In the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) program, ten courses are integrated to correspond to the entrepreneurial process. Each course draws from the theory of a specific discipline while emphasizing the application of business concepts to issues facing innovative and rapidly changing organizations. Entrepreneurial experiences are embedded in the MBET curriculum through several practical components which provide context and hands-on application for classroom learning.
During the MBET program, you will:
- Master core entrepreneurial business skills
- Gain specialized entrepreneurship knowledge
- Solve problems and commercialize ideas
These courses are only available to students enrolled in the MBET program.
Master core entrepreneurial business skills
BET 600 | BET 601 | BET 602 | BET 605
BET 600 Applied Business Leadership Skills for Entrepreneurs
Success in any entrepreneurial venture or undertaking is likely to hinge on the successful deployment of so-called “soft-skills” on a continuous and on-going basis. This course takes a data-driven approach to the development of such skills. While there are worthy, well-researched principles of effective leadership—and we will cover them—effective leadership depends, too, on an interacting set of related activities that are often sub-optimally engaged. Decision-making, team process, communication, negotiation, conflict management, and managerial coaching are just a few. This course relies on a highly interactive approach that makes generous use of discussion, lectures, and simulation experiences to learn best practices in all these domains.
Those who successfully complete this course should emerge with clear and practical frameworks for reflection, planning, and execution in most business activities that involve interactions among people. However, this is a graduate-level study, so success will also rely on grappling with and applying the research and theories that undergird those frameworks. Knowledge of frameworks divorced from theory can lead to brittle and fragile execution; understanding the theory that underlies those same frameworks builds greater resilience, flexibility, and nimbleness in an entrepreneurial leader.
BET 601 Strategically Managing the Entrepreneurial Organization
Strategy development and implementation are examined as a means to guide decisions at each stage of the innovation and commercialization process. Insight is gained into the strategic issues faced by new ventures as they progress from seed/concept through market execution stages. Strategic analysis techniques are used to identify and analyse issues and as input into the design of the business concept and business model. The organizational structures, processes and policies used to build and maintain an entrepreneurial culture are key topics for the market execution stage.
BET 602 Marketing Strategies for New Technology-based Ventures
Market-based management practices and the key relationships that enable businesses to attract, satisfy and retain customers, and grow profits are examined. The contribution of marketing strategy to the creation of value for both customers and shareholders is emphasized. Particular attention is paid to the unique contexts of marketing knowledge-intensive products and services, new and rapidly growing markets and business markets. Familiarity is developed with the marketing activities typical for each of the seed/concept, product development and market execution stages of a new venture.
BET 605 Essential Accounting for Entrepreneurs
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to how accounting information can be used by entrepreneurs and enterprise intrapreneurs to manage an enterprise, improve decision making, and implement organizational strategy as the venture proceeds from start-up to SME to maturity. The course is split into two parts: Financial accounting (external use of financial information) and Management Accounting (the internal use of financial information).
Gain specialized entrepreneurship skills
BET 603 Entrepreneurial Finance for Technology-based Enterprise
This course will provide entrepreneurs and enterprise intrapreneurs with an understanding of financing practices and principles relevant to entrepreneurial opportunities. Classes will feature a combination of theory and “real world” practices drawing from the instructor's experiences. Upon completion of the course you will be able to:
- Identify key variables that affect the financial results of a business and the relationships between these variables
- Apply appropriate methods to develop pro forma financial statements
- Apply appropriate principles to guide the strategy for financing a business
- Determine an appropriate mix of debt and equity for financing a business
- Identify and implement strategies to manage the working capital of a business
- Understand the different sources of capital and determine which is appropriate for a particular business at a point in time
- Determine whether venture capital financing is appropriate for a business
- Understand the process of pitching and negotiating with sources of financing
- Conduct due diligence on and assess the attractiveness of an entrepreneurial venture as an investment opportunity
BET 607 Managing Technological Innovation
Management of technological innovation requires an understanding of the interaction of technology with all aspects of the organization to build and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage. The focus of this course is the creation of new products and services from concept through to launch. Evaluating new technologies, product development and deployment strategies are key topics.
BET 612 Entrepreneurial Organizations
This course is to equip students to better design, manage and navigate organizations as entrepreneurs and in effective entrepreneurial ways. This includes consideration of ethical behavior in business and organizational contexts, organizational form and design, building and managing entrepreneurial talent and capacity, and acting as an effective agent of entrepreneurial change in organizations.
Solve problems and commercialize ideas
BET 604 New Technology-based Venture Creation
The creation of new ventures is a defining attribute of entrepreneurs. While the specific focus will be on creating new independent ventures, the theory and principles discussed in this course can be applied to creating new ventures within an existing corporation and to new social ventures. The MBET program is an experiential program that combines knowing and doing. BET 604 provides the framework for doing. If affords the opportunity to apply what is learned in other BET courses to a new venture of each student's choosing.
BET 608 Business Model Validation
This course is designed to leverage the high-potential complementarities between MBET entrepreneurship students and University of Waterloo and Waterloo Region technology developers. The objectives are high-potential business models and licensing plans to facilitate the launch of technology-based commercial or social ventures and technology commercialization, enriched linkages between MBET and University of Waterloo researchers and technology developers, and experience in networking, opportunity assessment, partnership development, and working in and managing diverse teams.
BET 615 Corporate Innovation and Consulting
This course gives students an opportunity to develop and exercise the skills to help businesses explore strategic opportunities and threats using the same frameworks used in start-up environments. It includes identifying problems, assessing opportunities and developing creative solutions in an existing corporate context. The course will involve a mix of theory and practice in the form of lectures, group work, cases, guest speakers, and an innovation consulting team project with an established firm.
Students will be engaged in real entrepreneurial projects solicited from established organizations. In the full-time MBET program, the project takes place in the second and third terms. In the part-time MBET program, the project takes place in the second year.
Students who have successfully completed all MBET program course requirements will have been deemed to have completed the education requirements for the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designation.
Visit the Graduate Calendar for further course details. BET 600 level courses are only available to students enrolled in the MBET program.