FREEMAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
FINE 4130-01,02,03
Venture Capital and Private Equity
Spring 2015
Instructor: Professor Steven Ho Ph.D
Office: GWI-649
Office Phone: 504.314.7455
Office Hours: Mon/Wed 3:00-4:00pm
E-mail: sho3@tulane.edu
Class Meeting Day & Time:
4130-01 MWF 12:00p-12:50p
4130-02 MWF 1:00p-1:50p
4130-03 MWF 2:00p-2:50p
Blackboard Site: myTulane.blackboard.com
Class Location: GWI, Room 140
Course Description:
This course is designed to teach students the elements of the timeline associated with creating a fund that
invests in illiquid investments. Fine 4130 is an intensive 3 semester credit hour course, covering
key topics in private equity and venture capital using a combination of lectures and case studies.
Apart from an in-depth analysis of new venture financing, the course also covers the financial
aspects of strategic and business planning, financial forecasting, valuation, organization design
and financial contracting, and financing and harvesting choices.
Course Prerequisites: FINE 3010
Course Goals
This course is designed to teach students the elements of the timeline associated with creating a
fund that invests in illiquid investments. The course will cover key topics in private equity and
venture capital using a combination of lectures and case studies. A significant portion of the class
effort is devoted to producing a project in which students, working as a team, simulate the
establishment of a private equity fund by developing an investment strategy, establish a marketing
plan for raising money for the fund, and then provide details on a specific investment opportunity.
The course focuses on how private equity funds are organized to raise money from investors, then
productively invest the money raised, and finally, develop options for exiting portfolio
investments.
Student Learning Objectives
As the result of this course students should be able to communicate the basic structure of a VC/PE fund
while also outlining the characteristics of portfolio companies in which the fund will invest (and eventually
divest).
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Course Material
Harvard Case Packet: https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/access/32772400
Recommended Text (not required): Venture Capital, Private Equity, and the Financing of
Entrepreneurship, 1st edition by Josh Lerner, et al., ISBN: 978-0-470-59143-7
Grading
Homework / In-Class Assignments / Participation
Exam #1
Exam #2
VCPE Conference: Role as General Partner (Presentation and LP Question Responses)
VCPE Conference: Role as Limited Partner (Questions for GPs & Investment Analysis)
20%
25%
25%
15%
15%
Class Attendance
All students are expected to attend every class and to be prepared to contribute to the class
discussion of the case or lecture at hand, which counts toward the participation grade.
Statement about Academic Integrity
This class will be conducted in full accordance with Tulane’s policies about academic integrity including,
but not limited to, the Code of Academic Integrity and the Code of Student Conduct. These can be found
at: http://tulane.edu/college/code.cfm and http://tulane.edu/studentaffairs/upload/02Academic.pdf
PLAGIARISM IS A VIOLATION OF THE FREEMAN HONOR CODE. Plagiarism is using another's
ideas, without clearly acknowledging the source of that information and then passing those ideas
off as your own even if those ideas are paraphrased in your own words. Examples of material that
you must cite include, but are not limited to: published works (books, magazines, newspapers, and
websites) and unpublished sources (class lectures, class notes, class slides, handouts, other
students' papers, material from a research service, speeches or assistance in writing a paper),
original ideas, and other creative expression in almost any form
Freeman Educational Norms and Expectations
This class will be conducted in full accordance with Freeman’s Educational Norms and Expectations.
Please reread the Norms and Expectations, which can be found at
http://www.freeman.tulane.edu/students/bsm/pdf/Expected%20Behavioral%20Norms.pdf
Learning Disabilities
Under the Americans with Disability Act and the Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, if you have a
disability, you may have the right to an accommodation; however, the right is contingent upon you taking
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certain steps. You should review the steps that you need to take, as well as Tulane’s policy concerning
accommodations at http://tulane.edu/studentaffairs/disability/accommodations.cfm
Any student with a disability, in need of course or examination accommodation, should request an
accommodation through the University’s Office of Disability Services (ODS) located in the Mechanical
Engineering Building. At the beginning of the semester, please provide me with a copy of your approved
ODS accommodation form. I am committed to working with ODS to ensure that I provide you with all
approved accommodations. If you do not deliver the approved accommodation form to me, I will not know
that ODS approved your accommodation and I will have no basis to provide those accommodations.
PLEASE NOTE: For students with extended time accommodation, you are to take your exams within
the Freeman School, please take your Exam Request Form to Suite 200 at least four business days before
the exam and the Office of Undergraduate Programs will schedule your exam. You must begin your
exam when the class normally would begin. For all other accommodations, please take your form to ODS
and they will schedule your exam.
Specific Course Policies
Laptops and Cell Phones:


Please silence and put away all cell phones and communication devices during class. They are not
to be out on your desk for any reason (including their use as a calculator – bring a real calculator
to class).
Laptops are not permitted unless I indicate they will be used to analyze a case.
Lecture Notes: Students are responsible for printing out any lecture notes that are posted in
advance of class lectures (see Blackboard). These notes will help frame our discussion. Be sure
to check postings and announcements on myTulane.blackboard.com .
In-Class Assignment: If cases are assigned, please read the case material before class. All students
are expected to attend every class and to be prepared to contribute to the class discussion of the
case or lecture at hand. I will assign problems as an in-class assignment. You will be given 10-15
minutes to collectively solve the problem on a piece of paper and submit your proposed solution.
I will grade your submission which will contribute to your final overall grade. Note that an in-class
assignment is not a surprise quiz. It is only meant to be an active participation exercise and will be
graded accordingly. No solutions to in-class examples/exercises will be posted on the web-page.
If you miss a class, you will miss out on any in-class assignments for that day. Regardless of the
reason for your absence, no make-up assignments will be given.
VCPE Conference: Each student will be part of a team that will play two roles: first, as a General
Partner with a specific private equity investment space; second, as a Limited Partner that is
considering where to invest $30 million of investment capital. This will involve a professional
group presentation that will be taped (for my evaluation review of your performance) as well as
several written deliverables. More information will be given as the course progresses.
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Exams:
Both exams are mandatory. No make-up exams will be scheduled. If you miss the Mid-term Exam 1
because of a valid reason (family or medical emergency – in either case proper documentation will be
required) you have to notify me immediately (by e-mail or in person). In such case, the grade portion of
that exam will be cumulated to the grade portion of your Mid-term Exam 2(i.e. the Mid-term Exam 2 will
be worth 50% of your final grade instead of 25%). If you fail to notify me within a week or if you miss the
Mid-term Exam without a valid reason, you will get a score of 0 on it, without any grade redistribution. If
you miss the Mid-term Exam 2, you will receive a score of 0 on the exam.
Guest Speakers: During the semester, we may be able to invite one or more guest speakers to
give their perspective as a practitioner in the venture capital / private equity market. As these occur,
it will mean that the course schedule will shift over time and all dates become flexible. Attendance
is mandatory at all lectures – but penalties will be greater when missing a guest speaker.
A. B. Freeman School of Business
Tentative Class Schedule, Subject to Change
Mon /Wed
/Fri Classes
Monday,
January 12
Wednesday,
January 14
Friday,
January 16
Saturday,
January 17Sunday,
January 18
Monday,
January 19
Wednesday,
January 21
Friday,
January 23
Monday,
January 26
Wednesday,
January 28
Friday,
January 30
Monday,
February 2
Wednesday,
February 4
Syllabus/Introduction
PE Basics
Yale Investment Office
No class
Burkenroad Workshop
No class
Martin Luther King
Yale Investment Office
Yale Investment Office
Yale Investment Office/Pawson Foundation
Pawson Foundation
Pawson Foundation
Grove Street
Review
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Friday,
February 6
Monday,
February 9
Wednesday,
February 11
Friday,
February 13
Monday,
February
16-Tuesday,
February 17
Wednesday,
February 18
Friday,
February 20
Monday,
February 23
Wednesday,
February 25
Friday,
February 27
Monday,
March 2
Wednesday,
March 4
Friday,
March 6
Saturday,
March 7
Monday,
March 9
Wednesday,
March 11
Friday,
March 13
Monday,
March 16
Wednesday,
March 18
Friday,
March 20
Monday,
March 23
Wednesday,
March 25
Exam 1
Grove Street
Introduction to Group Project
No class
Burkenroad Symposium
No class
Mardi Gras Break
Note on PE Securities
Note on PE Securities
Gobi Partners
Gobi Partners
Metapath
Metapath / PE Fund Name & Investment Objective Due
Note on Valuation
Note on Valuation
Makeup Date*
Valuation&Distribution[Between a Rock & a Hard Place]
Valuation&Distribution[Between a Rock & a Hard Place]
Exam 2
IPO[Warburg Pincus]
Guest Speaker
Team Discussion
Presentation Workshop 1
First half of presenting teams (materials due by 9am
CST, March 20th)
Presentation Workshop 2
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Friday,
March 27
Sunday,
March 29Monday,
April 6
Wednesday,
April 8
Friday, April
10
Saturday,
April 11
Monday,
April 13
Wednesday,
April 15
Friday, April
17
Monday,
April 20
Wednesday,
April 22
Friday, April
24
Friday,
April 24
Monday,
April 27
Tuesday,
April 28
Friday, May
1-Saturday,
May 9
Saturday,
May 16
Second half of presenting teams (materials due by
9am CST, March 20th )
Team Workshop/ All Final Presentation Material on
Digital Dropbox by 11:59pm CST, March 27th
No class
Spring Break/Easter
Team Presentation
Team Presentation
Makeup Date*
Team Presentation
Team Presentation
Team Presentation
Team Presentation
Team Presentation
Catch-up Day
No class
Burkenroad Investment Conference
VCPE Conference Investment Decisions Revealed
Last Day of Classes
Final Exam Period
Commencement
*IMPORTANT NOTE:
Makeup Dates
Saturday, March 7
Saturday, April 11
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