The certificate program offers women entrepreneurs an introduction to the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and leadership together with the skills necessary to sustain and grow their businesses.
The certificate program is designed to achieve the following goals:
1. Increase the business and leadership skills of women entrepreneurs
2. Assist women through a theoretical and practical approach to learning
3. Improve the understanding and perception of women’s role in building entrepreneurial ventures and creating societal wealth
4. Teach women entrepreneurs how to access and use resources
5. Provide skills on how to build sustainable networks of support
6. Transform women entrepreneurs into mentors who will pass the learning on to others
7. Build a community of women and men who promote and support entrepreneurial activities
The program uses an applied learning approach where students are given the opportunity to immediately translate theoretical concepts into practical actions. The program uses a variety of teaching methods including: self-assessments, case studies, role playing, skill-based learning labs, team activities, and coaching sessions with mentors and advisors. The program will conclude with a fair whereby faculty and other experienced business leaders provide feedback on individual business plans.
Curriculum Structure
The program will cover the following business and management topics.
Personal Leadership Development
Entrepreneurship
Managing the Enterprise
Finance and Accounting:
Business Strategy
Operations
Marketing
Personal Leadership Development
These modules use self-assessment techniques, role playing and peer feedback to help participants identify their core strengths and learn how and when to leverage these strengths. Participants will learn how to optimize their own and others’ performance and access this learning as they collaborate to build their business plans. In addition to teaching explicit skills in leadership, communication and team building, these sessions are designed to model the processes of forming sustainable support networks, building partnerships and transcending obstacles.
Entrepreneurship
Formation and Implementation of Entrepreneurial Ventures - These modules will assist students in the essential elements of business venturing. Students will examine the processes necessary for transforming ideas into operational businesses. They will be asked to identify and evaluate the problems facing start-ups in general and theirs in particular, then build viable solutions to those problems while balancing risks with rewards. A core element of this curriculum will be the conceptualization and development of an business plan. This plan will serve as a thread during the program curriculum. As participants learn concepts and tools in various disciplines, they will be asked to apply the learning to their business plans.
Managing the Enterprise
These modules focus on the human resources required to build a business. Participants will learn how to create effective organizational structures and systems. Participants will address a broad range of employee issues and local experts will be brought in to discuss country-specific labor laws and resources available to employers.
Finance and Accounting:
These modules are devoted to the basic principles of accounting and the utilization of financial information to build, analyze and grow a business. Participants will explore the role of accounting in preparing and reviewing financial data. Students will experiment in applying these financial principles and tools to their own business ventures.
Business Strategy
This module focuses on building the competitive strategy of the venture and leveraging competitive advantage. We will address concept creation, barriers to entry, concept
evaluation, and the strategic drivers that influence the business. Again, participants will have the opportunity to apply these concepts to their business plan.
Operations
This segment will focus on the fundamentals of a successful business operation. The module will provide a template for the critical operational success factors for a new business venture.
Marketing
These modules will discuss the role of marketing in competitive strategy. The course will explain the difference between marketing and sales activities and strategy versus execution. Students will, once again, use their business plans to experiment with these concepts.
