Ateneo - UPO

The course aims at analysing the tourism firm by relying on an approach that strongly integrates theoretical and practical elements, Theoretical and methodological contents are supported by specific applied cases that highlight the actual firms'behavior.
The focus on operational elements, moreover, is realized through the discussion and the solution of several cases and problems that highlight the decision-making process of tourism firms.

Fraquelli Giovanni, Imprenditorialità e Management dell’Impresa Turistica, 2017, CEDAM-WOLTERS KLUWER, ch. 1-9
Slides and a set of exercises will be available on the DIR web page of the course

The course has the target of providing the student the basic tools for the management of tourism firms, starting from defining firms choices, given the strategic orientation in each single area of business, with special focus on operating decisions and on their effects on costs.

Students must have passed and recorded the exam of Business Administration (Economia Aziendale)

Lectures, exercises, cases discussion.
The teacher will rely on the DIR platform for information on and sharing of materials as well as for communications to students.

Nessuna.

The exam is written, with a maximum score of 30/30 cum laude.
The written examination consists of two parts.
Part 1): aimed at verifying knowledge and understanding (maximum score 18 points). It is composed of 12 closed-ended questions (1.5 points for each correct answer; 0 point in case of no answer; -0.3 points in case of wrong answer).
Part 2): aimed at verifying the ability of applying knowledge and understanding (maximum score 15 points) through a problem set, composed of three questions, or three separated exercises.

As an alternative, at the end of the course, the teacher will propose to students an assignement, to be done in groups (2-4 people). The assignement will consists of some exercises, aimed at verifying the ability of applying knowledge and understanding, and a short research work. The assigment has to be sent to the teacher by a deadline that will be communicated (the deadline will be before the summer exam session). With the assigment, students can obtain up to 15 points.
Students that have done the assignement have the opportunity to opt (only for the exams of June, July and September 2023) for an exam consisting of Part 1 only, and focusing on chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 of the book.
For students that do not do the assigment, both Part 1 and Part 2 of the exam will involve the whole program.

Warning: if a student does not pass the exam, or results as “not sufficient”, withdraws from the exam, or refuse the mark of the exam three times in the same year, he cannot participate again at the exam until the following year. The solar year is considered for the calculation.

- Definition of the concept of "firm"
- The tourism firm and the tourist
- Tourism supply chain and relations between agents
- Results of production activity and value creation
- Tourism firms'strategies: nature, scope and interpretative paradigms
- Tools supporting strategic choices
- Looking for a competitive advantage in tourism
- Cost management of the tourism firm
- Firm profitability: costs, revenues, activity volumes and price policies

- Knowing the main peculiarities of the tourism firm, of the tourist as customer, as well as the main relationships with the element of the supply chain
- knowing the concepts of value added and profit
- knowing the main elements related to the strategic choices of tourism firms, as well as the main main tools supporting such choices and the research of a competitive advantage.
- knowing the main definition of costs and revenues to be employed for optimally managing tourism firms in terms of profitability
- being able to apply and interpret the concepts of value added and profit for management purposes
- being able to apply the tools supporting strategic decisions
- being able to apply the notions of costs, revenues, accounting profit to problems and applied cases related to firm profitability