Scale Up Specialization Capstone from Coursera

In the Scale Up Specialization Capstone, you'll develop insights into how and why start-ups scale up across their entire business - from products and processes, to sales and marketing, and all the way through to company culture. You'll go in depth to examine how a real start-up of your choice scaled up and create a case study of that company, showcasing your understanding of the issues a scaleup faces and how to overcome these issues and challenges - from the initial moment when the start-up sees that scaling up becomes a possibility, through transitions in product and processes, to the creation of a strong, effective, and resilient company culture that will last.

For the project, you'll profile a former start-up company and investigate how that company scaled, producing a polished and comprehensive piece of writing that demonstrates your understanding of the scaleup journey. In this piece, you'll explore how start-ups plan for the scaleup phase, how they scale up product and processes, how they adapt their sales and marketing strategies, how operations are affected, and how they build and maintain a productive, effective and diverse company culture through the scaleup phase.

This Capstone course is aimed at learners who have experience of working in a start-up and want to scale up their business, providing an opportunity for you to apply what you have learned in the three previous courses on scaling up a startup (Scale Up Your Startup, Scaling Product and Processes, and Building Culture in a Scaleup).

What's inside

Syllabus

Scaleup Specialization Capstone Project

In this capstone project, you will apply the knowledge from the courses Scaleup Your Startup, Scaling Product and Processes, and Building Culture in a Scaleup by creating a magazine article on a company of your choice.

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Develops insights into how and why start-ups scale up across their entire business

Provides an opportunity to apply your learning from the Scale Up: Your Startup specialization

Taught by Joe Haslam, an instructor recognized for their work in scaleups

Requires learners to have experience working in a start-up

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Scale Up Specialization Capstone with these activities:

Review Startup Concepts

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Refresh your understanding of startup concepts, such as business models, market analysis, and customer validation, to strengthen your foundation for the course.

Browse courses on Startups

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Read articles and blog posts about startups.
Revisit your notes or textbooks from previous business courses.
Attend a startup networking event or listen to podcasts.

Read 'The Lean Startup'

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Gain insights into the lean startup methodology and the principles of building a successful startup.

View The Startup Way: How Modern Companies Use... on Amazon

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Read the book thoroughly, taking notes on key concepts.
Summarize the main ideas and how they relate to course material.

Practice Financial Modeling

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Strengthen your financial modeling skills, enabling you to analyze and plan for the financial aspects of scaling up a startup.

Browse courses on Financial Modeling

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Review the basics of financial modeling, such as income statements and balance sheets.
Use financial modeling software to create and analyze financial projections.
Practice building financial models for different startup scenarios.

Five other activities

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Attend a Startup Pitch Competition

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Observe startup founders pitch their businesses and gather insights into their strategies and approaches to scaling up.

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Find and register for a startup pitch competition.
Attend the event and actively listen to the pitches.
Take notes on the common themes and successful strategies.

Follow a Startup Scaling Up Tutorial

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Supplement your course learning with a structured tutorial on startup scaling, providing practical guidance and case studies.

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Identify a reputable online tutorial or course on startup scaling.
Follow the tutorial step-by-step, completing all exercises and assignments.

Participate in a Startup Growth Study Group

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Collaborate with peers to discuss the challenges and solutions of scaling up a startup, sharing experiences and insights.

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Find or form a study group with other learners.
Meet regularly to discuss course material and specific startup scaling topics.
Share case studies, research, and practical experiences.

Develop a Startup Scaling Plan

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Apply your knowledge from the course and other activities to create a comprehensive plan outlining your approach to scaling up a startup.

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Identify the key challenges and opportunities for your chosen startup.
Research and develop a strategy for product-market fit and customer acquisition.
Outline a plan for building and scaling your team and operations.
Create a financial plan and identify potential funding sources.
Develop a timeline and milestones for your scaling plan.

Analyze Startup Case Studies

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Enhance your understanding of scaling up strategies by analyzing real-world startup case studies and identifying key success factors.

Browse courses on Case Studies

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Select case studies of successful and unsuccessful startups.
Research the companies, their products, and their strategies.
Identify the key challenges, decisions, and outcomes.
Write a summary of your findings and analysis.

Career center

Learners who complete Scale Up Specialization Capstone will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Chief Marketing Officer

A Chief Marketing Officer is responsible for overseeing the marketing and communications of a business. This course may be useful to a CMO as it offers valuable insights into how to scale up a business. Additionally, it may enhance the CMO's ability to make better decisions about the company's marketing strategy.

See salaries and explore the career path for Chief Marketing Officer

Chief Technology Officer

A Chief Technology Officer is responsible for overseeing the technology infrastructure of a business. This course can be useful to a CTO as it offers insights into the challenges and opportunities that come with scaling up a business. Additionally, it may enhance the CTO's ability to make better decisions about the company's technology strategy.

See salaries and explore the career path for Chief Technology Officer

Entrepreneur

An Entrepreneur starts and runs a business, and may be in charge of all aspects of the business, including staffing, product development, and marketing. This course can be of great value to an entrepreneur as it can help them build a foundation for how to plan for and adapt to the changing needs of a growing business. Additionally, it may enhance an entrepreneur's ability to make better decisions about the company's direction and strategy.

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Chief Executive Officer

A Chief Executive Officer is responsible for the overall management of a business. This course may be useful to a CEO as it can help them to plan for and adapt to the changing needs of a growing business. Additionally, it may enhance the CEO's ability to make better decisions about the company's direction and strategy.

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Chief Operating Officer

A Chief Operating Officer is responsible for the day-to-day operations of a business. This course can be useful to a COO as it provides valuable insights into how to scale up a business. Additionally, it may enhance the COO's ability to make better decisions about the company's operations and strategy.

See salaries and explore the career path for Chief Operating Officer

Venture Capitalist

A Venture Capitalist provides funding to early-stage companies with high growth potential. This course can help the Venture Capitalist to understand the challenges and opportunities that come with scaling up a business. Additionally, it may help to provide valuable insights into the investment process.

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Investment Banker

An Investment Banker provides financial advice and services to corporations, governments, and other entities. This course can be useful in providing insights into how start ups grow and change and what qualities investors may look for in a scaling company.

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Consultant

A Consultant provides professional advice to businesses or individuals. This course may be helpful as it builds a foundation for understanding how to help businesses scale up. The course may also provide insights into common challenges and opportunities that come with scaling up a business.

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Founder

A Founder can start and run a business, and may be in charge of all aspects of the business, including staffing, product development, and marketing. This course may be useful for a Founder as it can help them to plan for and adapt to the changing needs of a growing business. Additionally, it may help enhance a Founder's ability to make better decisions about the company's direction and strategy.

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Product Manager

A Product Manager is responsible for the development and management of a product. This course can be useful as it helps build a foundation for understanding how to scale up a product and its processes. This course also may help to provide the Product Manager with valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities that come with scaling up a product.

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Sales Manager

A Sales Manager oversees the sales activities of a business. This course can provide a Sales Manager with valuable insights into how to plan for and adapt to the changing needs of a growing business. Additionally, the course may help enhance a Sales Manager's ability to think critically and solve problems.

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Marketing Manager

A Marketing Manager is responsible for developing and executing marketing strategies to promote a product, service, or brand. This course may be helpful as it provides insight into how other start ups have scaled up their sales and marketing strategies in order to successfully grow.

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Operations Manager

An Operations Manager plans, organizes, and oversees the operational activities of a business. This course can be useful to an Operations Manager as it can help them to understand and adapt to the changing needs of a scaling company. The course also helps to build a foundation for how to plan for and adapt to scaleup phases in a business.

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Project Manager

A Project Manager oversees projects within a company, ensuring that projects are completed on time, within budget, and according to specifications. The Project Manager is the hub of project communications, ensuring that information among stakeholders is flowing as it should. This course may be useful as it can help the Project Manager to build a stronger foundation in understanding issues and challenges that face a scaling start up. This can enhance their ability to manage these scaling up efforts.

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Business Analyst

A Business Analyst, often abbreviated BA, works to solve business issues and improve organizational outcomes. Key issues that BAs address include finding better ways for a business to operate and make a profit. This course may be helpful because it teaches how to build resilience, how to scale up a business, and how to manage transitions. This can be very valuable to a BA as it enhances their abilities to identify opportunities and solve problems for the business.

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