Academic Staff
Cource Description
This course deals with the basic elements for the successful organization of a technological innovation and entrepreneurship. It begins by examining strategies based on innovation as a source of competitive advantage creation and then examines how to built businesses that excel in the tracking, manufacturing and commercialization of technological innovations.
Important issues that will be dealt with in the course include:
Introduction to innovation, types of innovations and Entrepreneurship; Process innovation and creativity; Methods innovation and improvement tools; The innovation as an internal strategy of a firm; The contribution of technology to the development of innovation; Open Innovation; Capturing Innovative Business Ideas; Analysis of successful business models for eServices; Criteria for selecting a viable business model; Developing a detailed Business Plan: Development and Evaluation; Understanding the basic economic operation of an undertaking (Break-even analysis, etc.).
Upon completion of the course, students will have:
- become familiar with the concepts of innovation and entrepreneurship, with current issues regarding the strategic management of innovation, such as innovation networks, the idea of brokerage, open innovation, etc;
- become familiar with the processes of innovation and the necessary planning and motivation, portfolio management, the idea of production processes, the advantages and disadvantages of different organizational R & D structures, and the challenges of innovation in large and small businesses;
- Develop an understanding of the relation with modern strategies for more efficient use of innovation;
- Develop the ability to apply these concepts directly into real world situations;
- Develop skills for identifying, evaluating opportunities (opportunity assessment);
- understood the importance and critical components of a business plan for the use of innovation, focusing on the study of successful business models of online business (eBusiness, eServices);
- Understand the basic economic operation of an undertaking (Break-even analysis, etc.).
Detailed Course Syllabus
The course will focus on the following topics:
- Introduction of the concepts of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
- Innovation Models and their historical evolution (linear model, triple-helix, etc).
- Analysis of the innovation process.
- Understand the concept and importance of entrepreneurship and the environment in which it grows.
- Diffusion of innovation (Diffusion of Innovation and the S-curve)
- Innovation and the Internet - case studies of electronic services (eServices).
- Understand the importance of business model and successful analysis of such models for electronic services (eServices - eBusiness).
- Analysis of the stages of the business process:
- Generating a business idea
- Assessment and selection of appropriate business models,
- creation of a business plan,
- selection of a sustainable development model and
- exploring exit strategies.
- Introductory economic issues, e.g. Break-even analysis, Understanding the sources of funding at all stages with emphasis on risk capital.
Many of the examples will also focus on how established firms can improve their approach to innovation.