Information Systems – FinTech Business Innovation

The course provides an introduction to the IS research field. Students will gain advanced knowledge of the key concepts and theories of IS research. They will acquire specialised problem-solving skills, being able to analyse and synthesize a research case. They shall take responsibility to a literature review of a specific IS topic.

Central topics include Information Systems as a research field, IS development, IS innovation, IS as sociotechnical and complex systems, Introduction to research methods in IS, Basic concepts and theories in IS, Literature reviews and writing style.

Students will gain fundamental knowledge of understanding how companies and projects are financed, analyzed, and valued. The course will be delivered in an entrepreneurial framework preparing students to learn to seek funding. The course will equip students with fundamental knowledge of the concepts of risk & return, finance sources, types, instruments, stages, and optimum capital structures. It will emphasize the financial decision-making within businesses.

Central topics covered in this course include the opportunities and challenges of FinTech start-ups, technology financial & investment valuation, FinTech financial incentives, and FinTech applications for sustainability.

The course is an introduction to the Fintech domain and the underlying technologies that are currently in use today. It will equip students with knowledge of the different fields of Fintech in industries such as banking, asset trading & management, insurance, e-commerce, and trading among others.

Central topics will also cover issues related to the evolution of Fintech solutions, blockchain applications, the emergence of the Fintech markets, Fintech platforms, strategies and business models, sustainability, and business ethics.

The main aim of this course is to provide students with the fundamental knowledge of ethics and sustainability necessary for responsible innovation and the development of new information technologies (IT) in the modern society. The central topics include the role of ethics in responsible innovation and IT development; information privacy concerns, social, economic, and environmental impacts of innovations and new ITs; and how IT development and innovation can contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In covering ethical and sustainability issues, the course addresses the perspectives of various stakeholders at the individual level (IT developers, innovators, consumers, investors), the organizational level (commercial, public, and non-governmental organizations), and the societal level (local and regional communities, nations, international society). Group work on possible solutions to real-life ethical and sustainability challenges constitutes an essential part of the course.

This course is intended as a master level introduction to research methodology and the research process. This introduction gives the students an overview of the basic concept, methods, and practice of research.

Research is a cyclical process where new and carefully planned investigations build and extend on established work. The aim is to provide students with a fundamental understanding of research as a conceptual, empirical, and practical approach to gathering new insight and knowledge. The content provides a broad overview of how researchers work within the fields of economy, innovation, and technology. It presents students with relevant methods from these domains, along with their possibilities and limitations.

Students will learn a systematic approach to empirical investigation, including literature search, research design and methodology, qualitative and quantitative analyses, and the presentation and evaluation of results.

At completion of the course, students will be able to study and interpret existing research on a topic and suggest approaches to broaden or deepen knowledge within a given topic.

The overall objective of this course is to help students conceptualize and prepare a timely and relevant research proposal, and to nurture a sense of inquisitiveness and active participation in research. The course aims at offering insight into the process behind a successful research project. It has an applied approach that involves collaborative and reciprocal partnerships between the university (faculty, staff, and/or students) and external communities for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources. The research proposal forms the basis for the master thesis and the allocation of supervisor(s).