Financing Innovation

Identifying and investing in innovation opportunities is key. In fact, organizations that do not invest in innovation struggle to keep pace with the rapidly changing business environment. However, even the best and most innovative ideas will go nowhere unless we can convince others to commit the necessary resources. That is why finance can play a critical role in helping organizations and investors recognize the value of innovation.

The Financing Innovation course will equip you with the necessary toolkit for using financial statements, performing financial statement analysis, estimating business value, and making financing decisions from the perspective of an innovative company. Understanding the key techniques of financial valuation and capital budgeting used by organizations is essential for project owners (project managers or entrepreneurs) to ensure their ideas get the attention and funding they deserve. More specifically, you will gain experience building a financial model to assess a new product launch. We will consider key financial metrics that are commonly applied and learn which ones are reliable—and which are not. We will also explore how we can use the financial model to guide our efforts as project managers in order to maximize impact. Along the way, we will gain insight into how financial markets work and how investors evaluate stocks and bonds. Finally, we will learn how to use these skills to understand the drivers of a company's value.

The Financing Innovation course complements other fields such as strategy, marketing, and innovation management. In these fields, business decisions—such as which markets or products to invest in—are often formulated. In Financing Innovation, we evaluate these choices and analyze how best to fund them.

The course is relevant for student entrepreneurs, those aspiring to become entrepreneurs, and students aiming to pursue careers in the high-tech sector, consulting, or public institutions that support innovation and entrepreneurship.