Course Roadmap
A step-by-step journey from self-discovery to launching your enterprise — guided by design thinking, research, and real-world practice.
Phase 1 · Steps 1–2
Know Yourself: Values, Strengths & Entrepreneurial Characteristics
Before building anything, you build self-awareness. Entrepreneurs who understand their own values and challenges make more intentional decisions and build ventures that align with who they are.
📊 Week 1 Class Slides →Guiding Questions
Activities
📝 Blackboard Quiz: Knowledge Quiz 1
The Entrepreneurial Spectrum
Each student writes 3 words describing how they personally approach uncertainty, risk, and new ideas. Words are shared and grouped into themes on the board. Class discusses: Which of these traits do you think are essential for entrepreneurs — and which can be learned?
📋 Know Yourself Worksheet →Feel Entrepreneurial
Follow along with the Entrepreneurial Activity Slides while you listen to the lecture. Head to the Puzzle Site, pick a puzzle — you will be prompted to complete it while watching.
▶ Watch Lecture on Loom →What 3 words did you write down to describe how you personally approach uncertainty, risk, and new ideas? Do those words feel accurate — or did writing them down reveal something about yourself you hadn't fully named? Is there an entrepreneurial trait you wish you had more of? Share whatever surprised you most about today's self-reflection.
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Your Entrepreneurial Profile: Experiences, Talents & Passions
Great ventures often grow from the intersection of what you know, what you're good at, and what you care about. Mapping your experiences, interests, and passions reveals where your entrepreneurial edge lives.
📊 Week 2 Class Slides →Guiding Questions
Activities
Ikigai Mapping
Students complete the free Ikigai test at ikigaitest.com to map the intersection of what they love, what they're good at, what the world needs, and what they can be paid for. Results are shared in pairs — discussion focuses on what the intersection reveals about possible venture directions.
🔗 Free Ikigai Mapping Tool →Using your Ikigai map or life timeline from this week, describe the intersection where your skills, passions, and lived experiences overlap. What problem or need in the world does that intersection point toward? Be specific — don't just say "I like helping people." Name a real experience that shaped your perspective, explain why it stays with you, and describe what you wish had existed at the time. Then connect that to a possible direction for a venture. When you reply to a classmate, identify one connection between their background and their entrepreneurial potential that they may not have named themselves — sometimes we can see each other's strengths more clearly than our own.
Post a response (~200 words), then reply to at least one classmate's post.
Example Response
Growing up, I watched my mom piece together unreliable childcare on a single income — a neighbor one week, a church program the next. I never saw that as entrepreneurial insight until I did the Ikigai mapping this week. When I laid out what I love, what I'm good at, and what the world needs, childcare accessibility kept appearing at the center. I have a background working with kids, I care about this issue personally, and I understand the emotional weight of the problem in a way an outsider wouldn't. I don't know what form my venture will take yet, but I know it lives in that space. The exercise made me realize that the problems closest to us are often the ones we're most qualified to solve — not because we have all the answers, but because we understand what's actually at stake.
Helpful Resources
Phase 2 · Steps 3–4
📋 Graded Assignment · Starts Week 3 · Due End of Week 9
Know Your People: An AI-Assisted Research Journey
Use Claude to go deeper on your target group across Phases 2–4. Includes AI ethics + culminates in your one-page research summary and venture concept.
Who Do You Want to Help? Defining Your Entrepreneurial Why
Purpose-driven entrepreneurs start with people, not products. Identifying the specific groups you want to serve gives your venture direction and keeps your motivation strong through challenges.
Guiding Questions
Activities
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Who's in the Room?
Each student writes their target group on a card and posts it on the wall. Students cluster similar groups together, then discuss in small clusters: What makes this group underserved? Why are you the right person to help them? Each cluster shares one takeaway with the class.
📋 Target Group Worksheet → 📋 Why Statement Worksheet →Who I Want to Help
Follow along with the Who I Want to Help Activity Slides while you listen to the lecture. You do not have to turn this in for points, but it will be clear in your project if you completed this activity — and you should be prepared to discuss it in a discussion board post.
▶ Watch Lecture on Loom →Describe the target group you identified today — not just who they are demographically, but what they're experiencing. What problem or unmet need connects you to this group? Why are you the right person to focus on them? What do you feel when you think about their situation?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Design Thinking: Discovering Problems Worth Solving
Design thinking is a human-centered approach to problem-solving. By empathizing deeply with your target group, you move from assumptions to real insights — and identify problems that are genuinely worth solving.
Guiding Questions
Activities
📝 Blackboard Quiz: Knowledge Quiz 2
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture. Videos embedded in the slides, of entrepreneurs who found their problem to solve:
The goal of this lecture is to understand how you'll use the design thinking framework to approach a problem worth solving as an entrepreneur. Our modified design thinking process:
Empathy Interview Speed Round
Students pair up. One person coaches their partner on their target group for 2 minutes, then the partner plays that person in a 5-minute empathy interview. Switch roles. Class debrief: What question got the most useful answer? What surprised you about playing someone else's customer?
📋 Empathy Map Worksheet →After the Empathy Interview speed round, what shifted in how you understand your target customer's experience? What question got the most honest or unexpected answer? Did anything you heard make you want to narrow — or expand — the problem you're focusing on? Share the moment in the interview that felt most real.
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Phase 3 · Step 5
Primary & Secondary Research: Understanding the Problem Deeply
Good research is the foundation of a viable venture. Week 5 is dedicated to primary research — planning and conducting interviews and surveys with real people who experience the problem. Week 6 shifts to secondary research — studying what data, reports, and studies already say about the problem — and synthesizing both into actionable insights.
Guiding Questions
Activities
Week 5 — Primary Research
📖 Qualitative Research — Wikipedia 📖 Talking to Humans — Free essential guide (get the free PDF via the "Non Profits / Schools" option — keep it for the future) 📖 Survey Methodology — Wikipedia 📚 Business Skill: Customer Discovery · Blackboard 🎓 Lecture & Slides: Customer Discovery · Blackboard ▶ How to Make a Google Survey ▶ Watch: Google Surveys · Blackboard ▶ Graphing Survey Results 🎓 Lecture Slides — Customer DiscoveryWeek 6 — Secondary Research
📖 How to Conduct Market Research — SBA 📖 Market Segmentation — Investopedia 📖 Target Market — Wikipedia 🔗 Google Scholar 🔗 Statista — Market DataData is important for a strong value proposition — it makes the case that a problem is worth solving and that there's real market opportunity. Can your primary research help make that case? A few past student examples of data-backed problem statements:
Research Planning Pitch
In groups of 3, each student pitches their research plan — who they'll interview, what they'll ask, and what secondary sources they'll use. The group identifies the strongest part of each plan and one gap to address. Students leave with a peer-reviewed, refined approach.
📋 Research Planning Worksheet →The Surprising Finding Roundtable
Each student shares the one research finding that surprised them most — something that challenged an assumption they held going in. Class discusses: Did anyone's finding change their direction entirely? What patterns do we see across all of our research?
📋 Research Findings Worksheet →Share one finding from your primary research so far — something a real person told you, or a pattern you noticed across multiple conversations. Did this confirm what you expected, or challenge an assumption you walked in with? What question is this finding raising for you that you still need to answer?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Share one data point, statistic, or published finding you discovered in your secondary research — something that made you stop and think. How does it line up with what you heard directly from people in your primary research? Did the numbers change how seriously you're taking this problem, or did they just confirm what you already knew?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Phase 4 · Steps 6–7
Ideate Solutions & Choose Your Enterprise Model
Now that you understand the problem, it's time to find the gap. Survey who is already trying to solve it — and where they fall short. Then generate your own solutions, evaluate which fits best, and decide whether your venture will operate as a for-profit business, a nonprofit organization, or a social enterprise.
Midterm Deliverables
Guiding Questions
Activities
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture. How do you decide whether your venture's overall mission is to make a profit? For a deeper look, read "If the Shoe Fits" — it'll help you decide whether your solution should be a for-profit, social enterprise, or nonprofit venture.
Crazy 8s Ideation Sprint
Fold a sheet of paper into 8 sections. Set a timer for 8 minutes — sketch or write one different solution idea per section (quantity over quality). Circle your top 2 and share with a partner for 2 minutes of feedback. Class shares their most unexpected idea and why they almost didn't write it down.
📋 Midterm Check-In Worksheet →You've now looked at for-profit, nonprofit, and social enterprise models. Which did you choose for your venture — and what convinced you? What would have to be true about the problem or the world for you to choose differently? Share the reasoning behind your decision, not just the answer.
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Value Proposition & Business Model Canvas: Map How Your Venture Works
Week 8 you map the value you create for a specific customer, then zoom out to your first full Business Model Canvas — including a nonprofit-friendly variant if your venture is mission-driven. Week 9 you put your research and early concept in front of peers and get the feedback that turns a good idea into a stronger one.
Guiding Questions
Activities
Week 8 — Value Proposition & BMC
📖 What Is a Business Model? — Harvard Business Review 📖 Reinventing Your Business Model — HBR 📚 Business Skill: Value Proposition · Blackboard 📖 How to Create a Unique Value Proposition · Blackboard 📖 Value Proposition Examples · Blackboard 🔗 Value Proposition Canvas — Strategyzer 🔗 Business Model Canvas — Strategyzer ▶ BMC Explained — Video 🔗 Mission Model Canvas — Lean ImpactWeek 9 — Peer Feedback
📖 How to Use Feedback — HBR 📖 Giving Effective Feedback — Seeds for Change 🎓 Lecture Slides — You Have a Solution, Now What? 🎓 Lecture Slides — Your Value Creation 🎓 Lecture Slides — What's Next📝 Blackboard Quiz: Knowledge Quiz 3
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture. You may need to come back to these slides after working through the Value Proposition & BMC material to get the full picture.
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Value Proposition & Business Model Canvas Workshop
Students first map their Value Proposition Canvas: the customer's jobs, pains, and gains on one side, and how their offer relieves those pains and creates those gains on the other. Then they zoom out and draft their first full Business Model Canvas, all 9 blocks. Building a nonprofit or mission-driven venture? Swap in the Mission Model Canvas fields — beneficiaries vs. buyers/supporters, and how you'll measure mission achievement instead of just revenue. Share with a partner: is the value fit specific and honest, or still vague?
📋 Value Proposition & BMC Worksheet →Warm / Cool / Wonder Gallery Walk
Students post a one-page research summary and venture concept on the wall. Classmates rotate and leave sticky notes — Warm (a strength), Cool (a concern or gap), Wonder (a question they want answered). Students read their feedback silently, then class discusses: What patterns came up across multiple ventures?
📋 Synthesize Insights Worksheet →Looking at your completed Business Model Canvas, which block feels the strongest — the one where you have the clearest, most confident answer? And which block do you have the least confidence in? What would you need to learn, test, or do to fill that gap before the end of the course?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
What did you learn from the Warm/Cool/Wonder Gallery Walk? Share one "Warm" (strength someone named), one "Cool" (gap or concern), and one "Wonder" (question left unanswered). Which piece of feedback surprised you most? What are you going to do differently based on what you read?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Phase 5 · Steps 8–9
Build Your Online Presence & Launch Your MVP
Turn your value proposition into a real presence. Using AI tools, you'll build a landing page that communicates your offer clearly — then define and demo the simplest possible version of your product or service. You leave class with something real people can see and respond to.
Guiding Questions
Activities
📝 Blackboard Quiz: Knowledge Quiz 4
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture. Suggested reading: "What Makes Entrepreneurs Entrepreneurial?" by Saras D. Sarasvathy.
Complete your Means Inventory before coming to class: Who am I (skills, background, perspective)? What do I know (expertise, domain knowledge)? Who do I know (network, potential partners)? Then identify the one MVP you could build using only what you already have.
📋 Means Inventory WorksheetThe Headline Test
Students write the single homepage headline for their venture — one sentence that tells a visitor exactly what they do and who it's for. Share with the class. Discussion: Does it make you want to know more? Is it specific enough to be believable? Class votes on the most compelling headline.
📋 Headline Test Worksheet → 🌐 Build My MVP Website →MVP Show & Tell
Students bring or demo their MVP — a sketch, mockup, sample product, landing page, or one-pager. Each student gets 2 minutes to present. Class gives structured feedback: one thing that works, one question still unanswered. Students leave with a clear list of what to refine before Launch Day.
📋 MVP Show & Tell Worksheet →What did you bring or demo for MVP Show & Tell — and what was the most useful piece of feedback you received? Now that you've built something real and had someone look at it: does your headline still feel true? What are you going to change or refine before Launch Day?
Share your thoughts — no word count required. Replying to a classmate is encouraged but optional.
Helpful Resources
Revenue Model & Financial Strategy: How Will Your Venture Sustain Itself?
Before you pitch, you need to know how your venture makes money. You'll map your revenue streams on the Business Model Canvas, estimate startup and operating costs, project your first-year revenue, and practice your 30-second pitch.
Guiding Questions
Activities
📝 Blackboard Quiz: Knowledge Quiz 5
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Revenue Model Map
Using the Revenue Streams block of the Business Model Canvas, each student identifies how their venture will make money: one-time sales, subscriptions, licensing, services, or a hybrid. Then estimate: how many customers or units in year one, at what price? Write a rough first-year revenue number and share with a partner — does it sound realistic?
30-Second Pitch Drill
Students deliver a 30-second pitch to a partner: who you help, what you do, and why it matters. Partner gives one piece of feedback: "What made me want to learn more?" Rotate 3 times with different partners. Class debrief: What pitch language worked? What made pitches confusing or hard to follow?
🧹 Week 12 · Catch-Up / Flex Week
No new content this week. Finish anything from Phases 1–5, finalize your revenue model, and start thinking about your pitch and poster for Weeks 13–14.
Reflect on your revenue model and financial estimates this week. First, describe your revenue streams — how will your venture actually make money, and why does that model fit what you're building? Then share your rough first-year estimate: how many customers or units, at what price, and what does that total? What surprised you about putting numbers to your idea — did it make the venture feel more real, or raise questions you hadn't considered? When you reply to a classmate, react to their revenue model — does the approach make sense for the type of venture they're building?
Post a response (~200 words), then reply to at least one classmate's post.
Example Response
My revenue stream is a monthly subscription — $15/month for a meal-planning app targeted at busy parents. I chose subscriptions because the value repeats every month (new recipes, updated grocery lists) and because it gives me a predictable revenue base rather than chasing one-time sales. For year one I'm estimating 50 paying subscribers by month 12, which gets me to $9,000 in annual revenue. That's not a lot, but covering my hosting and tool costs (~$600/year) feels achievable. What surprised me is how quickly I started asking "how do I get to subscriber 50?" — suddenly the marketing side doesn't feel optional anymore.
Helpful Resources
Phase 6 · Steps 10–11
Pitch & Poster Preparation: Tell Your Story
Two weeks to polish your pitch, design your poster, and rehearse until you're ready. You'll refine your 60-second pitch, create a clear and compelling poster, get real peer feedback, and walk into Launch Day prepared.
Guiding Questions
Activities
Write Your Pitch Script
Before Pitch Clinic day, draft a 60-second pitch script for your venture. Use this structure: Who is the customer? What problem do they have? What is your solution? Why does it work? What are you asking for (action or feedback)? Record yourself once — just on your phone — and listen back. Revise until it runs under 60 seconds and feels natural, not read.
Pitch Clinic
In pairs, each student delivers their 60-second pitch. Partner gives structured feedback on three things: what was clearest, what was confusing, and one specific suggestion. Rotate twice for fresh ears. Full class debrief: What pitch language is landing? What questions keep coming up?
📋 Pitch & Poster Prep →Design Your Launch Day Poster
Before the gallery walk, create a draft of your Launch Day poster. Your poster should answer five questions a stranger would ask: Who are you? What problem does your venture solve? Who is it for? How does it work? Why should they care? Keep text minimal — if a sentence can be a visual, make it a visual. Use your venture's name, logo (if you have one), and at least one image or diagram. Bring a printed draft or digital version ready to display.
Poster Gallery Walk
Students post their posters around the room and do a gallery walk. Each viewer leaves a sticky note with one strength and one question. After the walk, each student gets 2 minutes to respond: What will you keep? What will you change before Launch Day?
After the Pitch Clinic this week, reflect on what changed. What did you say in your first pitch attempt — and what did you change by the third? What specific piece of feedback landed and made a real difference? If nothing changed, explain why — what would have had to be different for the feedback to shift your pitch? When you reply to a classmate, share what you noticed about their pitch from the outside: what was clearest, and what one thing would make it stronger?
Post a response (~200 words), then reply to at least one classmate's post.
Example Response
My first attempt was basically a feature list — "it's an app that does X, Y, and Z." My partner stopped me and said "I still don't know who this is for." That one question changed everything. By my third try I had it down to: "I help high school students in Lowell figure out how to pay for college — without the jargon and without the 45-minute hold music." That version made two people ask follow-up questions. The shift wasn't about adding more information; it was about cutting everything except the one thing that actually matters to the person I'm talking to.
After the gallery walk, what's the one piece of feedback you're actually going to act on before Launch Day — and why did that feedback land when other feedback didn't? What does that tell you about what matters most in your venture's story?
No word count. Write what's honest.
Helpful Resources
Launch Day & Post-Launch Debrief
You're ready. Deliver your pitch, present your poster, and hear what real people think. Then step back and reflect — what worked, what surprised you, and where these skills take you next.
Guiding Questions
Activities
Follow along with the slides while you listen to the lecture.
Live Showcase — 1-Minute Sales Pitch + Poster
Each student delivers a 1-minute sales pitch and presents their poster. No product or actual sale required — this is a pitch & poster showcase. Audience members ask questions and give feedback. Come prepared with your talking points and a polished poster.
📋 Pitch & Poster →Post-Launch Debrief
Each student shares their #1 win and #1 miss from Launch Day — one sentence each. The class listens for patterns: What went well across multiple ventures? What tripped everyone up? Then individually: journal 3 sentences on what you'd do differently, and one sentence on where you see yourself using these skills after this course ends.
📋 Post-Launch Reflection Worksheet →