School of Management, Unit Catalogue 2010/11 |
MN30473: Entrepreneurship and small business |
 Credits:
| 6 |
| Level:
| Honours |
| Period: | This unit is available in... |
| Semester 1 |
| Assessment:
| EX100 |
| Supplementary Assessment: | Supplementary assessment information not currently available (this will be added shortly) |
| Requisites:
| |
| Description:
| Aims: The main aims of this unit are to: * Introduce students to both theoretical and practical concepts of entrepreneurship and small business. * Provide students with a rigorous and honest insight into the realities of entrepreneurial activity and an understanding of the role small and medium sized businesses play in a modern economy. Learning Outcomes: * Demonstrate knowledge of entrepreneurship research literature, be able to explain the behaviour of entrepreneurs using both the economic and non-economic theories presented in the lecture. * Explain the role and importance of SMEs in the modern economy. * Appreciate how to articulate an interesting business idea to a professional audience and evaluate the key components of a business idea indicating both the strengths and weakness of the present idea and determining areas for improvement. * Explain the key elements and resource demands as opposed to the potential barriers and obstacles of business formation and development, * Identify and discuss the policy measures and the main types of government support available to different types of entrepreneurs and SMEs. Skills: Subject specific skills: * Basic appreciation of the various aspects of business operation and management function * Appreciate how to create, evaluate and develop commercial ideas * Skills to question and evaluate existing analyses of entrepreneurship and small business, as well as to make introductory contact with entrepreneurship and small business research literature. * The ability to critically apply appropriate theoretical frameworks to data and case study evidence. * Skills to work either individually or in groups to conduct research into business and management issues. Intellectual skills * Critical thinking, analysis and synthesis skills, including the ability to identify assumptions, evaluation statements in terms of evidence, to detect false logic or reasoning, to identify implicit values, and to define terms adequately and to generalise appropriately. * The ability to create, evaluate and access a range of options, together with capacity to apply ideas and knowledge to a range of business situation. * Problem solving and decision-making skills. Transferable skills * Reflective, adaptive and collaborative learning skills. * Effective self-management skills in terms of time, motivation, planning and implementing. * Interpersonal skills for effective listening, negotiating, persuasion and presentation. Content: The following topics will be potentially covered in this unit: * Who are the Entrepreneurs? * Business planning * Sources of Venture Finance * Theories and Evidence of Business Growth * Entrepreneurship and Innovation * Small Business and Entrepreneurship Policy * International New Ventures/Born Global Resource Integrators. |