting (%) of Assessment Element	Timetabled Contact Hours
Group Presentation						60	0

 

Assessment Category 2
Learning Outcome (Footnote B.)	Learning Outcome (1)	Learning Outcome (2)	Learning Outcome (3)	Learning Outcome (4)	Learning Outcome (5)	Weighting (%) of Assessment Element	Timetabled Contact Hours
Ongoing assessment						40	0
Combined Total For All Assignment Categories						100%	0 hours

N.B. It is important to remember that the unlicensed use or copying of another person’s work is not permissible. Such attempts at plagiarism may result in disciplinary procedures being taken against you.

Especially, the exam is divided in two types of assessments:

Assessment Category 1

Entrepreneurial Thinking - Group presentation (60%)

Assignment 1 (Group) worth 60%

Part 1 - Select a Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) of your choosing and appraise the nature of the contribution that SMEs in general make to the Italian economy, highlighting the specific contribution made by your chosen enterprise.  

Part 2 - Map your chosen enterprise against the Business Model Canvas, identify the specific challenges which they face, and suggest possible solutions to these challenges. Apply and demonstrate your critical entrepreneurial thinking and validate your solution with supporting evidence e.g. videos, articles etc. Demonstrate your research skills by drawing on evidence to support your case.

This assignment calls for your group (e.g. min. 3; max. 5 people) to appraise the nature of the contribution that SMEs make to the Italian economy, to identify the challenges faced by a specific case study organisation and to offer solutions to those challenges. This will involve developing original and creative responses to the identified challenges that the case-study firm faces.

The assignment will take the form of a group oral presentation and students should employ the Business Model Canvas to demonstrate knowledge and experience acquired from the module in solving business problems.

 Group Work

One of the objectives of group work is that you learn to work as part of a team and to resolve conflict and differences in opinion. It is inevitable that some groups will find working together difficult but it is the responsibility of each member to try to resolve tensions.

Once the groups are selected it will NOT be possible to move to another. Therefore, think very carefully before agreeing to join a particular group.

Each member of the team/group will make a full contribution to the final output of the group. Freeloading (i.e. letting others do all the work) will be heavily penalised. To reduce the risk of this occurring each student will keep a weekly record of their dealings with other group members noting any contentious issue that arose and how the group was able to resolve it.

Assessment Category 2

Entrepreneurial Thinking - Individual exam\ ongoing assessment(40%)

Assessment 2 (Individual): worth 40%

Each student will be evaluated during the class for his\her interactions, committment in working in a group, level of enegagement with the topic.

FOR NOT ATTENDEES

The exam is written and it is composed of 5 open questions to be completed in 50 minutes.

Although, due to the COVID - 19, for not attendees the exam will be oral test.

Didactic Material:

Scuotto V., Murray A., 2018, Effectiveness of Internal Entrepreneurship Education Ecosystem on forming a new entrepreneurial mind-set, Book Chapter 3 - ‘Experiential Learning for Entrepreneurship’ Palgrave.

Carter and Evans (2012). Enterprises and Small Business, Pearson Education Limited.

ICT Adoption for Knowledge Management: Opportunities for SMEs by Scuotto

https://www.publicationsales.com/store/p29/ICT_Adoption_for_Knowledge_Management%3A_Opportunities_for_SMEs.html

Traditional business programmes focus on preparing students for the world of employment. The present module entitled Entrepreneurship recognises that there are alternative, equally valid and rewarding futures available to our graduates. One of these is self-employment. Starting an enterprise requires qualities which in some ways are different from those demanded of an employee. This module examines ‘entrepreneurialness’ from a number of perspectives; we look at enterprise in the modern business world in the context of organisations, self-employment and crucially enterprise within ourselves.  We will learn about creativity, innovation, goal directed behaviour and risk-taking and discover that we already display many of these qualities. Alongside, we will also learn how an entrepreneur manages the knowledge circulaton within and outside his\her business.

The content of the program includes:

Session	Lecture	Tutorial
	Introduction to Enterprise and Entrepreneurship	Group work
	Theory of Entrepreneurship	Group work
	Creativity and Innovation	Group work
	Intrapreneurship	Group work
	Knowledge Management	Group work
	Business Entrepreneurship	Group work
	Business Model Canvas	Business Model Canvas workshop
	Technology Entrepreneurship	Guest Speaker
	Social Entrepreneurship	Group work
	Family business	Group work/ Guest Speaker
	Sum Up	Sum UP
	Group Assignment	Group Presentation

Note. The program could be slightly changed according to the level of the knowledge of the students.

• Scuotto V., Murray A., 2018, Effectiveness of Internal Entrepreneurship Education Ecosystem on forming a new entrepreneurial mind-set, Book Chapter 3 - ‘Experiential Learning for Entrepreneurship’ Palgrave.

  Carter and Evans (2012). Enterprises and Small Business, Pearson Education Limited.

  ICT Adoption for Knowledge Management: Opportunities for SMEs by Scuotto

  https://www.publicationsales.com/store/p29/ICT_Adoption_for_Knowledge_Management%3A_Opportunities_for_SMEs.html

The teaching activities modalities may vary according to the limitations imposed by the current health crisis. In any case, lectures will be online throughout the academic year.