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= Market Research for IT Startups =
−
= Introduction to Career Development =
  
−
* '''Course name''': Introduction to Career Development
 +
* '''Course name''': Market Research for IT Startups
−
* '''Code discipline''': R-01
 +
* '''Code discipline''':
−
* '''Subject area''': Humanities
 +
* '''Subject area''': Technological Entrepreneurship
   
 
== Short Description ==
  
== Short Description ==
  +
This course is for students who see themselves as entrepreneurs. The course is designed for the early development of business ideas and provides methods and guidelines for business research. The course teaches how to assess the potential of business ideas, hypothesis thinking, methods for generating ideas and testing their quality
−
The course provides students with an opportunity to learn and develop the necessary skills to engage in career planning and choice.
  
−
During the course students will learn how to write selling CVs and Cover letters, how successfully pass job interviewы, how to sell themselves and how to negotiate for salary. On top of that we will cover personal brand development and career planning. We will go through the Labor Law so that they can stand up for their rights.
  
−
We will also cover microeconomics and then dive deeper on to micro level and, particularly, how students as engineers can contribute to the business. We will cover corporate culture, manipulation and boundaries violations, so that students could assert their boundaries to others at workplace.
  
−
By the end of the course, students will have a clear answer to a question what value they can bring to the company, how they differentiate themselves, how they stand out from the crowd.
  
−
The key concepts are sales, negotiation, personal brand, value proposition, competitive advantage, corporate culture, motivation.
  
−
We will practice a lot by running mock interviews and salary negotiations.
  
−
By the end of the course, students will have a written CV, a Cover letter, a personal brand statement, and a profile on hh.ru or Linkedin.
  
   
 
== Prerequisites ==
  
== Prerequisites ==
   
 
=== Prerequisite subjects ===
  
=== Prerequisite subjects ===
−
* n/a
 +
* N/A
   
 
=== Prerequisite topics ===
  
=== Prerequisite topics ===
−
* n/a
 +
* N/A
   
 
== Course Topics ==
  
== Course Topics ==
Line 28: Line 22:
 
! Section !! Topics within the section
  
! Section !! Topics within the section
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Ideation tools ||
−
| Soft skills and Personal Brand ||
 
  +
# Art VS Creativity
−
# Soft skills and Networking
  
  +
# Ability to discover
−
# Self-confidence and Body language
  
  +
# How to generate ideas
−
# Personal Brand
  
  +
# Creativity sources
−
# Leadership skills
  
  +
# Ideation in groups
  +
# Rules for ideation for startups
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Market research content ||
−
| How to write CV/Resume/Cover letter and pass job interviews ||
 
  +
# Types of research: primary vs secondary
−
# CV
  
  +
# How to plan a research
−
# Cover letter
  
  +
# Market research chapters content
−
# Types of Job interviews, types of questions in an interview
  
  +
# Frameworks used in a market research (SWOT, Persona, etc)
−
# What business needs, and how engineers can contribute to business
  
  +
# Tools and sources to conduct a competitors analysis
−
# Sales and Negotiation
  
−
# Negotiation for salary and pay rise
  
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Work environment ||
+
| Customer development ||
  +
# Interviews are the main tool for “Get Out The Building” technique
−
# Corporate culture
  
  +
# The "Mum's Test"
−
# Manipulation and boundaries violation
  
  +
# Jobs-To-Be-Done
−
# Labor law
  
  +
# Good and bad interview questions
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Career development paths ||
+
| Market sizing ||
  +
# Market analysis VS market sizing
−
# What is capitalization and monetization
  
  +
# Sizing stakeholders and their interests
−
# Career choice. Career paths
  
  +
# Sizing methods
−
# How to transform career
  
  +
# TAM SAM SOM calculation examples
−
# Slash careers
  
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Data for a research ||
  +
# Sources and tools for competitors overview
  +
# Sources and tools for product and traffic analysis
  +
# Sources and tools for trend watching
  +
# Life hacks for search
  +
|-
  +
| Founder motivation ||
  +
# Ways to Stay Motivated as an Entrepreneur
  +
# Exercises for founders motivation
  +
|-
  +
| Pitch Day ||
  +
# Market research results presentations
  +
|}
  +
 
== Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) ==
  
== Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) ==
   
 
=== What is the main purpose of this course? ===
  
=== What is the main purpose of this course? ===
  +
This course aims to give students theoretical knowledge and practical skills on how to assess market potential at an early stage of an IT startup (or any company) development. The ultimate goal is to teach students to conduct market research for their business.
−
What is the main goal of this course formulated in one sentence?
  
−
The main goal of this course is to help students gain skills to sell themselves during job and negotiate for salary, and have mindset that they need to drive their career
  
   
 
=== ILOs defined at three levels ===
  
=== ILOs defined at three levels ===
Line 63: Line 72:
 
==== Level 1: What concepts should a student know/remember/explain? ====
  
==== Level 1: What concepts should a student know/remember/explain? ====
 
By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...
  
By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...
  +
* Market research techniques using open data,
−
* Understand macroeconomics and economy of organizations on high level and what the main goal of organizations is
  
  +
* Typology of market assessment methods,
−
* Understand concepts of manipulation and boundaries violation
  
  +
* Types of research data and their application,
−
* Know the Labor Law of Russia
  
  +
* Market research components: competitors overview, value proposition, trend watching, venture status, business models, buyers profile etc
−
* Differentiate between sales and negotiation
  
−
* Understand how hiring process in organisations
  
−
* Explain what personal brand is and how to build it
  
−
* Elaborate on soft skills and why they are important
  
   
 
==== Level 2: What basic practical skills should a student be able to perform? ====
  
==== 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 ...
  
By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...
  +
* Methods of ideation,
−
* Focus on soft skills and personal development
  
  +
* TAM SAM SOM method, 2 approaches,
−
* Define the structure of CVs and Cover letters or Motivation letters
  
  +
* Applied tools and resources for market sizing,
−
* Define the structure of hiring process and job interviews
  
  +
* Principles to work with business hypotheses
−
* Develop personal brand
  
−
* Increase their contribution to business
  
   
 
==== Level 3: What complex comprehensive skills should a student be able to apply in real-life scenarios? ====
  
==== 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 ...
  
By the end of the course, the students should be able to ...
  +
* Identify and describe the market
−
* Write CVs and Cover letters or Motivation letters
  
  +
* Assess market potential for any business idea
−
* Go through job interview, sell themselves and negotiate for salary and land a job
  
  +
* Conduct relevant market research before starting up a business
−
* Clearly answer questions by telling the story: Tell me about yourself
  
  +
* Use the most relevant and high-quality data for a market research
−
* Explicitly answer the questions: Why should we hire you? What value can you bring to business?
  
  +
−
* Plan their careers
  
−
* Reinforce their personal brand
 
 
== Grading ==
  
== Grading ==
   
Line 95: Line 99:
 
! Grade !! Range !! Description of performance
  
! Grade !! Range !! Description of performance
 
|-
  
|-
−
| A. Excellent || 85-100 || -
 +
| A. Excellent || 85.0-100.0 || -
 
|-
  
|-
−
| B. Good || 70-84 || -
 +
| B. Good || 70.0-84.0 || -
 
|-
  
|-
−
| C. Satisfactory || 50-69 || -
 +
| C. Satisfactory || 50.0-69.0 || -
 
|-
  
|-
−
| D. Fail || 0-49 || -
 +
| D. Fail || 0.0-50.0 || -
 
|}
  
|}
   
Line 110: Line 114:
 
! Activity Type !! Percentage of the overall course grade
  
! Activity Type !! Percentage of the overall course grade
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Paper #0: Market research structure || 0-10 scale (costs 10% final)
−
| Final assignment (Exam) || 50
  
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Paper #1: TAM SAM SOM || 0-10 scale (costs 20% final)
−
| CV || 15
  
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Workshops activity || 3 points for each of 7 workshops: 1 point=participation, 2 points=discussion, 3 points=valuable results (costs 21% final)
−
| Cover Letter || 15
  
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Paper #2: Market research || 0-10 scale (costs 30% final)
−
| Profile on LinkedIn || 10
  
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Final Presentation || 0-10 scale (costs 20% final)
−
| Attendance more than 90% of lectures || 5
  
−
|-
  
−
| Active engagement, the class vote || 5
  
 
|}
  
|}
   
 
=== Recommendations for students on how to succeed in the course ===
  
=== Recommendations for students on how to succeed in the course ===
  +
Participation is important. Showing up and participating in discussions is the key to success in this course.<br>Students work in teams, so coordinating teamwork will be an important factor for success.<br>Reading the provided materials is mandatory, as lectures will mainly consist of discussions and reflections not slides or reading from scratch.<br>The main assignment in the course is Market research paper which is supposed to be useful not only for this course but s a basis for future business oriented courses
−
na
  
   
 
== Resources, literature and reference materials ==
  
== Resources, literature and reference materials ==
   
 
=== Open access resources ===
  
=== Open access resources ===
  +
* - article with reflections on the methodology book on the 55 typical business models
−
* Ted Talk by Amy Cuddy ‘Your body language may shape who you are’
  
  +
* - a book with instructions on how to communicate with your potential users. How to conduct interviews so that you understand what the client wants to say and not what you want to hear.
−
* Tone Crabbe, How to thrive in a world of too much
  
  +
* - the case book on the Jobs To Be Done. With JTBD, we can make predictions about which products will be in demand in the market and which will not. The idea behind the theory is that people don't buy products, but "hire" them to perform certain jobs.
−
* Useful presentation phrases
  
  +
* A selection of with a summary of key ideas from Harvard Business Review
−
* The Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs at Stanford University, 2005
  
  +
* F. Sesno "" - the book on how to get information out of people through questions.
−
* The Labour Code of the Russian Federation
  
  +
* a visual guide book to dealing with your inner procrastinator
   
 
=== Closed access resources ===
  
=== Closed access resources ===
  +
* Crunchbase.com
−  
  +
* Statista.com
   
 
=== Software and tools used within the course ===
  
=== Software and tools used within the course ===
  +
* Boardofinnovation.com
−
* Provide at least 3 open/freemium access tools
  
  +
* Miro.com
−
* na
 
  +
* Notion.com
  +
* MS Teams
  +
 
= Teaching Methodology: Methods, techniques, & activities =
  
= Teaching Methodology: Methods, techniques, & activities =
   
 
== Activities and Teaching Methods ==
  
== Activities and Teaching Methods ==
  +
{| class="wikitable"
  +
|+ Teaching and Learning Methods within each section
  +
|-
  +
! Teaching Techniques !! Section 1 !! Section 2 !! Section 3 !! Section 4 !! Section 5 !! Section 6 !! Section 7
  +
|-
  +
| Problem-based learning (students learn by solving open-ended problems without a strictly-defined solution) || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Project-based learning (students work on a project) || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Differentiated learning (provide tasks and activities at several levels of difficulty to fit students needs and level) || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 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 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Business game (learn by playing a game that incorporates the principles of the material covered within the course). || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
  +
|-
  +
| inquiry-based learning || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
  +
|}
 
{| class="wikitable"
  
{| class="wikitable"
 
|+ Activities within each section
  
|+ Activities within each section
 
|-
  
|-
−
! Learning Activities !! Section 1 !! Section 2 !! Section 3 !! Section 4
 +
! Learning Activities !! Section 1 !! Section 2 !! Section 3 !! Section 4 !! Section 5 !! Section 6 !! Section 7
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Lectures || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 +
| Interactive Lectures || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Interactive Lectures || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 +
| Lab exercises || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 0
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Quizzes (written or computer based) || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0
 +
| Group projects || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Peer Review || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 +
| Flipped classroom || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 0
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Discussions || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 +
| Discussions || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 
|-
  
|-
−
| Simulations and role-plays || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1
 +
| Presentations by students || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Oral Reports || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Cases studies || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 0
  +
|-
  +
| Experiments || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0
  +
|-
  +
| Written reports || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0
  +
|-
  +
| Individual Projects || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0
  +
|-
  +
| Peer Review || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1
  +
|}
  +
 
== Formative Assessment and Course Activities ==
  
== Formative Assessment and Course Activities ==
   
Line 171: Line 208:
 
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Discussion || Difference between Art and Creativity. Examples from your personal experience <br> Tools to manage your attention: work with exercises above <br> Is it true that an ideation stage is the very first step to take when starting your own business? If not, what needs to be done before? <br> Idea diary: share your experience, was it useful? How to keep motivation to continue? <br> Sharing your business ideas: is it risky for a founder? Why? <br> Name and discuss principles of hypothesis thinking <br> Name and comment on ideation tool you know. Did you have an experience with it? <br> Where to take creativity? Your advice <br> Lets find examples of “Steal like an artist” approach among startups <br> Create a list of 5 business ideas you have ever had in your mind. Choose 1 and make an exhaustive list of the problems that are associated with the proposed business idea. || 0
−
| Test || 1. Describe the difference between hard skills and soft skills.<br>2. List soft skills<br>3. List communication skills<br>4. What is the key concept about Body Language described by Amy Cuddy? How does our body language govern how we think and feel about ourselves?<br>5. List hygienic and non-hygienic factors as per Herzberg Theory<br>6. Write down your personal brand statement<br>7. List leadership skills || 0
  
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Workshop || Break into teams, choose from the list below 1 tool to work with. Use the templates to create new business ideas. Summarize the results. Share your results and experience of using the template with other teams || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Exercise || Start an "Idea diary" (not necessarily business ideas): create a convenient place for notes (notion, pinterest, instagram, paper notebook, etc.). Note the time/place/circumstances of ideas coming, learn to write down ideas. Draw conclusions from 1 week's work: where, when, how, why new ideas arise and whether you can manage their flow. || 0
  +
|}
  +
 
==== Section 2 ====
  
==== Section 2 ====
 
{| class="wikitable"
  
{| class="wikitable"
Line 179: Line 221:
 
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Discussion || What are the basic steps in market research? <br> What are the commonly used market research methods? <br> What research question types can be asked in surveys? <br> Should startup prefer primary or secondary research? || 0
−
| Quiz || What is difference between sales and negotiation?<br>What comes first and why?<br>What is BATNA?<br>Why is BATNA important?<br>What does ‘bargain over position’ mean?<br>Describe the concept of fairness in negotiation<br>What is ZOPA? <br>Why do you need to define ZOPA?<br>What does STAR stand for? <br>Revision: how do we answer to objections and how we answer if we are asked about salary expectations.<br>What are businesses’ key objectives?<br>What value can you bring to business? || 0
  
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Workshop || SWOT analysis: compare your business idea with competitors and market situation <br> Get familiar with industry trends and reports: Find and create a list of 3 to 5 business research papers or trend reports in your industry || 0
−
| Quiz || Objections – Answers<br>Salary expectations - Answers || 0
  
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Home written assignment || Market research doc: create a structure that is: <br> 1-2 pages long <br> Describes your business idea <br> Contains the structure of your future research <br> Contains a list of questions to answer during the research for each chapter proposed <br> Contains links and references to data sources potentilly interesting to use in a research <br> Its feasible: it should be a chance you may answer all the questions stated in the doc <br> The doc format is designed and well structured || 1
  +
|}
  +
 
==== Section 3 ====
  
==== Section 3 ====
 
{| class="wikitable"
  
{| class="wikitable"
Line 189: Line 234:
 
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Oral test || Good or bad interview question? <br> Useful or useless feedback? || 0
−
| Quiz || Na || 0
  
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Workshop || Work on your customer profile using the Persona template. Make a client interview script with the help of the Problem-validation-script. || 1
  +
|-
  +
| Case study || Watch the video with the case study. This is an example of HOW NOT to take a customer discovery interview. Discuss what went wrong? || 0
  +
|}
  +
 
==== Section 4 ====
  
==== Section 4 ====
 
{| class="wikitable"
  
{| class="wikitable"
Line 197: Line 247:
 
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
 
|-
  
|-
  +
| Workshop || Estimate your target market using the TAM-SAM-SOM template in MIRO. Explain the data. || 1
−
| Quiz || Na || 0
  
−
|}
+
|-
  +
| Case study || Learn a market sizing case: online babysitting service || 0
  +
|}
  +
  +
==== Section 5 ====
  +
{| class="wikitable"
  +
|+
  +
|-
  +
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  +
|-
  +
| Workshop || Use 3 tools from this lesson's theory that you are least familiar with or have not used at all. From each source, take one insight on the state of your project's market. (For example, the total size of your target market, a leading competitor, number of users, or a growing trend) || 0
  +
|-
  +
| Oral presentation || Take one tool from the list below and create a “how-to” guide to the service for your classmates. The guide could be done in a form of 1) video-instruction 2) text 3) visualized scheme 4) presentation. The guide must answer how to use a tool and give an example of its use on concrete case study. Studying the guide should take your reader not mach then 15 min. || 1
  +
|}
  +
  +
==== Section 6 ====
  +
{| class="wikitable"
  +
|+
  +
|-
  +
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  +
|-
  +
| Workshop || Exercises: <br> Personal SWOT Analysis <br> List of Personal Achievements <br> Analysis of Motivating Activities <br> Your Personal Vision || 0
  +
|}
  +
  +
==== Section 7 ====
  +
{| class="wikitable"
  +
|+
  +
|-
  +
! Activity Type !! Content !! Is Graded?
  +
|-
  +
| Pitch session || The final Market Research report should follow the structure discussed <br> Content of the oral presentation may include: business description, market overview, main sources used in the research, competitors overview, monetization opportunity, market size, further stages of research or business work, team, comments on some challenges during the work || 1
  +
|}
  +
 
=== Final assessment ===
  
=== Final assessment ===
 
'''Section 1'''
  
'''Section 1'''
  +
# For the final assessment, students should complete the Market Research paper.
−
# Can be a final exam, project defense, or some other equivalent of the final exam.
  
  +
# It should follow the market research paper structure, contain information about market volume (TAM SAM SOM), data must be gathered with help of data sources learnt.
−
# For the final assessment, students go through mock interview. Student are not allowed to take exam if they have not submitted a CV and a Cover Letter.
  
  +
# The paper should refer to market potential and give the basis to make business decisions, answer questions on how to start and develop your idea, what is your business model, target customer persona, product MVP etc.
−
# Final assessment (Exam):
  
  +
# Grading criteria for the final project presentation:
−
# To pass a mock interview – 50%
  
  +
# Market sizing has been carried out
−
# Provide a convincing answer to the question: Tell me about yourself – 10%
  
  +
# Customer segments are named
−
# Not avoid eye contact, communicate clearly and precisely, look friendly, self-confident – 10%
  
  +
# Сompetitor analysis has been conducted
−
# Communicate clearly their brands, what value they can bring to business giving a clear answer to the question Why should we hire you – 15%
  
  +
# At least 2 prominent data sources are used
−
# Negotiate for salary – 15
  
  +
# Customer discovery interviews conducted
  +
# Future steps are mapped out
  +
# The final report is visualized clearly and transparent
 
'''Section 2'''
  
'''Section 2'''
   
Line 214: Line 299:
   
 
'''Section 4'''
  
'''Section 4'''
  +
  +
'''Section 5'''
  +
  +
'''Section 6'''
  +
  +
'''Section 7'''
   
   
 
=== The retake exam ===
  
=== The retake exam ===
 
'''Section 1'''
  
'''Section 1'''
  +
# For the retake, students have to submit the results of the market sizing exercise with the TAM SAM SOM method in the form of a visual framework studied.
−
# The grading criteria are the same as for the final exam
 
 
'''Section 2'''
  
'''Section 2'''
   
Line 224: Line 315:
   
 
'''Section 4'''
  
'''Section 4'''
  +
  +
'''Section 5'''
  +
  +
'''Section 6'''
  +
  +
'''Section 7'''

Latest revision as of 09:50, 29 May 2023

Market Research for IT Startups

  • Course name: Market Research for IT Startups
  • Code discipline:
  • Subject area: Technological Entrepreneurship

Short Description

This course is for students who see themselves as entrepreneurs. The course is designed for the early development of business ideas and provides methods and guidelines for business research. The course teaches how to assess the potential of business ideas, hypothesis thinking, methods for generating ideas and testing their quality

Prerequisites

Prerequisite subjects

  • N/A

Prerequisite topics

  • N/A

Course Topics

Course Sections and Topics
Section Topics within the section
Ideation tools
  1. Art VS Creativity
  2. Ability to discover
  3. How to generate ideas
  4. Creativity sources
  5. Ideation in groups
  6. Rules for ideation for startups
Market research content
  1. Types of research: primary vs secondary
  2. How to plan a research
  3. Market research chapters content
  4. Frameworks used in a market research (SWOT, Persona, etc)
  5. Tools and sources to conduct a competitors analysis
Customer development
  1. Interviews are the main tool for “Get Out The Building” technique
  2. The "Mum's Test"
  3. Jobs-To-Be-Done
  4. Good and bad interview questions
Market sizing
  1. Market analysis VS market sizing
  2. Sizing stakeholders and their interests
  3. Sizing methods
  4. TAM SAM SOM calculation examples
Data for a research
  1. Sources and tools for competitors overview
  2. Sources and tools for product and traffic analysis
  3. Sources and tools for trend watching
  4. Life hacks for search
Founder motivation
  1. Ways to Stay Motivated as an Entrepreneur
  2. Exercises for founders motivation
Pitch Day
  1. Market research results presentations

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

What is the main purpose of this course?

This course aims to give students theoretical knowledge and practical skills on how to assess market potential at an early stage of an IT startup (or any company) development. The ultimate goal is to teach students to conduct market research for their business.

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 ...

  • Market research techniques using open data,
  • Typology of market assessment methods,
  • Types of research data and their application,
  • Market research components: competitors overview, value proposition, trend watching, venture status, business models, buyers profile etc

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 ...

  • Methods of ideation,
  • TAM SAM SOM method, 2 approaches,
  • Applied tools and resources for market sizing,
  • Principles to work with business hypotheses

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 ...

  • Identify and describe the market
  • Assess market potential for any business idea
  • Conduct relevant market research before starting up a business
  • Use the most relevant and high-quality data for a market research

Grading

Course grading range

Grade Range Description of performance
A. Excellent 85.0-100.0 -
B. Good 70.0-84.0 -
C. Satisfactory 50.0-69.0 -
D. Fail 0.0-50.0 -

Course activities and grading breakdown

Activity Type Percentage of the overall course grade
Paper #0: Market research structure 0-10 scale (costs 10% final)
Paper #1: TAM SAM SOM 0-10 scale (costs 20% final)
Workshops activity 3 points for each of 7 workshops: 1 point=participation, 2 points=discussion, 3 points=valuable results (costs 21% final)
Paper #2: Market research 0-10 scale (costs 30% final)
Final Presentation 0-10 scale (costs 20% final)

Recommendations for students on how to succeed in the course

Participation is important. Showing up and participating in discussions is the key to success in this course.
Students work in teams, so coordinating teamwork will be an important factor for success.
Reading the provided materials is mandatory, as lectures will mainly consist of discussions and reflections not slides or reading from scratch.
The main assignment in the course is Market research paper which is supposed to be useful not only for this course but s a basis for future business oriented courses

Resources, literature and reference materials

Open access resources

  • - article with reflections on the methodology book on the 55 typical business models
  • - a book with instructions on how to communicate with your potential users. How to conduct interviews so that you understand what the client wants to say and not what you want to hear.
  • - the case book on the Jobs To Be Done. With JTBD, we can make predictions about which products will be in demand in the market and which will not. The idea behind the theory is that people don't buy products, but "hire" them to perform certain jobs.
  • A selection of with a summary of key ideas from Harvard Business Review
  • F. Sesno "" - the book on how to get information out of people through questions.
  • a visual guide book to dealing with your inner procrastinator

Closed access resources

  • Crunchbase.com
  • Statista.com

Software and tools used within the course

  • Boardofinnovation.com
  • Miro.com
  • Notion.com
  • MS Teams

Teaching Methodology: Methods, techniques, & activities

Activities and Teaching Methods

Teaching and Learning Methods within each section
Teaching Techniques Section 1 Section 2 Section 3 Section 4 Section 5 Section 6 Section 7
Problem-based learning (students learn by solving open-ended problems without a strictly-defined solution) 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Project-based learning (students work on a project) 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Differentiated learning (provide tasks and activities at several levels of difficulty to fit students needs and level) 1 1 1 1 1 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 1 1 1 1 1
Business game (learn by playing a game that incorporates the principles of the material covered within the course). 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
inquiry-based learning 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Activities within each section
Learning Activities Section 1 Section 2 Section 3 Section 4 Section 5 Section 6 Section 7
Interactive Lectures 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Lab exercises 1 1 1 1 1 1 0
Group projects 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
Flipped classroom 1 1 1 1 1 1 0
Discussions 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Presentations by students 1 0 1 0 0 0 1
Oral Reports 1 0 1 0 0 0 1
Cases studies 0 1 0 1 1 1 0
Experiments 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Written reports 0 0 1 0 0 1 0
Individual Projects 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Peer Review 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

Formative Assessment and Course Activities

Ongoing performance assessment

Section 1

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Discussion Difference between Art and Creativity. Examples from your personal experience
Tools to manage your attention: work with exercises above
Is it true that an ideation stage is the very first step to take when starting your own business? If not, what needs to be done before?
Idea diary: share your experience, was it useful? How to keep motivation to continue?
Sharing your business ideas: is it risky for a founder? Why?
Name and discuss principles of hypothesis thinking
Name and comment on ideation tool you know. Did you have an experience with it?
Where to take creativity? Your advice
Lets find examples of “Steal like an artist” approach among startups
Create a list of 5 business ideas you have ever had in your mind. Choose 1 and make an exhaustive list of the problems that are associated with the proposed business idea.		 0
Workshop Break into teams, choose from the list below 1 tool to work with. Use the templates to create new business ideas. Summarize the results. Share your results and experience of using the template with other teams 1
Exercise Start an "Idea diary" (not necessarily business ideas): create a convenient place for notes (notion, pinterest, instagram, paper notebook, etc.). Note the time/place/circumstances of ideas coming, learn to write down ideas. Draw conclusions from 1 week's work: where, when, how, why new ideas arise and whether you can manage their flow. 0

Section 2

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Discussion What are the basic steps in market research?
What are the commonly used market research methods?
What research question types can be asked in surveys?
Should startup prefer primary or secondary research?		 0
Workshop SWOT analysis: compare your business idea with competitors and market situation
Get familiar with industry trends and reports: Find and create a list of 3 to 5 business research papers or trend reports in your industry		 0
Home written assignment Market research doc: create a structure that is:
1-2 pages long
Describes your business idea
Contains the structure of your future research
Contains a list of questions to answer during the research for each chapter proposed
Contains links and references to data sources potentilly interesting to use in a research
Its feasible: it should be a chance you may answer all the questions stated in the doc
The doc format is designed and well structured		 1

Section 3

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Oral test Good or bad interview question?
Useful or useless feedback?		 0
Workshop Work on your customer profile using the Persona template. Make a client interview script with the help of the Problem-validation-script. 1
Case study Watch the video with the case study. This is an example of HOW NOT to take a customer discovery interview. Discuss what went wrong? 0

Section 4

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Workshop Estimate your target market using the TAM-SAM-SOM template in MIRO. Explain the data. 1
Case study Learn a market sizing case: online babysitting service 0

Section 5

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Workshop Use 3 tools from this lesson's theory that you are least familiar with or have not used at all. From each source, take one insight on the state of your project's market. (For example, the total size of your target market, a leading competitor, number of users, or a growing trend) 0
Oral presentation Take one tool from the list below and create a “how-to” guide to the service for your classmates. The guide could be done in a form of 1) video-instruction 2) text 3) visualized scheme 4) presentation. The guide must answer how to use a tool and give an example of its use on concrete case study. Studying the guide should take your reader not mach then 15 min. 1

Section 6

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Workshop Exercises:
Personal SWOT Analysis
List of Personal Achievements
Analysis of Motivating Activities
Your Personal Vision		 0

Section 7

Activity Type Content Is Graded?
Pitch session The final Market Research report should follow the structure discussed
Content of the oral presentation may include: business description, market overview, main sources used in the research, competitors overview, monetization opportunity, market size, further stages of research or business work, team, comments on some challenges during the work		 1

Final assessment

Section 1

  1. For the final assessment, students should complete the Market Research paper.
  2. It should follow the market research paper structure, contain information about market volume (TAM SAM SOM), data must be gathered with help of data sources learnt.
  3. The paper should refer to market potential and give the basis to make business decisions, answer questions on how to start and develop your idea, what is your business model, target customer persona, product MVP etc.
  4. Grading criteria for the final project presentation:
  5. Market sizing has been carried out
  6. Customer segments are named
  7. Сompetitor analysis has been conducted
  8. At least 2 prominent data sources are used
  9. Customer discovery interviews conducted
  10. Future steps are mapped out
  11. The final report is visualized clearly and transparent

Section 2

Section 3

Section 4

Section 5

Section 6

Section 7


The retake exam

Section 1

  1. For the retake, students have to submit the results of the market sizing exercise with the TAM SAM SOM method in the form of a visual framework studied.

Section 2

Section 3

Section 4

Section 5

Section 6

Section 7

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