Before going public, many companies have relied on venture capital financing to grow. Small companies are increasingly choosing private market solutions as the IPO market has entry barriers due to increased government regulations, compliance costs, and listing requirements. Small cap investors vying to add new IPOs to their portfolio are also investing earlier in the cycle (pre-IPO). This competition has led the development of secondary markets that provide an alternative to the traditional IPO.

Through this course, University of Lethbridge business students will gain knowledge and skills to build and evaluate these early-stage companies. Students will demonstrate their ability to successfully perform financial transactions, marketing strategies and components of a business plan in a start up setting. They might help initiate and evaluate stages of new / existing opportunities that will accelerate any organizational growth and reactivity.

The group Business Plan will have two components: 1) a written business plan or (2) project write up; and 2) a class presentation.