Useful Links for Technology Business Plans
Innovation in the News
- C|Net
- Business Technology Network
- Top Tech News
- Search in-depth for current UW-Madison news articles
- New York Times Technology
- Wired
- Wisconsin Technology Network
Business School Classes
- Business MHR422/722: Small business management and entrepreneurship
- Business MHR 434/734: Venture Creation
- Business MHR765: Technology Entrepreneurship
Similar Contests
- MIT's $100K Business Plan Contest
- Wisconsin Governor's Business Plan Competition
- Oxford Business Plan Competition
- Wharton Business Plan Competition
- UC Berkeley Business Plan Competition
- Small Business Notes directory of competitions
Inventor Links
- A.D. Little Enterprises
- entreworld.org Presented by the Kaufman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership
Websites and Books
Technology strategy & E-business websites
- http://www.redherring.com General site for ecommerce/net issues.
- http://www.internet.com General site.
- http://www.wired.com/wired/current.html - See for graphics and web culture
- http://www.inc.com/ Excellent archives when searched by topic
- http://www.bio.org/welcome.html Life sciences issues.
- http://www.uspto.gov/ - US Patent Site. Great for searches and other information
- http://www.planware.org/venture.htm Sets out good business strategies and common mistakes
- http://www.sbaonline.sba.gov/
Small Business Resource Center: free reports on starting businesses and writing business plans; links to other sites (may be of special interest to Internet-based startup ideas)
- http://www.webcom.com/html
Wisconsin's Small Business Development Center: a very comprehensive site that provides local business information, and links to useful publications and papers; this site exists to promote entrepreneurship within Wisconsin and support for current and potential small business owners. We recommend the "links and library" portion, in particular.
- http://www1.uwex.edu/sbdc/
BPlans.com: Business Plans: a good introductory look at writing business plans, has many secondary sources of information and provides many sample business plans specific to various industries/markets.
- http://www.bplans.com/
PriceWaterhouseCoopers - Business Plan Resources: Outline and description of business plan and the issues it should address. This site also provides a detailed financial model for a business plan.
- http://www.pwcglobal.com/Extweb/industry.nsf/docid/466A775D8620563985256AB2007BEBB5
Textbooks and Business Planning
Business Plans That Work (1st edition)
by Jeffry A Timmons, Andrew Zacharakis, and Stephen Spinelli
(McGraw-Hill, 2004).
Description: An accessible text with helpful illustrations, especially good for people wanting to prepare financial statements and credible projections.
Effective Small Business Management (3rd edition)
by Richard M. Hodgetts and Donald F. Kuratko
(San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc. 1989).
Description: This 600-page text is designed for an introduction to small businesses and their development. While the book contains 24 chapters involving the full presentation of managerial topics, there is a chapter devoted entirely to business plan development. In addition, there is an appendix with a complete business plan for a 1950's diner-style restaurant. Level: Introductory college level.
Entrepreneurship, A Contemporary Approach,
by Donald F. Kuratko and Richard M. Hodgetts
(Chicago: The Dryden Press, 1989).
Description: A complete 700-page text on entrepreneurship topics ranging from creativity, financing, and assessment, to entrepreneurial growth and succession issues. There is a complete chapter on developing a business plan and also a special appendix containing a complete business plan on a "Roaring 20's Museum" for the city of Chicago. This was a national award-winning business plan that combined creativity, research, and a thorough knowledge of an idea. Level: Sophisticated college level text.
New Venture Creation: A Guide to Entrepreneurship,
by Jeffrey A. Timmons and Leonard E. Smollen,
(Richard D. Irwin Inc., 1985).
Description: This large 800-page plus manual is a combination text and workbook. There are numerous topics covered concerning how ventures start up and there is a chapter devoted to business plans. The book contains an appendix with a complete business plan for an oil-drilling company. This text is long and detailed. While there are some interesting exercises, it seems better as a reference guide than as a narrative to read through completely. Level: Sophisticated.
Obtaining Venture Financing,
by James W. Henderson,
(Lexington Books, 1988).
Description: This 350-page book provides a complete analysis of the venture financing process. There is an entire chapter devoted to the business plan as well as detailed chapters on accounting, finance, sources of capital, and business valuation. Level: Sophisticated yet very thorough.
Small Business Management: A Guide to Entrepreneurship,
by Nicholas C. Siropolis,
(Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990).
Description: This 600-page text is designed for an introduction to small business and their development. The book contains 20 chapters involving the full presentation of managerial topics along with a chapter devoted entirely to business plan development. There is no complete business plan for illustration. Level: Introductory college level.
FURTHER REFERENCES FOR TECHNOLOGY STRATEGIES
The issues you'll encounter as you develop your plan touch on some of the most intriguing issues in business strategy: how to gain competitive advantage in the presence of fast-moving technological evolution and change. Some books that provide background on these broader issues include
Innovation Management: Strategies, Implementation and Profits. 1998.
Allan Afuah. New York: Oxford University Press.
Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation (2nd Edition). 1996.
Robert A. Burgelman, Modesto Maidique & Steven Wheelwright. New York: Oxford.
Economics of Strategy. 1996. Chapters 14 & 15
David Besanko, David Dranove & Mark Shanley. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. 1997.
Clayton M. Christensen. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Perspectives in Business Ethics. 1998. Laura Pincus Hartman. Chicago: Irwin-McGraw Hill.
Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers.
1999. Geoffrey A. Moore. New York: Harper Collins.
Managing Strategic Innovation and Change: A Collection of Readings. 1997.
Michael L. Tushman and Philip Anderson (Eds.). New York: Oxford University Press.
Society and Technological Change (2nd Edition). 1992. Rudi Volti. New York: St. Martin's Press.
New Rules for the New Economy, Kevin Kelly. New York, NY: Penguin. 1998.
Information Rules, Carl Shapiro & Hal R. Varian. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press. 1999.
"Shopping around the web: A survey of e-commerce" The Economist.
(See esp. sections headed: "Shopping around the web." "Something old something new." "Business models on the web.")