Entrepreneurship and Venture Capitalism

Catalog description

This course provides a framework for understanding the entrepreneurial process that includes opportunity recognition and feasibility analysis, a solid business idea, a strategic business and executable plan that maximizes the chances for commercial success in the marketplace, and strategies for growing the entrepreneurial firm. Since many new ventures struggle or fail in the first or second year of their existence, this course will analyze the success or failure of real-life entrepreneurial startups and suggest, through case studies supplemented by lectures and guest speakers, effective and efficient financial, marketing, management, and business strategies and practices that minimize failures. Students will learn how to develop an entrepreneurial mindset, build social and business networks, and become resource gatherers of human, social, physical, technical, and financial capital. The many approaches to securing funding, with a special emphasis on venture capitalism, will be studied and applied. Students will produce a comprehensive concept plan for an entrepreneurial business. Prerequisite: MBA 756 or permission of the director or chair