Learning outcomes

This is a course that prepares students for a future as entrepreneurs and founders of new businesses. It is designed to give course participants practical insights into those business aspects that are particularly salient and important during the firm's early development phases, and to make them more effective in managing and growing start-up firms. In simple terms, if and when students come to a point where they decide to start their own firm, they should be prepared to run and grow it very effectively.

One of the explicit aims of the course is to bring together participants from different scientific and educational disciplines to share their expertise and knowledge about different sides of business. Apart from providing a unique and stimulating educational environment, the course thereby offers participants the opportunity to build broader personal networks that can prove to be of critical value in their future business ventures.

By the end of the course, course participants will be able to:

- Distinguish between different sources of financing and select those that best fit the requirements of the new entrepreneurial venture.

- Identify and pro-actively deal with some of the common challenges encountered in growing the start-up firm.

- Perform basic financial analyses and company valuations.

- Carry out successful negotiations with various actors that become associated with the new venture.

- Formulate a strategy for the protection of the business idea, including the use of patents, trademarks, and trade secrets.

- Formulate a business strategy for the new venture that can be communicated to external actors.

- Successfully internationalise the new venture, involving successful market selection and entry into foreign markets.

Content

While entrepreneurship can be as theoretical as any field of research, the Entrepreneurship course has a distinctly practical orientation. Organising frameworks, analytical tools, and discussions around real-life cases provide practical guidance in addressing and solving common problems and challenges in managing the start-up and growing firm. Individual topics include, but are not necessarily limited to: financing the start-up firm, selling and marketing new products and services, managing growth, devising a strategy for the expanding firm, negotiations, patents, copyrights, and trademarks, and foreign market entry and penetration.

Instruction

The course is taught in English. Teaching involves a mix of: (a) Lectures that introduce organising frameworks and analytical tools, (b) guest lectures in which active entrepreneurs and prominent practitioners share their experiences and insights with the course participants, and (c) case discussions. While lectures supply the organising frameworks and analytical tools that are particularly useful in the early stages of developing the business, active entrepreneurs and prominent practitioners bring life into these frameworks and tools, sharing their stories, expertise, and views on particular issues involved in running and growing the start-up firm. In the case discussions, course participants are exposed to a range of business problems and asked to offer their practical recommendations and solutions. The cases thereby illustrate and deepen the connection between the analytical tools and the real-life business context. Some of the cases involve role plays around various business situations and problems.

To accommodate the different scientific and educational programs represented by the course participants, the course is offered in the evenings. Typical sessions run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., although some sessions may be either shorter or longer. Much of the learning will take place during the individual sessions, so presence and active participation is strongly recommended.

Assessment

Grades will be given in accordance with the Swedish grading system and, for international students, the ECTS grading system. The following grades will be used: VG (passed with distinction), which corresponds to A or B in the ECTS grading system, G (passed), which corresponds to C, D or E, and U (failed) which corresponds to the ECTS grade F.

The students will get one single grade, equivalent to 7.5 ECTS credits. Examination includes a written test, preparing and defending papers, active participation in seminar presentations and discussions. To pass the course students have to take active part in the seminars and successfully complete a written take-home assignment. While grades for classroom participation take into account both the amount and quality of contributions to the various class discussions, the final exam is graded with respect to the depth and quality of the account or analysis. To receive the final course grade Pass (G), the grade G is required on both classroom participation and the take-home assignment. For the final grade Pass with Distinction (VG), the grade VG is required on both classroom participation and the take-home assignment.

Full attendance throughout the seminars is expected. Should the course participants for unforeseen reasons miss out on a number of sessions, extra assignments of rather significant magnitude will be required. In addition, any remaining assignments or supplements must be completed and handed in at least within two weeks after the end of the course otherwise the whole course (all assignments included) has to be redone the following semester, provided there is space in the course.

Attention Swedish students: Only completed courses can be recognised in your degree.