D0R23a Political Business Strategy

Prof. Dr. Christophe Crombez

Academic Year 2021-2022
20th October2021

Group Project
Objectives

The purpose of the group project is to give you the opportunity to apply the concepts that were
introduced in this class to a real-world situation.

Contents

The project should study a company’s or industry’s political environment and strategy, usually
with a focus on one particular issue that is present in its political environment. Therefore, you
need to briefly discuss the issues that appear on the company or industry’s nonmarket agenda,
the interests that are involved, and present an analysis of the institutions that play a role in the
political process. You are to evaluate alternative objectives, assess what outcomes can be
achieved, and suggest elements of a political strategy to achieve the objectives.

Format

Groups are to give 15-minute (MAXIMUM) presentations of their projects in class. Each
presentation will be followed by a 10-minute Q&A session. All group members need to take part
in the presentation and Q&A. You are also required to hand in a written report on your project
(maximum 15 pages, excluding figures, tables and other illustrations) and the slides of your
presentation.

Procedure

You form groups of 4 or 5 students. Register your group on Tolinto. If your group consists of
fewer than 4 members, or more than 5, you will be reassigned to another group. Groups should
formed and registered on Tolinto by Friday, October 22. If you cannot find a group by
October 22, you need to email Witse Konings (witse.konings@kuleuven.be) by October 22, and
he will assign you to a group.

Late submissions are accepted until October 25. If you are not a member of a group
submitted by October 25, you will not get the opportunity to present your paper. You will be
required to write an individual paper consistent with the provisions outlined in this document.
You will receive a grade for the paper, but no presentation will be scheduled and your grade for
the presentation will be zero.

A group member should email Witse Konings a ranking of 5 topics the group would like to
work on, by October 22.

Witse Konings will then assign topics to the groups. He will inform the groups of their
assignments on October 25. If there are any problems, he will contact you to discuss possible
solutions.

Crombez: Political Business Strategy 1

Presentations will take place between December 2 and 7. Extra classes will be scheduled for the
presentations. These sessions will be announced on Toledo. Groups are required to attend the
session in which they present only.

Each group is to hand in an electronic version of its report on December 1 and an electronic
copy of the slides on the day of presentation (witse.konings@kuleuven.be). One hard copy
of the report and a handout of the PPT slides are due on presentation day.

Questions

You can address any questions that you may have related to the project or other aspects of the
course to:
 Witse Konings (email: witse.konings@kuleuven.be); office 03.106).
 Christophe Crombez (email: christophe.crombez@econ.kuleuven.be; office: 03.146).

Topics
1. Gazprom and the Gas Crisis
2. The Coal Industry, COP26 and the Energy Crisis
3. Tech industry, the OECD and the Minimum Corporate Tax Rate
4. Saudis triumph with Newcastle United deal
5. The Wirecard Scandal in Germany
6. Nitrogen Emission and the Flemish Poultry and Pig Farmers
7. The Electricity Sector and the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS)
8. Imec and its Subsidies
9. Cryptocurrencies and Regulation
10. Google/Facebook/Another Tech Company and EU Competition Policy
11. National Subsidies to Ryanair
12. Green Energy Versus Fossil-Fuel Lobby in the US
13. Real Estate Owners and the Referendum in Berlin on Property Expropriation
14. J&J and the Politics of COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Approval in the US
15. Chinese Online Shopping Platform Meituan Fined by Chinese Regulator

Note: Own proposals are also allowed. In case you have such a proposal, please include it in
your top five and add a little explanation. Try to limit own proposals to a maximum of two.

Crombez: Political Business Strategy 2