ADVANC E D CO URSE IN E N T R E P R E N E U R S H IP

( S ECOND OF TH E T WO-PA RT SER I ES)

A practitioner’s course to empower college students with an entrepreneurial mindset and business skills

to enhance their job prospects, encourage intrapreneurship, and drive long-term entrepreneurship
 ADVANC E D CO URSE IN E N T R E P R E N E U R S H IP
( S ECOND OF TH E T WO-PA RT SER I ES)

A practitioner’s course to empower college students with an entrepreneurial mindset

and business skills to enhance their job prospects, encourage intrapreneurship, and

drive long-term entrepreneurship

CO U R S E G OA L S COURSE OVERVI EW

Students will develop an entrepreneurial
mindset through this two-course program.
In the second of the two courses,
students will:
• Acquire additional knowledge and
skills for developing early customer
traction into a repeatable business
This course is the second of a two-part entrepreneurship
development curriculum from Wadhwani Foundation. This
course aims to teach the necessary skills to develop ventures
beyond the idea/prototype stage. In this course, students will
learn how to achieve sustainable growth by pivoting, refining
business models, and business planning.

• Learn the tools and methods for COURSE PEDAGOGY

achieving sustainable growth, such
as by refining their product or service This course follows Wadhwani Foundation’s “Watch-Think-Do-

and business models, building brand Explore-Collaborate” pedagogy in a highly experiential learning

strategy, making a sales and financial format.

plan, etc
WATCH - Provides the concepts and frameworks through videos

THINK – Exercises and class activities encourage students to

TA R G E T AU DIE N C E
reflect on the concepts presented and internalize them

Any 3rd or 4th year undergrad or
graduate student who has successfully
completed the first course of this
two-part series, i.e., the Foundational
Course in Entrepreneurship.
DO – Activities and assignments in the context of a practice
venture for students to learn from experiencing entrepreneurship
EXPLORE - Additional reference material to dig deeper for
motivated students
COLLABORATE - Forums and social learning for students to
interact with others to further expand learning

Advanced Course In Entrepreneurship 2

 The center of this pedagogy is the “Do.” Several activities and
This course aims to teach the
real-world experiences are integrated into the pedagogy to
necessary skills to develop ventures
strengthen the concepts learned during the program and ensure
beyond the idea/prototype stage.
that the overall approach is highly experiential.

K EY L E A R NIN GS COURSE ORGANI ZATI ON

• Develop an A-team During this course, students will learn the key concepts through
• Refine business models and online videos and activities, facilitated by a trained instructor

expand customer segments in the classroom. Some segments also include live streams or

• Develop brand strategy and create webinars so that students can hear real-world experiences from

digital presence business owners, startup founders, and investors.

• Develop channel strategy for

Each lesson includes quizzes and assignment to help the
customer outreach
students self-assess their understanding of the concepts
• Leverage social media to reach new
covered. The students will also be required to complete
customers cost effectively
milestone presentations related to their own practice ventures.
• Develop strategies to increase

revenues and expand markets

• Explore licensing and franchising

LEARNI NG APPROACH
for business expansion

• Advanced concepts of business • Students work on a practice venture as they progress

finance through the course. This starts with the Foundational Course
• Financial planning in Entrepreneurship and continues in the second course.

• Funding for growth Students form teams, invest a small amount of money in a

• Leverage technologies and platforms practice venture, and run it on campus.

for growth stage companies • This course follows the Lean Startup approach and uses the
• Develop key metrics to track Lean Canvas as a tool to quickly capture the business model
progress on a single page and go to an initial set of customers to
• Basics of registering a company validate the key assumptions.

• Understanding business regulations

and compliances

• Recruit board of directors, advisors,

and mentors

Advanced Course In Entrepreneurship 3

 COURSE MATERI ALS AND PLATFORM

• All the lessons are delivered as online videos accessible using

Wadhwani Foundation’s LearnWise™ platform.

• Reference materials for students can be downloaded from

the platform.

• Faculty notes and reference materials can also be

downloaded.

COURSE REQUI REMENTS

• Completion of the Foundational Course in Entrepreneurship

• Broadband Internet connection (minimum of 10 MBPS or

faster)

• Access to LearnWise™ platform

Quizzes and Assignments

CLASSROOM (Core) CLASSROOM (Flex)
(including practice venture)

30 hours 15 hours 60 hours

Advanced course in entrepreneurship 4

 LESSON
Recap and Review the
Fundamentals
Refining the Business
Model and
Product/Service
Business Planning
Advanced Course In Entrepreneurship
COVERAGE ACTIVITIES
• Recap of idea selection and Lean Canvas • Recap video
• Jeopardy quiz
• Revisit product/service, business model,
team, from the Foundational Course in
Entrepreneurship
• Why do you need a mentor
• What is pivoting? Should you pivot? • Watch videos and case
studies
• Evaluate new, disruptive business models like
SaaS, sharing economy, and marketplace • Field activity (Customer
interviews)
• Identify which business model suits your
product/service the best • Internet research
• Analyze competitors and map your product/ • Class presentation
service with the competitors’ to define a
unique value proposition
• Revisit your business model and develop a
few variants (more business model types)
• Identify additional customer segments that
your solution can address; evaluate business
models for these segments and refine
product/service for new customer segments
• Importance of product management to align
product/service to customer needs
• Create a detailed annual sales plan (including • Watch videos
month-on-month sales forecasting and • Talk by a financial expert
customer acquisition planning) • Livestream/Webinar by
• Create an annual people plan an investor
• Create a financial plan for your practice • Individual activities
venture in which you should:
1. Calculate your startup costs
2. Calculate your operating expenses
3. Create a cash flow forecast
4. Analyze your profit and loss forecast
5. Calculate your cost of goods
6. Analyze the breakeven point for your
practice venture
5
 LESSON COVERAGE ACTIVITIES

Exploring Ways to • Understand the cycle of customer acquisition, • Livestream/video by real

Increase Revenue activation, retention, revenue generation, and entrepreneurs on growth
referrals to attract new customers hacks they used

• Identify primary and secondary revenue • Group activity (Create

streams P&L and balance sheet for

• Identify new markets and new customer your venture)

segments • Group activity (Pricing)

• Explore licensing and franchising options for

expansion

Funding the Growth • Various sources of funds available for a • Watch videos
business • Livestream/webinar by an

• Understand the funding process and what investor

investors look for • Group activity: Investor

Hunt
• Explore crowdfunding platforms
• Team presentation
• The pros and cons of using a different type of
finance

• Pitch Practice – how to articulate your needs

before investors and lenders

• Basics of term sheets and investor due

Building the A-Team • Importance of a good team in a venture’s • Watch videos

success • Livestream/video by real
• Attract, recruit, and train a high-performance entrepreneurs sharing their
entrepreneurial team experiences

• Define roles and responsibilities • Group discussion

• Set clear expectations among the members of • Roleplay

your founding team

• Essential HR needs of a new venture

Creating a Branding • Define a positioning statement • Watch videos

and Channel Strategy • Create a public image and presence for your • Group activity (Prepare
business Bullseye chart for your

• Select a brand name, logo, social media handles, team venture)

and mobile app names for your venture

• Create online public profiles

• Examine the Bullseye Framework and other

traditional channel types using the WF template

• Select the right channels for your venture using

the Bullseye Framework

Advanced Course In Entrepreneurship 6

 LESSON
Leveraging Technologies
and Available Platforms
Measuring Your Progress
Legal Matters
Seeking Support
Final Project
Advanced Course In Entrepreneurship
COVERAGE ACTIVITIES
• Identify the technology needs of your venture • Watch videos
• Choose the key technologies and platforms for • Group activity
banking, accounting, sales, legal, and human • (Identify the areas
resource management where you can leverage
• Technology as a differentiator and a technology)
competitive weapon
• How to establish key metrics and measure • Watch videos
what matters • Team activity (Identify the
• How to understand and measure operations key metrics you want to
with a view to control and track progress track)
• Understand the nature, content, and timing of
your communications with investors and other
stakeholders
• Understand the different types of entities, • Watch videos
selecting the right type for your venture and
• Internet research (List
incorporate your venture
approvals and compliance
• Overview of legal issues and their impact on required for your venture)
entrepreneurs
• Team activity (Create
• Regulations of starting and operating a pros and cons of different
venture types of entities for your
venture)
• Importance of getting professional help (legal
and accounting)
• Importance of being compliant and keeping
proper documentation
• Patents and intellectual property; Trademarks
• Recruit your boards of directors, advisors, and • Watch videos
mentors • Videos of entrepreneurs
• Resources for specific geographies on their experience with a
mentor
• Internet research (List
service providers for your
venture)
• Presentation Day – Teams present their • Presentation (Final
practice ventures: business model, business practice venture project)
plan, growth achieved, and key learnings
to their classmates, faculty, and other
entrepreneurs
7
 Four Main Street, Suite 100, Los Altos, CA 94022

marketing@wfglobal.org | www.wfglobal.org

Note: As the subject of entrepreneurship is constantly evolving, the contents and syllabus of this course are subject to change at the discretion of Wadhwani Foundation.