Venture Creation for the Real Economy

A project-based course where teams of 4 prepare for the fundraising and launch of an entrepreneurial venture in the 'real economy', i.e. startups targeted toward users in construction, manufacturing, health care, transportation, energy. Students acquire the experience of an early-stage entrepreneur as they progress through stages of team building, opportunity assessment, product-market fit analysis, business model architecture, product planning and development, go-to-market strategy, financial modeling, and fundraising planning. The course structure includes weekly workshops, guest presentations from seasoned entrepreneurs and industry experts, weekly meetings with the teaching team, and one-on-one support from dedicated business mentors/coaches. The course heavily leverages detailed online material from the SCPD Idea-to-Market program. The experience includes three pitches to panels of VCs and other industry experts starting with Opportunity Assessment, then Operations and Financial Modeling, and finally wrapping with an Investor Pitch to Silicon Valley VCs. By the end of the class, successful students will be equipped with the knowledge and network to evaluate and create impactful business ideas, many of which have been launched from this class. Open to all Stanford students, with a preference for graduate students. No prerequisites. For more information and team application, visit the course website: https://cee.stanford.edu/venture-creation