Introduction
Welcome
Preface of Textbook
About the Textbook
About the Authors
Book Website at McGraw-Hill
DVD Contents
 
Stanford 1e Book Website
McGraw-Hill 1e Book Website
 
Book Contents
Table of Contents
I
 Venture Opportunity, Concept and Strategy
II
 Venture Formation and Planning
III
 Functional Planning of the Venture
IV
 Financing and Building the Venture
  Business Plans (App. A)
  Case Studies (App. B)
Online Sources (App. C)
 
Sample Syllabus
Course Overview
Calendar of Sessions
I
 Entrepreneurial Perspective
II
 Idea or Opportunity
III
 Gathering Resources
IV
 Managing Ventures
V
 Entrepreneurship and You
 
Additional Resources
Schools Using This Textbook
Authors Blog
 


Synopsis

Jon Hirschtick was ready for another entrepreneurial project and decided to leave his steady job to start Solidworks, a company aimed at developing powerful CAD (computer aided drafting) tools for lower end computing systems - which was then a wide open market. This case follows Jon through the steps he took to recruit a solid technical team through to his initial attempts at and offers of securing funding. For this initial funding round, Jon must decide whether Solidworks needs all the money upfront in a single round of capital or if the company should take the money in stages in order to obtain more favorable terms from the investors.

When should this case be discussed?

The meat of this case is in analyzing a single stage vs. multi-stage financing deal and hence is most appropriate after the student has been exposed to the first half of Section IV, which covers the financial aspects of technology ventures.

Teaching notes are available in Instructors Section at www.mhhe.com/dorfbyers2e

Relevant chapters and questions

Ch 4: Creating a Strategy
Ch 12: The New Enterprise Organization
Ch 17: The Financial Plan
Ch 18: Sources of Capital
Ch 19: Presenting the Plan anad Negotiating the Deal

1. Evaluate Jon's team. What made Jon so successful at recruiting key players to Solidworks? What functional members of the team does he still need, within and outside of Solidworks? What are the potential advantages and disadvantages of having Michael Payne from PTC join the team?

2. Why has this deal attracted venture capital? Think about the team and the opportunity.

3. Can the founders optimize their personal financial returns and simultaneously ensure that SolidWorks has sufficient capital to optimize its chance of succeeding? What factors should the founders consider?

4. How can the syndicate optimize its potential return? What factors should it consider?

5. Structure a deal that will serve the best interests of the founders, the company and the venture capital firms.

Additional Case Materials

Babson College: SolidWorks

A second Solidworks case and a video of John Hirschtick is available from Babson College.




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