MSc: Founder project

Founder_Project

• Course name: Founder_Project
• Code discipline:
• Subject area: Technical Entrepreneurship

Short Description

This course is a combination of mentorship and workshops created for the support and development of a student-founder during his study. All workshops are practically oriented and help to systematize and practically imply all knowledge and skills. Moreover, the workshop has an important psychological meaning for a founder - they are designed to help to reflect, get the answers for important questions and overcome the challenges. Individual work with mentors is combined with group meetings where students progress the creation of their community of the founders and can share their opinions, thoughts, etc. In addition to that, the workshops are targeting to train founders to effectively face important events/cases (“critical incidents”) that happen in their entrepreneurial life.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite subjects

• N/A

Prerequisite topics

• Progress check-up, Q&A session, Critical incidents (CI) analysis, Reflection and feedback
• Management of a startup: key issues
• Soft and hard skills of a founder

Course Topics

Course Sections and Topics

Section	Topics within the section
Section 1: Basic	Basic for all topics: Progress check-up Q&A session Critical incidents (CI) analysis Reflection and feedback Main topics for the workshops: Being an entrepreneur: challenges and advantages How to work with a mentor Science and entrepreneurship: synergy effect Step by step to success: how to measure your business progress Developing entrepreneurial thinking Self presentation and pitching Techniques of self-effectiveness for an entrepreneur Business mission: creating value on the market Planning and strategic projecting Teambuilding Problem-solving and flexibility in entrepreneurship Customer relationships Rise and fall”: how to learn from your mistakes Work/life balance for an entrepreneur Where to find inspiration and to inspire others in business
Section 2: Advanced	Basic for all topics: Progress check-up Q&A session Critical incidents (CI) analysis Reflection and feedback Main topics for the workshops: Forming entrepreneurial identity: how to face CI effectively Entrepreneurial strategies Competitiveness and high professional value of a startup founder Mentorship and advisory for a startup Investor relationship Community management of IT-entrepreneur Implementation of a business model: flexibility and adaptation Team building and human potential development Networking: how to add and create value Finance and money attitude of a startup founder Client orientation Pitch-deck design and pitching to various audiences Startup founder as a seller Risk-management for an IT-startup Creating brand that matters: how to make a valuable impact

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

What is the main purpose of this course?

The main purpose of this course is to enable a student to progress with the development of the business project effectively dealing with a mentor and participating in workshops on main topics needed for a startup founder.

ILOs defined at three levels

Level 1: What concepts should a student know/remember/explain?

By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...

• know what is a progress check up, Critical incident, reflection in entrepreneurship,
• explain main management concepts for a startup
• explain all basic elements needed for a project realization
• explain challenges and advantages of being a startup founder
• know what is entrepreneurial thinking and how to develop it,
• basic concepts of working with mentor

Level 2: What basic practical skills should a student be able to perform?

By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...

• deal with a mentor and advisors,
• use scientific research in business,
• measure business progress,
• do self presentation and pitching,
• create a business mission,
• plan and do strategic projecting
• team building,
• perform problem-solving and flexibility,
• manage customer relationships,
• get right conclusions from the mistakes,
• organize work/life balance,
• to inspire others in business,
• face CI effectively using various entrepreneurial strategies,
• provide startup and self-competitiveness,
• manage with investors,
• do networking and community management
• pitch to different audiences,
• implement client orientation to their company,
• risk-management,
• branding.

Level 3: What complex comprehensive skills should a student be able to apply in real-life scenarios?

By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...

• Check the progress of a startup, make a reflection, face with the main critical incidents for a founder
• Effectively deal with a mentor, participate in the student business community providing a value,
• Develop a founder project systematizing all concepts and using all basic elements of startup management.

Grading

Course grading range

Grade	Range	Description of performance
A. Excellent	90-100	-
B. Good	75-89	-
C. Satisfactory	60-74	-
D. Fail	0-59	-

Course activities and grading breakdown

Activity Type	Percentage of the overall course grade
Assignment	50
Quizzes	15
Peer review	15
Demo day	20

Recommendations for students on how to succeed in the course

Participation is important. Showing up is the key to success in this course.
You will work in teams, so coordinating teamwork will be an important factor for success. This is also reflected in the peer review being a graded item.
Review lecture materials before classes to do well in quizzes.
Reading the recommended literature is optional, and will give you a deeper understanding of the material.

Resources, literature and reference materials

Open access resources

• Five insightful TED talks every startup founder should watch
• How to find a mentor
• How to succeed with a statup
• How to build a future https://www.ycombinator.com/library/6G-how-to-build-the-future

Closed access resources

• The 23 Best Books for Startup Founders at Any Stage https://visible.vc/blog/books-for-founders/

Teaching Methodology: Methods, techniques, & activities

Activities and Teaching Methods

Teaching and Learning Methods within each section

Teaching Techniques	Section 1	Section 2
Problem-based learning (students learn by solving open-ended problems without a strictly-defined solution)	1	1
Project-based learning (students work on a project)	1	1
Contextual learning (activities and tasks are connected to the real world to make it easier for students to relate to them);	1	1
Business game (learn by playing a game that incorporates the principles of the material covered within the course).	1	1
развивающего обучения (задания и материал "прокачивают" ещё нераскрытые возможности студентов);	1	1
концентрированного обучения (занятия по одной большой теме логически объединяются);	1	1
inquiry-based learning	1	1
Just-in-time teaching	1	1

Activities within each section

Learning Activities	Section 1	Section 2
Lab exercises	1	1
Cases studies	1	1
Individual Projects	1	1
Group projects	1	1
Discussions	1	1
Presentations by students	1	1
Simulations and role-plays	1	1
Oral Reports	1	1

Formative Assessment and Course Activities

Ongoing performance assessment

Section 1

Activity Type	Content	Is Graded?
Individual and group reflection	Progress check-up Q&A session Critical incidents (CI) analysis Reflection and feedback	1
Training	Business training on the topic of the workshop with the aim to concept understanding, the skills development, knowledge systematization and practical implementation.	0
Group project	5-minutes group pitches on the topic of the current class. Suggested structure: - What is the main problem a Founder can face here? - What are the main techniques/instruments he can use? - What are the main strategies of implementation? - What is a practical value? - What else can we propose?	1
Individual presentation	Students make presentations showing the ways of practical implementation of the business aspect that was discussed in current class into their startup.	1

Section 2

Activity Type	Content	Is Graded?
Individual and group reflection	Progress check-up Q&A session Critical incidents (CI) analysis Reflection and feedback	1
Training	Business training on the topic of the workshop with the aim to concept understanding, the skills development, knowledge systematization and practical implementation.	0
Group project	5-minutes group pitches on the topic of the current class. Suggested structure: - What is the main problem a Founder can face here? - What are the main techniques/instruments he can use? - What are the main strategies of implementation? - What is a practical value? - What else can we propose?	1
Individual presentation	Students make presentations showing the ways of practical implementation of the business aspect that was discussed in current class into their startup.	1

Final assessment

Section 1

1. Grading criteria for the final project presentation:
2. The student shows his ability to measure business progress, reflect and make conclusions,
3. The student can show that he can face main business critical incidents effectively using various strategies,
4. Students show that his dealing with a mentor is productive,
5. Demonstrates effective practical implementation of the following concepts/issues: implementation of scientific work into business practice, business mission, strategical projecting, team building, problem-solving and flexibility, customer relationship, work/life balance.
6. Performs good communication, pitching and presentation skills, inspired by the project, eager to develop it.

Section 2

1. Grading criteria for the final project presentation:
2. The student shows his ability to measure business progress, reflect and make conclusions,
3. The student can show that he can face main business critical incidents effectively using various strategies,
4. Students show that his dealing with a mentor is productive,
5. Demonstrates effective practical implementation of the following concepts/issues: founder’s competitiveness and professional value, investor relationship, community management, business modeling, finance management, networking, team building and human potential management, client orientations, sales, risk-management and branding.
6. Performs good communication, pitching and presentation skills, inspired by the project, eager to develop it.

The retake exam

For the retake, students have to upgrade their final presentation according to the recommendations provided by the professor during their exam.