ENTR 5500 · Fall 2026 syllabus
Fall 2026
Class: Tuesday/Thursday 11:35am–12:55pm, Correll Hall 120; Tuesday/Thursday 2:55–4:15pm, Correll Hall 120
Instructor: John Weatherford - [email protected] / Studio 225, #007
Office Hours: By appointment
🌎 Overview
Description
An introductory course targeted to students interested in entrepreneurship, either as a general curiosity or as a career path. The course explores critical decisions and tradeoffs founders make at the genesis of ventures and how those decisions may impact the venture’s chance of success or failure.
Why take this course?
Entrepreneurship is an art, not a science—the reality is that the vast majority of startup businesses fail, and there is no playbook that will lead you directly to the successful genesis of a new business (as much as we often wish such a playbook existed!). There are as many unique paths to entrepreneurship as there are businesses that have ever been started. That said, some universal themes or common “lessons” of entrepreneurship tend to emerge from these seemingly disparate paths. While this course is not a playbook for starting a new business, it will introduce you to universal themes of entrepreneurship that will help maximize your chances of success (or minimize your risk of failure) when starting a new business.
Prerequisites
One of: AAEC 3980/3980E, ACCT 1160/1160E, ACCT 2101/2101E/2101H, ECON 2105/2105E/2105H, ECON 2106/2106E/2106H, FHCE 3200/3200E, or FHCE 3250/3250E.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
- Understand entrepreneurial opportunity as a novel chance to create value for multiple stakeholders
- Summarize methodologies used to reduce the inherent risks of founding a startup
- Predict the consequences of tradeoffs that founders may make to gain access to resources needed to grow early stage startup businesses
- Evaluate the consequences of misalignment of roles, relationships, and rewards within a founding team
- Formulate a realistic recommendation to a founder facing an obstacle within a new business
- Present common themes of successful entrepreneurship distilled from a broad array of entrepreneurial narratives (e.g., case studies, guest speakers, podcasts, etc.)
Course Format
In person—attendance required. This class is an in-person course—attendance is taken daily, starting on day 1 of the course! Active participation is required for success in the class. Please note that the delivery method may change as necessary in accordance with university policies and procedures.
Learning method: the case study. The primary learning method for this course will be the case method. Case studies provide an immersive experience, bringing you as close as possible to real business situations within the classroom environment. You’re expected to prepare all assigned reading and material, and be prepared to be cold-called to answer questions. If this is your first time using the case method, I encourage you to visit the links below for more information and for tips on reading and analyzing a case:
Instructor Philosophy
More than being here to help you learn the subject material, I’m here to help you figure out how what we’re learning applies to your academic and professional goals. I think the things we’re talking about in class are incredibly cool, exciting, and worthy of your time, thought, and energy. When you finish the class, you’ll have developed a really solid working knowledge of the field and know where and how to further your own knowledge and expertise. We’re going to have a lot of fun, but I also expect you to work hard. Work hard at the assignments, sure, but more than that, work hard at understanding the stuff we’re talking about, why it matters, and what you can do with it—that’s what really matters.
Class Culture
We’ll continually discuss the attitudes and practices that each of you, individually, will need to cultivate to succeed in this class. However, it’s also worth taking some time at the outset to talk about what we all should expect from each other.
In short, we’ll work to cultivate an atmosphere of curiosity, fun, and professionalism. That means that you can expect me to:
- Create an atmosphere of curiosity and inclusion where everyone feels welcome to bring their authentic selves to class
- Communicate a clear direction for the course as a whole and for each class gathering, activity, and assignment
- Work diligently to make all assignments and activities of this class worthwhile
Similarly, I expect each of you to approach each component of the class as a future professional—with an open mind, a diligent work ethic, and respect for your peers and instructor.
One more note: this syllabus is a critical resource for your success in this class—think of it as a “user’s manual” for the course, and make good use of it. It’s where all logistical information about the course is housed: policies, grading schemes, expectations, due dates, and a detailed schedule of what we’ll be doing in class each day. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with it, and I expect you to review it before reaching out with a logistical question about the course. (I am always happy to provide clarifying information or support!)
📖 Texts + Tools
Course Packet
A course packet containing the 14 required readings and case studies is required for this course. Review the course schedule to see the date by which you’ll need to purchase the packet—it will be a few class periods into the semester, so you will not need it immediately.
Purchase the digital coursepack ($90.15) directly from Harvard Business Publishing at https://hbsp.harvard.edu/import/1439456 (this link is also posted to eLC). You’ll need a free HBSP student account at checkout, and you’ll have digital access to all readings and cases for the semester.
eLC
This course site is the current student-facing record for policies, assignment requirements, rubrics, and deadlines. Use the assignment guides and schedule here if an older workbook prompt or source document differs.
eLC is where you take quizzes, view recorded grades, and access course materials. Complete individual written work in your shared course workbook and group deliverables in shared Google Docs/links. Completed shared work needs no second eLC upload, form, or Slack submission message. Requested progress updates remain separate from final submission.
Messaging Platform
We’re going to use a messaging platform for all class discussion and communication, including important updates from me. You’ll receive an invite via your UGA email address; after you’ve created your account, please complete your profile with your full name and a profile image. After you’ve joined the class messaging platform, use only it—not email—to contact me. Checking the messaging platform regularly (ideally daily) is required for the course, so you must install the app on your device(s).
Course Workbook
Make one personal copy of the course workbook. Name the file Lastname, Firstname, put your normal student name inside, and share it with [email protected] as Commenter. Bookmark or star it. Keep assignments under their existing headings; once completed there, they are submitted. Daily notes and unassigned template prompts are optional. Workbook template: ENTR 5500 Course Workbook
Summary
- The course packet contains all required readings and cases
- The messaging platform will be our course communication hub
- eLC holds quizzes, recorded grades, and current course resources
- Slack check-ins document participation; the shared workbook holds individual written work and feedback
📝 Assignments + Grading
Class Participation and Attendance (20 points)
Participation is worth 20 course points, split into two 10-point periods. Everyone receives full credit for the first period (weeks 2–7), including earlier small class-writing activities. For the second period (weeks 8–13), use the daily Slack self-assessment described in the Participation and Attendance tab. Twenty-five daily points earn all 10 course points.
🔗Class Participation + Attendance details
Theme Journal (10 points)
Keep your theme journal in your course workbook. It is worth 10 course points: everyone receives 5/5 for Checkpoint 1, and Checkpoint 2 requires five developed themes for the remaining five points. Each theme uses at least two sources and includes limits and reflection; starting beliefs may be skipped. Five themes are due November 3 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern.
External Engagement Papers (10 points)
Three equally weighted papers contribute 10 course points in their own category. Paper 1 is waived with full credit for everyone; complete Papers 2 and 3. Each paper is scored out of 10 in eLC, and the average percentage scales to 10 course points—one-third of the category per paper.
Papers 2 and 3 are roughly 250 words each and due November 19 before your section’s class: 11:35 a.m. or 2:55 p.m. Eastern, in your shared workbook. Connect your personal assessment to course ideas. Earlier work labeled “completed before rubric” needs no rewrite and may satisfy the required papers.
Case Write-Ups (24 points)
Write three individual case analyses, worth 8 course points each, in your shared workbook. Each makes a supported recommendation in no more than 400 words, excluding headings and the title. Write the first four sections in prose and Implementation in bullets. Planning, drafting, revising, and shortening are your own work; AI is limited to spelling/grammar help. Evan Williams was due October 6, end of day; Savage Beast is due October 22 before class; Rent the Runway is due November 3 before class. See the Case Write-ups guide for the full requirements and rubric.
Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Quizzes (20 points)
The fundamentals quizzes check your understanding of the assigned glossary, readings, and course concepts. Together, they’re worth 20 course points. Each quiz counts equally as a percentage; we’ll drop your one lowest score, including a zero for a missed quiz, average the remaining percentages, and scale that average to 20 course points. An 85% average earns 17 points. Approved exemptions are excluded from the calculation. See the quiz guidelines for preparation, testing, and makeup policies.
Six topic areas remain in the course, but only two quizzes have been assigned so far: Recognizing and Shaping Opportunities and Developing Business Plans and Pitching Opportunities. The next quiz’s date is not confirmed; follow the current schedule and announcements.
🔗 Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Quizzes details
Final Group Project (16 points)
Work in a group of 3–4 to interview an entrepreneur, study their business, and connect their experience to what we’ve learned in class. The project is worth 16 course points: 8 for the analytical paper and 8 for the creative project + presentation. Choose a format that helps us understand your founder and your analysis, and have some fun with it! See the project guidelines for founder eligibility, required content, formats, and submission details.
All groups submit both deliverables before their section’s class on November 10, including groups presenting November 12 or 17. Name all group members, include accessible links to the full creative deliverable, and share the group document with [email protected] as Commenter. The classroom presentation has a 10-minute maximum; the full creative product can be longer. The project guide retains the eligible formats and full rubric.
Summary (100 points total)
| Assignment | Course points |
|---|---|
| Class Participation and Attendance | 20 points |
| Theme Journal | 10 points |
| Case Write-Ups | 24 points |
| Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Quizzes | 20 points |
| Final Group Project | 16 points |
| External Engagement Papers | 10 points |
| Total | 100 points |
The only class-wide blanket credits are Participation Period 1: 10/10, Theme Journal Checkpoint 1: 5/5, and External Engagement Paper 1: full credit. Earlier small writing tasks are covered by Participation Period 1; daily notes are optional.
Graduate Credit / Honors Credit
All graduate students, as well as any students wishing to honors-opt the course, will be required to complete one additional, individual project in which they interview an entrepreneur regarding an obstacle or decision point the entrepreneur is facing, and write a case analysis advising how the entrepreneur should move forward. The final deliverable is a written case analysis following the same format as all class case analyses. All honors and graduate projects are due November 10 before your section’s class, the first day that group final projects are due.
Grading Scale
Final course grades will be determined according to the following scale. Please note that grades will not be rounded.
A 93–100
A- 90–92.99
B+ 87–89.99
B 83–86.99
B- 80–82.99
C+ 77–79.99
C 73–76.99
C- 70–72.99
D 60–69.99
F 0–59.99
🗓️ Schedule
The schedule below serves as the topical outline for the course: each class meeting’s topic is listed alongside the assignments due that day.
🤝 Policies
Class Participation and Attendance
Attendance is part of your daily participation self-assessment. See the Class Participation and Attendance guide for the 0–3 scale, same-day check-ins, two grading periods, and launch details. Twenty-five daily points scale to 10 course points. After two unexcused absences in the second period, subtract one daily point per additional absence before conversion. Submit the current Slack check-in by 11:59 p.m. Eastern that day. Contact me about an excused absence or an approved adjustment. The official attendance policy of the university states: “It is the responsibility of each instructor to enforce his or her attendance policy and to decide whether to excuse an absence.” For more information, please see the UGA attendance policy. Absences arising from military service commitments (UGA Policy 01.09.010) or required professional duties are excused in accordance with University policy—please let me know as soon as you’re aware of a conflict.
Late/Make-Up Work
Except in the case of extenuating circumstances, assignments submitted after the posted due date (as indicated by this schedule and the relevant assignment tab) will incur a penalty of 10% grade reduction per day late. No late work will be accepted beyond 5 days after the original due date without prior arrangement.
Exams + Quizzes
This course has no final exam—culminating work is due as shown in the schedule. Quizzes are administered as indicated in the schedule: some in person during class, and some remotely through eLC. eLC authenticates you with your UGA ID; this serves as verification of student identity for assessment purposes, and remote quizzes additionally use a lockdown browser with virtual proctoring. Except in the case of unusual hardship or arrangements made in advance with the instructor, make-ups will not be allowed on missed quizzes—see Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Quizzes under Assignments + Grading for full details.
Classroom Etiquette
I expect your undivided attention during class—your learning is best facilitated by active, undistracted participation. To this end, use of laptops is only permitted for notetaking in this class—messaging apps must be closed. I encourage you to keep phones out of sight to limit distraction. If laptops, phones, tablets, or other electronic devices are being used for any purpose other than further engaging with the class material during class, I will ask you to put away your devices and you will be at risk of losing participation points. All class slides will be posted to eLC.
Email + Direct Messages
So that I can most quickly help those in need of assistance, take the following steps before messaging me:
- Check the syllabus, eLC, previous conversations, etc. to see if the answer’s posted there.
- Spend 5–15 minutes (but not any more time than that) trying to solve the problem on your own (via Google, asking a classmate, etc.).
- Ask yourself if the question might be one other students are having, and if so, ask it somewhere the whole class can benefit from the answer.
If you do all of those and still have a question just for me, then by all means reach out! I’ll respond to your questions as quickly as possible, but please allow a reasonable amount of time (generally under 24 hours; 2 business days max) for a response. Communication can be informal and fun, which is great! But don’t forget to communicate professionally, even while having fun.
Office Hours
I’ll frequently (though not always!) be in my office during regular business hours. You’re welcome to come by and see me with any questions, concerns, or just to say hi. I sometimes work with my door closed, but you’re always welcome to come in! The best way to meet with me is to make an appointment.
Access Policy
If you have a disability or health-related issue and require reasonable classroom accommodations, please see me after class or make an appointment during office hours as soon as possible. If you plan to request accommodations for a disability, please register with Accessibility and Testing at Clark Howell Hall (706-542-8719).
Service Animals in Class
Students who train or use service animals should be aware of UGA policy. More info is available here.
Non-Discrimination Policy
I do not engage in or tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of race/ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex/gender, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental disability, or veteran status. In addition, we do not discriminate on the basis of class, income, or political views. If there is something I can do to make the class more hospitable, please let me know.
Inclusive Excellence
The Terry College of Business is committed to promoting an inclusive learning and working environment among its students, faculty, and staff. This class welcomes the open exchange of ideas and values freedom of thought and expression and provides a professional environment that recognizes the inherent worth of every person. It aims to foster dignity, understanding, and mutual respect among all individuals in the class.
UGA Honor Code
UGA Student Honor Code: “I will be academically honest in all of my academic work and will not tolerate academic dishonesty of others.” A Culture of Honesty, the University’s policy and procedures for handling cases of suspected dishonesty, can be found at honesty.uga.edu.
Academic Honesty
As a University of Georgia Student, you have agreed to abide by the University’s academic honesty policy, “A Culture of Honesty”, and the Student Honor Code. All academic work must meet the standards described in “A Culture of Honesty” found at honesty.uga.edu. You can find the Academic Honesty policy at honesty.uga.edu/Academic-Honesty-Policy. Lack of knowledge of the academic honesty policy is not a reasonable explanation for a violation.
Read the entire policy online, but in short: don’t cheat—the punishments for violations of the Academic Honesty Policy are severe. You are expected to do your own work and to report individuals who do not do their own work. Questions related to course assignments and the academic honesty policy should be directed to the instructor.
In this course specifically, examples of academically dishonest behavior include: using AI tools beyond the assignment’s expressly permitted uses (see the AI Use Policy below); using notes, outside resources, or other people’s help on closed-note quizzes; sharing quiz content with students who have not yet taken a quiz; and submitting case analyses, journals, or project work that is not your own.
AI Use Policy
Unless explicitly stated, artificial intelligence-based technologies, such as ChatGPT, must not be used to generate responses (in part or in full) or disguise plagiarized work for any student assignment. For case analyses, AI may check spelling and grammar only; argument planning, drafting, rewriting, rephrasing, and shortening must be your own work. For the theme journal and external reflections, AI may help capture, transcribe, or organize material, but students write the submitted prose. Preserve each assignment’s specific AI rules. Other AI generation or alteration of submitted work is unauthorized unless expressly permitted.
If a specific assignment permits the use of AI, that permission—and the scope of acceptable use—will be stated explicitly in the assignment instructions, and any AI assistance must be clearly disclosed in your submission.
These expectations follow UGA’s Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Academic and Operational Contexts, and we will discuss them together at the start of the semester; assignment-level guidance is in the relevant syllabus tab.
Mental Health and Wellness Resources
UGA Well-being Resources promote student success by cultivating a culture that supports a more active, healthy, and engaged student community.
Anyone needing assistance is encouraged to contact Student Care & Outreach (SCO) in the Division of Student Affairs at 706-542-8479 or visit sco.uga.edu. Student Care & Outreach helps students navigate difficult circumstances by connecting them with the most appropriate resources or services. They also administer the Embark@UGA program which supports students experiencing, or who have experienced, homelessness, foster care, or housing insecurity.
UGA provides both clinical and non-clinical options to support student well-being and mental health, any time, any place. Whether on campus, or studying from home or abroad, UGA Well-being Resources are here to help.
- Well-being Resources: well-being.uga.edu
- Student Care and Outreach: sco.uga.edu
- University Health Center: healthcenter.uga.edu
- Counseling and Psychiatric Services: caps.uga.edu or CAPS 24/7 crisis support at 706-542-2273
- Health Promotion / Fontaine Center: healthpromotion.uga.edu
- Accessibility & Testing: accessibility.uga.edu
Additional information, including free digital well-being resources, can be accessed through the UGA app or by visiting well-being.uga.edu.
Emergency Preparedness
Verify that your emergency contact information is correct at ugaalert.uga.edu and add 706-542-0111 as “UGAAlert” in your contacts. We will discuss emergency exit routes on the first day of class.
If the fire alarm sounds, we will evacuate the building and reassemble outside Correll Hall to make sure that everyone exited safely. Quickly move away from the entrances so as not to hinder first responders.
If there is a tornado warning, we will move to the first floor and account for everyone.
In the event of a medical emergency, we will ask one of you to meet EMS responders and bring them to our classroom.
If you have concerns about other emergencies or if you have special circumstances that I need to know about in case of an emergency, please speak to me after class.
Schedule Changes to Course Syllabus
The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the class by the instructor may be necessary and should be expected. Course announcements and communication take place in Slack. Check your section’s channel regularly; quizzes and recorded grades remain in eLC.
Source: Fall 2026 course syllabus — Syllabus, reviewed October 13, 2026 and reconciled with John’s current instructions. This course site is the current student-facing record.