Course

Read about the Master Programme and find the Study Regulations at ruc.dk

You register for activities through stads selvbetjening during the announced registration period, which you can see on the Study administration homepage.

When registering for courses, please be aware of the potential conflicts and overlaps between course and exam time and dates. The planning of course activities at Roskilde University is based on the recommended study programmes, which should not overlap. However, if you choose optional courses and/or study plans that goes beyond the recommended study programmes, an overlap of lectures or exam dates may occur depending on which courses you choose.

The objective of this course is to equip students with the tools necessary to do social entrepreneurship as a business. The course deals with business planning and resource analysis, which are mainly oriented towards the production and analysis of the business plan and resources, social as well as economic, of the social enterprise. The course also presents tools for doing social entrepreneurship to allow students to develop practical skills.

The course addresses the question of what is a good social business/enterprise idea and how to evaluate it. It also engages with strategy and megatrends, mission, vision and marketing, business models and business model canvas in light of the dual mission of social enterprise. A number of examples and cases are introduced for students to understand and work with business models. And they work with their own business idea using the theoretical framework of the course, The overall goal of the cause is to demonstrate planning competences and business acumen through the preparation of a business plan for social enterprise

• Themes: Business understanding, vision/mission, strategy, business development, industry analysis, environment analysis, marketing, resource planning.

• Central questions and problems: What is a good social business idea?

• How do you find out, if it is / how do you assess the social business idea?

• Which general business tools can be used for social enterprises, and how can you alter them to work better for social enterprisers

• Purposes: To strengthen the students understanding of the business part of social enterprises

• Methods: The lecture starts with an hour of basic business tools and theories addressed to the students, who do not have a bachelor in business. The next two hours the theory is applied to social enterprises, and we look at cases. The last hour the students work on their own case with the needed supervision

• Concepts, theories: Business understanding, SWOT, Porters 5 Forces, PESTEL, Dual mission, business development canvas, finance gap, financing startups, budgeting, marketing, legal entities

• Data, materials: different articles on business development and social enterprises

The curriculum will be announced on Moodle before the beginning of the course.

Study intensity

5 ECST = 135 hours

Calculation of expected work:

Teaching hours: 8 sessions of 4 hours each, in total 32 teaching hours.

Preparation for classes 32 hours.

Working with their own business plan 44 hours. Preparation for exam 25 hours and exam 2 hours, including preparation and waiting.

Teaching and learning activities

• In class teaching
• Exercises
• Working with their own case
• Presentations
• Peer feedback
• Homework individually/in study groups
• Supervision of work with cases

The course is evaluated with an individual survey and with an oral evaluation in class of the last session of the course.

There is continuous alignment of expectations and feedback throughout the course via joint discussions. At the end of the course, students will conduct an oral evaluation that is summarized in writing and sent to the semester coordinator (to inform the head of study and the study board). Every 6th semester, at minimum, there will be an additional survey-based evaluation. Every semester the study board will review evaluations in the light of continuous quality development of the program. You can read more on the study boards page on the intranet.

After completing this course, students will be able to:

• Distinguish between business models relevant for social entrepreneurship and explain central dimensions of resource planning and business planning.

• Apply tools and techniques for strategy development and analysis of externalities that could affect the social enterprise. Present and compare different marketing strategy models and conduct an industry analysis for social enterprises.

• Assess and develop a good idea into a business idea and demonstrate planning competences and business acumen through the preparation of a business plan for social enterprise.

It will be assessed to which degree the student demonstrates:

• a good understanding of the business part of the social enterprise
• that they can use the theory learned on a practical case
• ability to apply business tools on social enterprises
• that they understand and can use the frameworks: Social business canvas, environment and industry analysis, mission/vision and dual mission problems