Prospectus

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The World of Entrepreneurs

Course
2018-2019

Tags

SBE

Admissions requirements

None.

Description

“Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. The act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth.” — Peter Drucker, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (1985)

This 100-level course will introduce you to the innovator’s and entrepreneur’s disruptive role in society. The point is not that you need a special talent. It’s that you can identify and address a need. Everyone has an opinion on what works and doesn’t. Everyone can see how small or dramatic changes might improve matters. The problem is that few people agree on how to tackle problems. The challenge is thus to organize and make a difference. This class will focus on how entrepreneurs drive change.

In this class, “SBE” refers to Social and/or Business Entrepreneurship in which (not-)for-profit “enterprises” compete with other enterprises to produce “products” (goods or services) that create value for society. Both social and business entrepreneurs create organizations that are financially self sustaining. These definitions thus exclude governments (no competition) and charities (depend on donations).

Course objectives

Skills:

  • Compare past entrepreneurial cycles with current entrepreneurial activities

  • Identify a challenge and investigate PESTLE influences on the challenge

  • Explore the opportunities and threats in dealing with the challenge, propose a solution for dealing with the challenge and evaluate barriers and provide a constructive critique to the proposed solution

Knowledge:

  • Discriminate between incremental vs disruptive innovation

  • Explain the tensions among monopoly rents, innovation and social welfare

Timetable

Once available, timetables will be published here.

Mode of instruction

The course is taught through two-hour seminars. Students will be expected to participate in both large and small group discussions; present and defend their ideas within an academic setting; and take part in group projects. The instructor will facilitate and ensure the efficient running of the discussion, but students are responsible for its quality.

Assessment

Class participation: 15% (continuous weeks 1-7)
Group project & presentation: 15% (due week 7)
Individual presentation: 15% ( due week 5)
Peer critiques: 2 x 10% each ( due week 6)
Individual essay: 35% ( due reading week)

Blackboard

There will be a Blackboard site available for this course. Students will be enrolled at least one week before the start of classes.

Reading list

Multiples academic and popular articles.

Registration

This course is open to LUC students and LUC exchange students. Registration is coordinated by the Education Coordinator. Interested non-LUC students should contact course.administration@luc.leidenuniv.nl.

Contact

David Zetland (d.j.zetland@luc.leidenuniv.nl)
Leiden University College, Room 4.37

Remarks

This class is open to all students who can take it as an elective, but it is also the first class in the Social and Business Entrepreneurship Minor.