COURSE
NUMBER: MBA295M.1
This course is
cross-listed with the EWMBA Program
COURSE
TITLE: Business Model Innovation and Entrepreneurial Strategy
UNITS
OF CREDIT: 2
INSTRUCTORS:
David Charron
EMAIL
ADDRESSES: david.charron@berkeley.edu
MEETING
DAY(S)/TIME: Tuesdays 6:00 – 9:30PM, first 10 weeks of the semester (8/21 –
10/23)
PREREQUISITES:
MBA Core
CLASS
FORMAT: Primarily case discussions, with lectures and guest speakers
REQUIRED
READINGS:
We
do not have a textbook for the class, but will draw upon readings from several
sources along with the case material, all of which will be available
electronically. The readings are extensive, covering theory, cases that
allow for historical business model analysis, and examinations of companies
currently entering the market. To the
extent possible, we will discuss business model issues facing new ventures in
the silicon valley along with market changing events
and companies.
BASIS
FOR FINAL GRADE:
The
main requirements for this course are class participation (case preparation and
discussion) and three projects. The first two projects will be
assessments of specific venture business models of your choosing, and the third
will be an group paper (10-15 pages) analyzing the business model of a
student-selected venture, due at the end of the semester.
ABSTRACT
OF COURSE CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES:
This
class explores innovation of the business model as a strategy for new venture
creation and growth. We will see that the business model, the set of
assumptions that fundamentally underpin a business, can dramatically affect the
venture’s chances of durable success. The
course will review the historical contexts of markets and the evolution of
competitors in those markets with the aim of anticipating future opportunities
based on business model changes.
The
class presents an integrated view of the business model to teach how to
characterize and analyze entrants, incumbents and competitors. We will cover basic methods to efficiently
construct and test business models to determine how they might succeed in the
market. The course shows how business models differ across industries and
phases of a firm’s growth – from high-tech to social ventures and from the
earliest start-up phases through realization and maintenance of significant
value. The course provides students with the skills and knowledge to
rapidly assess and shape business models to their advantage when constructing
new enterprises and to create the potential to scale. You will learn about
specific business model decisions that entrepreneurs make when building a company
and how they drive the value capture process.
This
course uses case studies, with short lectures and occasional guest speakers to
reinforce frameworks and showcase actual business examples. Your
preparation, attendance and active participation is
critical and required for success in the course. You will be provided
with opportunities to present to the class, and the class will have the
opportunity to provide feedback during the presentation. At the end of
the course you will be comfortable with discussing business models and business
model innovation in any context.
INSTRUCTOR
BIO:
DAVID
CHARRON – Mr. Charron is a member of the professional faculty at Haas and has
been teaching for the past eight years.
He is currently a Senior Fellow with the Lester Center, the Haas
School’s Entrepreneurship Program and has previously held positions as the
Executive, and Associate, Director of the Lester Center, and Executive Director
the Berkeley Innovative Leadership Development (BILD) program. He has been active in the field of
entrepreneurship and technology commercialization for over 20 years and has
worked in the private and public sector environments with companies such as Xerox
PARC, MIT and Stanford University. In 1995, he co-founded Scientific
Learning Corporation, a publicly traded neuroscience
company. He has been active in many other entrepreneurial ventures and actively
advises startups, inventors and entrepreneurs. He is a Board Member at Impact
Carbon and is currently working on a new venture in neuroscience. He holds an engineering degree from Stanford
University and an MBA from the Haas School of Business.