S0412 Local Development Systems and Industrial Districts: Strategies and Competitiveness

Specifically the aim of the course is:
- to define the concept of industrial districts and clusters of small and medium enterprises
- to analyze the phenomenon of industrial district both in Italy and in foreign countries.
- to point out the differences between large organizations and networks of small and medium enterprises geographically localized
- to describe the role and importance of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) in supporting the development and competitiveness of industrial districts
- to point out a conceptual framework of industrial districts and their evolution in a globalized economy
- to provide an interpretative model of the potential of industrial districts in terms of product innovation and manufacturing flexibility

Students attending the course should have an economic and management background (i.e. business administration, general management). However the course could be also interesting for students with backgrounds in sociology or computer science. The course will offer a general description of network technologies and applications (i.e. Internet, groupware) from a non-technical point of view, by stressing their impact on business processes (innovation and product development, marketing, etc.).

Method of teaching
The course is designed from an interactive-based perspective. Lectures mix general theoretical analysis, case studies and experiences. Students will be involved directly in the discussion during seminars organized during the course, where students (alone as well as in teams) will present their homework assigned each week. Specifically, students will be asked to analyze Web sites, case studies, to read articles and to debate about specific topics (see controversial issue) in class.