BBS MEETS ALFASIGMA
7 August 2023COMPANY PROJECT WORK – MASTER BUSINESS MANAGEMENT/ LIFE SCIENCE AND MEDTECH
On June 5th, in the Bologna Business School classrooms at Villa Guastavillani, students of the Business Management Master‘s Program, track Life Science and Medtech presented their final papers related to the I Company Project Work of the academic year.
Company Project Work is a key step in Business Management Master coordinated by professors Angelo Manaresi, Scientific Director of the Master’s program, and Barbara Lorenzini, lecturer in marketing at Bologna Business School. It is a curricular activity designed to put students and companies in direct contact: four weeks of work on a real case proposed by executives, to get students to focus on concrete problems, to get them in touch with the dynamics of the business world.
The project was presented by Paola Benatti – Head of R&D Nutraceutical development, Raffaele Matacena – Head of Trade Marketing, Veronica Pauletto – Group Brand Manager Nutra & Intimate Care and Valeria D’Arienzo, Junior Brand Manager Carnidyn and Alumna BBS. Alfasigma is an Italian multinational pharmaceutical company active in 18 countries worldwide that deals with different therapeutic areas. The project focused on Carnydin product positioning.
The company’s goal: to take the benefit provided by the scientific background of the study groups, combined with the business skills acquired in the master’s year, to grow the carnitine supplements line.
This product has been managed over the years with a non-synergistic approach, developing separate brand strategies. Alfasigma decided to relaunch this line of products and create a family feeling among the different brands. The work proposed to the Master’s students was developed around three key points: reviewing the brand pipeline to update and develop it, exploring new business areas and new positioning, and defining the best marketing mix for each business area of the brand.
The first group focused on the Carnidyn product, analyzing the target market, competitors, and social media, and then identified the demographic profile of the industry. The student’s proposal focused on creating a new product line and increasing brand awareness through social media work, including identifying dedicated influencers and related marketing cost analysis.
The second team worked on the brand pipeline, focusing on increasing industry research and analyzing Carnidyn’s competitors, especially in the online and social media marketplace. Platforms, where the brand is not very strong, were identified, analyzing keywords and working on brands’ perception reviews. The group has, finally, identified the different buyer personas to target. On this background, a proposal split by consumer age was developed, identifying different promotion strategies.
A fascinating challenge completed, under the supervision of Professor Barbara Lorenzini, by students of the Bologna Business School Business Management Master‘s program: a year of study that combines face-to-face lectures, Project Work, and MGIncontri, meetings with executives ready to talk about their experiences. A global path that combines research and practical experience to enter directly, also thanks to the final internships in companies, into the world of work (placement index over 90% six months after the conclusion of the Master’s).
