Entrepreneurship and Globalization

Instructors
Philip Auerswald @auerswald
Erin Krampetz @erinkrampetz
David J. Miller @campus_entre
Michael Youngblood @youngbloodm

Ours is arguably the most exciting era in human history. The benefits of four centuries of technological and organizational change are at last reaching a previously excluded global majority. This global transformation creates opportunities to connect and contribute that are at least as great in richer places allegedly in “decline” as they are in the (formerly) poorer ones obviously in the ascent.

However the progress of human societies is not inevitable. Expanded prosperity tomorrow depends on choices made today. In an era in which the secrets of the genetic code have been unraveled and fundamental processes of life are being newly understood, people everywhere still face a future marred by the stark realities of persistent conflict, infectious disease, water scarcity, climate change, and other global challenges.

Existing institutions and incentive structures may or may not be adequate to address these challenges. If the past is any guide, continued progress will require continued innovation—the efforts of individuals, groups, and communities who creatively employ new organizational forms, and in many cases new technology, to effect discontinuous, positive change.

This course is about such innovations and the changes that they bring about. It is less about what needs to be done, and more about how to participate in doing.

This course is divided into two parts.

The first part takes an “on the ground” look at the entrepreneurial process: identifying opportunities; defining a strategy and mobilizing resources; achieving sustainability; assessing performance; and scaling for impact.

The second part of the course places the entrepreneurial process in the context of the trends that define our historical moment.

The last two class sessions are dedicated to presentations, peer-to-peer feedback, and collaboration with other interested entrepreneurs from around the globe.

For a final project, students will write a strategic plan for a new venture. These will be judged in an online marketplace by your peers, ourstide entrereneurs, experts, and anyone with internet access.

The seminar on “Entrepreneurship and Globalization” is for global thinkers who are interested in developing their skills to act as entrepreneurial leaders, as well as for those interested in the long-term importance of entrepreneurship to the process of societal development.

The seminar will challenge policy-minded students to think creatively about potential solutions to public challenges, and entrepreneurially-inclined students to analyze the economic, social, and political context that defines entrepreneurial opportunity. Participation in the seminar will help students act as effective leaders of change through the creation of new ventures and through work in existing for-profit, non-profit, and government institutions.

The online section of this course is open to anyone who commits to completing the required readings and to engaging constructively with classmates through our online platforms.

Just like in-class students, online students will be expected to complete the following requirements:

• regular and active—even vigorous—participation in online seminars and discussions;
• completion of all assigned readings in advance of class;
• researching and writing two Wikipedia entries;
• preparing a concept statement for a new venture, or a substantial innovation within an existing institution, addressing a global challenge and described in two formats: (1) a 2000-3000 word action plan posted on bookneto or a blog, and (2) a 2-minute video (50 percent of grade); and
• each student is required to review and provide valuable feedback to at least one other student’s strategic plan

Students can complete work on their own, or self-organize around a particular domain of a global challenge (e.g. energy and climate; water; job creation; global public health). Students are also encouraged to seek out teammates who share an interest in a particular geographic region of the world.

Final strategic plans will be subject to high standards of rigor, practicality, and inventiveness.

Online course sessions will be held on a online platform where you will call in and view lectures via livestream. Instructors will email the platform and log-in info once you register. Students will need access to the Internet (or a 3G smartphone) and a phone or skype.

All students must register with a google email account. We will use many of google’s services, such as Google Drive (formerly Google Docs) to share readings and assignments.

Each class will have twitter chats, using #AshokaUonline. Students are expected to contribute and collaborate on these platforms – before the course begins, students should become familiar and know how to use:

• Twitter and Tweetdeck: Know how to follow hashtags. Submit course questions and discussion material to #AshokaUonline. Follow your instructors: @auerswald, @youngbloodm, @campus_entre
• Google Drive & Google Hangout
• Youtube – To upload and share your video with the world
• LinkedIn (suggested, not required) – Students are encouraged to connect to each other via LinkedIn and search for potential collaborators for a class projects or a new business venture

Students must be prepared to start a personal blog to post coursework and collaborate with others.

When sending and posting electronic versions of documents please:

• put your name and page numbers on every page, and
• use a descriptive file name beginning with “AshokaUonline.” (For example ).

Enrolled students are eligible to receive two badges for completion of the coursework. Students who are awarded both badges will receive an AshokaUonline certificate for completion of the course.

StartUp Badge: Awarded to students who complete the first part of the course on the entrepreneurial process including establishing on online presence and demonstrating competence with collaborative tools

The Coming Prosperity Badge: Awarded to students who complete the second part of the course on global trends including completion of a personal plan of entrepreneurial action

Entrepreneurship and Globalization Course Certification: Granted to students who have been awarded both course badges

Required

There are three books required for this course:

John Hagel III, John Seely Brown, and Lang Davison (2010), The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big Things in Motion, New York: Basic Books. ISBN-10: 0465019358

Eric Reis (2011), The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses, New York: Crown Business. ISBN: 978-0307887894

Philip Auerswald (2012), The Coming Prosperity: A Guide to Opportunity in the Age of Entrepreneurship, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN: 978-0199795178

All three books are available in multiple eBook versions, as well as hard copy. (You do not need a Kindle reader to view it; it is possible to download a Kindle reader to your computer.)

We will distribute other readings via Google Drive, or you can visit the links provided at each week’s reading below. Once you sign up for the course, we will send you an invitation to join our dropbox folder (using the email you provide us when you sign up).