Module Specifications..
Current Academic Year 2024 - 2025
Please note that this information is subject to change.
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Description This module is designed to introduce students to key concepts in social entrepreneurship and innovation. The module will provide the student with an understanding of the special problems and challenges involved in the strategic management of the social enterprise. The main pedagogical objective is to help to develop in the student the capacity to think entrepreneurially and to better understand the organizational and leadership issues involved in being a social entrepreneur. The module will provide the learner with an in-depth understanding of innovation; its various types (incremental to radical) and the contexts within which it can flourish; so that s/he will be able to manage innovation both strategically and tactically at any level in the social enterprise. The learner will become proficient in the application of contemporary tools and frameworks used in the innovation value chain, with a focus on best practice methodologies for New Product, Business Model and Service Development. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Learning Outcomes 1. Identify and critically evaluate innovation strategies in a range of social enterprise situations 2. Analyse different types of Innovation in the public sector 3. Identify and assess the role of innovation as a key source of competitive advantage. 4. Identify strategies, skills and systems necessary for managing innovation 5. Create a portfolio of novel and appropriate innovation projects for a nominated social enterprise. 6. Develop an innovation roadmap for an organisation in the third sector | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
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Indicative Content and Learning Activities
Conceptualising entrepreneurshipPutting entrepreneurship in context; examining the SME sector - how many start ups are born each year and what's the ecosystem that supports them? How much economic activity and employment are they responsible for in Ireland and in EuropeWhat does it mean to be “enterprising”?Learn about the components of entrepreneurial thinking and the entrepreneurial mindset.What is a social enterprise?Here we explain the vital differences between a social enterprise and any other type of firm.Strategic thinking and reasoningManagement scholars have developed many tools to determine how strategy should be crafted. Here, we cover the main models.Corporate level strategyIn any strategic exercise, the ultimate goal is to match or align the firms greatest strength with the market's biggest opportunity.Introduction to innovation managementHow should organisations manage for innovation?Building the innovative organisationA number of best practices have been identified through extensive, longitudinal research to determine what separates the very best performing companies from the rest.Innovation strategyAn appropriate innovation strategy is the number one factor that is correlated with innovation success.Innovation, adoption and diffusion processes.Here we learn about the diffusion curve in innovation and crucially, how to successfully navigate crossing the chasm.IdeationCreativity is a necessary (but insufficient) precondition for innovation.Idea prioritisationIn the Innovation Value Chain, knowing how to prioritise ideas is a central theme.From Idea to RealityFrom heart-beat to high-street...here you learn the skill of converting a raw, fragmentary idea into a testable, market-ready concept.Assessing and improving innovation performanceIt's worthwhile auditing your organisation's innovation performance regularly to benchmark yourself against key indicators and against market norms.Open InnovationAlmost all projects of scale are now done collaboratively, involving partners. Learn the difference between open and closed systems of innovation; learn about crowdsourcing and crowdfunding.Design ThinkingMost of the world's leading organisations now rely on design thinking as way of facilitating innovation.How Market Research can fine-tune innovationConsumers should always be an important (but not dominant) voice in your innovation process but relying on them too much can also be a force for inertia in your innovation efforts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Indicative Reading List
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Other Resources 15901, Online Resource:, 0, Burns, P. (2007) Entrepreneurship and small business, Palgrave- has a supporting online website with student access to (http://www.palgrave.com/business/burnsentrepreneurship/index.asp), | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Programme or List of Programmes
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