Profile:
New Venture Program
The New Venture Program blends academics with mentorship and relevant experience. It is a rigorous co-curricular program that involves the completion of several modules, culminating in a series of ‘defenses’ of a student venture’s business plan. Students will develop a strong background in business planning and management so that they can create sophisticated conceptual analyses of business problems and opportunities. Students receive the resources required to assist in the creation and defense of a business plan and prepare for the launch of a new venture.
Program Details
Instructor / Program Coordinator(s):
Bill McConkey, Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, Department of Management, University of Toronto Scarborough
Profile(s):
External Partners Faculty & Staff Students
Division:
University of Toronto Scarborough
Benefits to Students:
The New Venture Program helps students to develop their capacity to analyze startup opportunities. They are introduced, both through management theory and practice, to best practices for running early stage companies and are provided training in the use of hands-on resources, including industry research and software.
Benefits to External Partners and the Community:
The program is assisting in the development of talent within the U of T entrepreneurial ecosystem, the provincial ecosystem, as well as the global ecosystem. The New Venture Program is training the next generation of innovators both within the vibrant start up community, but also within industry as corporate innovators. U of T Scarborough Management students are receiving the Experience to Lead which in turn will benefit the communities they will be leading.
Benefits to the University:
The New Venture Program aligns with the Department of Management’s goal to create outstanding experiential learning opportunities for all students. It enables deep and meaningful collaboration between students, faculty and other industry experts. It also helps the Department of Management to connect with the broader entrepreneurial community within U of T as a Campus Linked Accelerator.
Information for Interested Students:
Students interested in learning more about the New Venture Program can visit the BRIDGE’s website.
Advice for Faculty and Staff Interested in Creating a Similar Experiential Learning Opportunity:
We see many concepts of entrepreneurship around the world. They are often focused on commercializing an idea from a student or group of students. While we believe that an initial venture or product or service concept should be a key element of the initial reason for joining an entrepreneurship program, we see a broader mandate that is focused on developing the broader skills of the student. This professional development will serve them whatever their new venture actually becomes, or even if they decide to move onto a role as a corporate innovator; a expertise that is experiencing increasing demand given the shortening of product life cycles.
Students participating in the New Venture Program (Photo by Kendal Egli, Courtesy of the Department of Management, University of Toronto Scarborough)
Details
University Based
Co-Curricular
Unpaid