Entrepreneurship - EBD 380 - 001 – Spring 2010

Tuesday & Thursday 2:00 – 3:15 Location: Cameron Hall 210

Professor: Dr. Matthew Wood

Email: woodms@uncw.edu Office Phone: 910.962.2208
Office Location: Cameron Hall, 200H
Office Hours: Tues & Thurs 11:00 – 2:00, Wed 9:00 – 1:00 pm, or by appointment.

Course Description:
The primary focus of EBD 380 is on the creation of a new business venture. Specific
areas include the methods and processes of identifying business opportunities,
conducting feasibility studies, developing the business plan, evaluating alternative
methods of financing new ventures and identifying the appropriate legal form of
organization. In addition, we will also look at several alternative routes to business
ownership. Examples include business purchase, becoming a franchisee, and business
inheritance.

Course Objectives:
This course will present students with the current theoretical thinking in the field of
entrepreneurship. It will also provide the practical tools for starting a new business and
for fostering entrepreneurial behavior within an existing business. Emphasis will be placed
on the key aspects of entrepreneurship, including the attributes of entrepreneurs,
identifying, evaluating, and exploiting opportunities, writing business plans, financing the
venture, and building a successful team. The course will be interactive in nature with
lectures, individual and group activities, problem solving scenarios, videos, and mini-
presentations. Guest speakers will visit the class to provide expert knowledge and
perspectives on the entrepreneurial process.

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Learning Initiatives:
– Gain insight into the field of entrepreneurship by understanding the characteristics and
mindset of entrepreneurs.

– Develop an ability to identify and evaluate opportunities within the marketplace, both
for new venture creation and within existing companies.

– Develop the skill required to exploit an opportunity by conducting a feasibility analysis,

writing a business plan, building a founding team, identifying startup costs,
developing financial projections, and securing financing.

– Learn successful strategies and common mistakes from the real-life experiences of
accomplished entrepreneurs.

– Develop the mindset required to think entrepreneurially in all facets of business.

Course Prerequisites: Junior Standing, ACG 203, MGT 350, MKT 340

Course Textbook:

UNCW EBD-380 Pearson Custom Printing of “Entrepreneurship: Successfully Launching

New Ventures” by Barringer and Ireland.

Course Materials: Slides, Articles, and other materials will be posted online using
Blackboard and can be accessed via Seaport.

Grading Policy & Grading Scale:

At the end of the semester I will enter your course grade with the UNCW registrar. This
grade represents my evaluation of your performance in the course. The grade evaluation
process is an integral part of my responsibility as a professor and I take this responsibility
very seriously. Assigning a grade that inaccurately represents your performance does
you and your fellow students a disservice by lowering the value of the UNCW degree.
Therefore, the grading criterion and the grading scale presented below will be strictly
followed. This means that there will be no curving or rounding at the end of the semester.
Your grade will be an objective reflection of your effort, preparation, and performance
over the course of the semester. The percentage you earn of the possible points
available for the course will be used to determine you final grade. The percentage /
grade scale is presented below.

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 Grading Scale
97% - 100% A+
93% - 96.99% A
90% - 92.99% A-
87% - 89.99% B+
83% - 86.99% B
80% - 82.99% B-
77% - 79.99% C+
73% - 76.99% C
70% - 72.99% C-
67% - 69.99% D+
63% - 66.99% D
60% - 62.99% D-
Less than 60% F

Grading Criterion:
Case Analysis Write-up .…………………………………….............................. 40 pts
Interview of an Entrepreneur Paper..………………………..……………………… 75 pts
Venture Concept Brief…………………………………………………………… ….. 25 pts
Summary Business Plan……………………………………………………………. 125 pts
Elevator Pitch Presentation..……………………………………………................... 25 pts
Quizzes (count 5 of 7)………………………………………………… 20 pts ea = 100 pts
Mid-Term Examination……………………………………………………………….. 125 pts
Final Examination……………………………………………………………………… 125 pts

Total Points Available……………….………………………….….............................. 640 pts

Grading Policy for Writing Assignments:

Writing is a key skill and a basic requirement for success in entrepreneurship and
business in general. You must be able to communicate your ideas through good writing.
As such, the policy in this course is that 10% of the grade on ALL written assignments will
be on the writing, while 90% will be on the content. This means that if you have poor
writing skills, you will not be able to earn an “A” on the assignment even if the content is
outstanding. If you know that you need to work on your writing skills, my suggestion is to
use the resources available to you at UNCW. Writing services is designed to help tutor
students with writing projects and generally improve writing skills. Writing services is
located in the learning center (Westside Hall - 1st floor) and can be contacted at 962-
7857. Finally, all written assignment due dates are firm and late submissions will not be
accepted.

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Overview of Assignments and Projects:

Case Analysis Write-up (32 pts written + 8 pts presentation = 40 pts total): You will be
assigned a case analysis from the textbook. The cases are located at the end of each
chapter in the text book and will be randomly assigned to specific individuals. The case
analysis consist of answering the associated “discussion questions” in detail. The paper
you turn in should be no more than three pages with 1.5 spacing and 1” margins all
around (32 pts). You will also be expected to help lead the class discussion when the
case you have been assigned is presented in class (8 pts). Finally, you are expected to
read all of the cases and contribute to the class discussion as they are presented. Failure
participates in case discussions will result in a reduction of your case analysis grade at
the end of semester. Case assignments and due dates will be provided via a separate
document. All due dates on written case analyses are firm and will NOT be accepted late.

Interview of an Entrepreneur Paper (75 pts): You are required to conduct an in-depth
interview of an experienced entrepreneur (e.g., phone or in person). This person must
have been, or is currently, someone engaged in entrepreneurship and may have been
successful or not. By this I mean that the individual must have started at least one
business at some point during their career, and this business must have been intended to
be their major source of income. The purpose of the interview is to gain an
understanding of the skills, abilities, knowledge, courage, and other factors that fostered
the individual’s decision to engage in the creation of a new business venture. It also
expected that you will gain knowledge regarding the pitfalls and risks associated with
starting a business. Please try to learn from these individual’s successes and failures!
Once you have completed your interview you are to write a detailed report. The specifics
of the report requirements will be provided in class via a separate document.

Venture Concept Brief (25 pts): You are expected to submit a one-page description of
your proposed new venture concept by the end of the fourth week of the semester. It
must profile the business opportunity you intend to use as the basis for your new venture
proposal. The brief must be typed, 12 point font, single-spaced, with 1” margins. Some
suggestions about what to communicate in your proposal:
• An overview of your business idea.
• An overview of the product or service you are selling. What customer need(s) does it fulfill?
What value does the product/service provide the customer? Why will customers buy your
product or service?
• What industry will you be operating and what are the current industry trends?
• Who is your competition and why are these firms’ your competitors?
• What do you think is special about your business idea that distinguishes it from existing
competition?
• How does this business fit with your personal goals? What about it excites you? Is starting
this business right for you?

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Elevator Pitch Presentation (25 pts): An elevator pitch is a quick presentation of your
business concept that can be communicated in the time it takes to ride an elevator. Thus,
you will give the class a two minute presentation of your business idea (no PowerPoint
slides will be used). You should use your concept brief as a platform to develop your
elevator pitch.

Summary Business Plan (125 pts): This will be a group project and each group is expected
to submit a summary business plan. The plan can be thought of as a precursor to the
development of a full business plan. The summary plan will identify a market opportunity,
describe the target market(s), evaluate the competition, indentify the legal form of
organization and government regulations, profile the marketing strategy, estimate the initial
capital requirements, financial projections, highlight the timetable for establishing the
venture, indicate how the venture will be financed. Details of the format and requirements
for the plan will be provided via a separate document, but the workload for this project will
be substantial; plan accordingly.

Quizzes (20 pts ea = 100 pts / count 5 of 7): There will be a series of quizzes over the
course of the semester. The quizzes will cover assigned reading and research materials.
The quizzes will not be announced in advanced, so you will need to be prepared for each
class session. The quizzes will consist of approximately ten multiple choice and true/false
questions aimed at assessing your basic understanding of the concepts covered in the
material. Material from the readings, lectures, and exercises since the last quiz may be
included on the quizzes (quizzes are not cumulative). If you are late to class, you will be
allowed to take the quiz, but you will be required to finish at the same time as the rest of the
class (you will not get extra time for being late). If you are so late that you miss the quiz, you
have missed your opportunity to take the quiz. At the end of the semester I will drop your
lowest two quiz score and use the remaining five scores to calculate your grade. This
means that you get two free misses before being penalized. If you miss a quiz you’re not
allowed to make it up, it simply counts as one of your lowest scores. A student caught
cheating on a quiz will receive an “F” for the course, and my recommendation to UNCW
Student Affairs Office for further disciplinary action.

Mid-Term Examination (125 pts): There will be a mid-term examination that covers all of
the material presented during the first half of the course. The exam will be given during a
regularly scheduled class session.

Final Examination (125 pts): There will be a cumulative final examination that covers all
of the material presented during the course. The final exam will be designed to assess

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your understanding of the key concepts, issues and learning objectives associated with
the EBD 380 curriculum. The exam will be given on final exam week in the time period
allotted under the UNCW final examination schedule.

Attendance Policy:
In order to be successful in this course you will need to be present and prepared! I do not
require attendance (except for certain classes –see schedule) and I will not keep an
active log of attendance. However, I am very conscious of who is in class and the class is
designed to facilitate the transfer of key knowledge. This means that if you are not in
class you will MISS a great deal of information and that information will not be available
by other means. As such, you will find the quizzes, exams, and assignments to be very
difficult if you have not attended class. My recommendation is that make attending this
class a priority if you wish to do well.

Make-up Policy:
Make-up exams are rarely authorized. In order to receive a make-up exam the student
would need to receive formal written approval in advance from the instructor. This means
that if an extreme situation arises that will keep you from taking an exam then you must
contact me before the exam. Proper documentation of the pertinent situation will be
required for make-up exam authorization. If you miss an exam without prior authorization
you will receive an automatic "0" for that exam.

Course Conduct Policy:

This course is designed not only to teach you Entrepreneurship, but to also help prepare
you for your future in the business environment. In my experience, businesses and
individuals that are successful in business are professional in their attitude and behavior.
Therefore, our classroom climate will reflect one of respect and professionalism. This
means the following is expected:
- Be to class on time.
- Turn-off cell phones, IPODs, blackberries etc during class – no texting!
- Refrain from playing with laptops or surfing the internet (if this becomes a problem I
will ban laptops from the classroom).
- Be prepared for class by reading assigned materials.
- Meet all course deadlines
- Refrain from talking to each other while discussions are in progress and generally
behave professionally towards classmates.
- Actively participate in class discussions.
- Create a safe learning environment. This means that each student should be able to

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 express their views without fear of personal attack. Critique the ideas and not the
person!
- E-mail correspondence with the professor and your fellow students is to be
professional. The tone and language should be respectful, grammar and spelling
should be correct, and the message should be concise. The point is that e-mail
communication is standard in the business world, but you need to practice being
professional in your e-mail communications.
- As a student at UNCW you are pledged to uphold and support the UNCW Student
Academic Honor Code. As a student of this course you are expected to put integrity
before personal gain. The UNCW honor code is as follows:
The University of North Carolina Wilmington is a community of high academic standards
where academic integrity is valued. UNCW students are committed to honesty and truthfulness
in academic inquiry and in the pursuit of knowledge. This commitment begins when new
students matriculate at UNCW, continues as they create work of the highest quality while part
of the university community, and endures as a core value throughout their lives.

Guidelines in support of the Honor Code, including definitions of cheating and plagiarism,
may be found at: http://www.uncw.edu/policies/documents/03_100FINALHONORCODE_Aug2009.pdf

Students who fail to adhere to the honor code or violate university policy (e.g.,
plagiarism / cheating) will receive an F for the course and be referred to student affairs
for appropriate disciplinary action.

Non-Disclosure Agreement
To enhance the learning experience and obtain the maximum value from this
entrepreneurship course, business ideas may be discussed and shared during the
semester. Sharing your concept is an important part of entrepreneurship, but equally
important is protecting your business ideas. In order to create a protected and
comfortable classroom environment for sharing and discussing business ideas each
student in the course, as well as the professor, will sign a non-disclosure agreement
during the first week. These agreements will be kept on file by the professor for a period
of four years. This agreement will legally prohibit students from using other classmates
ideas without proper consent and talking about any of the business ideas discussed in the
classroom with anyone outside of the class. If for any reason you are not comfortable with
the non-disclosure process it is recommended that you meet with the professor and
consider other alternatives.

EBD Course Schedule – Fall 2009*

Week Dates Course Topics Preparation1 Assignments/Notes

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1 Jan 7 Course Introduction and Overview Read Syllabus

2 Jan 12 Introduction to Entrepreneurship

Jan 14 The Entrepreneurial Process Text pgs. 1-36 NDA’s Signed By Students
Case: Seattle Biodiesel (p.32)
3 Jan 19 Opportunity Recognition and Idea Generation

Jan 21 Opportunity Recognition and Idea Generation Text pgs. 37-70

Case: Intellifit (p.65)
4 Jan 26 Feasibility Analysis

Jan 28 Feasibility Analysis & Elevator Pitch Text pgs. 71-102 Venture Concept Brief Due
Case: Intuit (p.99)
5 Feb 2 Elevator Pitch Presentations**
2 Min Elevator Pitch Presentation
Feb 4 Elevator Pitch Presentations**

6 Feb 9 Entrepreneurial Teams

Feb 11 Entrepreneurial Team Exercise (Toxic) Text pgs. 103-132 Interview of Entrepreneur Due
Case: Nectar Therap. (p. 125)
7 Feb 16 Intellectual Property

Feb 18 Intellectual Property & Mid-term review Text pgs. 165-198 Case: You Make the Call (p.195)

8 Feb 23 Mid – Term Examination

Feb 25 Guest Speaker**

9 Mar 2 The Business Plan Text pgs. 133-164 Case: Pandora (p. 161)
Mar 4 The Business Plan Text pgs. 133-164

10 Mar 9 Spring break –no class

Mar 11 Spring break – no class

11 Mar 16 Industry & Competitor Analysis Text pgs. 231-262 Case: Panera Bread (p. 256)

Mar 18 Developing an Effective Business Model Text pgs. 263-294 Case: Ikea and ProFlowers (p.
290)
12 Mar 23 CSB Business Week –no class

Mar 25 Financial Literacy Posted material Case: Dell (p. 358)

13 Mar 30 Entrepreneurial Finance Text pgs. 329-362 Case: Dell (p. 358)

Apr 1 Securing Financing and Funding Text pgs. 363-396 Case: Google (p. 392)

14 Apr 6 Proper Ethical & Legal Foundation Text pgs. 199-230 Case: Preparing a Proper Legal
Foundation (p. 225)

Apr 8 Buying a Business Posted material Summary Business Plan Due

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Preparation means that the assigned reading should be completed prior to the class assigned.

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 15 Apr 13 Guest Speaker**

Apr 15 Taking the Franchise Route Text pgs. 397-433

16 Apr 20 Overview of Social Entrepreneurship Posted material

Apr 22 Review Session for Final Exam

Apr 27 Reading Day

Final Apr 28 – Final Examinations

Exam May 4th
Class

*Schedule is tentative and subject to change at the discretion of the professor

** Attendance is required