Session 2: September 26, 2007

Silicon Valley & Entrepreneurship

Guest: Alicia Morga, Consorte Media

Quote of the Day

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit." ~ Aristotle

Summary

What exactly is high-technology entrepreneurship? We will examine this process of creating and growing high potential ventures using several frameworks.

What exactly is Silicon Valley?  How has it been created?  What is unique about Silicon Valley, and what could be replicated in other regions of the world?  This session will examine the economic and cultural underpinnings of the center of technology entrepreneurship, and begin to set the framework/schema for interpreting the recurring themes we will see in the course.

 

Tom, Alex, and Chi-Hua will teach for the first 45-50 minutes and our guest speaker will take over after that.

We will also provide information on the Opportunity Analysis project, including the mentor program.

In this session we will be clearing the admission waitlist (if necessary).  Please come to class with partial teams in mind.  Teams should be groups of 4-6 people each.  Keep in mind, these teams will remain the same for the remainder of the quarter, and will work very closely while discussing cases and completing the Opportunity Analysis Project. With that in mind, remember that the "best" teams (i.e.: the most creative, the most effective, the most fun, etc.) have diverse members -- different majors, genders, work experiences. Don't just pick your friends, you will learn more from working with people who aren't exactly like you and/or who don't agree with everything you say.

We will have time at the end of class to finish completing your teams.  You must be on a team by the end of the session.

Required Readings (Policy on Required Readings.)

• Readings from the Textbooks:
• The Monk and the Riddle by Randy Komisar, Prologue, Preface, and Chapters 1-3
• Technology Ventures (Dorf and Byers): Ch 2 Opportunity and the Business Summary; Ch 3 Building a Competitive Advantage (Highlights: .2.1, 2.4, 3.3, 3.4) ; Review 7.3 Cluster Dynamics
• Additional articles to read:
• “How to Write a Great Business Plan” by William Sahlman [in course reader]
• The Deal by Jerry Kaplan (from "Startup, A Silicon Valley Adventure")
• "Put It Into Perspective," by Jesse Reyes
• What Venture Trends Can Tell You
• Built to Flip  
• Misadventures in the Me First Economy  
• Watch the following short video clips:
• Katharine Ku (OTL) - The Bayh-Dole Act
• Kavita Ramdas (Global Fund for Women) - Definition of Entrepreneurship
• John Doerr (KPCB) - Mercenaries and Missionaries
• Jerry Kaplan (OnSale / GO) - The Best Time to Start a Company is When Nobody Thinks it's Possible

Study Questions (Policy on Study Questions.)

• Begin thinking about the Opportunity Analysis Project.  Come prepared with a few potential ideas and  opportunities you would like to explore.  Be prepared to ask any questions you have about the project.
• Brainstorm a list of some exciting technologies and their associated industries. Be prepared to share some ideas with the class!
• In your opinion, what is the primary reason Silicon Valley has been such an influential economic hub?
• Visit the websites for these famous Stanford-related ventures who we will do case studies about later in the quarter: Yahoo! and Google. What business do you think they are really in? Be prepared to share your thoughts in class.
• To what extent does the state of the capital markets (venture capital and other financing) affect the climate for entrepreneurship? Is there a causal (or reverse causal) relationship or are the two things independent?

 

Note: Attendance is mandatory in order to determine who on the waitlist is admitted to the course.

 

Written Case Assignment (Policy on Online Assignments.)

None

 

Recommended Readings (Policy on Recommended Readings. List of readings)

• "Growth of a Silicon Empire", Henry Norr
• Stanford's Wellspring of Innovation, a database of companies founded by Stanford students and faculty.
• Fred Terman at Stanford
• "Engineering a Venture Capital Market: Lessons from the American Experience," Ronald J. Gilson