Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

This course prepares participants for a future career as founders of new companies or entrepreneurs within already established corporations. Participants gain practical insights into those business aspects that are particularly important during a firm's or new venture's early development phases. If and when participants decide to start companies or launch entrepreneurial ventures within already established organisations, they will be prepared to develop them in an effective and professional manner.

By the end of the course, participants will know how to pro-actively deal with some of the most common challenges involved in launching new business ventures. Specifically, they will be able to:

- Write a business plan and effectively communicate and "sell" new business concepts to other people.

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

- Understand financial statements and basic company valuation.

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

- Successfully internationalise the new venture, which involves careful market selection and positioning of products and services in foreign markets.

- Launch and develop new business ventures inside established corporations, and make them survive in an often hostile environment.

- Analyse and evaluate specific companies and their business context, and develop suggestions as to their strategies for future development.

Content

The entrepreneurship course has a distinctly practical orientation. Organising frameworks, analytical tools, and discussions around real-life cases provide guidance in identifying and solving common problems and challenges in managing the start-up firm. Individual topics include: Myths and facts about entrepreneurship, devising and marketing new products and services, financing the start-up firm, understanding financial statements and company valuation, crafting a strategy for the expanding firm, internationalisation, and entrepreneurship inside the established corporation.

Instruction

The course is taught in English. Teaching involves a mix of: (a) Lectures that introduce organising frameworks and analytical tools, (b) guest lectures where active entrepreneurs and prominent practitioners share their business experiences and insights with the course participants, and (c) real-life case discussions. In the case discussions, course participants are exposed to a range of business problems and asked to produce practical recommendations and solutions.

Typical sessions run for two hours, although some sessions may be either shorter or longer. Much of the learning will take place during the individual sessions, so active participation is a prerequisite for achieving the learning outcomes.

Assessment

The course applies the Swedish grading system and, for international guest students, the ECTS grading system. Grades awarded are: U, G, and VG.

The course corresponds to 7.5 ECTS credits. To pass the course participants have to take active part in the sessions, hand in a group assignment with recommendations for the development of a case company, and successfully complete a written take-home assignment. Grades for classroom participation take into account both the amount and quality of contributions. The group hand-in and final exam are graded with respect to the depth and quality of the account or analysis. The final grade combines the grades from classroom participation (30% of the final grade), the group hand-in (20%), and the take-home assignment (50%).

Any remaining assignments and supplements must be completed and handed in within four weeks of the end of the course, otherwise the course will have 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.