Institutet för innovation och entreprenörskap
Study Guide 2014
GM1306 ‘Methods for Practical Entrepreneurship’
Rögnvaldur Saemundsson, Senior Lecturer &
Maureen McKelvey, Professor
Graduate School and Department of Economy and Society
Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE)
at the University of Gothenburg
This document describes the study guide for the course ‘GM1306 Methods for
Practical Entrepreneurship’ given during Fall 2014.
This course aims to integrate and combine theoretical knowledge with practical aspects and
methods of knowledge intensive entrepreneurship. The empirical objective of this course is to
run an incubation process for the development of a new business, conducted in the assigned
teams of students.
Upon completion of the course students will demonstrate:
1. the ability to utilize theoretical knowledge and hands-on tools and methods in order to
address a series of issues related to venture creation and the incubation process,
2. skills to critically evaluate material from different sources,
3. the ability to reflect about the implications of their business decisions in relation to
moral and ethical considerations such as sustainability.
The course includes mandatory participation in seminars, individually assessed projects
reports and oral presentations, as well as individual and team written assignments.
Institutet för innovation och entreprenörskap
Handelshögskolan vid Göteborgs universitet
Viktoriagatn 13, Box 625, SE 405 30 Göteborg
031 786 0000, 031 786 1402 (fax)
www.iie.handels.gu.se info@handels.gu.se
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Schedule during Fall 2014:
The course is composed of four modules:
• M1: Setting the scene
• M2: Customer Discovery
• M3: Customer Validation
• M4: Scaling up and growth
The content of the modules are delivered in lectures and applied in a project that
students work on throughout the course. Students will report progress of project
work every other week. Coaching is provided for project work that is a part of the
course as well as for extra curricular activities related to the projects, e.g.
establishing of a company. Coaching is scheduled every other week (45 min pr.
group) in relation to the progress meetings to prepare next two weeks. Additional
coaching is organized by the students and coaches as needed.
Early in the course an advisory group will be established for each project. The
advisory group includes external idea owners if applicable, or other external
actors. The role of the advisory group is to provide feedback to the project groups.
The group shall meet the advisory group at least three times during the course:
• To present business hypotheses (shortly after Sept 22)
• When suggesting to proceed from discovery to validation
• Final presentation Under the supervision of the coaches, students shall book, organize and lead the
meetings for each group (except final presentation).
The GUL page will be updated with any changes to the following schedule.
Date
Room
Description
Teachers/
Coaches
Preparation
Mon
Sep 1
9-16
M1: Introduction and overview of the course.
M1: Why Entrepreneurship?
M1: Entrepreneurial opportunities and
opportunity development
M1: The Customer Development Process
M1: Business Models Workshop
M1: Video Reflection Assignment 1 presented
RJS
B&D: 1-68
O&P: 14-51
O&P: 198-239
Literature pack 1
Tue
Sep 2
9-12
M2: Customer Discovery I&II
Preparation for project work
M2: Written assignment on hypotheses and
priorities presented
RJS
B&D: 69-226
(browse)
Mon
Sep 8
11-12
Project kick-off
Project methods
Advisory group
MM
AN
HT
Hand in video
reflection 1
Mon
Sep 22
Project briefing (15 min pr group)
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Create log and
visuals
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8-13
Hand in written
assignment
Mon
Sep 29
9-16
M1: Discussion: Video reflection 1
M2: Entrepreneurial learning
M2: Prototype Development
M2: Customer Discovery III&IV
M2: Video reflection assignment 2 presented
RJS
View video
reflections
B&D: 227-273
(browse)
Literature pack 2
Mon
Oct 6
8-13
Project briefing (15 min pr group)
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Update log and
visuals
Tue
Oct 21
8-13
Project briefing (15 min pr group)
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Update log and
visuals
Hand in video
reflection 2
Update log and
visuals
View video
reflections
B&D: 277-289
B&D: 291-464
(browse)
Literature pack 3
Mon
Nov 3
8-16
Project briefing (15 min pr group, AN, HT, RJS)
M2: Discussion: Video reflection 2
M3: Customer Validation
M3: Sales Workshop
M3: Progress Indicators
M3: Video reflection assignment 3 presented
Tue
Nov 4
9-13
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Mon
Nov 17
8-13
Project briefing (15 min pr group)
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Update log and
visuals
Mon
Dec 1
8-16
Project briefing (15 min pr group, AN, HT, RJS)
M4: Organizing the venture
M4: Staffing the venture
M4: Financing the venture
M4: Managing growth
RJS
Update log and
visuals
Literature pack 4
Tue
Dec 2
9-13
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Mon
Dec 15
8-13
Project briefing (15 min pr group)
Coaching (45 min pr group)
AN
HT
Update log and
visuals
Mon
Jan 12
9-12
Final presentations
Home exam presented.
MM
AN
HT
RJS
Hand in presentation
RJS
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Wed
Jan 14
Hand in home exam
AN: Anders Nilsson, HT: Håkan Thorbjörnsson, MM: Maureen McKelvey, RJS: Rögnvaldur
J. Saemundsson
Contact information
Rögnvaldur J. Saemundsson
Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE)
Department of Economy and Society
rognvaldur.saemundsson@handels.gu.se
Teacher responsible for course
Maureen McKelvey
Professor of Innovation and Industrial Management
Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE)
Department of Economy and Society
maureen.mckelvey@handels.gu.se
www.handels.gu.se/iie
Coaches
Anders Nilsson
Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE)
Department of Economy and Society
anders.nilson@handels.gu.se
Håkan Thorbjörnsson
GU Holding AB
Erik Dahlbergsgatan 11A
hakan.thorbjornsson@holding.gu.se
GS Administrator
Maria Calpén
Administrative Coordinator
Graduate School
maria.calpen@gs.gu.se
Overall assessment
Overall grade for the course (F, G, VG) will be based on:
• Three reflective video recordings (individual, 5%)
• Two discussion sessions (individual, 5%)
• Two workshop sessions (individual, 5%)
• Written assignment on business model hypotheses (group, 5%)
• Seven project bi-weekly reports (individual, 30%)
• Final presentation (group, 30%)
• Home exam (individual, 20%)
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Assessment of individual assignments
Reflective Video Recordings
Each students will hand in three video recordings, 3-5 minutes each with their
reflections on the following topics:
• Entrepreneurship as a career path (reflection 1)
• Entrepreneurial learning in the business development process (reflection 2)
• The art of closing sales (reflection 3)
The recordings will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Connection made to the literature (40%)
• Connection made to a context (personal, group, project, etc.) (30%)
• Disposition and clarity (30%)
Written Assignment on Business Model Hypotheses
Each group will hand in a written report including a prioritized list the business
model hypotheses they intend to test for their project.
The assignment will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Completeness (40%)
• Rationale for prioritization (40%)
• Disposition and clarity (20%)
Discussions
The class will participate in three discussion sessions, one for each video
reflection.
Participation in discussions will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Speaking (40%)
• Contribution to discussion (60%)
Workshops
Students will participate in two workshops, one on how to apply the business
model canvas, and one on the sales process.
Participation in workshops will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Contribution to group work (40%)
• Contribution to discussion (60%)
Home Exam
At the end of the course each student will, individually, take a 48 hour home
exam. The exam will consist of three questions, two of which are related to the
topic of "Scaling up and growth".
Answers to questions on the home exam will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Insights and understanding (20%)
• Connections made to the literature (20%)
• Connections made to a context (personal, group, project, etc.) (20%)
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•
•
Critical evaluation of material from different sources (20%)
Disposition and clarity (20%)
Final Presentation
The project teams will report the results from the business development process
during a 20 minutes oral presentation. The presentation slides, with additional
information (max 4 pages), are handed in.
The final presentation will be graded (F, G, VG) based on:
• Rationale for final decision (30%)
• Plausibility of next steps (30%)
• Disposition and clarity (40%)
Project bi-weekly briefings
The project teams will brief students and coaches of their progress every two
weeks (see schedule).
Based on logbook entries and information from the briefings project work will
graded every other week (F, G, VG) based on:
• Effectiveness in following the business development process (30%)
• Effectiveness of project management (30%)
• Individual contribution to effective group work (40%)
Reading list
Text books:
Blank, S. and Dorf, B. (2012) The Startup Owner's Manual. Pescadero: K&S
Ranch.
Osterwalder, A. and Pigneur, Y. (2010) Business Model Generation. Hoboken:
John Wiley & Sons.
Literature Pack 1
McMullen, J.S. and Shepherd, D.A. (2006) Entrepreneurial action and the role of uncertainty
in the theory of the entrepreneur. Academy of Management Review 31(1): 132-152.
Poschke, M. (2013) Who becomes and entrepreneur? Labor market prospects and
occupational choice. Journal of Economic Dynamics & Control 37: 693-710 (ONLY sections
1 & 2)
Sarasvathy, S.D. (2001) Causation and effectuation: toward a theoretical shift from economic
inevitability to entrepreneurial contingency. Academy of Management Review 26 (2): 243–
263.
Shane, S. and Venkataraman, S. (2000) The promise of entrepreneurship as a field
of research, Academy of Management Review 26: 13–17.
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Literature Pack 2
Busenitz, L., & Barney, J. (1997) Differences between entrepreneurs and managers in
large organizations: Biases and heuristics in strategic decision-making. Journal of
Business Venturing 12(1): 9–30.
Dimov, D. (2010) Nascent entrepreneurs and venture emergence: Opportunity
confidence, human capital and early planning. Journal of Management Studies 46(3):
1123-1153.
Politis, D. (2005) The process of entrepreneurial learning: a conceptual framework.
Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 29: 399–424.
Sanz-Velasco, S. and Saemundsson, R. (2007) Entrepreneurial learning in academic spin-offs:
A business model perspective. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Management 8(1): 15-35.
Literature Pack 3
Moncrief, W.C. and Marshall, G.W. (2005) The evolution of the seven steps of selling.
Industrial Marketing Management 34: 13-22.
Verbeke, W., Dietz, B., and Verwall, E. (2011) Drivers of sales performance: a
contemporary meta-analysis. Have salespeople become knowledge brokers? Journal of
the Academy of Marketing Science 39: 407-428.
Literature Pack 4
Beckman, C.M., Burton, M.D., and O'Reilly, C. (2007) Early teams: The impact of team demography on VC financing and going public. Journal of Business Venturing 22: 147-­‐
173. Brinckmann, J., Salomo, S., and Gemuenden, H.G. (2011) Financial management competence of founding teams and growth of new technology-­‐based firms. Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice 35: 217-­‐243. Garnsey, E. (1998) A Theory of the Early Growth of the Firm. Industrial and Corporate Change 7: 523-­‐556. Oviatt, B.M. and McDougall, P.P. (1994) Toward a theory of international new ventures. Journal of International Business Studies 25(1): 45-­‐64. Saemundsson, R. and Lindholm Dahlstrand, Å. (2005) How Business Opportunities Constrain Young Technology-­‐Based Firms from Growing Into Medium-­‐Sized. Small Business Economics 24: 113-­‐129. 14.08.31 8 / 8
Additional recommended reading
Klotz, A.C., Hmieleski, K.M., Bradley, B.H., and Busenitz, L.W. (2014) New venture teams: A review of the literature and roadmap for future research. Journal of Management 40: 226-­‐255. March, J. G. (1991). Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning, Organization Science, 2(1), 71-­‐87 McKelvie, A. and Wiklund, Johan (2010) Advancing firm growth research. A focus on growth mode instead of growth rate. Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice 34(2): 261-­‐
288. Mullins, J. and Komisar, R. (2009) Getting to Plan B. Boston: HBS Publishing.
Rackham, N. (1988) SPIN Selling. McGraw-Hill.
Ries, E. (2011) The Lean Startup. London: Penguin.
Shane, S. (2010) Reflections on the 2010 AMR decade award: Delivering on the
promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research, Academy of Management
Review 37(1): 10-20.
Venkataraman, S., Sarasvathy, S.D., Dew, N., and Forster, W.R. (2012)
Reflections on the 2010 AMR decade award: Whither the promise? Moving
forward with entrepreneurship as a science of the artificial, Academy of
Management Review 37(1): 21-33.
Willingham, R. (2003) Integrity Selling for the 21st Century. New York:
Doubleday.
Additional material
At steveblank.com you can find a lot of material related to the customer
development process, including a free online course.
At theleanstartup.comyou find material related to Eric Ries book, The Lean
Startup.
At http://www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/resources/businessplan.html you can find
useful summaries, articles as well as videos on business planning.