Insegnamento a.a. 2025-2026

This course explores the interplay between social movements, markets and firms, focusing on:

• Theoretical Frameworks: Examination of key theories explaining the impact of social movements on markets and firms.
• Historical Case Studies: Analysis of significant social movements and their influence on industry practices and corporate policies.
• Corporate Response: Study of organizational strategies in response to social pressures, including CSR initiatives and stakeholder engagement.
• Market Dynamics: Investigation of how social activism shapes consumer behavior, brand reputation, and market opportunities.
• Policy and Regulation: Discussion on the role of policy changes driven by social movements in shaping market regulations.
• Future Trends: Exploration of emerging social movements and their potential implications for global markets and corporate strategies.

The course is organized into three main sections:

• Social Movements: Students analyze various types of social movements, their development, organization, strategies, and evolution.
• Companies: This section examines how companies respond strategically to social movements, including their roles as targets, opponents, or participants. 
• Markets and Industries: The focus here is on the relationship between social movements and competitive arenas, including the critique and transformation of industries, the creation of new industries and categories, and the legitimization of new entrepreneurial firms and competitive alternatives.

• Describe the development and organization of various social movements.
• Understand the logic of activism and social movement organizations (SMOs).
• Recognize the different strategies of social protest.
• Identify firms' strategic responses to social movement pressures.
• Summarize the interaction between social movements and market dynamics.
• Explain the role of social movements in the creation of new industries and market niches and how companies affect the configuration and evolution of such competitive arenas to their advantage.

• Apply strategic frameworks to analyze corporate responses to social movements.
• Compare different corporate strategies in response to social activism.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of corporate policies in addressing social movement demands.
• Justify strategic decisions based on an understanding of social dynamics.
• Design strategic plans that incorporate considerations of social activism.
• Develop comprehensive solutions for firms navigating social movement pressures.
• Formulate strategic responses that balance corporate interests with social demands.

• Choose appropriate strategies for managing organizational reputation amidst social pressures.
• Use case studies to illustrate successful engagement with social movements.
• Hypothesize potential outcomes of corporate engagement with social movements.
• Simulate corporate decision-making processes in response to social activism.
• Plan and prepare detailed reports on the strategic implications of social movements for businesses.
• Interpret the impact of social movements on industry evolution.
• Analyze the role of social movements in creating new market opportunities.
• Solve complex problems related to market entry and competition influenced by social activism.
• Discuss future trends in the interaction between social movements and markets.

• Evaluate real-life company situations and exhibit structured methods in strategic decision-making through the critical application of theories and tools of analysis.
• Recognize strategic situations with ethical challenges and meaningfully debate socially responsible issues with insight.
• Organize team projects that explore real-world cases of social movements affecting firms.
• Demonstrate organizational and teamwork abilities as well as presentation and communication skills.

• Lectures
• Collaborative Works / Assignments

The course privileges interactive discussions of case studies and group presentations. 

Case analyses give students practical insights and analytical skills for understanding the complex relationships between social movements, markets, and firms. Digging into the details of cases and considering various perspectives is critical. Students learn to navigate various contexts and identify common themes.

Special attention is given to developing student voices through in-class discussions and group presentations. Teams of students are expected to present their strategic analysis of a business case/topic before their classmates. By encouraging the exchange of ideas, this course aims to nurture curiosity and enhance students’ engagement with the world.

The student assessment is based on three main components:

1. Group presentations (40 points) aimed at testing the ability to organize and manage a project within a team related to the application of concepts and models to business cases and/or real-case scenarios.
2. Peer evaluation (10 points) is designed to verify each participant's contribution within a work group.
3. Final written exam (50 points), based on open-ended questions related to course materials, which aims to assess the student’s learning level of the main concepts shared in the course, their application as well as the clarity of written communication.

Students are also asked to engage in polite discussion and periodically provide inputs or answers.

Students must make a satisfactory attempt at all the assessment components to pass this course. Points are not percentages. Final grades are assigned based on the distribution of total points in the class.

• Final written exam, based on several open-ended questions related to the course materials for non-attending students, which aims to assess the student’s learning level of the theoretical models and the main concepts, as well as the ability to analyze some implications related to them and to use a clear communication style.

• Lecture slides (uploaded on the Blackboard platform).
• Case studies and course readings (available online in the Library Course Reserves).

• Selected readings/books (see the detailed syllabus, available at the start of the course).