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2025/2026  KAN-CEAPO2001U  Corporate Governance and Entrepreneurship

English Title
Corporate Governance and Entrepreneurship

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory (also offered as elective)
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Spring
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Finance, Economics & Mathematics
Course coordinator
  • Aleksandra Gregoric - Department of Accounting (AA)
Main academic disciplines
  • Corporate governance
  • Economics
Teaching methods
  • Face-to-face teaching
Last updated on 14-05-2025

Relevant links
Learning objectives
  • be able to discuss the concepts of incomplete contracts, moral hazard, asymmetry of information etc. and critically analyze the agency issues and their implications for firm behavior
  • be able to discuss the role of corporate governance for sustainable corporate behavior and compare/critically analyze shareholder and (new) stakeholder theories of corporate governance
  • be able to identify the opportunities and potential pitfalls in the use of incentive based remuneration as a tool to motivate managers and to critically asses the efficiency of various incentive schemes
  • be able to identify the benefits and downsides associated with various types of structures, such as corporations with concentrated ownership, family firms, etc. and to be able to critically assess the specifics of these governance structures in comparison to firms with dispersed ownership and control
  • be able to critically assess the structure of corporate boards and discuss its implications for board behavior and firm performance
  • be able to identify and elaborate on the main barriers to efficient functioning of the board of directors and other corporate governance mechanisms (both from standard economics and behavioral corporate governance theory perspective)
  • be able to apply the main corporate governance theories to different types of firms, i.e. startup (entrepreneurial firms), family owned companies, large publicly listed firms
Course prerequisites
This course is offered as an elective to incoming exchange students. It is a mandatory course for the MSc in Applied Economics and Finance. It is assumed that students have knowledge similar to the entry requirements for this program.

Students will be selected based on their application. Please send a 1-page motivational letter, a 1-page CV, and a grade transcript to ily.stu@cbs.dk before the registration deadline for elective courses.
Prerequisites for registering for the exam (activities during the teaching period)
Number of compulsory activities which must be approved (see section 13 of the Programme Regulations): 1
Compulsory home assignments
The students need to successfully complete one out of two group assignments (assigned during the first course lectures) in order to be registered for the exam.
Students will not have extra opportunities to get the required number of compulsory activities approved prior to the ordinary exam. If a student has not received approval of the required number of compulsory activities, the student cannot participate in the ordinary exam.
If a student prior to the retake is still missing approval for the required number of compulsory activities and meets the pre-conditions set out in the program regulations, an extra assignment is possible.
The extra assignment is a 10 page home assignment that will cover the required number of compulsory activities. If approved, the student will be able to attend retake.
Examination
Corporate Governance and Entrepreneurship:
Exam ECTS 7,5
Examination form Written sit-in exam on CBS' computers
Individual or group exam Individual exam
Assignment type Case based assignment
Duration 4 hours
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) One internal examiner
Exam period Summer
Aids Closed book: no aids
However, at all written sit-in exams the student has access to the basic IT application package (Microsoft Office365 (minus Excel), document camera and paper, 7-zip file manager, Adobe Reader DC, PDF24, Texlive, VLC player, Windows Media Player – ATTENTION no sound allowed), and the student is allowed to bring simple writing and drawing utensils (non-digital). PLEASE NOTE: Students are not allowed to communicate with others during the exam.
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
The number of registered candidates for the make-up examination/re-take examination may warrant that it most appropriately be held as an oral examination. The programme office will inform the students if the make-up examination/re-take examination instead is held as an oral examination including a second examiner or external examiner.
Description of the exam procedure

The exam consistst of two parts: part A is based on a business case and tests the students' ability to apply the theoretical knowledge. The part B consists of open-ended questions that aim to test the students' understanding of the different theories and empirical evidence discussed in the class (class readings), as well as their ability to apply their academic knowledge in practice.
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

Corporate governance involves a set of relationships between a company’s management, board, shareholders and stakeholders. It also provides the structure and systems through which the company is directed and its objectives are set, and the means of attaining those objectives are determined, by aligning the interests and monitoring performance of the relevant company actors (OECD,2023).

The course is a topic course, covering various issues in corporate governance. We begin with an overview of agency issues in financial contracting, and their implications for an entrepreneurs' access to financing. We continue by discussing the role of corporate governance mechanisms (i.e., board of directors, incentives) in faciliating the growth of entrepreneurial (startup) firms and then broaden the discussion to other types of companies, including the publicly listed corporations. We then continue by looking deeeper into design and role of selected corporate governance mechanims, namely incentive schemes, ownership and board of directors. For each of these, we review the most relevant theories and then apply them to various types of firms (e.g., family owned firms, public corporations with dispersed ownership). For most of the topics, the standard economics literature will be complemented with insights from behavioral theory of corporate governance.
 
Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Classic and basic theory
  • New theory
  • Teacher’s own research
Research-like activities
  • Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
Description of the teaching methods
The format of the course is based on three elements:
1. Business case analysis (before class)
2. Group discussion of the most recent theoretical and empirical articles in the field
3. Lectures
Feedback during the teaching period
Feedback will be provided either as part of group works or discussions in the class.
Student workload
Classes 33 hours
Exam 4 hours
Preparation 169 hours
Expected literature

Collection of business cases and academic articles within the field of corporate governance.
Last updated on 14-05-2025