BUSI 660 -- Small Business Management

BUSI 660
Closed
University Canada West
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Sessional Instructor
(4)
4
Timeline
  • February 6, 2023
    Experience start
  • February 11, 2023
    Organizational diagnosis
  • February 19, 2023
    Client's presentation in class
  • February 25, 2023
    Project proposal
  • March 11, 2023
    Project report
  • March 18, 2023
    Revised proposal
  • March 26, 2023
    Experience end
Experience
2/3 project matches
Dates set by experience
Preferred companies
Canada
Any, Small to medium enterprise
Any industries

Experience scope

Categories
Digital marketing Market research Competitive analysis Product or service launch Marketing strategy
Skills
digital marketing business consulting marketing strategy data analysis research
Learner goals and capabilities

Students will work with a small business (client) throughout the term (10-week term starting on February 6th) and will do the following:

1. Organizational diagnosis

2. Needs Assessment for Company

3. Mock Consulting Proposal

4. Final Project & PPT

How companies will benefit:

This course (BUSI 660) is a capstone project/exit course for the UCW MBA students - meaning, the small business will get to work with the final term MBA students. Students already had diverse academic and professional experiences before joining the MBA program. Now, they are just one step (term) away from earning an MBA degree. The small business, in working with the MBA students, will be able to utilize and access fresh perspectives for dealing with business challenges. Students, in teams, will deliver Market & Industry Analyses, various frameworks, such as Jobs to be Done, SWOT Analysis, etc. Similarly, students will also get valuable first-hand and real-world experiences by working with the small business.

Learners

Learners
Graduate
Any level
10 learners
Project
20 hours per learner
Learners self-assign
Teams of 5
Expected outcomes and deliverables

Students will work with the small business throughout the Winter 2023 term (a 10-week long term starting on February 6) and will provide the following deliverables:

(1) Organizational diagnosis, (2) project proposal based on the diagnosis as well as the small business' needs, (3) revised proposal, and (4) final project report and presentation.

Instructions to the potential client (small business owner):

1. The business should be a legally registered and ongoing small business. A new business is fine.

2. The business should be based in Canada.

3. The business owner should be willing to work with at least one five student groups (around six or seven students per group) throughout the duration of the term. Communication could be done virtually.

4. The business owner, or an experienced representative should be willing to spend an hour per week speaking with students, responding to their queries, etc. The expectation would be for these contact hours to happen virtually, but in-person options are available as well.

5. If the business owner agrees to the points mentioned above, the business owner will have an initial virtual meeting through a video call with the course instructor. The course instructor will discuss the details of the course, expectations, etc., and will answer any questions or concerns of the business owner. NOTE: The deliverables are negotiable and hope to align for maximum synergy between the company and student team.

Project timeline
  • February 6, 2023
    Experience start
  • February 11, 2023
    Organizational diagnosis
  • February 19, 2023
    Client's presentation in class
  • February 25, 2023
    Project proposal
  • March 11, 2023
    Project report
  • March 18, 2023
    Revised proposal
  • March 26, 2023
    Experience end

Project Examples

Requirements

1. Organizational diagnosis (individual project): Students will learn about the small business and will do a situation analysis in which students will critically evaluate the internal and external conditions that affect an organization -- a process that is done prior to a new initiative.

2. Project proposal, (i.e. Needs Analysis) (group project): Students will be working in groups, and based on the organizational diagnosis above as well as the needs of the small business, will write a proposal for the business including a range of solutions & strategic pathways for the business to consider.

3. Revised proposal (i.e. Consultative Recommendations) (group project): Students will finalize the proposal by incorporating feedback from the small business owner and the course instructor, as well as additional research they have compiled.

4. Final project report and presentation (group project): Students will submit their final written report and will present that to the client as well as to the instructor. Again, the points of emphasis, will focus on data-backed solutions and a 360° analysis, provided by the team, on three strategic pathways that the Capstone team believes that the Business should consider.

Additional company criteria

Companies must answer the following questions to submit a match request to this experience:

The business owner is willing to communicate with the Professor and respond to their queries with a reasonable turnaround time.

How is your Project relevant to this Small Business Management course?

Be available for a quick phone/virtual call with the instructor to initiate your relationship and confirm your scope is an appropriate fit for the course.

The business is a legally registered and ongoing small business.