BUSINESS PLAN II:
Operating Strategies & Implementation

With the market for the new product or service validated in Business Plan I during the fall semester, the goal of Business Plan II is to build the business plan. The focus is on the design and launch of the new enterprise. Attention turns to strategies for gaining customers and generating revenue, determining the right operational framework and business processes to carry out and support the activities of the new venture, and deciding on the appropriate legal formation. The business plan also incorporates financial projections and assumptions as well as addresses funding, valuation, and exit strategies. It must also demonstrate that the new venture will have effective leadership and a capable management team. Students develop a written document whose content is concise, yet complete. It is communicated in a format and style that moves investors to action. Prerequisite for this course is Business Plan I.
2 Credits

ANATOMY OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP:
Leadership & Management

No business plan would be complete without financial projections and assumptions that explain the numbers. The financial translation of go-to-market strategies is expressed through pro forma income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow. "Forward-looking statements" in the business plan reflect the company's expectations about the results of future operations. Financial performance is evaluated, and the amount of capital required to launch and sustain the venture and meet key milestones is established. Course emphasis is placed on analyzing forecast data and determining whether there is alignment to the core strategies articulated in the business plan. Valuation models are examined for early and late stage companies.
1 Credit

FINANCIAL FORECASTING:
Pro Forma Analysis & Valuation

No business plan would be complete without financial projections and assumptions that explain the numbers. The financial translation of go-to-market strategies is expressed through pro forma income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow. "Forward-looking statements" in the business plan reflect the company's expectations about the results of future operations. Financial performance is evaluated, and the amount of capital required to launch and sustain the venture and meet key milestones is established. Course emphasis is placed on analyzing forecast data and determining whether there is alignment to the core strategies articulated in the business plan. Valuation models are examined for early and late stage companies.
1 Credit

FINANCING START-UPS:
The Venture-Capital Backed Deal

A select number of early stage companies qualify for venture capital financing. This source of funding is best suited to high-potential early stage companies that require substantial investment to fuel their growth engines. This course focuses attention on two major elements that every entrepreneur should know: (1) the dynamics of the venture capital market and how venture capital funds operate on behalf of their limited partners (i.e., institutional investors and high net worth individuals) in raising capital and generating fund returns; and (2) how venture capital funds make investments in high risk companies. With respect to the latter, students are exposed to the criteria upon which a VC bases its decision to invest, the nature of the deal that is struck, and the role of the VC in working closely with the management team following the release of funds. This course culminates with student teams negotiating conditions of a hypothetical term sheet.
1 Credit

SUCCEEDING IN THE ULTIMATE EXIT:
From Private to Public Company

Is "going public" the right financial play for every emerging growth company? What are the benefits and risks? What is the role of the investment banker in grooming a company for an IPO (initial public offering)? What requirements must be satisfied to be in compliance with SEC rules and federal securities laws? What is the SEC registration process and what major hurdles confront management each step along the way? How long and costly is the road to a public offering? This course covers the above questions. Topics of special interest include the current state of the IPO market, IPO advance preparation, and pricing of IPO shares. Attention is also given to how fair disclosure rules, Sarbanes-Oxley, and corporate governance affect newly minted public companies. Working in teams, students access SEC fillings online, and analyze and evaluate recent IPOs.
1 Credit

BUSINESS PLAN I:
Strategic Considerations

This course is project-based and focuses on the very core of any business plan, namely market opportunity. Students present their ideas for a new venture at the initial class meeting. The semester goal is to validate that a market actually exists. What is the product or service offering? Who is the customer? How many potential customers are out there? How will you find them? What are the market channels? How will you communicate and motivate them to become "first-time buyers?" Are customers already being offered something similar? Are there market substitutes? Is the product or service new-to-the-market? What is the state of the industry? Who are the competitors? How will you compete in your marketspace? How will you forecast demand for your product/service? What is your business model for generating revenue and profit? Answers to these questions and others will be based on primary and secondary market research and analysis conducted over the fall semester to determine whether your venture idea has the makings of a real enterprise. Your work in the fall semester sets the stage for Business Plan II in the spring semester where students build on these understandings and deal head-on with a wide range of implementation issues to write the business plan.
2 Credits

MARKET OPPORTUNITY:
Targeting Strategies & Selling Tactics

The focal point of any new venture is correctly identifying and understanding the target market to be served. The product offering must have strong buyer appeal and capture immediate attention in the marketplace. The need to rapidly penetrate a new marketplace demands that a marketing mix be designed, built, and implemented in a manner that leads to immediate differentiation and superior market positioning. Maximizing marketing firepower with severely limited financial and organizational resources is a major challenge as well as frustration that confronts most entrepreneurs. Market segmentation strategies, forming market alliances, developing channel strategies, making effective use of the Internet, and managing the selling process are viewed from the perspective of entrepreneur in a start-up mode.
1 Credits

PROCESSES & INFRASTRUCTURE:
Executing the Business Plan

Savvy entrepreneurs instinctively know that one step beyond the world of the organized, highly polished business plan is implementation. It becomes a "living document" where change is inevitable. Fixation with "following plan" may actually cause distraction and lead one down a rocky path. This course focuses on the need to re-think elements of strategy as a real-time (learn-by-doing) process. This course reveals the internal capabilities, processes and technology platform required to fully operationalize or execute the business plan. It illustrates how to prioritize use of scarce resources. Working in teams, students apply a decision model that determines the highest and best use of capital that is based on a company's value configuration, stage of market, and organizational strategy. These principles apply as much to the lone ranger entrepreneur as the Fortune-size company engaged in corporate venturing.
1 Credit

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY:
Management & Valuation

New technologies create new markets and, therefore, new venture possibilities. Their discovery and success rate can exert enormous impact on the ability of an enterprise to raise money and grow a business. Depending on how the firm views and manages its intellectual property, legal strategies can serve as an effective barrier to entry. For many companies, intellectual property is a source of competitive advantage. This course focuses on intellectual property as a value-creation event and market strategy. Various types of intellectual property, such as patents, copyrights, tradenames, trademarks, and company know-how, are covered along with their methods of valuation, to examine and measure their impact on entrepreneurial decision-making. 1 Credit

PERFORMING AN ENTERPRISE AUDIT:
Due Diligence & Negotiation

Entrepreneurs define markets, build business models, and launch businesses to create enterprise value. Most new ventures require outside capital to fund their early development, start-up, and continued growth. This course focuses on the need for investors to unearth and come to terms with all the facts before an investment decision is made, rather than after it is too late. Referred to as "due diligence," it is a lengthy process that thrives on detail. It should also be approached in a creative way to be effective. The results of these deliberations play a major role in valuation and, therefore, negotiations. Knowing VCs have fine-tuned their methods for gathering and evaluating information before striking a deal means entrepreneurs should anticipate the tough questions and do everything necessary to prepare themselves for this challenge. 1 Credit