THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY

Questions you’ll answer:

• How do I identify a good business opportunity?
• How do I know if an opportunity is right for me?
• Can a profitable business be salvaged from a bad opportunity?

Dilemmas you’ll face:

• How do I design a venture that maximizes its value and minimizes its risks?
• How do I craft an effective business strategy, and define the skills necessary to execute it?
• How do I evaluate the intensity of the competitive environment and estimate how long margins can be protected?

Topics you’ll cover:

• What archetypal patterns should I look for to help you quickly assess a venture’s long-term prospects?
• Which specific tasks are critical to the success of my business strategy?
• How many customers will buy my product or service and what price would they be willing to pay?

Acton's Opportunity Analysis course will teach students how to identify a good opportunity and design a venture that maximizes its value and mitigates its risks. By comparing and contrasting the basic elements, required commitments and likely cash flows for a variety of opportunities, they will learn to spot archetypal patterns that help to quickly assess any venture's long-term prospects.

At the end of the course, students will be able to craft an effective strategy for the business, define the skills that will be necessary to execute it, decide which two or three specific tasks are critical for success, and predict the cash flows that are likely to result.