COURSE: BAEN Strategy in Entrepreneurial Ventures Outline & Syllabus

Transcription

1 COURSE GOALS The purpose of this course is COURSE: BAEN To introduce students to the topics of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial finance. 2. To expose students to the variety of challenges faced by different types of entrepreneurs. 3. To examine theoretical, applied and practice-based perspectives to provide a symbiosis of alternative perspectives that aim to understand the challenges of entrepreneurial companies and their investors. LEARNING OBJECTIVES What will the students be able to do at the end of the course? Students will be able to understand the complexities of starting a new business and raising funds for novel ideas. They will learn about the process of starting companies, and be able to critically evaluate a business plan and presentation and identify the key business and financing issues. They will learn how to generate financial projections for start-ups and they will also learn how to perform alternative valuations methods to assess the valuation and structure of investment deals. ASSESSMENT SUMMARY Class participation 30% Group assignment 30% Final exam 40% PROGRAM GOALS (Check those that apply) MBA Critical & Analytical Thinking Integration Communication Ethics & Social Responsibility - 1 -

2 COURSE INFORMATION Division: SBE Term/period: October 11 th to 14 th 2012 Instructor: Professor Thomas Hellmann Sauder School of Business Tel: Office hours: when requested BRIEF COURSE DESCRIPTION This course examines the strategic challenges of entrepreneurial companies. By strategic I mean all the major managerial issues that entrepreneurs need to face in the process of starting a company. These include not only strategies for introducing new products into the market, but also strategies for creating a viable organization, and strategies for acquiring resources, most importantly, obtaining financing. The course is designed for a variety of student interests. It directly addresses the concerns of students wanting to become entrepreneurs in the near or more distant future. It is also useful to anyone who expects to be interacting with entrepreneurs in their business careers, be it as private investors, venture capitalists, strategic partners, consultants, or customers. Finally, this course is useful for anybody with a curious mind and a willingness to combine serious analysis with creative thinking. The course is primarily based on case studies. We will also have some classes with financial exercises. There are two broad themes to the class. For the first theme we focus on the process of creating entrepreneurial companies. We will examine issues of identifying opportunities and implementing strategies. For the second theme we focus more specifically on the challenges of raising funds and dealing with investors. We will occasionally change our perspective then, looking at the process from an investor s perspective

3 COURSE MATERIALS & REQUIREMENTS Reading Materials: There will be a course package that includes case studies and some background readings. The case studies will be the basis for much of our classroom discussion. Obtaining the course package is mandatory. The course package includes the following texts: 1. My opportunity: why will or won t this work? Chapter 1 of The New Business Road Test, by John Mullins, Prentice Hall, Savage Beast (A1) HBS Note on market research Stanford GSB Case E Asia Renal Care HBS Hardina Smythe, HBS A Note on Valuation of Venture Capital Deals, Stanford GSB Case E Athleta, HBS How Venture Capitalists Evaluate Potential Venture Opportunities HBS Note on Business Model Analysis for the Entrepreneur HBS Yieldex (A) HBS Venture Capital, by Constance Bagley and Craig Dauchy, Chapter 15 of The Entrepreneurial Venture, W. Sahlman, H. Stevenson, M. Roberts and Amar Bhide (eds.), Harvard Business School Press, WiTricity: Electricity cuts the cord HBS The Founder's Dilemma, Harvard Business Review, February 2008 Other Learning Resources: to be discussed in class Technology Requirements: Laptop with Excel and Powerpoint Activity Fees: N/A - 3 -

4 ASSESSMENT The course grade will be divided as follows. Class participation (including quizzes) will count for 30% of the grade. 30% will come from the group assignment. And the remaining 40% will come from the final exam. SCHEDULE Please see the attached preliminary schedule on last page. TEACHING & LEARNING ACTIVITIES Class preparation Many classes contain a case study. Students will be expected to be prepared all case studies ahead of class. Students should be prepared to be called upon to contribute ideas during every class. It is essential that you carefully read all the cases ahead of class. Below you will find a set of so-called preparation questions. You are not expected to prepare any detailed written notes. However, after reading the case, you are expected to reflect upon it, using the preparation questions as a guide. I will loosely structure the class discussion around the topics of the preparation questions. If the preparation questions ask you to provide a quantitative estimate, then you are expected to at least attempt calculating such an estimate. Every day (including Thursday and Friday night!!!) there will be one 5-minute quiz that will mainly test whether or not you have read and assimilated the case readings. So be prepared! Group assignment There will be a group assignment culminating in a class presentation on the last day of class. Details will be provided prior to the beginning of class. Class participation Students will be expected to attend ALL class and where they are unable to attend to notify the professor ahead of time. Class participation is very important in a case-based course. I view class discussion as a way of learning from each other: you can learn a lot from listening to your fellow students; and you can learn a lot from thinking about the comments you want to make in class yourself. Naturally, you cannot possibly make very insightful remarks if you have not prepared for class. Also, I view my role not so much as an instructor but rather as a facilitator of what I hope will be very interesting discussions

5 This preliminary schedule is subject to change! Day Activity Time Duration Topic Cases and readings Thursday Class 5:00 6:00 1 hr Introduction My opportunity: why will or won t this work? October 11th Dinner 6:00 6:30 30 min Class 6:30 8:40 2 hr 10 mins Entrepreneurial process Savage Beast Friday Class 5:00 6:00 1 hr Market analysis Note on market research October 12th Dinner 6:00 6:30 30 min Class 6:30 9:00 2 hrs 30 min Market entry Asia Renal Care Saturday Class 9:00 10:30 1 hr 30 mins Investment evaluation Hardina Smythe October 13th Break 10:30 10:50 Class 10:50 12:00 1 hr 10 mins Valuation Note on Valuation Lunch 12:00 1:00 Class 1:00 2:40 1 hr 40 mins Financial analysis Athleta Break 2:40 3:00 Class 3:00 4:30 1 hr 30 mins Fundraising strategies How VCs Evaluate Potential Venture Opportunities Break 4:30 4:50 Class 4:50 6:00 1 hr 10 mins Pitching Note on Business Model Analysis for the Entrepreneur Sunday Class 9:00 10:30 1 hr 30 mins Deal making Yieldex October 14th Break 10:30 10:50 Class 10:50 12:00 1 hr 10 mins Term sheets Venture Capital Lunch 12:00 1:00 Class 1:00 3:00 2 hrs Entrepreneurial strategies Witricity Break 3:00 3:20 Class 3:20 5:00 1 hr 40 mins Outlook on entrepreneurship The Founder's Dilemma - 5 -