Harvard University's Microeconomics of Competitiveness (MOC) program led by Professor Emeritus Michael Porter aims to explore the determinants of competitiveness and business success from a regional economic perspective.

This entity currently brings together approximately 100 affiliated universities around the world, which carry out research on local businesses, grouped into clusters or local production arrangements, using an analysis methodology that considers not only traditional production factors, but also the level of internal demand, the presence of related and supporting sectors (government, universities, research institutes), as well as the competitive dynamics of existing companies.

The MOC – UNIALFA Agreement was established with the aim of developing analyses on the Central-West region, aiming at the development of academic research, and teaching cases on the business and competitive competence of business clusters.

This program annually promotes workshops bringing together professors, researchers and students from affiliated institutions around the world, who present cases on the competitiveness of regional clusters for debate.

Microeconomics of Competitiveness Course for UNIALFA Master's students

This course uses exclusive cases from the partnership with the Michael Porter Institute, and students are encouraged to learn about the intellectual production of this group of professors from around the world and, at the end, participate in a case study. The best case study developed within the scope of the course is translated into English and sent to the annual meeting of researchers from the MOC group to compete for the award for best production by institution.

UNIALFA is the only institution in the Central-West and North of Brazil participating in this agreement. Several professors from the master's programs were present at the training courses to share ideas, knowledge, methodology, and material made available by the MOC network.

In addition to the discipline and the development of case studies, UNIALFA's MOC has a technical visit project to meet professors from the MOC network in other countries and companies that had cases used by the network to support analyses and search for solutions for business groups with the aim of supporting the socioeconomic development of different regions of the planet.

In 2015, professors Cintia Godoi and Bento Alves Costa were present at the annual meeting in Harvard, Boston.

In 2016, professors Bento Alves Costa, Cintia Godoi and Luís Antonio Vilalta were present at the annual meeting in Harvard, Boston.

In 2017, professors Cintia Godoi, Marcelo Ladvocat, Paulo Bontempo and Sergio Caruso attended the annual meeting in Harvard, Boston.

In 2018, professors Alcido Wander, Bento Filho, Cintia Godoi and Marcelo Ladvocat attended the annual meeting held in Boston. This year, only 6 articles were selected from the 60 submitted by different institutions from around the world. The MOC Unialfa team was among those approved and presented the article Cooperation and competitiveness in Brazilian crafted beer production: The case of gypsy breweries in Goiás State.