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The student business plan: useful or not?
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-17, 21:14 authored by Jones, Colin, Penaluna, A, Matlay, H, Penaluna, KThis article offers a critical discussion of the role of the business plan in current enterprise educational practice. In addition to reviewing recent work that considers the ‘for’ and ‘against’ arguments about the use of business plans in higher education, the authors suggest that the context of student learning is largely omitted from these discussions. As such, they contextualize the debate so that the purpose of the business plan can be better appreciated. They build on recent work that offers alternatives to the business plan – approaches directly focused on customer discovery and explicit testing of assumptions. In doing so, recent concerns about the value of business plans and, conversely, the views of those who argue in favour of the role of business plans in enterprise education, are noted. The article provides insights into emerging alternative practices in the field of enterprise education, practices based on students’ use of such education as a vehicle for skills and knowledge development and/or wealth creation. It is acknowledged that various biases are present in the current debate, including those of the present authors: whilst it is accepted that these biases are unlikely to disappear, the article contextualizes their origins.
History
Publication title
Industry and Higher EducationVolume
27Issue
6Pagination
491-498ISSN
0950-4222Department/School
TSBEPublisher
IP Publishing LtdPlace of publication
UKRights statement
Copyright 2013 IP Publishing LtdRepository Status
- Restricted