In this course we will introduce you to some of the accounting and financial management techniques that any entrepreneur inside - or outside - an organization needs to successfully launch a new idea. All entrepreneurial initiatives including new business ventures, social innovations, and new products or processes go through a four-stage entrepreneurial cycle. The stages are: (1) develop; (2) test feasibility and plan; (3) launch; and (4) scale, grow and sustain. This course introduces accounting analysis needed at each of the various stages.
The course is action- oriented and provides students the opportunity to test the financial feasibility of a new opportunity, test its financial impact, develop a financially credible business plan, and examine the financial consequences of proposed actions. It teaches students to develop an entrepreneurial initiative into either a profitable or economically sustainable venture.
This course does not call for a great deal of prior accounting knowledge and is not designed for individuals who wish to be accounting or finance professionals. We assume that students have basic familiarity with accounting terminology and concepts, and we provide access to background resources for students who lack that background.
This will be an interactive course, requiring not only individual learning but also teamwork for completion. You will learn from short video lectures, online discussion of practice exercises, examples from the real world, team discussions, and feedback from team members.