IBC Handbook - Getting Started

This part explains what you have to do to get your business started.

Individual Idea Generation

(Please read the Opportunity Recognition Section under Other Helps)

Each student will share their business and service idea with their team. Each team will select the best ideas presented for both. How will you know if the idea is one that would be allowable? Please see the guidelines/rules section of the handbook.

Each student should come prepared to share the following about your business and service-learning project:

1. Clear description of the proposed product/service.
2. Reason you feel there is a need for your products/service over competitors. What is your competitive advantage?
3. How you plan to prove the demand truly exists.
4. Estimate of capital requirements.
5. Rough estimate of sales, profits, and how you plan to confirm your sales estimates.

Team Business Idea

From the individual ideas, each team will select what they feel is the best business idea. The team will use this business idea in the marketing research project that is part of the marketing class. They will also present this business idea to their company for selection of a company business idea. You are required to submit a short paragraph describing your team business idea to IBC coordinator by e-mail which will be submitted to the department chair and college dean so they can inform you of any ideas that are not likely to be approved.

Company Organization Structure

Each company needs design their organization structure and select leaders. At a bare minimum, each company must specify one person who has responsibility over the whole company (typically a president or CEO). Please consult the organization behavior instructor and text for help with this task. Submit the following, via e-mail to the IBC coordinator

TABLE : Position Name E-mail 2 Row: list officers/leaders
Company Business/Product Approval (Written and Oral)

Once the each company has chosen their product (and a back-up product), they need to do the following in the following order:

1. Each company needs to submit an Proposal Summary, in an e-mail format, to Amy Staiger that specifies what business/product they are seeking approval for by noon the day before the IBC Council meeting. The proposal summary should include a description of the product, pricing, where you will get the product, where you will sell it, perceived need, etc. The IBC coordinator will pass these on to the Business Management department head and the College Dean and will obtain their signatures on the IBC Business/Product Approval form and their suggestions. The College secretary will then forward the Proposal Summaries to the member of the IBC Council (see the form to determine members of the council).
2. Once the above step is completed, One or two members of each company will make a presentation to the IBC Council and be prepared to answer questions. The council will either give their approval the business/product or give instructions that need to be complete before approval will be given or give a rejection of the business/product. If approval or conditional approval is given each company NEEDS to get signatures from council members on their approval form. If the company receives a rejection, the company should be prepared to present a back product idea.

Loan Committee (oral and written)

Each company will prepare a business plan that will be given to a loan committee with hopes that they will agree to provide the necessary funds to get the business up and running. The business plans need to be e-mailed to the IBC coordinator three days prior to the date of the loan committee so they participants can review them beforehand. On the day of the loan committee, each company will make 15 minute (plus questions) presentations to the loan committee explaining why they should loan the company the requested money.