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- December 2012 (Revised November 2014)
- Case
Lit Motors
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Alex Godden
In mid-2012 Lit Motors had created both engineering and design prototypes and conducted initial customer tests on less than $750,000 of investment. Lit Motors' founder, Daniel Kim, had started the company to design and manufacture an efficient electric 2-wheeled... View Details
- December 2012
- Article
How Much Is Sweat Equity Worth?
By: Christopher Marquis and Joshua D. Margolis
The article presents a case study of a business decision related to the valuing of sweat equity in a start-up business. One man starts a premium vodka business, bringing in his cousin at an early stage, but with no initial discussion of the eventual split of equity or... View Details
- November 2012
- Case
Edison Schools, Inc.
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Lauren Barley
Edison Schools, Inc., a pioneer in the for-profit management of public schools, demonstrates the challenges and opportunities related to private sector involvement in the delivery of a public good. Follows the organization from its start-up through its initial public... View Details
- September 2012 (Revised March 2013)
- Case
Entrepreneurial Finance in Finland?
By: William R. Kerr, Ramana Nanda and Alexis Brownell
This case describes a new venture attempting to bring early-stage entrepreneurial financing to Finland and other Nordic countries. Entrepreneurship is taking off in Finland, an area that historically has had little venture capital or high-growth start-up activity, but... View Details
- June 2012 (Revised March 2015)
- Teaching Note
PunchTab, Inc.
By: Ramana Nanda and William R. Kerr
A Teaching Note for the PunchTab case, which discusses how high-tech startups structure seed financing, merits of angels vs. super angels vs. VCs, and related topics (e.g., convertible notes, priced versus non-priced financing rounds, entrepreneurial finance networks). View Details
- June 2012 (Revised June 2012)
- Case
PunchTab, Inc. Investor Presentation Deck
By: William R. Kerr and Ramana Nanda
This case examines the PowerPoint presentation that Ranjith Kumaran, founder of the start-up PunchTab, Inc., is using for his investment pitches to venture capital firms. Students can discuss the materials that Kumaran has included, his presentation style, and what... View Details
- May 2012
- Case
Indigo Telecom Australia
By: Cynthia A. Montgomery and Keith Chi-ho Wong
Two entrepreneurs identify an opportunity to bring ubiquitous satellite phone service to the outback of Australia. This case challenges students to carefully identify and evaluate the added-value the firm is bringing to the market, its priorities in implementation, and... View Details
- 2012
- Other Unpublished Work
Lost in the Clouds: The Impact of Copyright Scope on Investment in Cloud Computing Ventures
By: Josh Lerner and Greg Rafert
Our analysis seeks to understand the impact of changes in copyright scope on investment in new firms. We begin by analyzing the investment effects of the Cartoon Network, et al. v. Cablevision decision in the U.S. and court rulings in France and Germany on venture... View Details
- April 2012
- Case
People Express Airlines
By: Thomas R. Eisenmann and Lauren Barley
Recounts the history of People Express Airlines, which grew rapidly after its inception in 1980 then failed spectacularly in 1986. Profiles People's aggressive strategy and its distinctive approach to human resource management, which emphasized job rotation and minimal... View Details
- March 2012 (Revised September 2012)
- Case
INRIX
By: Lynda M. Applegate and Ryan Johnson
Since its founding in 2004, INRIX, a leading global provider of traffic information and driver services, had received four rounds of financing from leading venture capital (VC) firms and by 2012 had been cash flow positive for the past six quarters. Its founder, Bryan... View Details
- March 2012 (Revised October 2012)
- Case
Gary Hirshberg and Stonyfield Farm
By: Nancy F. Koehn, Nora N. Khan and Elizabeth W. Legris
Gary Hirshberg and Stonyfield Farm is the story of one entrepreneur's vision and journey to create a market-leading, environmentally responsible business founded on the principles of product quality, organizational alignment, and sustainability. A former environmental... View Details
Keywords: Entrepreneurs; Values; Development Stage Enterprises; Innovation; Management By Objective; Experimentation; Emerging Technologies; Mission and Purpose; Management Style; Values and Beliefs; Social Issues; Organizational Culture; Environmental Sustainability; Business Growth and Maturation; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Innovation and Invention; Food and Beverage Industry; New Hampshire
- January 2012 (Revised November 2014)
- Background Note
Scaling a Startup: People and Organizational Issues
By: Thomas Eisenmann and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld
Keywords: Business Startups
- December 2011 (Revised March 2013)
- Background Note
The Business Development Manager
By: Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Thomas R. Eisenmann, Sarah Dillard, Katharine Nevins and Puja Ramani
Describes the role of business development (BD) managers in technology companies, detailing: 1) BD managers' key responsibilities at each step in the process of creating a partnership agreement; 2) how the nature of the BD function evolves as a technology startup... View Details
- December 2011 (Revised October 2014)
- Background Note
Business Model Analysis for Entrepreneurs
By: Thomas Eisenmann
This note defines a business model and its major elements: a customer value proposition, a technology and operations management plan, a go-to-market plan, and a profit formula. For each element, the note lists questions that an entrepreneur must address when evaluating... View Details
Keywords: Business Model
- December 2011 (Revised July 2013)
- Background Note
Hypothesis-Driven Entrepreneurship: The Lean Startup
By: Thomas Eisenmann, Eric Ries and Sarah Dillard
Firms that follow a hypothesis-driven approach to evaluating entrepreneurial opportunity are called "lean startups." Entrepreneurs in these startups translate their vision into falsifiable business model hypotheses, then test the hypotheses using a series of "minimum... View Details
- December 2011
- Case
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters: Confidential Information for Negotiation with Keurig
Case provides confidential information for students assuming the role of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) senior executives in a negotiation to license technology from Keurig, a startup that has developed an innovative "portion pack" coffee brewing solution. The... View Details
- December 2011
- Case
Keurig and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
Provides background information for a negotiations exercise in which students will represent either Keurig, a startup that has developed an innovative "portion pack" coffee brewing solution, or Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR), a fast-growing premium coffee... View Details
- December 2011
- Case
Keurig: Confidential Information for Negotiation with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
Case provides confidential information for students assuming the role of senior executives of Keurig, a startup that has developed an innovative "portion pack" coffee brewing solution, in a negotiation to license technology to Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR). The... View Details
- November 2011 (Revised February 2012)
- Background Note
Location Choice for New Ventures: Choices within Cities
By: William R. Kerr and Alexis Brownell
- November 2011 (Revised November 2014)
- Background Note
Scaling a Startup: Pacing Issues
By: Thomas Eisenmann
Keywords: Business Startups