Or­gan­iz­ing Growth

Course content

Organizing Growth

Organizing Growth explore the later stages of the life cycle of entrepreneurial ventures and intrapreneurial activities. It expands on the idea of “entrepreneurial processes” by thinking through the challenges of (i) orchestrating people for growth, (ii) designing partnerships to facilitate growth strategies and (iii) striking deals with resource providers. The “POCD”-framework (People, Opportunity, Context and Deals) provides students a big-picture analytical tool to both manage and analyze startups at different stages in their life cycle.

Among the topics covered are managing founding teams through different growth challenges, working with resource providers, in particular venture capitalists, designing and iterating founder agreements, and evaluating opportunities for exit.

We emphasize the skills, capabilities, and judgment needed to effectively manage entrepreneurial ventures. The course is interdisciplinary in its approach to entrepreneurship, integrating entrepreneurial history, strategy, sociology and finance. It teaches students how to orchestrate resources, legitimize new stages of development, and explore opportunities for exits. It will involve both quantitative and qualitative modes of reasoning about entrepreneurial decision making. 

Students will learn through a combination of studio exercises, lectures, case discussions, and real-world applications.