Ramon Llull University - Barcelona
IQS School of Business (AACSB Accredited)
Forum-Nexus Program
Undergraduate Division
Course Introduction
Entrepreneurship in the 21st century is evolving. Because of global changes in technology, communications, and capital markets, today's innovative startups are building successful companies in countries around the globe, in many instances with investors, vendors, customers, and employees located thousands of miles away. The challenges these leading-edge companies face, particularly in emerging markets, are some of the most sophisticated issues both for businesses and governments alike. These challenges are the focus of the Forum-Nexus class on Global Entrepreneurship.
Many entrepreneurs find it difficult to expand and manage their ventures expanding into the global marketplace. Yet, never before have there been so many interesting and exciting international business opportunities. The movement of the once more controlled economies of the former Eastern and Central Europe, the former USSR, and the People's Republic of China to market orientation, the expansion of the Pacific Rim and South America, and the awakening of countries in the African continent provide a myriad of possibilities for entrepreneurs wanting to launch businesses in a global market as well as for businesses of existing entrepreneurs to expand globally.
Simply defined, the global entrepreneur is one who conducts business activities across national boundaries (executing his or her business model in more than one country). The successful global entrepreneur understands how international business differs from domestic business and is able to respond accordingly. Successful global entrepreneurship needs to take into account the: culture, political and legal environment, economic system and development, technology environment, and the overall infrastructure.
Course Description
This course presents a systematic overview of the opportunities for global entrepreneurship. There will be an integrated progression of topics ranging from understanding the political, economic, cultural and economic influences on international trade and investment flows, to the analysis of the strategic and operational alternatives when conducting international business.
This course introduces a way of thinking called "global mindset for entrepreneurs". Through practical case-studies, team projects and meet-ups with local entrepreneurs and organizations, the students will be exposed to the actual implementation of the topics covered in class on real-life companies.
The course will examine the elements of raising early stage capital, focusing on start-up ventures and the early stages of company development. This course also prepares entrepreneurs to make the best use of outside advisors, and to negotiate effective long-term relationships with funding sources. Working in teams, students interact with entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and other professionals throughout the semester as they work on a team project that ties together course materials.
Course Objectives
Global Entrepreneur class has four specific goals:
To help students learn how to systematically analyze opportunities for global entrepreneurship
To familiarize students with the issues and challenges facing global entrepreneurs.
To provide students with an intensive experience studying "global" startups.
To familiarize students with the power of informal networks and the importance of leveraging networks while working globally.
Upon successful completion of this course students will be able to:
Develop a solid understanding of the foundations of international entrepreneurship and the cultural context for creating companies in diverse international environments
Become familiarized with the causes and consequences of the process of accelerated globalization
Examine the strategies and structures that young firms adopt in order to compete effectively in the international business arena
Examine the policies and practices of entrepreneurs regarding ethics, social responsibility and the environment
Understand changes in technologies and the numerous opportunities they offer for international entrepreneurship
Class Schedule: Topics to cover
Traveling Components of class
Module Week #1: Entrepreneurial conditions in Spain
Module Week #2: Entrepreneurial conditions in France
Module Week #3: Entrepreneurial conditions in Italy
Module Week #4: Entrepreneurial conditions in Greece
Introduction, definitions
Define learning objectives. Class interaction - goal: discover level of international and entrepreneurial experience among students
Define "entrepreneurship", types of entrepreneurs, what is meant by "Global entrepreneurship"?
What are the benefits of global entrepreneurship? What are the challenges? Can small enterprises really go global?
Global strategies vs. Localized strategies: What are some "global industries"? ex: pharmaceuticals, banking, internet, technology, media, film, music, travel
The "entrepreneur mindset"
Importance of critical thinking, idealism, trend awareness, problem solving
The importance of Critical Thinking for innovation
"Fail fast" and "global learning"
The "three questions" framework
Problem solving: "what is the problem, and what are you going to do about it"? Seeking Opportunities by solving problems.
Trend awareness: "What is the trend, and how are you going to get in front of it"? Analyzing trends to find opportunities. Increase student's awareness of global trends, and global business models. Look for global changes in technology, communications, capital markets, regulations, consumer tastes, credit availability, technology and more; and how they create opportunities for entrepreneurs
Localizing business models: WIWH: "would it work here": a look at what is great here / somewhere else, and a systematic approach to analyzing potential of localizing foreign business models.
Localizing / Internationalizing
International IQ: global awareness, and the opportunities for global entrepreneurs.
Mass-Localization vs. Globalization: What is the difference?
Localization of foreign business models and technology.
A systematic approach to analyzing the risks and opportunities; looking at cultural differences, regulatory differences, consumer behavior, tastes, income levels, and more in the process of evaluating localizing strategies.
Benchmarking, and best practices for international inspiration
The "global mindset" for entrepreneurs
Globalizing: Learning to "think global, act global": Going-global strategies for local entrepreneurs
The challenges of thinking globally for small companies
Understanding the difference between Global strategies, International strategies, Multinational strategies, and transnational ones.
Finance: Role of global finance for entrepreneurship
Economic development through innovation and entrepreneurship
Development through transfers of technology and business models
Geographic Clusters of innovation: What makes Silicon Valley work?
Is India the next emerging competitor to Silicon Valley?
VC and innovation clusters - Silicon Valley, Boston, Israel. What's missing in Europe? Latin America? A look at cultural, political, and economics issues.
Innovation Eco-systems: innovative potential of places
Social Entrepreneurship - international focus
Development & Entrepreneurism: Social entrepreneurship, credit to the poor, bottom of the pyramid marketing, making technology affordable
Management challenges for global entrepreneurs
Leadership skills, time, money
Developing international leadership skills
Managing across borders - challenges for small companies
Building international teams
Selling in unfamiliar cultures, languages
Developing the Global Business Plan - Sample Global Business
Purpose of a global business plan
The idea and its competition
The market and its opportunity
Entrepreneur and the team
Managing the Global Entrepreneurship Enterprise
Global Monetary System
Global Marketing & R&D
Global Human Resource Management
Implementing and Managing a Global Entrepreneurial Strategy
Global Family Business
Course Requirements
The course requires active student participation. Students are expected to read the assigned textbook chapters, cases and articles before every class. Punctual attendance is required. There will be a midterm exam, a final exam, case studies, and a team project.
Teaching Procedures and Methodology
Teaching methods used in this course include lectures, case discussions, team assignments, and professional visits. Learning in this course requires the student's constructive participation and active involvement in both class discussions and small group discussions. Small group discussions, in particular, are a key mechanism for facilitating learning from other team members. Thus, it is essential to attend all group activities inside and outside classes. The corporate visits will expose the participants to different aspects of the class and will highlight the practical relevance of the concepts learned. The visits will be accompanied by individual or group assignments.
Language Requirements
All classes, group projects and professional visits are conducted in English. The reason that English is important for this class: in order for students to be able to take advantage of global entrepreneurship opportunities, it should be stressed the importance of being aware of technological, scientific and global business trends, many of which are available first online in English-language formats .
Required Readings
Textbook
"International Entrepreneurship; Starting, Developing and Managing a Global Venture", Robert D. Hisrich, Sage Publication, February 2009
Articles
"Silicon Valley: How it really works" Business Week, August 1997
"Entrepreneurs from China Flourish in Africa", Howard W. French and Lydia Polgreen. The New York Times, August 18, 2007, Late Edition, sec. A1.
"The Central Role of Entrepreneurs in Transition Economies", John McMillan and Christopher Woodruff, Journal of Economic Perspectives 16, no. 3 (2002): 153-170.
"Entrepreneurship: Productive, Unproductive, and Destructive", by William Baumol, Journal of Political Economy 98, no. 5 (1990): 893-921.
Case Studies
Dell case study, Intel case study
Facebook international financing case study
Sumpplementary Readings
"European startups need to work as hard as valley ones or forget it" by Tech Crunch Europe
"India is morphing into a global R&D hub, but can it ever take on Silicon Valley"? by Vivek Wadhwa, Tech Crunch, November 14, 2009
"Startup Ecosystems Take Time" by Fred Wilson, VC and principal of Union Square Ventures.
Porter, Michael E. "The Competitive Advantage of Nations" Harvard Business Review, March-April 1990
Porter, Michael E. "Clusters and the New Economics of Competition" Harvard Business Review, November-December 1998
Supplementary Videos
Entrepreneurship | Video Courses on Academic Earth
Team Project
This team project is designed to provide you with a sound understanding of how entrepreneurs that engage in international business apply the concepts discussed in class to make real-life business decisions. Your team assumes the role of consultants that will advise the chosen company on some critical issues related to expanding into a new market. Teams will be made up of 3-4 students each. Students will be asked to market a good or service from one country (not the student's home country) to another country (also not the student's home country).
The project report should be between 6 and 8 pages long (Font: Arial, 12; Line Spacing: 1.5).
The project must include the following sections:
Product and Company Selection
Select a product or service that at least one members of the team has a specific knowledge about and is currently marketed in a foreign country. Describe the product, the manufacturer, and the international business orientation of the firm.
Market Analysis
Research the possibility of bringing that product/ service to another country (localizing the foreign business). Elaborate a market analysis in which you examine the competitive, economical and political environment that will impact the future success of your product and company there. Focus on the aspects of these environments that are most relevant to your company and product.
Market Entry Strategy
After selecting a product and analyzing the target market, evaluate the different market entry strategies available. Assume that the company does not merely want to export its product to the given market, but has plans to develop a more strategic approach to entering this market.
Location
As part of your analysis in part III, make sure to suggest one or more particular cities or regions that will play a role in your proposed strategy. Describe the advantages of the proposed locations in terms of operations and distribution among others.
The detailed schedule of classes and professional visits for each session is available online at www.forum-nexus.com/schedules Please note that this course will be offered as a Section 1 class.
Academic Integrity
The Ramon Llull University places a high value on the integrity, good conduct and academic honesty of all students. Students are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity at all times. Any instance of academic dishonesty, including plagiarism, will result in a grade of F for the course.
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