The course is meant to provide the frameworks, models and tools to understand the early stage financing of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms. The course will actively engage students in an experiential learning process. The instructors will provide theory and empirical evidence on entrepreneurial finance as well as the methodology commonly applied in this context. Guest speakers, such as venture capitals, business angels, crowdfunding platfmor mangers, lawyers, and entrepreneurs will share their practical experience with the class. Teamwork activies are designed to involve students actively.

The course fits into the overall program curriculum pursuing some of the defined general learning goals. In particular, the course contributes to the development of the following capabilities:

• Understand the context, the functions, and the decisions of entrepreneurs and managers of financial intermediaries as regards early-stage financing of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms

• Identify the key methodologies to assess the value of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms

• Design solutions applying a scientific and engineering approach (Analysis, Learning, Reasoning, and Modeling capability deriving from a solid and rigorous multidisciplinary background) to overcome the specific challanges of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms in accessing entrepreneurial finance 

• Interact in a professional, responsible, effective and constructive way in a working environment, also motivating group members

At the end of the course, the students will be able to:

• understand the decisions of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms as regards access to early stage finance;
• understand the decisions of managers of financial intermediaries as regards early-stage financing of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms;
• use theory and empirical evidence on entrepreneurial finance to make better financial decisions;
• identify the specific challanges for (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms in accessing early-stage financing 
• design approapriate strategies to alleviate the challanges for (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms in accessing early-stage financing 

• estimate the value of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms (valuation teamwork assignement)
• apply theory and empirical evidence on entrepreneurial finance to real cases (case study teamwork assignement)

• understand team working dynamics, develop leadership, negotiation skills, and conflict management ability (valuation teamwork assignement/ case study teamwork assignement)
• develop comunication skills and communicate the key concepts of their business model in a public context as well as in a written document (valuation teamwork assignement/ case study teamwork assignement)

The course includes:

• Lecture sessions: they aim at illustrating, sharing and discussing models, conceptual frameworks, tools and empirical evidence.
• In-class case study discussions: they aim at making students apply the insights from theory and empirics to make financing decisions in real world situations. Students have to read case study materials in advance of the class sections.
• Teamwork evaluation assignement: it aims at making students learn how to evaluate an entrepreneurial firm.
• Testimonials: guest speakers (entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, business angels) invited to share their practical experience with the class.

COURSE DETAILED PROGRAM

1. Introduction to entrepreneurial finance
2. Bootstrapping and debt financing
3. VC finance 
4. Valuation of entrepreneurial firms
5. Exit strategies
6. Governmental VC
7. Crowdfunding & Business Angels
8. Accelerator & Incubators

Students are required to know the principles of industrial economics and the basic notions of finance

The final evaluation is based on

- Final exam (50%): Final exam is based on closed questions to mini case studies in multiple choice format and is organized before the end of the semester. After the first call, the final exam will be oral. The final exam aims at testing student's ability to:

• apply theory and empirics presented in class to design strategies to access entrepreneurial finance
• interpret the decisions of entrepreneurs and managers of financial intermediaries as regards early-stage financing of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms in light of the theory and emprics presented in class
• make approapriate decisions about the access to finance of (inovative) entrepreneurial ventures

- Case study teamwork assignement (25%): The case study workgroup assignement consists of the analysis of a real case case provided by the instructor. The analysis will be discussed and questioned in class. In addition, students are asked to prepare a 2-pages document to syntesize the most important aspects of the analysis. With the case study group assignement sudents must show that:

• they are able to apply theory and empirics presented in class to interpret the decisions of entrepreneurs and managers of financial intermediaries as regards early-stage financing of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms 
• they are able to summarize and communicate the key concepts of their analysis in a public context as well as in a written document
• they are able to work effectively in teams

- Valuation teamwork assignement (25%): For the valuation teamwork assignement, students will prepare a 2-pages report describing the valuation of a entreprenurial firm by applying the tools presented during the course. The valuation teamwork assignement is meant to assess sutdents ability to:

• estimate the value of (innovative) privately-held entrepreneurial firms
• work effectively in teams
• summarize and communicate the key concepts of their evaluation in an effective written document

For working students, the teamwork assignments will be replaced by individual works.