Focuses on how to accumulate the resources necessary for capitalizing on an opportunity and how to successfully launch a business. It begins with a short summary of the Opportunity course and ends at the point where a business has been launched and appears viable. Discussion topics span renting versus owning assets, recruiting, staged investments and valuation, and how to raise money. Phil Siegel is a dynamic professor and has done a great job teaching the class. Focuses on stimulating and sustaining growth at a manageable rate.
Students learn to create control systems for growth and when to change strategy.
The course starts with a summary of the Opportunity course and ends when growth seems to plateau. Discussion topics include organizational structures, cultural systems, cash management, reacting to changes in the competitive environment, and handling crises. Students address the careers of the entrepreneurs in their cases and whether the reward was worth the risk. Covers the four above topics in one semester, with a special emphasis on life planning and the philosophy of entrepreneurship. Can be taken as an introductory course or as a capstone at the end of the curriculum.