Business and Entrepreneurship Project

Welcome to BUS B899 Business and Entrepreneurship Project. BUS B899 is a ten-credit, two-term, master's level course for students taking the Master of Business Administration, Master of Corporate Governance, Master of Human Resource Management and Master of Professional Accounting programmes.

Course aims

The course aims to enhance your skills in identifying a market need, transforming a product or service to create value, and writing up a detailed business plan in the context of new venture development.

Course learning outcomes

Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

• Utilise diagnostic tools to critically analyse entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial opportunities in the market;
• Integrate and apply a repertoire of theories, concepts and techniques for formulating an evidence-driven business proposal;
• Design and apply appropriate research methodologies to critically evaluate new practices and/or solutions;
• Write an effective business proposal and communicate business ideas in a professional manner; and
• Critically evaluate the likely success and feasibility of a new venture.

Course materials

BUS B899 is a project-based course. Due to the nature of the course, there are no study units provided. There is also no set textbook selected for this course. However, to support and facilitate your learning, selected readings which include book chapters and journal articles are recommended. You are also expected to find and read articles that are relevant to your projects.

References

The following is a list of recommended titles that you may wish to consult during your study of BUS B899:

Priestley, D (2018) Entrepreneur Revolution: How to Develop your Entrepreneurial Mindset and Start a Business that Works, 2nd edn, Wiley.

Ries, E (2011) The Lean Startup: How Constant Innovation Creates Radically Successful Businesses, Penguin.

Scarborough, N M and Cornwall, J R (2019) Essentials of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management, 9th edn, Pearson.

You might also find the following websites helpful:

Entrepreneur Asia Pacific: https://www.entrepreneur.com/

Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/

Social Enterprise: https://www.sehk.gov.hk/en/

SUCCESS: https://www.success.tid.gov.hk/english/bus_sta_up_inf_ser/bus_sta_up_inf_ser.html

The Lean Startup: http://theleanstartup.com/

Audiovisual materials/software

You will need access to a computer with Microsoft Windows /XP/Vista or equivalent and an Internet browser.

Assignment File

The Assignment File (available from the Online Learning Environment, OLE) provides you with guidelines for working on your assignments. You can refer to the Course Guide section on assessment that follows, and to the Assignment File itself for more information.

Presentation Schedule

The Presentation Schedule is available on the OLE. This schedule provides you with the dates for completing assignments, attending day schools (in person) and live online tutorials, and so on.

Assessment

The assessment of this course only includes continuous assessment, which comprises of five assignments: four written assignments and one oral presentation (compulsory assignment).

Assignments

During the period of learning, continuous assessment of your performance in the course is carried out through the submission of four assignments. The first three assignments help to build up to the last assignment.

The assignments are contained in the Assignment File. Assignments serve three purposes:

• Assignments provide a mechanism for you to maintain your
• Assignments test your understanding of the topics and require you to demonstrate your achievement of the course's learning outcomes.
• Assignments also provide an opportunity for you to apply what you have learned via applications.

After being marked by the assigned tutor, assignments are returned to you so that you can be aware of your mistakes and clarify any misunderstandings. In addition, you can broaden your perspectives through the tutor's feedback.

How to submit assignments

You must use word processing software (such as Microsoft Word) to prepare the assignments, and submit them via the Online Learning Environment (OLE). All assignments must be uploaded to the OLE by the due date.

Failure to upload an assignment in the required format to the OLE may result in the score of the assignment being adjusted to zero.

Assignment submission extension policy

The assignment policy of the University as stated in the Student Handbook should be observed. You are required to submit assignments for this course in accordance with the dates communicated by your Course Coordinator. You may apply for a submission extension on the grounds of illness, accident, disability, bereavement or other compassionate circumstances.

Applications for extensions must be submitted online via the OLE. Please note the following:

• Supporting documents must be submitted to justify applications for extensions of over seven days.
• Applications for extensions should normally be lodged before or on the due date.
• Applications are considered by:
  
  • your tutor for extensions of up to seven days;
  • the Course Coordinator for extensions of 8 to 21 days; and
  • the Dean for extensions of over 21 days.

After an assignment is submitted via the OLE, it is your responsibility to check that the assignment has been successfully submitted. Extension applications due to any problem with uploading will not be accepted. The University cannot accept any responsibility for assignments that are not received by your tutor due to any problem with submission via the OLE. As a precaution, you are advised to keep a copy of each assignment you submit.

According to the University's policy, no extension of the due date will be allowed for the final assignment. This policy will be strictly enforced. Any late submission of the final assignment will result in the score of the assignment being adjusted to zero.

Oral presentation

The oral presentation (in person) that has a value of 20% of the total course grade is a compulsory assignment. The presentation will mainly cover Assignment 4 (the final version of the project). In the oral presentation, the student will first give a five to ten-minute presentation highlighting the important points about the project, and then will be asked to answer the questions posed by the tutor to the student. The purpose of the oral presentation (including the Q&A session) is to assess your understanding of business and management theories and concepts as well as your ability to apply them in a realistic business / management situation. The duration of the oral assessment will be around 20–25 minutes. You will be advised of the oral presentation arrangements scheduled by the School in due course.

Course marking scheme

The structure of the course marking scheme is summarized in the following table.

You are required to gain a pass in both the compulsory assignment and the overall continuous assessment score to obtain a pass in this course.

The following table gives a general overview of the course structure. It suggests the amount of time you should allow for completing units and provides a broad schedule for you to plan your work. These times are intended as a guide only and should be adjusted to fit your personal needs more closely.

A tutor is assigned to assist you in studying this course. The tutor, in addition to conducting the day schools (in person) and live online tutorials, is responsible for marking your assignments and answering any questions that you may have throughout this course. You are encouraged to contact the tutor during consultation hours whenever you have a question or problem with the assignment, or with your tutor's comments on or grading of an assignment.

Compared to the mega classes attended by hundreds of students in a typical university, the tutorials with no more than 30 students at HKMU provide a good opportunity for you to meet your classmates and to get to know your tutor. You will find that support and encouragement from classmates and tutors are very helpful.

Attendance in live online tutorials is optional, but you are urged to take advantage of them. You can get the most from tutorials by making comments and asking questions. Remember that learning does not happen passively. Your active participation in tutorials is crucial.

Your assignments will be marked and commented on by your tutor, who will keep an eye on your progress and assist you if you encounter problems during the course. Marked assignments will be returned to you as soon as possible.

It is good practice to keep a copy of each assignment submitted for marking, so that you can always refer to queries with the tutor during discussion.

Apart from live online tutorials, two day schools (in person) will also be organized to assist you in doing your project (assignments). Details of these sessions as well as the name, email address and phone number of your tutor will be sent to you by Registry.

It is strongly recommended that you attend all the live online tutorials and day schools (in person), which will provide considerable assistance in your study of this course.

While you may think you are studying on your own, it doesn't need to be that way. You can be in regular contact with your tutor and, once you've met for the first tutorial, you can be in contact with your fellow students. Make a point, when you meet fellow students, to exchange phone numbers or email addresses. In this way, you will be well on the way to developing a learning network of your own.

Online Learning Environment

This course is supported by the Online Learning Environment (OLE). You can find course materials and the latest course information from the OLE. Through the OLE, you can also communicate with your tutor, the Course Coordinator and other students. For details about the OLE and how to access it, please refer to the Online Learning Environment User Guide.

If you wish to defer your studies of this course until a later date, you should apply for deferment of studies. For the regulations governing deferment of studies, please refer to your Student Handbook. If you have applied for deferment of studies, you should continue with your studies of this course and submit the required assignments until formal approval is given by the University.

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