Exeriences in International Entrepreneurship

In the Global Access Program at the Anderson School at UCLA, students get a unique opportunity to learn about all the issues of starting a new business. The program pairs groups of MBA students with international high-tech start-up firms. The students and firms work together for six-months and prepare an investment-grade business plan. At the Knapp International Venture Forum, students and firms present their plans to panels of venture capitalists, angel investors and other entrepreneurs and face the hard questions about the viability of their plans.

The Core Business Concept
Defining the core concept for the venture is a crucial first step that every entrepreneur must take. The entrepreneur must think carefully about what the business is about and what need does it fulfill? Only after a venture is fully and specifically defined may it move forward to developing a business plan.In this program, Biosignal (Australia), MultiBene (Finland) and QClass (Chile) present their core business concepts and respond to questions from the panel of investors.

Determining Markets
Having a clear idea of what the market wants is crucial for all entrepreneurial ventures. A firm must understand who is going to buy its product and must determine how it will make its market aware that the product exists. In this program, eSource World (USA), Arcus (Finland) and Digimind (France) present their plans and respond to the panel's questions focusing on how they have defined their markets.

Manufacturing, Distribution and Operations
Critical to the success of any entrepreneurial venture is the ability to manufacture and deliver the product. You may be able to sell it, but if you can't manufacture and deliver it, success will elude your venture. In this program, Incam Solutions (France), Cube Design (Finland) and Auran (Australia) present their plans and field questions about the firms' plans to manufacture and deliver their products.

Management Teams
Management is a crucial issue in every entrepreneurial business. The people leading a firm are the ones responsible for taking it forward. It is the management team that investors invest in. In this program, PolySpace (France), Foreca (Finland) and Springtoys (Finland) face tough questions from the panel focusing on the issues surrounding the firms' management teams.

Corporate Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is not just for start ups and new companies. It can revitalize and re-energize existing and mature organizations. Fostering an entrepreneurial spirit can enable companies to enter new markets and explore new opportunities. In this program, Optimisa (Chile), CIMA (Chile) and Medix Biochemica (Finland), three established firms, present their plans for moving into new areas. They must also respond to comments from the panel of investors concerning the viability of their plans.