ENT - Entrepreneurship

This course requires students to develop a feasibility study for a new business venture. The study will be utilized throughout courses in the major and will form the basis of the business plan in ENT 487. In addition to a historical review of entrepreneurship, students assess the value of a concept and explore opportunity recognition, innovation and creativity, pro forma financial statement development, the legal structures of business, risk analysis and types of entrepreneurial ventures.

Major sources of funding for new ventures - including family and friends funding, angels, venture capitalists, informal investors, banks, investment banks, suppliers, buyers and the government - are reviewed and evaluated in this course. Some topics for this course include debt and equity capital markets, valuation, bootstrapping, joint ventures, strategic alliances, private placements, IPOs and management buyouts. Student will create pro formas and develop a funding plan for a new venture.

This course begins with an overview of the basic business principles as they apply to multi-generational businesses. The course covers the vital importance of family businesses to communities and national economies, and the unique problems and opportunities they face. A systems perspective is used to understand the dynamics among family members, the ownership and the management of the business. The course uses speakers, case studies and assessment tools to develop understanding and strategies for managing those dynamics. It is designed for majors and non-majors either from or interested in family businesses.

This course includes the study of cross-national comparisons of entrepreneurial activity and examines the formation and functioning of innovative, proactive and risk-taking organizations that cross national borders. Attention is given to understanding the skills necessary to successfully launch a new venture in the global economy.

This course draws on a broad range of business disciplines including management, marketing, finance and accounting to develop the business plan. Critical elements of the plan include industry/market analysis, clear opportunity and concept definition, target market analysis, a comprehensive human resource plan, financial pro forma analysis, as well as statements of sources and uses of funds, and an assessment of critical risks. Semester-long work on the business plan culminates with a business plan competition.

Topics vary and focus on emerging ideas and the latest research in areas of entrepreneurship that are not covered by the current curriculum. Sample topics include creativity and problem-solving, innovation and technology entrepreneurship, legal issues for entrepreneurs, corporate entrepreneurship, real estate venturing and social entrepreneurship.

For graduate students only. This course focuses on developing the skills necessary for successful entrepreneurship. Students will develop a business concept, define a new venture and market the concept, research the market and determine the commercial viability of the business concept, forecast sales and production, prepare financial pro formas, develop a marketing and funding plan, and prepare and present a business plan for the new venture. Students will have the opportunity to enter their work in a business plan competition.

For graduate students only. This course broadly surveys the legal issues common to entrepreneurial ventures, including selecting and working with an attorney, business entity selection, corporate governance, contracts, the Uniform Commercial Code, operational liabilities, insurance, debtor-creditor relations, bankruptcy, human resources and buying and selling a business.

For graduate students only. This course provides an understanding of international entrepreneurship, including the development of managerial and knowledge-based skills that underlie the successful launch of a new venture or existing business in the global economy.

For graduate students only. Topics vary and will focus on emerging ideas and the latest research in areas of entrepreneurship that are not covered by the current curriculum. Though not limited to these, example topics include creativity and problem-solving, innovation and technology entrepreneurship, legal issues for entrepreneurs, corporate entrepreneurship, real estate venturing and social entrepreneurship.