The Following courses are offered in the Fall semester through the BU School of Management and can
be used to fulfill elective choices (subject to department approval) or to fulfill individual degree
requirements for Technology Leadership/Management coursework. These courses require students to
complete a cross-enrollment form and submit to the Graduate Programs Office at the School of
Management.
Registration for School of Management (GSM) courses:
Students must complete a cross-enrollment form (attached to your email) and email to
sdeckard@bu.edu
SI855 Entrepreneurship
This course is a comprehensive introduction to the topic of entrepreneurship. It is intended for students
with all ranges of background, experience and interest in the topic. One theme is an exploration of
entrepreneurs (founders), their characteristics, skills, motivation and way of thinking. Several wellknown and not-so-well-known entrepreneurs will be studied from both the for-profit and non-profit
realms. A second theme focuses on developing hands-on experience in the process of entrepreneurial
observation: the theory and practice of opportunity recognition, concept creation, definition and
evaluation. Readings, class discussions, cases and in-class exercises will be the foundation for developing
“situational awareness”, a “problem solving and opportunity recognition mindset” and the analytical
skills for assessing viability of new venture concepts. Real learning will come from a series of tasks
where students will discover, define and evaluate the commercial viability of several new venture
concepts throughout the course. This course is not a course on creativity. The course focuses on a
systematic methodology of opportunity recognition and assessment. There is no inspirational, “out of
the box” thinking required, though open-mindedness and the ability to make/state opinion are essential
elements of the course.
SI852 Starting New Ventures
This course is designed to help students who intend to start, work for, acquire or invest in new ventures
develop that approach and methodology. The focus of this course is on the creation of key
components of the plan for an original new venture concept. Creation of this document requires
research, analysis, communication and technical skills.
For each student, the objectives of this course include:
 To learn sources of venture ideas and information.
 To gain a better understanding of new venture opportunities.
 To understand and acquire essential skills in creating and defining a business concept and
developing key components that would be contained in a traditional business plan.
 To learn techniques and approaches to developing all components of the business plan: strategic
issues, marketing, financial, human resource and organizational plans.
 To sharpen competence in evaluating all aspects of the start-up venture
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To develop and improve the ability to articulate new business concept and recruit the support of key
resource providers
To improve capabilities in presenting and communicating the new venture to potential investors
A significant portion of this course is experiencing the activities involved in the early stages of the
entrepreneurial process in a realistic environment. Students will learn to obtain information, leverage
their own competencies, gain commitments from stakeholders, and present their ideas persuasively.
Group problem solving sessions will provide an opportunity for students to consult with and learn from
each other as venture concepts take shape. We will cover a wide variety of issues that an entrepreneur
might face in the venture creation process.
SI871 iTeams – Strategies for Bringing Technologies to Market
The process by which startups are born from university research is well understood. A crucial, if not the
most important, step in the process is to identify the first commercial application for the university
research project, what we term ‘go-to-market strategy’. iTeams assembles SMG and ENG graduate
students to work collaboratively with course faculty, researchers in BU labs and mentors from the local
startup community. ITeams projects focus on assessing the commercial feasibility of scientific and
engineering breakthroughs. The projects are based on ideas that have received BU OTD grants (Ignition
and Launch), BU Coulter, Fraunhofer Alliance grants. Each project team will thoroughly evaluate their
project’s technology and related market opportunities and in collaboration with faculty and students in
the respective BU research lab, establish a detailed go-to-market plan.
For each student, the objectives of this course include:
 To understand the process of university technology commercialization.
 To gain a better understanding of new venture opportunities.
 To develop skills in identifying market opportunities for technology products
 To learn how to work in an inter-disciplinary group.
 To develop and improve the ability to write a professional go-to-market plan.
 To improve capabilities in presenting and communicating the go-to-market plan.
OB848 E1 – Leading Technical Organizations (*Section E1 for MEng students only)
The focus of this course will be on leadership from a variety of perspectives: organizational leadership in
the external environment and the societal level, as well as leadership at the top, middle, and lower
levels inside organizations. This course has been designed and developed to leverage the core
leadership curriculum in the School of Management but enhanced and modified to incorporate specific
content, readings, case studies, experiences and guest speakers focused on leading technical
organizations to provide clear context for graduate engineering students in the Master
of Engineering program. Our goal is to provide a rich learning experience that connects the
management, organizational behavior and leadership curriculum with the realities of becoming a
manager and leader in engineering and technical domains. The course is intended to serve as a
foundation for the continued personal and professional development of graduate engineering students
to become successful and effective managers and leaders who will make a positive difference in their
current and future organizations and have a positive impact on the society and world around them.