GSBGEN 314:
Creating High Potential Ventures in Developing Economies
This course addresses the distinctive challenges and opportunities of launching high-potential new ventures in developing economies. Developing economies are attractive targets for entrepreneurs because many are just starting to move up the growth curve, and they offer low-cost operating environments that can be great development labs for potentially disruptive innovations. They increase in attractiveness when their political institutions stabilize and they become more market-friendly. At the same time, developing economies pose serious challenges. Pioneering entrepreneurs take on significant risks to gain early mover advantages. Specifically, entrepreneurs will not be able to count on the same kind of supportive operating environments that we take for granted in the developed world. They often face cumbersome permit and licensing processes, poorly developed financial and labor markets, problematic import and export procedures, unreliable local supply chains, weak infrastructure, corruption, currency risks, limited investment capital, lack of financial exits and more. This course is designed to help would-be entrepreneurs better understand and prepare for these issues as they pursue the opportunities and address the challenges to start, grow, and harvest their ventures in these environments. The core of the course is a team-based exercise involving the development of a deep understanding of the team's chosen country of focus with respect to the opportunities and challenges for starting a new business. Interested students must come in willing to be team players and do the work necessary to complete this exercise over the full quarter. Each team member's contributions will be assessed by fellow teammates. Students will submit country preferences before the quarter begins and teams will be formed on the first day. The teams will identify what they think would be a high potential opportunity for innovative entrepreneurship in their country that they will evaluate using the country-specific knowledge they've developed. The team will describe, in a final written paper and presentation, the challenges and opportunities in their country using a framework from the recently published World Economic Forum report on "Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Around the Globe and Company Growth Dynamics." The final materials will also include the team's thoughts on the viability of their proposed venture and how it capitalizes on their country's assets and addresses its challenges. A detailed business plan is not required; however, specific recommendations and plans for next steps that would be carried out during a 3 to 6 month field and market research study in the country will be part of the final presentation. In effect, the team will answer the questions: Why do they think this new proposed venture is viable in the specific developing economy given the country's specific opportunities and challenges?; and, What would the group do "in country" to confirm the viability and complete the plans to actually start and grow the business? Based on feedback from instructors and students in the inaugural class last year, some revisions have been incorporated, - more interaction with instructors; fewer case studies; expert guest speakers more focused on a specific topic to share their relevant experiences; a shortened reading list including new notes written on key topics to replace existing readings; and some "flipped" class sessions allowing time for teams to work in class on their projects. Since the course is still evolving, we particularly want to attract students who would enjoy helping further develop the course since this is an arena that begs for new approaches and material. This course will relate to the work being done in SEED, under the theory that healthy entrepreneurship and innovation will improve the overall economy and reduce poverty. Most countries that have successfully grown out of poverty did not do it by focusing only on Bottom of Pyramid (BoP) businesses, but by promoting healthy business growth overall. Helping entrepreneurs build successful new ventures in a developing economy is an essential element of an overall strategy for moving a country out of poverty. BoP businesses have tended to grow slowly, and struggle to raise capital, often being forced to pay low wages, etc. Without complementing these businesses with strong, high-potential, high-growth, profit-making businesses, none of these developing economies are likely to progress economically or eliminate poverty. A prosperous business with a solid plan will help the country, the economy, and ultimately the poor.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3