Creating and Scaling High Potential Ventures in Developing Economies (Cases)

GSBGEN 514 - Creating High Potential Ventures in Developing Economies (2 Units) This course addresses the distinctive challenges and opportunities of launching and growing 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 - both founders and members of entrepreneurial teams - 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. GSBGEN 514 is a seminar/discussion format in which students will read about and discuss the key challenges described above and potential solutions. Guests will describe their own startup and investing experiences in developing economies and answer questions. A framework based on the World Economic Forum (WEF) report on "Entrepreneurial Ecosystems Around the Globe and Company Growth Dynamics" will be used to structure the course. Each student will prepare a short write-up as a final assignment on a case chosen from a selection provided by the instructors. Note: Groups of students who want to work as a team to investigate a specific new venture idea in addition to participating in the seminar/discussion sessions should also consider enrolling in GSB534, offered in Spring term.