Financial: How will you determine projected sales? How long will it take to be profitable? When will the company become cash positive?

Topic Selection & Annotated Bibliography (2 to 3 pages)
1. Topic selection should clearly identify the organizational/societal need or the business opportunity you plan to pursue, the means of addressing that need, and any personal experience or involvement (My idea is something to optimize talent acquisition and retention strategies in human resources. You can ultimately choose whatever topic)
2. A preliminary annotated bibliography should contain 8 sources, each with a brief paragraph describing why that source is valuable and how it contributes to the student’s project

Hypothesis and framework (6 pages)
1 A literature review should include 5-10 pages of seminal and contemporary research on the existing state of affairs. Depending on the nature and scope of a particular project, the following items may or may not be applicable:
o Organizational or societal background
 History, inflection points, structure, etc.
o Common obstacles
o Market saturation or competition
o Relevant demographic data
o Recent research
o The problem you are solving for a particular market segment
2 A hypothesis will synthesize existing research and propose a solution, strategy, or business plan to address the organizational or societal growth opportunity

Key Performance Indicators & Conclusion (3 pages)
1 The deliverable should include at least 3 pages of analysis and projections.
2 Key performance indicators and timelines are necessary to project out scope and trajectory of hypothesized intervention.
o What impacts do you see as a consequence of your hypothesized solution? When will you see them? How will you assess the effectiveness of your proposed intervention?
o How will your proposed product/service solve the exposed problem?

Final Project ( 18 pages)
The completed student-directed applied learning project includes a
product, service, organizational unit, market sector, innovative process/idea, or resolution
to a significant organizational problem. Students demonstrate mastery of their program’s
material by formulating recommendations and an associated action plan that incorporates
critical analysis, sound business principles, ethical standards, and best practices into their
work.
For this course, students adopt the persona of a consultant, researcher or founder of a new
venture to address a topic, opportunity or problem of their choice, identified and defined
collaboratively with instructor input.
The trajectory of the prior deliverables are intended to assist students in progressing through their paper conceptually, sequentially, and systematically. The final paper will require further nuance and creative synthesis, and should be more comprehensive than simply the compilation of each deliverable into a single document.

The Final Project can be in the form of a White Paper, Business Plan or Hybrid Business

o White Paper (15-20 pages) – an informational document that identifies a
significant organizational problem and provides persuasive, factual evidence to
formulate recommendations and an associated action plan that promotes a
resolution.
Business Plan – The business plan describes the opportunity that you have
uncovered and how you will take advantage of that opportunity. It is a form of
storytelling that will persuade readers of the feasibility of the idea.
One of the most significant reasons to write a business plan is that it requires you
to participate in a laborious and often eye-opening process that is a critical phase
before launching a new organization.
You must respond to difficult queries about the nature of the need for the product
or service, the intended target customer, your differentiation strategy, how long
will it take before you are profitable and realize positive cash flow and how will
you fund the beginning stages of growth.
▪ Plan Details:
o Opportunity: What need are you solving for which consumer?
What problems are you solving? What is the size of your market? What
indicators are you seeing in the external environment that will sustain the
growth?
o Product/Service: Describe the product or service? What is your unique
selling proposition (why would consumers choose your product over the
closest competitor)?
o Value Proposition: What value are you giving the target customer that
others do not provide?
o Marketing Strategy: What is your marketing communication strategy and
how will you reach your target customer?
o Competitive Environment: Who are the main competitors? What core
competencies do you possess that others may not?
o Management: Why will investors/suppliers/bankers be confident in your
ability to be successful in this venture?
o Financial: How will you determine projected sales? How long will it take
to be profitable? When will the company become cash positive?
o Funding: How much cash will you need to fund the startup? And how long
will you be able to operate before even making $1 in sales.

o Hybrid Business Plan –
This would include the preliminary research to get you to the point of discovering
the opportunity (market research) and selecting a number of the components of
the business plan as opposed to a full-blown launch plan. We would determine
what aspect of the plan you should include after that preliminary research is
conducted

Last Completed Projects