- KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. The course describes the evolution of corporate governance and promotes a modern view of direction and control activities. Students understand the importance of connecting sustainable development, global responsibility, stakeholder relations management, and corporate governance, particularly in listed companies.
Students acquire detailed knowledge about the composition and functioning of corporate governance boards established in firms operating in insider or outsider systems. Students also learn about characteristics and responsibilities of internal control bodies e their interaction with corporate governance boards.
Finally, the course considers laws and recommendations on the disclosure of information regarding corporate governance structures and procedures, directors’ compensation, internal dealing and corporate performance.
- APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. The course provides abilities and methods for a critical analysis, assessment and improvement of corporate governance quality and effectiveness.
At the end of the course, students are able to distinguish corporate governance models, compare them and check their compliance with the law and the best practices. They can also identify strengths and weaknesses of the corporate governance system implemented by selected companies. Moreover, students associate specific control tasks to devoted control bodies. Finally, they are able to select the relevant information to meet the stakeholders’ needs.
- MAKING JUDGEMENTS. Through the analysis of selected companies, students acquire knowledge and understanding to explain if a governance system fits a firm’s size and ownership structure and if it complies with mandatory and voluntary provisions. Students get used to assess the composition of a company’s boards and the adequacy of the internal control systems. Furthermore, students are able to analyse the corporate performances in the light of the stakeholders’ expectations. Finally, students examine and evaluate the degree of transparency of information divulged to shareholders, external supervisors and stakeholders.
- COMMUNICATION SKILLS. Through this course, students learn the specialised language of corporate governance and use it both in written and oral form. This fosters their ability to interact with directors, supervisory board members, managers, auditors, auditors and consultants.
- LEARNING SKILLS. Students develop abilities that help them update and improve their knowledge of corporate governance autonomously. Moreover, the knowledge and understanding, judgement and communication skills acquired thanks to this course are useful to students who intend to enrol in a PhD program or a second-level master in business administration and law, also abroad.
The course:
- enables the students enrolled in the master’s degree in “Business Consultancy and Training for Professionals” to deal with administration and control issues, relate external communication and corporate effectiveness and, looking ahead, hold positions in corporate governance boards;
- completes the background of the students enrolled in the master’s degree in “Management” by emphasizing the connections among board-level decisions, corporate governance and performance;
- enables the students enrolled in the master’s degree in “Money, Finance and Risk Management” to improve their knowledge of regulated financial markets and better understand the relationship between corporate governance and risk management, particularly in listed companies;
- helps the students enrolled in the master’s degree in “Social Economy and Cooperatives” understand how to optimize governance choices in the interest of different stakeholders.