OVERVIEW

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills to understand the role of Operations Management in the creation of value, highlighting its fundamental contribution to the acquisition of a lasting competitive advantage on a global scale. The course deals with the analysis and implementation of principles, methodologies and tools of Operations Management, Procurement and Supply Chain Management applied to multiple business contexts, from industrial to high service and relational content.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The aim of the course is to provide students with the theoretical and operational foundations of Operations Management, Supply Chain Management and Procurement and Supplier Management to develop a critical understanding of its role in the creation of business value in the short and long term, develop skills in the use of the main methodologies and tools in the context of business decision-making processes, to develop skills in the analysis and critical interpretation of business experiences in different market contexts.

In particular, the student will know and learn:

• the fundamental principles of operations management, supply chain management, and procurement and supplier management;
• the strategic and operational role of operations management in value creation and in sustaining the company’s competitive advantage in globalized contexts;
• the main models, tools, and methodologies for managing operations, supply chains, and procurement, contextualized across different production sectors;
• the interactions between operations and other business functions, through an integrated view of organizational processes.

At the end of the course, students will be able to:

• apply methodologies and tools from operations management, supply chain management, and procurement to solve concrete business management problems, based on business cases presented during the lessons;
• critically analyze real business situations, identifying issues and proposing appropriate operational solutions for different market contexts, justifying the choices made;
• support business decision-making processes through the correct use of analytical and managerial tools related to operations, supply chain, and procurement management learned during the course;
• use the technical language of the discipline to communicate clearly and to interact both with specialists in the same field and with professionals from different business functions, during classroom discussions;
• independently keep up to date on the main topics covered, by consulting academic and professional sources.

PREREQUISITES

Students are expected to be familiar with concepts learned in BA courses such as:
Supply chain and economic sectors
Economies of scale, scope, experience
Cost classifications
Sources of competitive advantages
Organizational structures
Managerial approaches production- and market-driven
Specificities of BtB and BtC markets
Market research
Corporate and competitive strategies
Financial aspects: cash flow and working capital
Media, variance and indicator

TEACHING METHODS

Lectures, case analyses, operational and interactive seminars held by managers and entrepreneurs. Students will also face individual and team assignments, as well as a project team work aimed at solving a business case to be presented and discussed also with external actors (in primis managers).

The course is taught in Italian.

Students who have valid certification of physical or learning disabilities on file with the University and who wish to discuss possible accommodations or other circumstances regarding lectures, coursework and exams, should speak both with the instructor and with Prof. Serena Scotto (scotto@economia.unige.it), the Department’s disability liaison.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Operations Management in the strategic decision-making process of firms, supply chains and networks
The Operations Manager's strategic role in creating the value of 21st century economic systems
Operations management: principles, methodologies and tools
Process management and innovation creation
Supply Chain Management: principles, methodologies and tools
Procurement and Supplier Management: principles, methodologies and tools
Operations economic and financial performance measurement

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Specific indications on the reference bibliography will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the lectures. The information will also be indicated on the course page on the AulaWeb e-learning portal.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

The course is taught in the second semester, following the calendar and schedule defined by the Department of Economics.
Schedule and classrooms are available at the Easyacademy link http://easyacademy.unige.it/portalestudenti/.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Written examination (in italian) with open questions and independent elaboration and discussion, also with external experts (primarily managers), of works carried out in team on specific topics concerning the management of operations, the supply chain and purchasing.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The written exam with open questions guarantees objectivity in the treatment of students and requires the autonomous writing of a logical and clear argument. The questions are formulated to evaluate the student's level of learning, as well as the ability: 1) to independently make connections between the different contents and between theory and practice; 2) to express a critical and updated evaluation; 3) to use the technical terminology of the discipline. Each learning outcome will be assessed through specific questions in the written exam, evaluating clarity of exposition, correctness of the proposed solutions, and appropriate use of technical language.

The development of team work by attending students makes it possible to verify their learning, their ability to apply the acquired notions to specific contexts, the development of soft skills useful for employability, the ability to discuss the solutions developed with experts.

FURTHER INFORMATION

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The instructor analyzed and considered the results of the teaching evaluation questionnaires relating to the previous academic year.

Please contact the instructor for any further information not included.