* Online Course – Fall 2004 *

* Online Course – Fall 2004 *
Introduction to Entrepreneurship: Building the Dream

Please Print This Document

COURSE OVERVIEW

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Starting a business may be one of the most challenging and rewarding journeys a person can take, but it is a journey often fraught with obstacles and setbacks. Introduction to Entrepreneur-ship "Building the Dream" helps prepare students for that trip. The course explains the entrepreneurial way of thinking and acting, ways of testing the feasibility of an idea, the skills needed, how to raise capital, the means of marketing a product, how to develop a business plan, and more. For students who want to launch their own businesses or those who want to be more innovative in a corporate setting, this course is both practical and inspiring.

COURSE TOPICS

This course is divided into topics to help you develop the knowledge and skills necessary to successfully start your venture. Topics include:

– Do You Have What It Takes?

– Myth of the Entrepreneur

– Finding Your Idea

– Entry Strategies: Getting Started

– Feasibility: Will It Work?

– PROJECT 1: INTERVIEW AN ENTREPRENEUR

– Tool Set: Marketing Your Idea

– Tool Set: Reaching Your Customer

– Tool Set: How Much Money Do You Really Need?

– Tool Set: The Money Hunt

– The Business Plan and Beyond

– Corporate Entrepreneurship

– Franchising: Making Their Dream Your Dream

– PROJECT 2: INTERVIEW A MONEY SOURCE

COURSE GOALS

Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to:

· Recognize new opportunities for business ventures.

· Describe how to take a new concept from initial idea to final execution.

· Differentiate a number of entry strategies and the skill sets needed to implement them.

· Assess the feasibility of a proposed business.

· Explain how to accomplish goals creatively, using minimal resources.

· Identify the competitive advantages an entrepreneur has over an entrenched business.

· Describe low-cost guerrilla-marketing techniques to publicize a business.

· Compare classic corporate distribution channels with newer, more innovative techniques.

· Determine and minimize initial capital requirements.

· Describe how to raise money effectively from a wide variety of sources.

· Explain how to retain maximum ownership of equity when raising start-up capital.

· Create a practical business plan.

· Identify the stages in a company’s life cycle, and manage its growth.

· Analyze the advantages and pitfalls of franchising as a means of starting a business.

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Instructor Name: Bob Johnson
Email Address: johnsrob@niacc.edu (preferred method of communication)
Mailing Address: NIACC Pappajohn Center, 500 College Dr., Mason City, IA 50401
Phone: (Home) 641-424-6382 or leave a message at The Pappajohn Center, 641-422-4111.
Office Hours: By Appointment

COURSE MATERIALS

Required Materials:

1. Textbook: Kuratko, Donald F., and Hodgetts, Richard M. Entrepreneurship: Theory, Process, Practice. Sixth Edition. South-Western Thomson Learning, 2004. Available at NIACC bookstore.

2. Program Video Cassettes: Videos are to be checked out from the NIACC Library. Contact the Library for this procedure.

3. Online Courseware: Available through NIACC WebCT. Instructor will explain login procedures in a separate e-mail.

This course is set up to give you maximum exposure to entrepreneurial ways of thinking. The three main components of the class – the textbook, the videos, and the online course – are loosely related, but still relevant to each other. The addition of the online discussion board rounds out the course and helps strengthen your understanding of key entrepreneurial concepts.

ASSIGNMENT CALENDAR

Note: You will be notified well in advance of any changes to this syllabus.

Date

Lesson

Reading

Program #

Assignments

Week

Number

Textbook

Video Tapes

(Optional, but encouraged)

Online Exercises

& Text Questions

Aug

Chapter 1

View Program 1:

Do You Have What It Takes?

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Sep

Chapter 2,

Chapter 4

View Program 2:

Myth of the Entrepreneur

- Chapter questions (even numbers only)

- Online exercises

Sep

Chapter 5

View Program 3:

Finding Your Idea

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Sep

Chapter 15,

Chapter 16

View Program 4:

Entry Strategies Getting Started

- Chapter questions

(even numbers only)

- Online exercises

Sep

Chapter 7,

Chapter 11

View Program 5:

Feasibility Will It Work?

- Chapter questions

(even numbers only)

- Online exercises

Oct

None

Project 1 Due

Oct

Chapter 8

View Program 6:

Tool Set Marketing Your Idea

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Oct

Review

Chapter 8

View Program 7:

Tool Set: Reaching Your Customer

- Online exercises

Oct

None

Mid-Term Exam

(E-mailed to you)

Nov

Chapter 9

View Program 8:

Tool Set How Much Money Do You Really Need?

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Nov

Chapter 14

View Program 9:

Tool Set The Money Hunt

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Nov

Chapter 10

View Program 10:

The Business Plan and Beyond

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Nov

Chapter 3

View Program 11:

Corporate Entrepreneurship

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Nov

Chapter 12

View Program 12:

Franchises Making Their Dream Your Dream

- All chapter questions

- Online exercises

Project 2 Due

Dec

None

FINALEXAM

(E-mailed to you)

Dec

Final Week

GRADING AND EVALUATION

GRADING/EVALUATION

Your grade will be calculated on the basis of the points given for each assignment, project, and exam weighed against the following percentages:

Chapter Questions/Online Quizzes 15%

Online Discussion Participation 15%

Project 1 15%

Project 2 15%

Midterm Exam 20%

Final Exam 20%

ONLINE DISCUSSION PARTICIPATION

Your online participation will be evaluated on a quantity and quality basis. Your comments should advance the discussion, add value and be relevant. Comments such as "I agree" and "ditto" are not considered value-added participation. Therefore, when you agree or disagree with a comment, please state and support your agreement or disagreement. You are required to post at least one substantive posting per week. I encourage you to post messages about how the course material relates to your own experience.

SUBMITTING YOUR WORK

Chapter Questions: Answer the questions at the end of each assigned text chapter under the heading "Review and Discussion Questions." Email your instructor with your answers to all pertinent questions using the syllabus as your guide. (Note: on the syllabus some chapters require only the "even" numbered questions to be answered.) Clearly indicate in your email submissions your name, the lesson number, chapter number, and question number. Use proper spelling, punctuation and grammar in your correspondence.

Exams: Tests will be emailed to you at the start of the week as indicated on the syllabus. You will have one week to complete the test and submit it to your instructor for grading.

Projects: Please email projects to your instructor by the end of the week as indicated on the syllabus. Clearly indicate in your email submissions your name, the project number, and project title.

PROJECT EVALUATION

Your projects will be evaluated on both content and format. You will be evaluated on your success at addressing all pertinent issues in a succinct, well-written format. You are expected to use proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar in all written correspondence and graded assignments. Projects may be submitted as an attachment in Microsoft Word (use double spacing and clearly indicate your name and project number.)

STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

To succeed in this course, each week you should complete the following steps:

Read assigned textbook material.

Complete assigned chapter review and discussion questions.

View video programs. If possible, tape the broadcast for later review.

Complete online exercises and self-graded quizzes.

Submit any graded assignments.

Participate in online discussions.

POLICIES AND EXPECTATIONS

EMERGENCIES

If you have an emergency and need to reach me, call me or email me.

If you can’t connect to the Internet, call your Internet service provider.

If your computer crashes, either call the computer manufacturer or the company/business you bought it from.

For courseware (NIACC WebCT) problems, contact me.

If you can’t participate in class for any reason for over 24 hours, call me or email me.

LATE ASSIGNMENT POLICY

Late assignments will be accepted, however full credit will not be given for that assignment.

ONLINE COURSE POLICY

You are expected to log-on to the course at least twice a week. Online courses move swiftly and if you miss too many days, you may find yourself lost. Please try to keep up with the discussion board and your other assignments.

EMAIL CHECK POLICY

I plan to check my email for this course daily, and will respond at my earliest convenience. When you send me email, please put the title of this course and the topic you are writing about in the "Subject" line.

DOCUMENT EMAILING POLICY

When you attach documents to your email, I prefer for those documents to be sent in Microsoft Word.

NETTIQUETTE POLICY

Online etiquette is extremely important. We must show respect to one another at all times. Rudeness and disrespect will not be tolerated in this course. Please recognize that communication is rather "flat" online where we cannot see and hear each other, so be cautious when using sarcasm or negative statements. Whenever possible, give constructive criticism and treat others the way you would like to be treated.

TECHNOLOGY EXPECTATION

You are expected to have basic Internet skills if you are in this course. If you need to review any of the basics, please go to the Microsoft site for help: http://www.microsoft.com/insider/internet

CONFIDENTIALITY POLICY

The communication that happens within this ‘classroom’ should stay within it. Please take the opportunity to use the Discussion Board to get to know each other better. As in any class, we are a community and we need to treat each other with respect.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Announcements will be posted on the Discussion Board. Please check the board regularly to make sure you keep up.

STUDENT COMMITMENT
You should budget adequate time each week for watching the video programs, reading the textbook and completing all assignments. You will be responsible for keeping up to date with all lessons and assignments. Online courses take as much time to complete successfully as traditional courses so please plan accordingly.

INSTRUCTOR COMMITMENT
As your instructor, I will follow the course outline as detailed in this syllabus, and should any changes be required I will announce them well in advance to give you time to adjust. You can count on my availability each day, and you have the right to expect prompt responses to your questions, comments, and requests. I will grade your work in a timely manner and return it to you with constructive commentary. In this distance-learning course, you will receive at least the same attention and care you would find in a traditional class.

PLAGIARISM STATEMENT
Plagiarism is the use of direct quotations without identifying them as such, or the summarizing or paraphrasing of other quotations. If you do not specifically identify the source of ideas other than your own, you are plagiarizing.

Cheating is the unauthorized giving or receiving of information in examinations, quizzes, assignments or other class exercises. If someone else takes online tests or quizzes in your name, this is also considered cheating.

Honesty and integrity are very important in higher education. This standard pertains to what is written as well as what is spoken. To claim to have written something that is not entirely your own work is a violation of academic and personal integrity.

You are solely responsible for the preparation and presentation of your assignments. Each homework assignment, written activity, and test should be your own work. When working collaboratively, it is acceptable to ask for criticism and help, but such input should be limited and acknowledged when appropriate. When writing a paper, it is recommended that you have someone proofread and critique your work, but it is not acceptable that he or she re-write whole sections in the process.

~ After reading this entire notice, please send me an email telling me you accept the terms as they have been laid out. If you have questions or would like to suggest some changes, please go to the Discussion Board and begin (or add to) a conversation about your suggestions. If reasonable suggestions are made, changes may be made. Please submit any input as soon as possible.