Venture Strategy Report Assignment Descriiption Upload to Canvas Due by end of t

Venture Strategy Report
Assignment Descriiption
Upload to Canvas
Due by end of the day on May 14
Your assignment is to write a report on a company or venture that is pursuing a social or
sustainable business model, technology, or product line. A venture-strategy report is essentially
a mini-case about the company.
Choosing a Company/Venture
While I prefer you to report on a new venture, you will have to determine whether or not you can
find sufficient information on a non-public company or early stage venture. A sweet spot is a
public company that pursues a single line of business (such as Whole Foods, A123 Battery, or
Tesla motors). You may also examine a certain product line, business unit, or strategic initiative
of a diversified public company (such as the GE Ecomagintion program, or Toyota’s alternative
vehicle strategy), although the financial aspects of such programs tend to be hidden. If you do
choose a private company or start-up venture, make sure you can find a reasonable amount of
information on the company. Your choice should also align with the sectors examined in the
class, although I encourage you to first and foremost choose a company that is of interest to you.
The final option is to examine an investor (such as Khosla Ventures or the Acumen fund), which
funds social or sustainable ventures.
Research
I expect that your research be extensive and more inclusive than a simple Internet search, or a
repeat of company documents. Independent evaluations, such as newspaper articles, trade
magazine reports, or investment analyses are essential. Please include a list of references cited
at the end of the report, and cite the sources of information throughout the text, in APA format as
provided in Microsoft Word. IPO prospectus and annual reports can provide very high quality
information.
Grading Rubric
Reports will be graded on the following criteria: Grammar, style, and organization, quality and
extensiveness of research, conceptual understanding of class themes, conceptual understanding
of venture’s business strategy, and overall level of effort.
Report Format
Reports should be three to four single-spaced typed pages, not including references. Please
submit in Times New Roman, 12 pt. font and do not exceed four pages, not including references
and appendices. Please avoid writing in the first person in your report (meaning do not use “I”),
and use present tense when speaking of the company, unless you are talking about its history or
prior events.
While I encourage you to use your creative writing and organizational skills to best communicate
the nature of the company, the following provides an outline for the assignment.
Name of Company, Author, Date (centered)
Company Overview – Provide a descriiption of the company’s history, current status, and basic
product/service and purpose. Possible topics include formation history, major events, size of the
business, founders, top management team, mission, indicators of financial or other success (level
of revenues growth, market acceptance). This section should create interest in the company as
well as provide an overview.
Product/Technology – Provide details of the product, service or technology. In particular, note
what is different about it, and the customer benefits. This is also a good place to discuss the
nature of the technology more broadly (i.e., how do solar photovoltaic’s function and what is
unique about this company’s photovoltaic product).
Business Strategy – Provide an overview of the company’s strategy for delivering its product or
service and succeeding in the market place. Possible topics include target market, need being
addressed, and value proposition. Other topics include the company’s place in the value chain,
source of competitive advantage, sustainability of competitive advantage, market share, and
major partners and customers.
Market/Industry Overview – Describe the competitive space and the market for the venture.
Who are the primary competitors, what is the structure of the industry and current industry
trends (political, economic, and environmental) that impact the business? What is the market
failure or gap that the venture fills? Describe the market in general, as well as the specific target
market being pursued by the company.
Sustainability/Ethics – Provide a discussion of the sustainable and social aspects of the
business, as well as any social mission or ethical aspects the company may have. Possible topics
include the company’s social and environmental practices and how the business model or
product is fundamentally more sustainable, and why. Do these aspects contribute to the
potential success of the venture?
Success Indicators – Describe any indicators of financial or other success in the company. This
is the pace to include financial information if available. If financial information is not available,
focus more on other indicators of success (or difficulties).
Analysis and Conclusion – What do you think of the company and its prospects, competitive
position, challenges, opportunities, trends. Summarize what is important and different about
this company, and what are the chances of success, as well as what these chances are these based
upon. This is an important section of the report because it demonstrates your ability to analyze
the situation of the company.
Works Cited – APA “works cited” format at end of report and referenced throughout document.