Patricia H. Thornton Office Hours: MW 3:30-4:30 & by appointment Soc-Psych Building rm. 265 Telephone: 660-5760 E-mail: thornton@soc.duke.edu

Teaching Assistant: Carmen Weigelt Office Hours: TH 9-11:00 & by appointment Building: Fuqua School of Business rm. 283E Telephone: 660-7901 E-mail: cbw4@mail.duke.edu

Course Description

The goal of this course is to provide students with a survey of intellectual thought on the subject of entrepreneurship. Knowledge and application of theory are emphasized. This course considers the historical origins and current causes of entrepreneurship. The primary emphases are sociological, although entrepreneurial actors and activities are examined from psychological, political, and economic perspectives. Entrepreneurship is considered from a supply side (personal, social, and cultural) characteristics of entrepreneurs, and a demand side perspective, the (organizational, economic, and societal) conditions that give rise to new enterprise. The course reviews entrepreneurship from various levels of analysis: the individual, organizational, industrial, organizational field, and global levels. We explore how, when, and where new businesses are likely to form and what affects their relative chance of success. The final section of the course considers the topic of organizational behavior, organizational change, and how to create an effective organization. Class sessions take the form of lectures, discussions, video, and guest speaker presentations. The course encourages analytical integration of theory and its application to understanding real world events. Students do not develop a business plan.

You may access the course syllabus, lecture overheads, discussion guides, and sample exams through the Sociology Department's Web page at http://www.soc.duke.edu/courses/soc159/159syls00.html. The names of course materials are noted on the syllabus in bold capital letters and they correspond to file names on the Web site. It is recommended that students access these materials. Please contact the teaching assistant if you need assistance accessing the web site.

This course is one of the core courses in the Markets and Management certificate program. Although there are no prerequisites, and typically the course recruits students from many majors, it is assumed that students are able to understand business press articles. The two texts listed below have a glossary of terms and an index that may be useful. They are on reserve at Perkins Library.

• Oster, Sharon, M. 1994. Modern Competitive Analysis. New York: Oxford University Press.
• Milgrom, P. & Roberts, J. 1992. Economics, Organization, and Management. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Required Readings

• The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism by Max Weber
• Leadership in Administration by Philip Selznick

Readings for this course have been drawn from a variety of books, academic journals, and the business press. They are available on reserve at Perkins Library, both on-line and in hard copy. They can be accessed rom the following web address http://www.lib.duke.edu/access/reserves. The readings also are available in the Markets and Management Program Resource Room (W9. 256) in hard copy.

Requirements

multiple choice exam	1	25%
essay exam	1	25%
multiple choice exam	2	25%
essay exam	2	25%

There are two types of exams, in class multiple choice and take home essay formats. You will have a choice of which essay questions you answer. Exam questions require students to interpret and integrate insights from theoretical readings, class lectures, and guest speaker presentations. The teaching assistant participates in grading both the multiple choice and the essay exams. Sample essay exams are available for review on the course web site, click on EF159S.96

We also may have extra credit assignments. Given the availability of speaker telephone technology, we may be able to actively hear from and engage guest speakers in question and comment sessions. These assignments will be in the form of students submitting names of potential guest speakers and in participating in the formulation and presentation of interview questions.

Prepared and active attendance is noticed and welcome. Student questions, comments and suggestions improve teaching and enhance learning for all.

Class Outline and Assignments

A) Introduction and Overview

B) Supply Side Perspectives

This section of the course will examine theories of entrepreneurship that emphasize personal, social, and cultural background characteristics of individuals.

 

2. M	1/17	Holiday: Martin Luther King Day
3. W	1/19	Guilder (1984) "A Patch of Sand" The Spirit of Enterprise 23-41. (Discussion: student groups will be asked to discuss the case of Jack Simplot. Was his success due to his personality, socialization, or the environment?) guest speaker: Sharon Flynn, President of DUNE (Duke University Network of Entrepreneurs) DUNE.duke.edu
4. M	1/24	Brockhaus and Horwitz (1986) "The Psychology of the Entrepreneur" in The Art and Science of Entrepreneurship 25-44 PSYCH guest speaker: Evan Jones, Founder and former CEO, TSI Soccer www.gogreenlight.com

Culture as an Engine of Entrepreneurship

5. W	1/26	Weber (1930) The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism 35-183 (see discussion guide) WEBER HYPOTH
6. M	1/31	guest speaker: Christy Jones, Founder and CEO, PC Order, spin-off of Trilogy Inc. E-commerce company www.trilogy.com
Christina C. Jones President and Founder, pcOrder Christina Jones is president and founder of pcOrder, the leading provider of Internet-based electronic commerce solutions that enable the computer industry's suppliers, resellers, and end-users to buy and sell computer products online. Jones launched pcOrder in June 1996 as a spin-off from Trilogy, the company she co-founded as a Stanford University student in 1989. Trilogy is a leading provider of sales, marketing, and business-to-business electronic commerce applications for Fortune 500 companies. While at Trilogy, Jones worked to create partnerships with many of the key members of the computer industry and in the process, discovered an enormous business opportunity. Companies within the computer industry needed a way to efficiently exchange information and conduct transactions; Jones answered with pcOrder. Today, leading computer manufacturers, distributors, corporate resellers, VARS, and retailers use pcOrder technology and services to power their own e-commerce solutions, leveraging the Internet to drive profit, cut costs, and better connect with their customers. As president, Jones has secured major members of the computer industry as partners and customers and has led pcOrder to its position as the recognized industry standard for buying and selling computer products over the Internet. Jones, 30, is an established leader in the computer industry. Forbes has featured Jones on three covers, most recently for her success in moving the indirect distribution channel for computers to the Internet. Jones was recently named the "1999 National Ernst and Young Entrepreneur Of The Yearâ in the Young Entrepreneur category. Jones was also named one of Computer Reseller News "1999 Top 25 Executives" and a member of the "Top 100" by Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Jones has also been named a "Web Innovator" by Information Week and one of the "Top 20 Leaders Under 30" by Working Woman. She was also presented with the Business Journal's 1999 Profiles in Power award. A graduate of Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA., Jones received a BA in economics in 1991.
C) Demand Side PerspectivesThis section of the course examines organizational, economic, political, and societal conditions that give rise to entrepreneurship. Culture as an Engine of Entrepreneurship
7. W	2/2	Meyer (1994) "Rationalized Environments" in Institutional Environments and Organizations by W. Richard Scott and John W. Meyer "Come Home, Little Startups," BusinessWeek , Feb 26, 1996 (lecture and discussion: The Macro Culture as the Engine of Entrepreneurial Activity) ENTREACT.1 SYMBOL
Hierarchies: as an Engine of Entrepreneurship
8. M	2/7	Chandler (1992) "The Emergence of Managerial Capitalism," in The Sociology of Economic Life by Mark Granovetter and Richard Swedberg USTRUCTURE MSTRUCTURE
9. W	2/9	Block and MacMillan (1993) "Corporate Venturing: What is it? Why do it? What is its Track Record? in Corporate Venturing: Creating New Businesses within the Firm 13-32 Mamis (1993) "The Apple Tree" Inc. August 1993 (lecture and video: How do Organizations Spawn Entrepreneurs and New Businesses? Intrapreneurship in the 3M Corporation) (excerpt from In Search of Excellence video) MFORM MFORM.MF FORM.UF
10. M	2/14	guest speaker: Dr. Robert Freese, Founder, division of 3M, Founder and former CEO Alphatronix
11. W	2/16	In class multiple choice exam 1 (material on psychology, culture, hierarchies)

Markets: as an Engine of Entrepreneurship

 

12. M	2/21	An Organizational Field Perspective Thornton (1995) "Accounting for Acquisition Waves: Evidence from the U.S. College Publishing Industry," in The Institutional Construction of Organizations: International and Longitudinal Studies by W. Richard Scott and Soren Christensen MWAVE MWAVE1 EXPAND Review multiple choice exam 1
13. W	2/23	A Managerial Perspective Lazonick (1992) "Controlling the Market for Corporate Control: The Historical Significance Managerial Capitalism" in Industrial and Corporate Change 445-488.
Markets for Capital
14. M	2/28	Venture Capital: Dougherty, Dennis, J. 1995. "Venturing Forth: Selective Venture Capital Funds Provide the Spur of Success to Many Young Companies." guest speaker: Mitch Mumma, Intersouth Partners, Past President, Council for Entrepreneurial Development venture capital firm www.intersouth.com
15. W	3/1	Forms of Investment Banking: Initial Public Offering (IPO), Leveraged Buy-Out by Management (LBO), Acquisition, and Private Placement "IPO Capitalism" BusinessWeek, 12-18-1995 IBCASES guest speaker: Gregory Montgomery, Managing Director, Centura Capital Investments
Networks: as an Engine of Entrepreneurship Social Capital of Individuals
16. M	3/6	Burt (1992) Structural Holes: The Social Structure of Competition pp 8-49

Take-home exam 1 questions handed out in class, due on or before Friday 3/10 5:00 p.m., room 265, late exams are downgraded (material on psychlogy, culture, hierarchies, markets)

Incubators: Social and Political Structures

D) Entrepreneurship in Industries and Organizational Populations and Fields This section of the course will consider how competition, cooperation, and technological innovation affect how and where new enterprise is likely to arise and the strategies that firms are likely to employ.

Competitive Perspectives: Population Ecology and Industrial Economics