In case of limited activity on campus the course will be switched to distance mode. In case the course will be held in the online modus the focus will shift from interactive case studies to more lectures with frequent discussions and Q&A sessions supported by zoom. However, even in the digital mode case studies and group work will be used as an important part of the course. Presence in the online course is still mandatory, absence in two sessions is acceptable. The grading will change as I will weigh the exam with 65%, the participation in discussions with 17,5% and the case studies with 17,5%.

Mergers and Acquisitions is a key issue facing every executive or entrepreneur when designing growth strategies or strategies for selling certain business areas or entire companies. Applying a practitioners perspective we will discuss and simulate the various ways of buying and selling companies or business areas in an international context. The course will also provide insights into the inner workings of Private Equity and Venture Capital funds as very important players in the international M&A markets as well as on the stock market as an important exit channel via initial public offerings “IPOs”. Building upon a basic understanding of company valuation we will focus on a properly managed M&A process as a key determinant of a successful acquisition or exit and learn about how to prevent key mistakes in M&A deriving from overpayment and decision making fallacies. In the course we will spend a lot of the time working on close to real-world case studies combined with short lectures on the key concepts underlying the subject.     

By the end of the module students will have learned with the use of case studies:

· What M&A is and how it works in an international context

· How an M&A process is designed and properly executed

· What Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds as well as IPOs are and how they work

· Which key mistakes in M&A are often made in practice and how they can be prevented

Knowledge and Understanding

After completing this module the students will have:

· A basic understanding of the key theoretical issues in international M&A

· An understanding of the various steps involved in acquiring or selling a company

· An understanding of Private Equity and Venture Capital Funds as well as IPOs

· A first understanding of some typical mistakes leading to poor results

Cognitive and Subject Specific Skills

After completing this module the students will have:

· The skill to practically approach and deal with close to real-world M&A issues

· The skill to support in the designing of an acquisition or exit process

· A basic understanding of how to invest in companies in the private markets

Key Skills

After completing this module the students will have:

· Ability to work in a team and solve a practical business problem

Ability to act in an actual negotiation situation

Full attendance is mandatory. This means that students should attend at least 80% of all lectures (at most one session can be missed).

The course will be a mixture of working with close to real-world case studies and shorter theoretical lectures with power point slides. Also during the lectures I expect questions and discussions. Active participation is a key determinant for the evaluation of the course. For the case studies the class will frequently be divided into groups that work together on the respective case study. We will simulate negotiation situations in which the teams need to decide how to proceed with the process and whether or not to buy/sell a company and if yes, for which price. Students are expected to be familiar in detail with the required reading material and the various case studies. A good understanding of the additional readings is recommended. 

Students will be assessed on:

· Participation in discussions during the classes

· Participation in the case studies

· Demonstration of the learnings in the exam

The following weighting scheme is applied:

• 30% participation in discussions
• 30% case studies
• 40% exam

Grading scheme:

Instructor and Contact Information:

Name and degree: Dr. Christian Czernich
Company: Round2 Capital GmbH
Position: Founder and CEO
www: http://www.round2cap.com
Contact:
Tel.: +43-664-969 3505
Email: cc@round2cap.com

Short CV of Instructor:

Dr. Czernich is an entrepreneur and has been active in the investment banking and private equity business for 14 years in Austria and Germany. He is Founder and CEO of the Vienna based investment fund Round2 Capital. In this role he has been responsible for numerous investments in growth companies throughout Europe as well as for establishing the fund and fund raising. Prior to founding Round2 Capital Dr. Czernich has been responsible for the execution of approx. 20 M&A transactions and direct investments with a total volume exceeding EUR 1bn among others at Unicredit Markets & Investment Banking, where he started his professional career. Mr. Czernich holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration (with honors) from the University of Innsbruck and a Ph.D from the Stockholm School of Economics. He was a visiting scholar at Stanford University. Dr. Czernich is a frequent speaker and has extensive teaching experience on the Master, MBA and Executive MBA level. He was and is teaching at the Stockholm School of Economics in Stockholm and St. Petersburg, at Stockholm University, as well as at the Vienna School of Business and Economics and the Executive Academy.