Prototyping an impact business model (2225.YR.014961.1)

General information

Type:	BAS	Curs:	1	Period:	S semester
ECTS Credits:	8 ECTS

Teaching Staff:

Having finished the first two projects of Year 1.

There is no need of prior knowledge, but the experience of working on the previous projects will be very useful.

The course will include the following tasks:

1. Understanding basic concepts and tools in Social Entrepreneurship.
2. Understanding basic concepts and tools in Marketing.
3. Understanding basic concepts and tools in Finance.
4. Understanding Lean Start-Up as a tool for entrepreneurial action.

All these concepts and tools will be evaluated through an individual exam and applied in a group project in which students will design an impact business to address a specific social challenge.

This course will help students in two important ways in the first year of their Bachelor program. First, they will be introduced to basic concepts in key management areas such as Marketing and Finance, which are important to understand how organizations work and what is the role of the different functional areas. They will also learn concepts and tools related to entrepreneurial activity, both from a social impact perspective and from the point of view of implementing a business model.
Second, they will have the opportunity to design an impact business model to address a specific social challenge. This will provide them with practical knowledge about how to become an entrepreneur (or a social entrepreneur) and the challenges that they would face in that process. Furthermore, the project will allow them to see and reflect about how business approaches can help address some of societal most pressing challenges. This practical approach will be an important learning experience that will be helpful for other projects that students will do in later stages of the Bachelor.

The course has the following learning objectives:
- Being introduced to the Sustainable Development Goal #12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and some of its related social and environmental challenges.
- Understanding how social entrepreneurship approaches can help address societal challenges.
- Understanding basic management concepts and tools in Marketing, Finance and Entrepreneurship.
- Practicing the process of translating a social business idea into a specific impact business model.
- Practicing the process of refining a business model and achieving market fit.
- Increasing students' capacity to reflect about the role of business in addressing social and environmental challenges.

1. Social entrepreneurship Students will be introduced to the topic of social entrepreneurship and to different examples of how business organizations address societal challenges. They will use tools such as the Theory of Change and the Impact Gaps Canvas, and they will apply those insights to design an impact business model.

2. Marketing Students will be introduced to basic Marketing concepts, and they will use the `customer journey¿ tool to better understand the need and behavior of their potential clients. They will apply those insights to refine the impact business model that they will be working on throughout the course.

3. Finance Students will be introduced to some of the main financial tools, such as the Profit & Loss account, the Balance Sheet, and the Cash Flow statement. They will learn how to project a financial model that encompasses the three tools, and they will apply that to their impact business model.

4. Lean Start-up Students will be introduced to the Lean Start-Up methodology that helps entrepreneurs define the minimum viable product before launching it to the market. They will explore the different parts of the process (definition, building, testing, pivoting, etc.) and apply them to their course project.

The course will use a project-based approach, whereby students will receive an introduction to basic management concepts and tools and apply them to a specific project. In this case, the project will consist of the design of an impact business model to address a societal challenge and its implementation with the Lean Start-up methodology. This will allow students to think and reflect about the usefulness of the theories and tools seen in class, and to understand the importance of acquiring a solid management training to be better equipped to become a social entrepreneur.

*A list of short readings to be covered before each session will be provided.