Company Economics and Management
Code: 100969 ECTS Credits: 3| Degree | Type | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2500253 Biotechnology | OB | 2 | 1 |
Contact
- Name:
- Jose Luis Masson Guerra
- Email:
- joseluis.masson@uab.cat
Use of Languages
- Principal working language:
- spanish (spa)
- Some groups entirely in English:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Catalan:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Spanish:
- Yes
Teachers
- Jose Luis Masson Guerra
Prerequisites
This is a basic course in Economics and Management. Therefore, there is no prerequisite of previous knowledge.
Objectives and Contextualisation
The main objective of this course is to familiarize Biotechnology students with the tools of economic analysis and the world of business, a context where future graduates will develop their professional lives. What determines the existence of firms? How are they organized and provide incentives? How does a monopoly company behave? And a firm under perfect competition? What does value creation mean or how can you choose between different business projects or financing sources ?
The creation of value, as a socially desirable objective of firms, is a key element of the course. Thus, the first chapters emphasize the role of transactions as the main way of creating value. SEveral chapters are dedicated to define value creation and the relationit with other objectives traditionally considered by firms, such as their own benefits. Later in the course, the creation of value and its management in the different activities of the firm, especially in the topics of production, financial transactions and the internal organization of the firm.
Competences
- Display an integrated vision of an R&D&I process, from the discovery of the basic knowledge and the development of applications to market launch, and apply the main concepts of organisation and management to a biotechnological process.
- Learn new knowledge and techniques autonomously.
- Make an oral, written and visual presentation of one's work to a professional or non-professional audience in English or in one's own language.
- Make decisions.
- Read specialised texts both in English and one's own language.
- Reason in a critical manner
- Search for and manage information from various sources.
- Think in an integrated manner and approach problems from different perspectives.
- Work individually and in teams
Learning Outcomes
- Apply the principles of economic analysis to the production and marketing of biotechnological products.
- Apply the principles of organisation and management of the different functional areas of a company dealing in biotechnological products.
- Learn new knowledge and techniques autonomously.
- Make an oral, written and visual presentation of one's work to a professional or non-professional audience in English or in one's own language.
- Make decisions.
- Read specialised texts both in English and one's own language.
- Reason in a critical manner
- Search for and manage information from various sources.
- Think in an integrated manner and approach problems from different perspectives.
- Work individually and in teams
Content
PART 1: THE NATURE OF THE FIRM AND ITS ORGANIZATION
Topic 1. The Firm
1. The problem of the Organization and the creation of value
2. Example of the tribe
3. Company versus Market
4. Intermediate solutions
5. The entrepreneur
Topic 2. Perfect competition and monopoly
1. Perfect competition solution and the creation of Value
2. Perfect competition conditions
3. Monopoly solution and value
4. Consumer surplus, price discrimination and Anti-Trust
Topic 3. Firm Types
1. Firms from a legal perspecive: the corporation
2. The responsibility of the partners, firm financing and the losses
3. The creation of value and the legal form
4. New forms of organizations
5. Company forms in the Spanish context
PART II. ACTIVITIES OF THE FIRM
Topic 4. The production activity of the firm
1. The firm as a productive unit
2. The firm as a production function
3. The costs
4. Maximize production, minimize costs
5. The relationship between costs, the volume of activity and the profits
6. Economies of scale, scope and experience
7. Innovation, Value and New Technologies
Topic 5. The investments and the financial activity of the firm
1. The price in financial transactions, interest rates
2. Capitalization and update operations
3. The choice of investments or financing: interest rates
4. The creation of wealth in financial transactions
5. The selection of investments (or financing): NPV
6. The price in operations with more than one time period
7. The compound interest rate and the simple interest rate
PART III. ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN
Topic 6. Organizational design and the creation of value
1. The relevance of organizational design
2. Market failures and organizational solutions
3. The Agency problem and the problem with Teams
4. Moral Hazard and incentive contracts
5. Adverse selection, self-selection and signals
6. Examples of organizational solutions
Methodology
During the course the different sections of the program will be developed. Course materials, lecture notes, exercises and activities can be found in Campus Virtual. The student is expected to work on them before the class. These materials will be used to motivate and improve the understanding of the topics. For each subject, a series of exercises and activities will be proposed to reinforce these contents. There will be a few hours each week (tutorials) to meet students individually and solve any doubts they may have.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Activities
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Case discussion and problem solving | 3.5 | 0.14 | 2, 1, 8, 9, 7 |
| Master classes | 3.5 | 0.14 | 2, 1, 8, 4, 9, 5 |
| Study the course subjects, solving the cases, exercises and questions proposed in the course | 14 | 0.56 | 2, 1 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Individual tutories at the professor's office | 3 | 0.12 | 2, 1, 10 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Study the course subjects, solving the cases, exercises and questions proposed in the course | 48 | 1.92 | 3, 2, 1, 8, 6, 7 |
Assessment
1) A continuous assessment of the activities suggested during the course. This ongoing evaluation will include a midterm exam (with a weight of 35%), problems sets, and an active participation in class discussions (presentations) of the cases (15%), small tests, news and exercises with a weight of (15%). Regular attendance and completion of class exercises and activities scheduled during the course are required activities. 2) A final examination (individual assessment and 35% of grade). This exam will have both a practical part (problems) and a theoretical part.
Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exam | 35% | 2 | 0.08 | 3, 2, 1, 9 |
| Exercises | 15% | 0 | 0 | 3, 2, 1, 4, 6, 5, 7 |
| Group evaluation | 15% | 0 | 0 | 3, 2, 1, 8, 6, 10 |
| Midterm exam | 35% | 1 | 0.04 | 3, 2, 1, 9 |
Bibliography
PINDYCK, Robert y RUBINFELD, Daniel (2013): Microeconomía, 8ª edición, ed. Prentice Hall
SERRA, Antoni (2003): Mercado, contratos y empresa. 2ª edición. Manuals de la UAB, Labor.
Software
In this subject the use of specific software is not foreseen.