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This 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.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	Business plan; entrepreneurship education; enterprise education
Research Division:	Education
Research Group:	Curriculum and pedagogy
Research Field:	Curriculum and pedagogy not elsewhere classified
Objective Division:	Education and Training
Objective Group:	Other education and training
Objective Field:	Other education and training not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Jones, Colin (Dr Colin Jones)
ID Code:	88070
Year Published:	2013
Deposited By:	Australian Innovation Research Centre
Deposited On:	2014-01-10
Last Modified:	2018-03-08
Downloads:	5 View Download Statistics