• Describe the basic tenets of the various efforts to reimagine capitalism.
• Challenge the boundaries of the current capitalist system and discuss the opportunities and limitations for change agents to positively impact it.
• Apply the management frameworks seen in the course to the challenges of today’s economy and discuss their limitations and potential expansions.
• Identify the potentials and the shortcomings of the various efforts to reimagine capitalism.
• Explain and justify their position concerning the various experiments and imaginaries to reshape capitalism.
• Learn to think in a creative, critical and imaginative manner.

Growing inequality, catastrophic environmental damage, and a general mistrust in capitalism as a system currently hampers the legitimacy of companies and puts pressure on political systems worldwide. This course looks at various attempts to “re-imagine capitalism”. It explores opportunities for addressing big societal problems and asks, in particular, how the private sector and the civil society can contribute to developing more just and equal societies.

In the aftermath of one of the worst financial, economic and social crisis in post-war history, the discussion on the form taken by today’s global capitalism - also called financial capitalism - has intensified. As a response to big societal problems, many individuals, communities and organizations around the globe are suggesting new business models and experimenting with novel governance structures, new ways of production and consumption, and new lifestyles.

This course aims at exploring past and present efforts to re-imagine capitalism.

This course is designed for students who want to explore the idea that some of the “big” societal problems can be effectively addressed by private firms, entrepreneurs and social activists. Students will be exposed to the business realities that come with “re-imagining capitalism” and will discuss obstacles and contextual factors for their practical implementation. Based on case study discussions of real organizations students will learn the values, logics, strategies and practices used in current organizational efforts to ameliorate our economies and societies. As the course takes both the industry and socio-political context into account, students will also learn about the practical challenges met and the organizational possibilities opened by these novel businesses models.

The course combines discussions on theoretical perspectives from various disciplines with practical discussion of real-life cases. In this doing, we will discuss notions such as Platform Capitalism, Social entrepreneurship, Gift and Sharing economies, Community economies and Ecological Lifestyles, Circular economy, Basic Income, Alternative Currencies, Degrowth and Post-growth. The course uses a variety of pedagogical methods ranging from traditional lectures to student debates, games, creative learning activities, group work, and teaching cases.

The course is part of the series Advanced Studies Electives. It addresses students in their last year of their master who are looking for inspiration for their master theses. The course will introduce the latest research in the field of Platform Capitalism, Social Entrepreneurship, Sharing Economy and Community Economic and Ecological Lifestyles, Basic Income, Alternative Currencies, Degrowth and Post-growth, including state-of-the-art research debates and questions for potential master theses. 

Course Faculty: Lara Monticelli