Volume 67, Issue 8

This is the second and final installment of an article written by Assistant Professor of Management and Marketing Dr. Lawrence M. Bellman on the value of an entrepreneurial education at the undergraduate level.  In the first part of the article, he discussed the barriers that diminish the attractiveness of an undergraduate entrepreneurial program.  In this final section, he discusses the elements of a rewarding entrepreneurship educational program including desired roles for a school's Board of Trustees and Alumni.

At Sy Syms, supplementing entrepreneurship courses that cover the basics, specialized courses such as franchising and licensing, growing the business and entrepreneurial finance are made available. Additionally, the entrepreneurial learning process includes classroom practice in the preparation and use of effective business plans.  Whether this component is incorporated into one of the core entrepreneurial courses or offered as a separate course in business plan development, educators can prepare students for early entrepreneurial efforts by challenging them to conceptualize a business opportunity. 

Incorporating real-world cases into entrepreneurship courses offers the undergraduate the challenge of researching and analyzing ventures that succeed and fail.  Uncovering the underlying reasons for firm success or failure along with student observations and recommendations provides a sound basis for developing venture decision-making.  Critics may argue that many entrepreneurial cases are written for the graduate student level, but it has been my experience in teaching entrepreneurship undergraduate courses for the past five years at Sy Syms that undergraduates are motivated by the case approach and, for the most part, present an effective analysis of case components.  What they are lacking is inexperience in developing business alternatives, but this can provide a good foundation for a meaningful classroom learning experience.

Inviting entrepreneurs as guest speakers often has a very positive effect on the entrepreneurship undergraduate.  These invitees provide practical hands-on experience to our budding entrepreneurs, discussing their successes and failures.  Entrepreneurs who come to class to speak tend to be fascinating characters because the nature of start-ups lets them retain and display their individuality.  The speaker is asked to address his/her actual experience in developing a business concept, writing a business plan, applying for funding, and staffing and launching the venture.  It is also important that the speaker discuss his/her management team and how the team’s balance and capabilities aided in securing funds and handling the start-up.  

Securing a venture capitalist, corporate or angel investor as a guest speaker also enhances the learning experience by exposing the students to the other side of venture creation – finding a willing investor.  This category of speaker is asked to discuss how he/she evaluates business plans, management team credentials, business concepts, and funding criteria.  The speaker program sometimes includes an individual who has either had hands-on experience in taking a venture public or providing the financial advice needed for the venture to plan an IPO or significant expansion.  Typically, such an individual would be an investment banker or a senior financial officer.

Teaching executives have a major role to play in higher business education. Because of their typically long and distinguished careers in the world of business, they can complement the academic perspective with actual business experiences.  This, in turn, can result in a curriculum that is more responsive to employer needs, and provides more graduates who need minimal training.  Additionally, by recruiting faculty with a dual academic/business background, students can benefit from classroom exposure to the many business contacts these instructors have.  Expertise in specialized fields such as travel and entertainment, Internet marketing, and food and beverage markets attract more qualified faculty, expand the student’s options in the entrepreneurial learning process, and exposure the institution to more community recognition.

Each year, undergraduate students throughout the country, as part of their course requirements, prepare thousands of business and feasibility plans.  Yet, it is my experience that only a very minute portion of these plans is actually pursued as a real-world opportunity.  Several of the ideas proposed in these academic exercises have some potential for success if mentor assistance is forthcoming, and some seed capital made available.  One approach to incorporating venture development into a UEP is to assign various student teams to develop a real business.  Sy Syms will kick off this approach in the spring of 2003. 

One of the most innovative initiatives that an entrepreneurial program can offer its undergraduate students is a business plan competition.  By incorporating the development of a business plan as part of various entrepreneurial course requirements, professors will have received a number of these documents over the course of the semester.  An evaluation committee consisting of some combination of faculty, board, alumni, and outside experts is utilized to select the two or three best business plans.  The program offered at YU involves the evaluation of business plans each year with significant cash awards given for the three best plans.  These monetary awards could form the basis of seed financing for a potential new venture.

The experience gained by participating in school business plan competitions and venture development projects should be documented to allow the undergraduate to prepare and organize an original work portfolio that can be utilized in the pursuit of an entrepreneurial career.  Inclusion in this portfolio should be case presentations and solutions, feasibility and business plan projects, work-study projects, and student written analyses of entrepreneurial reading articles.  These documents can provide the basis for a graduating student's demonstration of the skills and knowledge required to contribute to the success of an entrepreneurial venture.  Coupled with a well-written resume, and enhanced by related work experience, the portfolio can be used to successfully convince venture stakeholders to participate in a startup venture.

Business school sponsored internships have been traditionally limited to a few majors such as accounting and finance.  Firms in these industries provide the school with a limited number of internship opportunities in these disciplines and school placement offices gear their efforts to help fill them.  Little attention has been paid to internships with start-up firms and small but growing firms.  Internship programs offer numerous benefits to students, employees, and the schools that serve as intermediaries.  The student gains a better knowledge of the tasks performed by professionals and an opportunity to develop skills relevant to a particular career choice.  Startup firms usually need to increase their staffs but are notoriously short of funding for development.  This need can provide an excellent source for an internship.  The student gains experience in a start-up environment and the entrepreneur acquires affordable human resources to grow his/her firm.         

The establishment of an entrepreneurial club on the business school campus serves to strengthen the positioning of entrepreneurship as a major program because it creates a unity of purpose among the students.  Students who enroll in entrepreneurship courses typically do so without the campus camaraderie so often associated with marketing, management and finance clubs and group activities.  Their entrepreneurial learning process is typically restricted to the classroom unless they work as part of a class group on a term project such as preparation of a business plan.

An entrepreneurial club affords the student the opportunity to share the learning experience with others outside the classroom environment.  The club, by exposing members to practical business experience, can achieve a continuing commitment to entrepreneurial development beyond the curriculum agenda.  Local business communities have many people who are interested in starting their own business but lack the necessary preparation skills.  Assisting aspiring local entrepreneurs in the preparation of their business plans and venture presentations can effectively supplement a student’s learning experience as well as create a positive image in the community for the academic institution.  Other business community assistance can be in the form of market research, consumer surveys, student consulting projects, and preparation of financial loan requests. 

Another initiative that members of the entrepreneurial club can participate in is the development of a business venture that can be operated during the school years.  Non-profit ventures can include charity sales of collected goods, assistance programs for the elderly, or tutoring programs.  For-profit ventures might include on-campus marketing services, web development for small businesses, or student transportation and travel arrangements.

The most significant barrier faced by student clubs is how to sustain member interest.  There are several initiatives that can be used to overcome this negative resistor.  The club must have institutional support and accreditation, as well as a faculty mentor to provide guidance and initiatives.  Project funding should be made to the club for use in seeding a business venture.   

The club may also be able to assist in the development of a business incubator for its graduating entrepreneurship alumni.  The incubator can provide a greatly subsidized location for startup office space, professional help, administrative support, conference and customer presentation facilities, and even telemarketing and other marketing services. 

Club member practice in venture presentations can significantly contribute to the budding entrepreneur’s ability to convince potential stakeholders to participate in future ventures.  A worthwhile exercise is practice in delivering an effective 2-3 minute "elevator pitch."  Effective venture presentations can be the key to seeding and start-up assistance and presentation practice can be invaluable in the entrepreneurial learning process.  Other skills that can be acquired through the club include finding financial funding sources, opportunity identification, venture valuation, deal making, and most importantly, being a team player.

The Board of Trustees in a business school is usually composed of prominent business leaders and successful entrepreneurs, but they are rarely approached to solicit their firm’s or their own participation in the entrepreneurial program; specifically, internship programs, sponsoring new ventures, and other types of program assistance.  Trustees are usually from well-established firms that have already carved out their market niche.  Their direct involvement with early stage ventures is rare.  Nevertheless, through their business contacts and own needs, they may be in a position to help place a student into a career field where he/she can gain valuable expertise that can be used as the basis for a future entrepreneurial venture.

Schools should develop an ongoing relationship with board members and involve them in the entrepreneurial program.  Initial activities may include invitation to classroom sessions, either as speakers, case study discussants, business plan reviewers, or general observers.  Relationship development can then progress to intern sponsorship and new venture assistance.  If financial help is not feasible, trustees should be encouraged to act as a non-paid board advisor to new student or alumni ventures.  Their business contacts, knowledge of market, legal, and financial sources can be invaluable to the young entrepreneur.

Alumni, as well as board members can perform similar functions. Many are already entrenched in the business community and can be called upon to secure successful entrepreneurs and corporate executives as guest speakers.  Potential speaker candidates are often flattered to be given an opportunity to address a business class and the probability of them accepting invitations to speak will be high.  A unique entrepreneurial classroom approach has been suggested whereby entrepreneurs participate in classes with students.  Alumni would be a strong resource for this endeavor, especially if they would serve as mentors to the students.  Students might gain a fuller understanding of the relationships among the subjects they study, while entrepreneurs might benefit from student contributions to their ventures.

Lacking the career placement development tools offered by traditional business disciplines, entrepreneurial programs must stimulate entrepreneurial behavior on the student’s part by deeply involving the educational institution in supporting the environment, curriculum, and hands-on exposure to the entrepreneurship program.  Entrepreneurship programs in colleges and universities are evolving into a more formalized educational process and there is little doubt that the field of entrepreneurship will take its place along-side other legitimate business school curriculum.

What do you think? Click here to send a letter to the editors.
All content is copyright © Yeshiva University Commentator.