Majr/Minr Industry, Glbal Value Chains and New Technlgies (HIR/BEng) March 16, 2016
Cntent & Career prspects Cntent Develp a thrugh understanding f the rganizatin f firms and their cmpetitive strategies based n insights frm ecnmics Particular attentin t the rle f glbalizatin, technlgical prgress and the digital ecnmy Career prspects Prepares fr psitins that require analytical and strategic thinking Brad career pssibilities, fr example: Cnsultancy (glbal strategy, new technlgy, cmpetitin analysis ) Managerial psitins in natinal r multinatinal cmpanies Research units f firms, financial institutins and prfessinal federatins Gvernment agencies and public administratin
Majr/Minr Industry, Glbal Value Chains and New Technlgies Students chse 24 credits ut f the fllwing curses: Glbal Value Chains (6 credits) Incentives and Behavir (6 credits) Netwrk Industries and the Digital Ecnmy (6 credits) Advanced Industrial Ecnmics (6 credits) Advanced Internatinal Trade Thery (6 credits) Ecnmics f New Technlgies (6 credits)
Glbal Value Chains Examples As prductin prcesses becme fragmented and internatinally dispersed, in what activities d Belgian firms retain a cmparative advantage? Des the lcatin f prductin influence the way supply relatinships are ptimally rganized? This curse studies the disintegratin f prductin prcesses ver different cuntries, using mdels f internatinal trade. Cvered tpics include utsurcing, freign direct investment, and within-industry trade in tasks and intermediates. In terms f ecnmic framewrk, it relies n hetergeneus firm mdels f trade, mdels f incmplete cntracting and search & matching mdels.
Incentives and Behavir Examples Hw can firms hire mtivated emplyees? Hw imprtant are mnetary incentives t keep emplyees mtivated? Hw can public plicy help peple t make better decisins in health and husehld finance? Can firms explit cnsumers decisin errrs? The curse examines the cnsequences f nn-ratinal behavir fr the design f cntracts and incentives, relatinships between firms, emplyees and custmers. Highlights Intrduce game and incentive thery fr strategic behavir, review the main empirical results n time, risk and scial preferences. Apply the cncepts t ecnmic decisins: (nn)-mnetary incentives at the wrkplace, rganizatin, delegatin f authrity, marketing, financial decisin making and bargaining.
Netwrk Industries and the Digital Ecnmy Examples Why d Internet service prviders and mbile phne peratrs use dwnlad limits? Des e-cmmerce reduce search csts, and hw des this affect industry structure? Hw culd Apple raise ebk prices with the intrductin f the ipad? This curse studies cmpetitin and strategy in infrmatin and netwrk industries, using game-theretic mdels, empirical applicatins and high-prfile case studies Highlights include Diffusin and pricing strategies fr netwrk gds Platfrm cmpetitin in tw-sided markets Cmpetitin and regulatin in telecmmunicatins E-cmmerce, cnsumer search and pricing in digital markets
Advanced Industrial Ecnmics Examples What is the impact f mergers in markets with prduct differentiatin? Why d firms frm exclusive cntracts? What explains prductivity dispersin and industry cncentratin? This curse studies varius aspects f firm behavir, market pwer and industry evlutin using mdels f (empirical) industrial rganizatin. The first part cnsiders technlgy and prductivity. The secnd part cvers cnsumer demand and prduct differentiatin. The third part cnsiders strategic hrizntal cnduct and vertical relatins. The furth part studies entry f new firms and the evlutin f market structure. The curse includes applicatins t cmpetitin plicy (cartels and mergers) and industrial plicy.
Advanced Internatinal Trade Examples Will China sn becme the nly factry in the wrld? Winning and lsing EU Firms in free trade agreement with the US? Are anti-glbalizatin views justified based n trade thery? This curse begins with an intrductin f Traditinal Trade Thery f cmparative advantage t explain exprt and imprt flws based n the availability f cuntries scarce prductin factrs. It then cvers the New Trade Theries, which explain internatinal trade flws and internatinal business strategies based n imperfect cmpetitin and hetergeneus firms. The curse discusses the relevant empirical evidence and assesses the impact f trade plicies n prducers and cuntries welfare.
Ecnmics f New Technlgies The curse cvers the ecnmics f innvatin and R&D, intellectual prperty rights (including patent design, licensing and pling, and intellectual prperty in the digital ecnmy). The curse will help the student understand the incentives fr innvatin, the tls fr apprpriating the returns t innvatin, the basis and peratin f university industry cllabratin, the challenges in finance f innvatin, and the reasns and tls fr science and innvatin plicy. The curse uses game-theretic mdels in industrial rganizatin r ther areas, and includes applicatins t varius industries such as health, digital and green technlgies. The relevance f thery will be illustrated thrugh empirical case studies.
Curses General Infrmatin Curses are taught in English: English language skills are essential fr mst career perspectives Allws internatinal student intake Organizatin f the Curses: Requires active participatin by students: interactive and rewarding Curses cmbine thery and applicatins Curses invlve (team) prjects/assignments with analytical prblems shuld be slved, empirical analysis r business cases Mst curses evaluate students n a cmbinatin f assignments and individual exam
Master s Thesis Industry, Glbal Value Chains and New Technlgies Tw pssible frmats Individual thesis, abut 15 000-20 000 wrds (30-40 pages) Thesis with tw students, abut 25 000 wrds (50 pages) Scientifically funded analysis f subject matter within the dmain Extensive list f tpics with research questins and recmmended scientific readings Helps students t start the thesis quickly. We strive fr best matches between tpic, student, and cach/supervisr Rm fr develpment f wn tpics Inf sessins n academic research methds: literature survey, statistical analysis (STATA), case study methdlgy
Cmbinatin with Minrs (HIR/BEng) The majr can be sensibly cmbined with any minr (e.g. internatinal business; persnnel and rganizatin, marketing, etc ) One specific cmbinatin is with a Minr in Ecnmics. This prvides a strng preparatin fr research psitins, cnsultancy r a PhD in Ecnmics. Students fllw the cre curses (12 credits) and select tw electives (12 credits): Cre curses Advanced Macrecnmics I (6 credits) Advanced Micrecnmics I (6 credits) Electives Labur Ecnmics* (6 credits) Ecnmic Aspects f Eurpean Integratin (6 credits) Macr-finance (6 credits) Ecnmische aspecten van de mededinging (6 credits) (MHIR nly) Advanced Micrecnmics II (6 credits) Advanced Macrecnmics II (6 credits) Advanced Labur Ecnmics (6 credits) Advanced Industrial Ecnmics (6 credits)