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GSBA-586 Current Trends in Business, Entrepreneurship Pre-Fall #2, August 21-23, 2015

Professor Email Telephone Office

Helena Yli-Renko hylirenko@marshall.usc.edu Cell. (310) 567 8598 Bridge Hall One, basement level Please email to schedule a meeting

Gene Miller gimiller@marshall.usc.edu Tel. (213) 740 9081 Bridge Hall One, basement level Please email to schedule a meeting

I. PURPOSE OF THE COURSE This course provides an introduction and overview of the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. Whether you already have an idea and are eager to start your own business or simply want to learn more about what an entrepreneurial career would be like, this course exposes you to the challenges of conceptualizing, developing, and managing successful new ventures. The course can either stand alone or you can build on it with further studies in our Entrepreneur Program. Also, there is more to entrepreneurship than understanding the process of starting and growing a venture. Entrepreneurship is a mindset, a way of looking at things that is opportunity-focused and creative. It’s about passion—doing what you love. It’s about creating value and gaining independence. And it’s about challenge, risk, persistence, and the ability to innovate—to improve on the old or invent the new. It is our hope that this weekend will not only introduce you to entrepreneurship, but will also foster this entrepreneurial mindset in you. II. LEARNING OBJECTIVES In this course, you will develop your conceptual and practical knowledge of entrepreneurship. Specifically, you will: 1. Develop a strategic level of understanding of the entrepreneurial process, i.e., how a new

business venture (whether a startup or a corporate venture) is created, and how the various functions of business interrelate in this process of emergence. In the various exercises and the project assignment of the course, you will utilize and hone your interdisciplinary business skills.

2. Develop your critical thinking, problem-solving, and opportunity recognition skills by experiencing the process of opportunity recognition through a course assignment which includes (a) identifying a customer painpoint in the marketplace, (b) gathering primary and secondary data on the opportunity and its context, (c) formulating and presenting a business concept to exploit the opportunity, and (d) developing an early implementation plan. The project enables you to hone your creative, critical, and entrepreneurial thinking skills.

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3. Develop your opportunity evaluation skills through a class competition in which new business opportunities are critically assessed and subsequently modified and adapted in several rounds of evaluation by your team, your core, and expert investor judges.

4. Develop your entrepreneurial leadership and decision-making skills by learning about the motivations and behaviors of entrepreneurs, investors, and other stakeholders in the new venture creation process and by understanding how expert entrepreneurs make decisions. You will also get exposure to entrepreneurial career paths to help you evaluate whether entrepreneurship is right for you.

5. Develop your oral and written communication skills in an entrepreneurial context through the opportunity recognition assignment and the pitch competition, learning to assess the communication goals and audience information needs for pitching a new venture concept and, in particular, to clearly communicate the customer painpoint and your proposed business solution.

III. COURSE MATERIALS

The required course reader has been distributed by the program office.

For students interested in supplementary materials, we recommend “The Startup Owner’s Manual” by Steve Blank and Bob Dorf and “Business Model Generation” by Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur. Resources in entrepreneurship are listed in the Industry Research Guides on the Crocker Library website (http://classic.marshall.usc.edu/library/industries/entrepreneurship.htm).

IV. COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION

Requirement Value (points)

1 Opportunity identification assignment Individual 500

2 Participation (includes 6 worksheets/forms; see below)

Individual/ Team

200

3 Quiz Individual 300

Total 1,000

Participation requirements

• Attendance is required throughout the weekend; there will be sign-in sheets. • Your level of participation will be evaluated based on class activity worksheets that are turned in, a

self-evaluation form, as well as faculty members’ observations. We will consider both the quality (relevance and insightfulness) and quantity (frequency) of your participation.

• There are six worksheets/forms to turn in over the course of the weekend as part of your participation. These are included at the end of this course information packet (in reverse order so you can tear them out starting from the back). 1. Business Model Canvas, individual, completed on Friday morning (graded pass/fail) 2. Fast-Pitch Competition team round form, completed over lunch on Friday (graded pass/fail) 3. Uncle Harry exercise, conducted in pairs on Saturday morning (graded pass/fail) 4. Fast-Pitch Competition core round form, individual, Saturday afternoon (graded pass/fail) 5. Investor panel observation worksheet, individual, Sunday morning (graded pass/fail) 6. Course participation self-evaluation form, please turn in with course evaluations on Sunday

• Bonus points opportunities: - Fast-Pitch Competition finalists and their teams get bonus points (see p. 7 for details)

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Quiz The quiz will be multiple choice, will include questions about the readings as well as the content of Friday's class sessions, and will focus on important content and key messages of articles and sessions.

Grading Final grades represent how you perform in the class relative to other students. Your grade will not be based on a mandated target, but on your performance. Historically, the average grade for this class has been 3.3 (B+). Your final grade will be assigned based on your total points from the three evaluation components (listed in the table above), the overall average points within the class, and your ranking among all students in the class. V. COURSE POLICIES

Classroom policies

Please be prompt. Arriving late or leaving early disrupts the learning experience for others. The dress code for the class is business casual. Please show respect for your classmates, guest

speakers, faculty, and staff by wearing appropriate attire (no flipflops, shorts, etc.). Remember to turn off cell phones. Laptop computers are to remain closed, unless otherwise

instructed, as laptop use distracts from the class experience. Use of any distributed material is reserved exclusively for the USC students registered in this class.

Videotaping or audiotaping lectures is not permitted due to copyright infringement regulations.

Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies Confidentiality Policy Throughout The Entrepreneur Program's classes and events, students will be exposed to proprietary information from other students, guest lecturers, and faculty. It is the policy of The Entrepreneur Program that all such information be treated as confidential. By enrolling in and taking part in The Entrepreneur Program's classes and activities, students agree not to disclose this information to any third parties without specific written permission from students, guest lecturers or faculty, as applicable. Students further agree not to use any such proprietary information for their own personal commercial advantage or for the commercial advantage of any third party. In addition, students agree that any legal or consulting advice provided without direct fee and in an academic setting will not be relied upon without the enlisted opinion of an outside attorney or consultant without affiliation to The Program. Any breach of this policy may subject a student to academic integrity proceedings as described in the University of Southern California "University Governance Policies and Procedures" as outlined in SCampus and to any remedies that may be available at law. The Entrepreneur Program, the Marshall School of Business, and the University of Southern California disclaim any responsibility for the protection of intellectual property of students, guest lecturers or faculty who are involved in The Entrepreneur Program classes or events. Receipt of this policy and registration in our classes is evidence that you understand this policy and will abide by it.

Academic integrity and disability accommodation Please be familiar with the Grading Policy and Academic Standards section of the USC Catalog and the information on University Governance in the SCAMPUS, particularly Appendix A: Academic Dishonesty Sanction Guidelines. The use of unauthorized material, communication with fellow students during an in-class examination,

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attempting to benefit from the work of another student, and similar behavior defeats the intent of an examination or other class work and is unacceptable to the University. It is often difficult to distinguish between a culpable act and inadvertent behavior resulting from the nervous tensions accompanying examinations. Where a clear violation has occurred, however, the instructor may disqualify the student's work as unacceptable and assign a failing mark on the paper. Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a physical, psychological or learning disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open from 8:30 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Friday. The office is moving on August 18, 2015 to: Grace Ford Salvatori Hall, room 120. The telephone number for DSP is (213) 740-0776.

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VI. COURSE SCHEDULE Friday, August 21, 2015 Time Session topic Location 7:45-8:15am Check-in Hoffman

Breezeway 8:15-8:50am Introduction to PM.Globe

Edison

8:50-9:20am Introduction to Prefall #2, Entrepreneurship What are your learning objectives for this weekend? Overview of the weekend’s program

Edison

9:20-10:30am An Entrepreneurial Journey Anthony Geisler, Founder and CEO, LA Boxing Studying an entrepreneurial journey is the best introduction to entrepreneurship. Who is this person, how did he decide to begin this journey, what are his motivations, skill sets, and behaviors?

Edison

10:30-10:50am Break 10:50am–12:10pm

Developing business concepts and business models. Introduction to feasibility analysis. The fundamental tools for getting started on developing a new venture. How do you figure out whether an opportunity is worth pursuing further? Turn in Worksheet #1.

Edison

12:10-2:20pm Working lunch: Fast-Pitch Competition – Team Round - Form a team of 3-4 people from within your core - Review Worksheet #2 - Team members pitch their concepts to the team - Team discusses and evaluates feasibility of the concepts

and picks one concept to advance to pitch tomorrow in the next round

- Each team fills out one Worksheet #2 (turn in after lunch)

Town & Gown

2:20-3:40pm From feasibility to reality How to mobilize resources required to launch your venture

Effectuation: How expert entrepreneurs think Introduction to the entrepreneurial mindset; how expert entrepreneurs approach opportunities and make decisions

Edison

3:40-4:00pm Break 4:00-5:00pm Small Giants: Insights into great entrepreneurial

companies Bo Burlingham, Author and Editor-at-Large, Inc. magazine

Edison

5:00-6:00pm Pub Session Town & Gown Patio

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Saturday, August 22, 2015

Time Session topic Location 8:00-8:30am Check-in Hoffman Breezeway 8:30-8:50am Quiz

(Please do not arrive late; there will be no make- up opportunity; quiz accounts for 30% of grade)

Edison

8:50-10:00am Social entrepreneurship Professor Adlai Wertman, Founding Director, Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab, USC Marshall

Edison

10:00-10:20am Break 10:20-12:00pm Estimating capital needs for a new venture

How do you begin to estimate financials for a business that does not yet exist? Turn in Worksheet #3.

Pitching your concept How do you effectively present your venture?

Edison

12:00-1:30pm Working lunch in your team: Preparing for the core round presentations

Town & Gown

1:30-2:40pm Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur Elizabeth Amini, Founder and CEO, Anti-Aging Games.com, Past Winner of the USC Business Plan Competition

Edison

2:40-3:00pm Break Walk to Popovich (JKP) 3:00-5:00pm Fast-Pitch Competition – Core Round

Turn in Worksheet #4. Finalists announced via email in the evening.

Core A: JKP 210 (Yli-Renko) Core Sat: JKP 212 (Miller) Core OC: JKP 202 (Amini)

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Time Session topic Location 8:30-9:00am Check-in Hoffman Breezeway

9:00-9:50am Early-Stage Venture Funding in SoCal Ivan Nikkhoo, Siemer & Associates

Edison

9:50-10:20am Fast-Pitch Competition – Final Round Core winners present to investor judges

Edison

10:20-10:40am Break 10:40am–12:10pm Investor Deal-Screening Panel

Real ventures pitch their concepts to real investors. Turn in Worksheet #5. Announcement of Fast-Pitch Competition Winner

Edison

12:10-12:20pm Course evaluations filled out Turn in course participation self-evaluation.

Edison

12:20-1:00pm Lunch (pick up boxed lunch) Hoffman Lobby 1:00-2:30pm Marshall CRC Resources for MBA.PM

Students Edison

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Entrepreneurship Pre-Fall Fast-Pitch Competition

WHAT IT IS:

An interactive learning experience in which you gain experience presenting and evaluating business concepts. A competition to identify the most promising venture concepts from the entire MBA.PM class. A fun event aimed at fostering the entrepreneurial spirit at Marshall. HOW IT WORKS:

In your opportunity identification paper, each of you has developed an early-stage concept for an independent, corporate, or social venture. Based on these concepts, the competition will take place in three rounds:

Round 1 – The Team Round – Friday over lunch You will form teams of 3-4 people from within your core. Teams of 4 recommended. Team members pitch their concepts to the team. Team discusses and evaluates feasibility of the concepts and picks one to pitch on Saturday.

Round 2 – The Core Round – Saturday 3-5pm If your team picked your concept, you will pitch it as a 3-minute quick pitch to your core on Saturday afternoon. Your team should help you revise your opportunity paper slides to a more presentation-friendly visual format. Make sure to practice the timing, we will cut you off if you go over 3 minutes. Depending on the number of teams in each core, there will be time for 1-2 quick questions from the class/faculty for each presenter. A winner from each core will be determined based on evaluations by the class and a faculty judge. Round 3 – The Finals – Sunday morning The winners from each core will pitch to investor judges in front of the entire class.

WHAT’S AT STAKE:

• Fame and recognition! The winner will be featured on a plaque in the MBA.PM Program office. • Mentoring from the faculty and investor judges to help make your venture a reality. • Bonus points for the course grade: The winner will get 100 bonus points. The other finalists get 50

bonus points. The teammates of the winner and of the other finalists get 25 bonus points.

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GSBA-586 ENTREPRENEURSHIP PRE-FALL Your name: ___________________________________

Your signature: ________________________________ FORM 6: SELF-EVALUATION OF YOUR PARTICIPATION ACTIVITY IN THE COURSE

to be turned in with your course evaluations on Sunday PLEASE CONSIDER HOW FREQUENTLY AND INSIGHTFULLY YOU HAVE PARTICIPATED IN CLASS SESSIONS.

Mark an “X” for the category you think you belong in

Description Explanation

Top participation

You are in the top 3-5% of participating students, i.e., there are only a handful of other students in the entire class who have participated more or equally actively. Your comments have been insightful and the professors would probably remember you despite the class size.

Very good participation

You have offered comments or questions during the weekend, but are probably not quite among the top 3-5%.

Average participation

You have been actively engaged throughout the weekend and may have offered a comment/question or two.

Below average participation

You have spoken up only if cold-called, and may have found yourself “tuning out” in some sessions.

Lowest participation

You have come in late or left early from some sessions and have not been actively engaged during the weekend.

PLEASE DESCRIBE HOW YOU HAVE PARTICIPATED DURING THE WEEKEND (For example, you could note “asked guest speaker Anthony a question about his growth plans” or “presented my business model canvas exercise in front of the class”)

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WORKSHEET 5 – Sunday 10:30am Name____________________________

Investor Panel Pitch Event Observation Form This is for the real pitches by external entrepreneurs (not the student presentations). Please turn in this worksheet after the session. Please rate each of the presentations on the seven criteria below, using a scale from 0 to 5, where 0 = Inadequate 3 = Good 5 = Wow

Presentation 1 Presentation 2

Fill out name of company here ->

1. Company addresses a meaningful market

2. Business concept and revenue model clearly articulated

3. Company’s solution is better than competitors’ and is defensible

4. Existing and planned team can credibly implement the business concept

5. Team has a reasonable go-forward plan for development and operations

6. Financial plan is reasonable and resource requirements are credible

7. Presentation was prepared and delivered professionally

Total points

Comments and questions you have regarding the business

Issues that you noted when listening to the judges’ Q&A

If you were an angel/VC investor, would you be interested in further discussions with the company? Main reason?

PLEASE TURN OVER →

What were the most important factors that differentiated a more effective presentation from a less effective one? What factors did the investor judges focus on in their questions and comments? What were your key takeaways from this experience in general? For example, you can relate what you saw today to course content we’ve covered over the weekend, and/or you can summarize your thoughts on what you will want to remember when you are raising money for your own venture.

WORKSHEET 4 - Saturday 3pm Name____________________ Core: ______ QUICK-PITCH COMPETITION – CORE ROUND Which two ventures, based on today’s quick pitch presentations, are the most compelling and feasible? First, rate each presentation on the criteria listed in the table on a 0-5 scale (with 5 being the highest score), and then add up those ratings. Then, pick your top 2 in the last column. Please write in your own team’s concept into the table below, but you cannot vote for your own team’s presentation.

Concept “Customer

Pain” is compelling

Product/service and its competitive advantage are clear

Evidence to show that this is a real opportunity

Total Points Top 2 picks (mark with “X”)

Table continued on the back

Rate 0-5 with 5 being highest

Concept “Customer

Pain” is compelling

Product/service and its competitive advantage are clear

Evidence to show that this is a real opportunity

Total Points Top 2 picks (mark with “X”)

WORKSHEET 3 – To be conducted in pairs, please fill out answers on the reverse and turn in one worksheet per pair during the break.

10-MINUTE EXERCISE

USC ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM

UNCLE HARRY’S PRINT SHOP While sitting around one weekend, you happened to mention to a visiting relative that you were an Entrepreneur Program student and that you are in the process of writing a venture proposal. Realizing a great chance to get some free advice, the long lost relative seized the moment and began to tell you about his great dream of starting and owning a printing company. He has always had the ability, but never the courage. “With your help,” he pleads, “I can make it go.” With mixed emotions, you accept his challenge. What you know about Uncle Harry isn’t much -- and you’re not all that sure that he does either. Basically, he’s been employed at local printing plant for the past ten years and has advanced to be foreman. He appears to be good at what he does, and you believe him when he says he has commitments for $50,000 of sales per month that would come with him if he left his present company. Harry says he can even deliver letters of intention to back the sales. With an order in hand, his past experience and your expertise, you begin to believe more and more. The excitement of actually starting a venture is increasing and your reluctance is declining. The final resistance is erased when Harry tells you that he has found some used equipment that will handle his needs. And with a little luck, the total cost will be $25,000. He surprises you even further when he produces $5,000 in cash, which he’s been saving for just this moment. Now it’s time for you to show your stuff. Using the back of this page, answer the following: 1. Should Harry go into business? Put your answer in the upper right hand corner on

the back of this page. 2. How much money will it take to start the business, and why? 3. As Harry’s advisor, answer why he should/should not go into business. 4. What additional questions and facts do you need to know? Knowing that these are impossible questions to answer, don’t cop out. There is enough information to allow for answers and some rough estimates of money needs.

Copyrighted T. O’Malia 2006

WORKSHEET 3 Your Names and Cores:

Yes or No:_______ $$ Needed:__________

How much to start this business and why?

Why Harry should \ should not start this business?

What additional information do you need?

WORKSHEET 2 – Friday lunch, to be completed in your teams of 3-4 people, please fill out both sides and turn in one worksheet per team after lunch. QUICK-PITCH COMPETITION – TEAM ROUND Team member names: 1. _________________________ Core:________ 2. _________________________ 3. _________________________ 4. _________________________ 1. Before pitching your concepts to the team, please discuss and briefly explain below what

criteria and process the team will use to select the concept(s) to move forward to the core round.

2. Team members pitch their concepts and the team discusses them. Please use the table

on the reverse to record this discussion.

3. Which concept did the team select to go forward? Please briefly describe the key factors behind your selection.

Please turn over

Concept/company name

Team’s evaluation (use this column as you see fit, e.g., divide it into subcolumns, use bullet points, etc.)

WORKSHEET 1 – Friday morning, to be filled out individually and turned in before lunch. YOUR NAME: ____________________

YOUR CORE:_______ The Business Model Canvas for Your Concept KP

KA

VP CR

CS

KR

CH

C$

R$