Start-up (2nd Edition)

A Practical Guide to Starting and Running a New Business

The book is a user guide for aspiring entrepreneurs and provides expert advise and guidance on every aspect of launching a new business. It will be of particular value if you are an academic wishing to exploit the commercial value of a new technology or business solution through the creation of a new company.

In addition to updates throughout the book, the second edition contains new chapters on grant funding and entrepreneurship skills development.

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Full Contents

Introduction

  1. How good is your idea?
    1. A stable platform
    2. Industries and markets
    3. Analysing the market
    4. Analysing the industry
    5. So, do you have a business?
  2. How can you protect your ideas?
    1. Loose talk costs lives!
    2. Types of intellectual property
    3. Patents
    4. Registered designs
    5. Trade marks
    6. Copyright
    7. Working with patent agents and IP lawyers
  3. What is a company?
    1. The company as a legal entity
    2. Role and rights of shareholders
    3. Company ownership and types of shares
    4. Shareholders agreements
    5. Roles and duties of directors
  4. How do you market your product?
    1. Marketing and selling
    2. The product adoption lifecycle
    3. Moving from one group to the next
    4. Critical success factors
    5. What should be in your marketing plan?
  5. How do you finance your business?
    1. Cash flow
    2. Sources of finance
    3. How does venture capital work?
  6. Grant Funding
    1. State Aid
    2. Funding Availability
    3. Contracts and Legal Arrangements
    4. Management and Reporting
    5. How to Win Grants
    6. Avoid Becoming a Grant Junkie
  7. How do you create a financial model?
    1. The basic structure
    2. Business planning tools
    3. Building the model
  8. How do you write a business plan?
    1. What should your business plan contain?
    2. How should the plan be presented?
  9. Your role and your team
    1. What do you want to achieve?
    2. Satisfying the critical success factors
    3. How important is experience?
    4. Networking
  10. What Makes an Entrepreneur?
    1. Entrepreneurial Skill Set
    2. Matching the Entrepreneur to the Business
    3. Entrepreneurship Education and Training
  11. Closing remarks

References and further reading

Index