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This course is part of the Entrepreneurship & Innovation track.
Introduction to Entrepreneurship Essentials
 

Entrepreneurship Essentials

$1,750
Next 4-week session starts May 24th
Apply
Master a proven framework for building and financing new ventures, and make your entrepreneurial dreams a reality.
4
weeks
6-8
hours per week
4
modules
Self-Paced
with regular deadlines

 This course earns you a Certificate of Completion from HBS Online. What you earn.

Overview
Syllabus
Enrollment
Stories
FAQs
Apply Now

Key Concepts

Identify a business opportunity
Evaluate an idea and assess the market
Explore the risks and rewards of entrepreneurship
Leverage experiments to validate concepts and refine your business strategy
Discover the key financial decisions entrepreneurs must make in the early stages of a startup
Understand the process of raising capital and how to speak to investors

Who Will Benefit

Whether you’re a first-time entrepreneur with the start of an idea or are exploring entrepreneurship, learn the language of the startup world.
While I have a deep business background, I was not well versed in several important aspects of entrepreneurship like investment structure, fundraising, and valuation. Entrepreneurship Essentials covered these topics well and I was surprised at some of the additional takeaways I had.
Maggie Robb
Head of Operations at Spire Inc.
Gain an overarching framework to evaluate opportunities, manage startups, and finance new ventures.
My favorite part of Entrepreneurship Essentials was the financing and equity module. It taught me the basics of how to look at spreadsheets and make sense of them—one of the most vital things for any company or start-up to understand.
Randy Nguyen
Explore what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur and determine whether starting a business, or working for a startup, is the right path for you.
I loved the case study on Intuit and the Quickbook App. It was something I could relate to, and it helped me to understand and know that fear can be good because it fuels your passion to keep you moving forward.
Anita Umoh
Director at Ayzer Limited

What You Earn

Certificate of Completion

Certificate of Completion

Boost your resume with a Certificate of Completion from HBS Online

Earn by: completing this course

Certificate of Specialization

Certificate of Specialization

Prove your mastery of entrepreneurship and innovation

Earn by: completing any three courses within this subject area to earn a Certificate of Specialization

Learn More about what you earn

Syllabus

4 Modules, 25-30 Hours
Download full syllabus
6-8
hrs
Module 1

Ideas and Opportunities

Identify and evaluate an entrepreneurial idea, and gain confidence with twists and turns.

Highlights

Welcome to Entrepreneurship
Introduction to Opportunity
Evaluating an Idea’s Value
Individual Versus Team
ShowHide Details

Concepts

  1. Course Introduction and Onboarding
  2. What Is Entrepreneurship?
  3. Evaluating Ideas
  4. John Osher: Illustrating the Entrepreneurial Process

Featured Exercises

  • Sizing the market
  • Estimate willingness to pay
6-8
hrs
Module 2

Building a Business

Apply the POCD (People, Opportunity, Context, Deal) framework, and learn how to manage risk and reward through experimentation.

Highlights

Describing Successful Ventures
The Idea
Pivots - Voluntary and Involuntary
ShowHide Details

Concepts

  1. The POCD Framework
  2. The Journey of Rent the Runway
  3. Post-Launch Considerations
  4. Dynamic Fit Management

Featured Exercises

  • Evaluating POCD elements and fit
  • Designing and learning from tests
  • Anticipating change and reacting to new information
6-8
hrs
Module 3

Financing a Business

Determine how and when investment can help you create value for yourself and your investors, and consider risk and reward through various forms of analysis.

Highlights

Creating Value
Free Cash Flow
Metrics and Milestones
ShowHide Details

Concepts

  1. Using Money to Produce Information
  2. The Investor Perspective
  3. Business Models
  4. Calculating Financing Needs

Featured Exercises

  • Understanding and presenting key financial metrics
  • Determining investment needs
6-8
hrs
Module 4

Sources of Investment

Define key finance terms and understand the opportunities and tradeoffs associated with different sources of financing

Highlights

Intuit
Choosing an Investor
The Complete Fundraising Landscape
Stages of Investment
ShowHide Details

Concepts

  1. Fundraising
  2. Term Sheets and Valuation
  3. Bringing It Together

Featured Exercises

  • What do entrepreneurs get from investors?
  • Calculating the value of a startup
Free E-Book

So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur: How to Get Started

In this guide, you’ll learn about what characterizes a successful entrepreneur, how to decide if entrepreneurship is right for you, and what skills you need to thrive.
Access Your Free E-book

Our Difference

Entrepreneurship Essentials helps you turn an idea into a viable venture.
Stay active by engaging in a new activity every three to five minutes.
Stay active by engaging in a new activity every three to five minutes.
Description of silent animated video above: Learner completes an interactive question by dragging and dropping choices into two different categories
Get social by collaborating and networking with a global community of peers before, during, and after the course.
Get social by collaborating and networking with a global community of peers before, during, and after the course.
Description of silent animated video above: Learner types an answer in the discussion board in response to a peer's question
Immerse yourself in real-world, case-based examples brought to life by industry-leading experts, including serial entrepreneur John Osher, Rent the Runway CEO Jennifer Hyman, and Intuit founder Scott Cook.
Immerse yourself in real-world, case-based examples brought to life by industry-leading experts, including serial entrepreneur John Osher, Rent the Runway CEO Jennifer Hyman, and Intuit founder Scott Cook.
Description of silent animated video above: Learner scrolls through video interviews from prominent business leaders

About the Professors

William Sahlman
Entrepreneurship Essentials

Baker Foundation Professor
"Entrepreneurship Essentials introduces you to the entrepreneurial journey from finding an idea, to gaining traction in the marketplace, to raising capital for your venture."

Dates & Eligibility

Starting
May
24
8 Weeks  $1,750
Application deadline May 15
View weekly calendar
Apply Now
Starting
Jul
12
4 Weeks  $1,750
Application deadline July 3
Apply Now
  • Free application
  • No documentation required
  • Confirmation within one week

All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the course.

Learn about bringing this course to your organization.

Learner Stories

94%
improved knowledge to grow or start a business
The People, Opportunity, Context, and Deal framework is now in the back of my mind. Also, I have learned how to quickly assess and network with other companies and panelists at the hundreds of meetup events I've attended.
Vasilios Dimopoulos
Associate at Deutsche Bank
Professor Sahlman’s careful observation of the best and brightest entrepreneurs over the last 30 years has given him a perspective and insightfulness that few others can rival. He keeps his students eager to dissect and analyze the situation and range of solutions.
Janet Krauss - Entrepreneurship Essentials
CEO at Peach
Read more learner stories
* Source: 2022 surveys and course data
 
All FAQs

Entrepreneurship Essentials FAQs

What are the learning requirements in order to successfully complete the course, and how are grades assigned?

+–

Participants in Entrepreneurship Essentials are eligible for a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Business School Online.

Participants are expected to fully complete all coursework in a thoughtful and timely manner. This will mean meeting each week’s course module deadlines and fully answering questions posed therein. This helps ensure your cohort proceeds through the course at a similar pace and can take full advantage of social learning opportunities. In addition to module and assignment completion, we expect participation in the social learning elements of the course by offering feedback on others’ reflections and contributing to conversations on the platform. Participants who fail to complete the course requirements will not receive a certificate and will not be eligible to retake the course.

More detailed information on course requirements will be communicated at the start of the course. No grades are assigned for Entrepreneurship Essentials. Participants will either be evaluated as complete or not complete.

What materials will I have access to after completing Entrepreneurship Essentials?

+–

You will have access to the materials in every prior module as you progress through the program. Access to course materials and the course platform ends 60 days after the final deadline in the program.

How should I list my certificate on my resume?

+–

Harvard Business School Online
Certificate in Entrepreneurship Essentials
[Cohort Start Month and Year]

List your certificate on your LinkedIn profile under "Education" with the language from the Credential Verification page:

School: Harvard Business School Online
Dates Attended: [The year you participated in the program]
Degree: Other; Certificate in Entrepreneurship Essentials
Field of Study: Leave blank
Grade: "Complete"
Activities and Societies: Leave blank

For the program description on LinkedIn, please use the following:
Entrepreneurship Essentials is a 4-week, 30-hour online certificate program from Harvard Business School. Entrepreneurship Essentials introduces participants to the entrepreneurial journey from finding an idea to gaining traction in the marketplace to raising capital for a venture. Participants learn an overarching framework—People, Opportunity, Context, Deal—to evaluate opportunities, manage start-ups, and finance ventures.

This course also introduces participants to the idea that entrepreneurs run structured experiments to validate ideas and refine business strategy. Participants work through real-world challenges faced by entrepreneurs across a variety of industries, and come away with tangible tools and techniques that they can apply to their own entrepreneurial journeys.

 

Related Courses

Disruptive Strategy

Professors Rory McDonald & Clayton Christensen

Strengthen your capacity to make innovation a reality; unlock your potential to create winning strategies.

6 weeks, 5 hrs/week
Apply by May 15
$1,750Certificate 

Negotiation Mastery

Professor Michael Wheeler

Secure maximum value for your organization through a mastery of negotiation techniques.

8 weeks, 4-5 hrs/week
Apply by April 10
$1,750Certificate 

Design Thinking and Innovation

Srikant Datar

Uncover innovative solutions to your most challenging business problems.

7 weeks, 6-8 hrs/week
Apply by March 27
$1,750Certificate 
 
All FAQs

Top FAQs

How are HBS Online courses delivered?

+–

We offer self-paced programs (with weekly deadlines) on the HBS Online course platform.

Our platform features short, highly produced videos of HBS faculty and guest business experts, interactive graphs and exercises, cold calls to keep you engaged, and opportunities to contribute to a vibrant online community.

Are HBS Online programs available in languages other than English?

+–

We expect to offer our courses in additional languages in the future but, at this time, HBS Online can only be provided in English.

All course content is delivered in written English. Closed captioning in English is available for all videos. There are no live interactions during the course that requires the learner to speak English. Written English proficiency should suffice.

Do I need to come to campus to participate in HBS Online programs?

+–

No, all of our programs are 100 percent online, and available to participants regardless of their location.

How do I enroll in a course?

+–

All programs require the completion of a brief application. The applications vary slightly from program to program, but all ask for some personal background information. You can apply for and enroll in programs here. If you are new to HBS Online, you will be required to set up an account before starting an application for the program of your choice.

Our easy online application is free, and no special documentation is required. All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the program.

After submitting your application, you should receive an email confirmation from HBS Online. If you do not receive this email, please check your junk email folders and double-check your account to make sure the application was successfully submitted.

Updates to your application and enrollment status will be shown on your Dashboard. We confirm enrollment eligibility within one week of your application.

Does Harvard Business School Online offer an online MBA?

+–

No, Harvard Business School Online offers business certificate programs.

What are my payment options?

+–

We accept payments via credit card, wire transfer, Western Union, and (when available) bank loan. Some candidates may qualify for scholarships or financial aid, which will be credited against the Program Fee once eligibility is determined. Please refer to the Payment & Financial Aid page for further information.

We also allow you to split your payment across 2 separate credit card transactions or send a payment link email to another person on your behalf. If splitting your payment into 2 transactions, a minimum payment of $350 is required for the first transaction.

In all cases, net Program Fees must be paid in full (in US Dollars) to complete registration.

What are the policies for refunds and deferrals?

+–

After enrolling in a program, you may request a withdrawal with refund (minus a $100 nonrefundable enrollment fee) up until 24 hours after the start of your program. Please review the Program Policies page for more details on refunds and deferrals. If your employer has contracted with HBS Online for participation in a program, or if you elect to enroll in the undergraduate credit option of the Credential of Readiness (CORe) program, note that policies for these options may differ.

 

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