GRA 8323 Managerial Economics

GRA 8323 Managerial Economics

Course code: 
GRA 8323
Department: 
Economics
Credits: 
4
Course coordinator: 
Andreas Moxnes
Course name in Norwegian: 
Managerial Economics
Product category: 
Executive
Portfolio: 
EMBA Business Administration - Core Courses
Semester: 
2027 Spring
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Master
Teaching language: 
English
Course type: 
Two semesters
Introduction

Economics is the study of allocation of scarce resources, and how economies use markets, prices, and coordination mechanisms to do so. In this course, we emphasize market theory, a study of monopoly and oligopoly, and the implementation of strategies.

The purpose of this course is to study the behaviour of rational economic agents in order to understand how their interaction under various market arrangements determine the price and output constellations we observe in the real world. Particular emphasis will be placed on the strategic considerations of profit maximizing business firms for instance in regard to their decisions concerning advertising, product differentiation, vertical integration and entry/exit in an industry.

Most business decisions will benefit from being evaluated with a firm grasp of the equilibrium response in the market. The ambition of this course is to develop in the students an intuitive and also analytical feeling for the workings of the market mechanism. In the last 20 years attention has been directed more and more towards a business managers strategic decisions, by which we mean decisions in situations where there are interactions between rational economic actors; actors which may all be smart , clever, energetic and well informed. What is called game theory offers a scientific approach to strategic decision-making of this kind, and game theory will accordingly play a role in this course as a theoretical model to approach the solutions of real-world problems.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge

Upon completion, the student will be able to:

  • Identify and describe advanced microeconomic models of strategic interaction.
  • Explain the theoretical foundations of game theory and its application to market behavior.
Learning outcomes - Skills

Upon completion, the student will be able to:

  • Analyze firm behavior and market outcomes using game theoretic models.
  • Evaluate strategic decisions of firms (e.g., advertising, product differentiation, vertical integration, and entry/exit) within various market structures.
  • Apply game theory concepts to solve simplified real-world business problems.
General Competence

Upon completion, the student will be able to:

  • Critique the assumptions and limitations of economic models in analyzing strategic interactions.
  • Communicate complex economic analyses and strategic recommendations effectively.
Course content
  • Demand, supply and the market
  • The theory of the firm
  • Costs and supply
  • Perfect competition and monopoly
  • Market structure
  • Game theory and interdependent decisions
  • Economic policy and market imperfections
  • Uncertainty and information
  • Asymmetric information
  • Bargaining
Teaching and learning activities

1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. 

Chapters 1-16 in the textbook are mandatory readings. In addition will the understanding of the basic principles be enhanced by working through some selected cases. The teaching methods will be class-based lectures, with inputs from the students based on their prepared readings of the textbook. 

Attendance to all sessions in the course is compulsory. If you have to miss part(s) of the course you must ask in advance for leave of absence. More than 25% absence in a course will require retaking the entire course. It's the student's own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on the course homepage/ It's learning or other course materials.

The students will have approximately eight weeks to submit the hand-ins after the module. Exact dates for submission will be given on the module.

The course is a part of a full Executive MBA programme and examination in all courses must be passed in order to obtain a certificate.

In all BI Executive courses and programmes, there is a mutual requirement for the student and the course responsible regarding the involvement of the student's experience in the planning and implementation of courses, modules and programmes. This means that the student has the right and duty to get involved with their own knowledge and practice relevance, through the active sharing of their relevant experience and knowledge.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Qualifications

Granted admission to the EMBA programme. Please consult our student regulations.

Disclaimer
Changes in exam type can be made until the course starts. In addition, unforeseen events or external conditions may call for deviations in teaching and exams.​

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
Activity, Oral
Form of assessment: 
Presentation
Exam/hand-in semester: 
Second Semester
Weight: 
60
Grouping: 
Group (2 - 8)
Comment: 
Group presentation online, counts 60% of the final grade.

Exam code: 
GRA 83233
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Resit: 
Examination when next scheduled course
Exam category: 
Activity, Oral
Form of assessment: 
Oral Exam
Exam/hand-in semester: 
Second Semester
Weight: 
40
Grouping: 
Individual
Comment: 
Individual oral exam online, counts 40% of the final grade.

Exam code: 
GRA 83234
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Resit: 
Examination when next scheduled course
Type of Assessment: 
Ordinary examination
All exams must be passed to get a grade in this course.
Total weight: 
100
Student workload
ActivityDurationComment
Teaching
32 Hour(s)
Lectures
Prepare for teaching
35 Hour(s)
Textbook reading
Student's own work with learning resources
23 Hour(s)

Lecture notes 15 h , Overview videos 2 h, Detailed videos 4 h, Self-tests 1 h, Kahoots 1 h
Examination
25 Hour(s)
Group hand-in 10 h, Individual hand-in 15 h
Sum workload: 
115

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 4 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 110 hours.

Reading list