- 1: Course Overview
- 2: Silicon Valley & Key Frameworks
- 3: Creativity & Improvisation
- 4: Venture Lab I -- Sicily Trip
- 5: From Idea to Opportunity 1
- 6: From Idea to Opportunity 2
- 7: Global Marketing and Business Models
- 8: Venture Lab II - Galileo Museum
- 9: Introduction to Venture Resources
- 10: Venture Lab III - Strozzi Museum Field Trip and Social Entrepreneurship
- 11: Venture Lab IV - Leonardo Museum
- 12: Startup Teams
- 13: Financings
- 14: Venture Lab V - Tim Parks
- 15: The Renaissance and Silicon Valley
- 16: Stocks and Options
- 17: OAP Preparations
- 18: OAP Team Presentations
- 19: Course Summary
Information & Policies
Course Objectives
This course introduces the fundamentals of technology entrepreneurship, pioneered in Silicon Valley and now influencing other locations around the world. You will learn the process used by technology entrepreneurs to start companies. It involves taking a technology idea and finding a high-potential commercial opportunity, gathering resources such as talent and capital, figuring out how to sell and market the idea, and managing rapid growth.The class demonstrates the entrepreneurial mindset ... when others see insurmountable problems, people look for opportunities in technology and business solutions. A technology entrepreneurial perspective is also a wonderful way of thinking in order to tackle new opportunities in social entrepreneurship, whether it is in government or NGOs (non-profits).
Who is this Course For?
This course is designed for undergraduates from all majors, including science, engineering, and humanities students who seek to understand an entrepreneurial mindset and the key processes in entrepreneurship and innovation. Topics introduced in this course are relevant for future founders of enterprises, future employees of an independent or corporate venture, and anyone seeking to understand and support entrepreneurship ecosystems.How Do We Teach?
Through case studies, lectures, workshops, and projects that cover high-growth ventures in information technology, electronics, life sciences, green technology and other industries, this course provides the student with the tools necessary to successfully identify a true business opportunity and to start, grow and maintain a technology enterprise.We have organized this course into four modules:
- The Entrepreneurial Perspective
- Opportunity Recognition and Evaluation
- Assembling Resources and Managing Growth
- Entrepreneurship and You
How Will You Learn?
Entrepreneurship is both an individual and team activity. Therefore this course incorporates both individual and group efforts. Students form project teams early in the quarter and meet regularly to prepare for class discussion. We encourage students to build groups with people from a diversity of majors and past experiences.Each team will be required to complete written case analyses throughout the quarter. Teams are also required to complete assignments regarding an "Opportunity Analysis Plan." In addition, students submit individual email assignments and complete a "Personal Business Plan" using methods learned in the course.
Group discussion is encouraged in preparing for both the team and individual assignments. Note that learning to successfully manage group dynamics, including conflicts and roles, is a key educational component of the course.
There is no final exam.
Time and Location
During this term, the course will be held TTh 2pm-4pm (14:00-16:00) at Stanford's Florence campus.Credit:
4 units. Letter grade or CR/NC.Course Web Page & Email Addresses
- http://ospflor63/stanford.edu
The official website for the course - ospflor63_class@lists.stanford.edu (received by all students and the teaching team)
This alias is intended for class discussion and announcements - ospflor63_homework@lists.stanford.edu (received only by teaching team)
This alias is intended for homework submissions only
Course Materials
- Byers, Dorf & Nelson, Technology Ventures, McGraw-Hill, Third Edition, 2011.
The textbook website is http://techventures.stanford.edu. Please click here for 'Where to Buy' the English version and here to purchase the Italian translation. - Parks. Medici Money: Banking, Metaphysics, and Art in Fifteenth-century Florence, W.W. Norton & Co., 2005. ISBN 978-0393058277 (or any similar student-proposed book with the instructor's approval).
- HBS Online website for the course (http://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cb/access/9316768)
Policies
Students will be evaluated based on attendance and contribution to in-class discussions and sections, as well as timely completion of assigned readings and email assignments. Think of this as an opportunity to stretch yourself and learn skills like teamwork, public speaking, persuasive writing, and defending your ideas, as well as the fundamentals of the entrepreneurial process. The teaching team will endeavor to create a supportive environment, where there is no penalty for taking a definite stance and expressing new ideas.Administrative Information
There are only ten weeks in this course, barely the minimum necessary to cover the essentials of this topic. If you expect to miss a class, please let the instructor know ahead of time via email. It will be your responsibility to find out what material was covered, what additional assignments were made, and to obtain any handouts you may have missed. Given the importance of class participation and its grading, we will do our best to get to know you quickly. Feel free to discuss the course and your learning progress with the instructors at any time. Given the pace of this course, we will do all that we can to use class time effectively and ask you to do the same. This includes starting and ending on time. We will end each class either early or by the end o the assigned period. All of our distinguished guest instructors and speakers are aggressive, successful, and articulate. Interrupt and ask them questions at any time. They will be forewarned. They will display an earnest desire to help you understand entrepreneurship.Grading Policy and Assignments
This
course is available for letter grade or CR/NC. Grading will be determined by:- Participation in class and one written case submission (25%)
- An individual book review of Medici Money or similar-proposed book with the instructor's approval (10%)
- Personal Business Plan executive summary (15%)
- Written team case analyses (25%)
- An Opportunity Analysis Project (OAP) with your team (25%)
- Entrepreneurial Thought Leader broadcasts (video or podcasts) from the autumn quarter. Submit an email by December 7th with a paragraph each from your chief lesson learned from the remarks by any 3 of the 8 speakers during October and November 2011.
- Course takeaways slide. With your team, produce and present one slide with your major takeaways for the course. Post it on your website before the last session of class. You will be given time to present it in class
Students will be evaluated on their participation in classroom discussions, whether about the case under consideration or about the topic of the lecture. The grading of classroom participation is difficult because of an element of subjectivity not present in grading written assignments. Nevertheless, it is a vital part of the course. Most students feel comfortable in speaking up with thoughtful comments and questions, but some do not, and we wish to be fair to everyone. We will not be grading on "air time", but rather on the quality of the question or comment. Participating in classroom discussions, freely and without fear, is strongly urged. No opinion is held in disregard, and only through active discussion can we arrive at some consensus of reasonable action. It is never our intention to embarrass anyone -- if you are not prepared, let one of us know before class and we will not call on you. Being punctual, present and prepared for our class sessions is an important part of contributing to our learning community. Thank you for your commitment to be an active contributor to class discussions.
Required Readings
All assigned readings are to be completed before the session. Each required reading has been specifically chosen to provide a certain insight or skill; thus, every assignment is mandatory. Though there is no way to verify that students have read the material before class, all lectures, study questions, assignments, and exams assume a fundamental understanding of many concepts provided by the readings. Consequently, failure to keep up with the assignments will have an adverse effect on a student's grade.Supplementary readings are suggested that provide additional depth and richness for the topics considered each day. These readings are not required. While we hope that you will return to these readings as time permits, you are not expected to have completed the readings prior to class. As your time permits, we highly recommend skimming the recommended readings - an investment that we believe can be very rewarding.
Study Questions
You are encouraged to discuss each session in advance with your fellow students. In fact, you are required to form a study group consisting of four other students and then meet regularly before each class. These study groups will be formed early in the quarter. The study questions are helpful preparation aids for each case while meeting with your study partners. Use the study questions for each session to prepare for class; the answers are not to be included in the e-mail assignment, although they may be used to focus and guide your homework discussion.Online Assignments
Unless stated otherwise, assignments are to be submitted via e-mail to ospflor63-homework@lists.stanford.edu by 10 AM the day of the session. We will accept assignments up until class time with some penalty. Format your header in the following way: OSPFLOR63: Case Number, Case Name, Team Name (e.g. OSPFLOR63: Case 1, YAHOO, Adventure Capitalists)- Team Online Assignments - Team online assignments and case analyses are to be discussed as a team and then submitted via e-mail to the appropriate homework list. The person who submits the assignment via e-mail should include the team name at the top of the submission and other team members in the 'cc' field. The team online assignments will count towards the team grade. Teams will be assigned to either the Team A group or the Team B group. Each "grouping" is responsible for submitting cases only on their assigned day.
- Individual Online Assignments - These assignments MAY be discussed in teams, unless the assignment explicitly states otherwise. However, each person must submit his/her own assignment. Online assignments should be clear and concise, and expressed in the same style as case analysis submissions. These online assignments will be counted towards the individual participation grade.
Case Analysis Guidelines
The case study is intended to give you an opportunity to apply the concepts of the course in the context of a "real" business situation. Each of the cases are based on a key situation or event in the history of a high tech company. The cases we will cover are:- Yahoo
- Sirtris
- Nanogene
- SolidWorks
- Barbara's Options
- A response to the question(s) under "Case Analysis" on the relevant session page of the website (this is not necessarily what is shown at the end of the case itself - always defer to the syllabus or the website). Clearly state the decision or recommendation for action, with the appropriate supporting arguments.
- A brief analysis of the situation and pending decision problem, as presented in the case, and as relevant to your answer. This should be exceptionally brief and you should assume the person reading the assignment is familiar with the details of the case.
The total length of each case analysis should be no more than two pages, with one page greatly preferred. Cases longer than two pages will receive a minus(-) grade. Team case assignments should be prepared as a team, but only one submission is required. Students may discuss individual case assignments with their group (and are encouraged to), but should submit their own work. Assignments should be submitted via e-mail no later than 10AM the morning of the corresponding session in class.
In general, use a bullet-point format and keep the email short and concise. The teaching team reads each response before class starts to optimize that session's learning environment. Grading is on a "plus(+)/check/minus(-)" basis. We will often post one or two submissions to stimulate further on-line discussion. We prefer your homework to be in the body of the email if at all possible, unless we specifically ask for a table or similar item so that a PDF document makes more sense.
Style Guidelines for Online Submissions
Avoid common errors in online assignments, case analyses and other submissions, such as:- Focusing too heavily on minor issues or those on which there are little data.
- Lamenting because of insufficient data in the case and ignoring creative alternatives.
- Rehashing of case data -- assume the reader knows the case.
- Not appropriately evaluating the quality of the case's data.
- Obscuring the quantitative analysis, making it difficult to understand.
- Are late, exceed the page limit, or lack clarity.
- Do not address timing issues nor seem practical.
- Get carried away with personal biases and are not pertinent to the key issues
- Are not thoroughly proofread and corrected.