The Sustainable Business Game is a competition, organized by the Delft Centre for Entrepreneurship, for entrepreneurial students with a business idea for a sustainable product or service. Students assess the market potential for their business idea and learn how to present their product or service to experts, investors and the customer target group. The learning objectives are reached by means of two aspects: The first is a game element; the best idea is selected by a jury and rewarded with a prize. The second element is the combination of theory and practice. Students learn how to conduct analyses on their own ideas during the course. The course provides a platform for students in order to valorise their sustainable business ideas, but also creates awareness about the opportunities the combination of entrepreneurship and sustainability has to offer the students.
In 2008 there was a lot of attention paid to sustainable design at the Delft University of Technology, but not for the implementation and valorization of this design. The Delft Centre for Entrepreneurship and the platform for sustainable development in Delft “Osiris” proposed an answer for this lack in the educational system. Together they developed a competition aimed at stimulating sustainable entrepreneurial ideas at the TU Delft. The Delft Centre for Entrepreneurship is an inter disciplinary centre which aims at cultivating, stimulating and rewarding entrepreneurial behaviour of TU Delft students. Osiris is a student platform interested in sustainable development. The first course of the Sustainable Business Game took place during the last quarter of the 2008/2009 academic year, the second edition has expanded to the Erasmus University Rotterdam and is now in full swing (the last quarter of the 2009/2010 academic year) and ends before this summer.
The students can set up a feasibility study, asses technical, sustainable and market values and can apply this feasibility study to their own idea;
The students hold a particular vision on the combination of entrepreneurship and sustainability and express this vision verbally;
The students know how to create a proper image for their company and can relate to the importance of this;
The students value a proper business network and learn to develop one;
The students value and conduct a market analysis;
The students value and conduct a sustainable analysis; and
The students can indicate critical key success factors and key partners in their project.
The student or student team is expected to have an idea for a sustainable and technical product or service to work with during the course. The manufacturability and functionality of the idea does not have to be proven as long as the concept is original. Approximately 12 ideas will be selected by the staff of the SBG out of all the ideas proposed by the students. These ideas will be selected on the innovativeness and level of detail. The students who do not have an idea for a sustainable product or service, but want to participate and have the qualities, are selected to join a team by attending a matchmaking event.
The course consists of two parts:
The student attends lectures and workshops.
The student carries out a feasibility study for their own product or service.
First during the first hour of the weekly lecture sessions, a TU Delft lecturer introduces the theory of a subject and gives a lecture in order to provide theoretical information about the different aspects of carrying out a feasibility study and starting up a company. Subjects dealt with are entrepreneurship, sustainability, intellectual property, finance, market potential, stakeholders, business models, marketing, and the basic practical steps to starting up your own company. Subsequently, a guest lecturer provides more insight into the practical side of and his company's vision on the subject of the lecture. In order to learn how to apply the theories in practice, the lecture sessions end by students executing a case study, supervised by the TU Delft and guest lecturer. In addition to attending the lectures, the students carry out a feasibility study of their own product or service. Students will have to apply knowledge from the lectures and case studies to their own business case. The result of the feasibility study is a written report graded by the lecturers involved at the TU Delft and a presentation of the main conclusions judged by an independent jury. The report should include all the different aspects of carrying out the feasibility study of his/her own idea/service/product discussed in the lectures. The best business cases are selected to present to a national, independent jury. The winner appointed by this jury will receive several prizes (funding, consultancy, office location etc.) in order to set up a real business.
We will measure the results by doing a survey which focusses on two subjects: 1. The spin-offs of the last SBG edition. 2. The existence and increase of entrepreneurial and sustainable awareness (see objectives). We will measure to what extent our objectives are achieved by the following survey:
-- start survey --
Indicate if you agree or disagree with the following statements
My position within the debate concerning sustainability has become more critical
I understand the importance of the combination of entrepreneurship and sustainability
I am capable of testing the feasibility of every idea for a product or service
I understand the importance of a good representation of me and my company
I understand the importance of a solid business network
I understand the importance of sustainable analysis
I understand the importance of a market analysis
I am capable of writing a sales and marketing plan
I can judge whether a specific financial structure is relevant for a specific situation
I can judge which key partners are important for the success of a business
I can judge which succes factors are important for the success of a business
The competitive environment contributed to achieve the learning goals
-- end survey --
The combination of entrepreneurship and sustainability is valuable because it relates to an upcoming development: most enterprises get to deal with sustainability, and sustainable initiatives with an entrepreneurial approach seem to be more successful than their counterparts. The combination of theory and practice provides the students with the opportunity to learn from theory, meet real entrepreneurs and to build their networks. The game element makes sure the students make the most of this opportunity, and have a competitive environment in which to work. The use and integration of social media for promotional - and educational purposes.
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