Starting Up in Latin America

MGT333 - Course Syllabus
Starting Up in Latin America: Applying Innovation and Entrepreneurship to Solve Tough Problems

“Starting Up in Latin America” aims to develop the mindset, tools and skills required to understand complex challenges in this region, craft innovative solutions, and create startup business models that can stand in the real world. We want you to experience the process that most entrepreneurs face in Latin America when creating their own startups, with an emphasis on the opportunities that the public and private sectors offer to support them through this exciting journey. At UAI, we truly believe in the power of entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders to help Latin America thrive and overcome challenges related to unsolved problems.

Spoiler alert: this is a hands-on course. We will do practical stuff in class and we will go to the field to explore problems, test our assumptions, and get insights from real-world people (users). We will reflect about our Latin American context and culture, and think about starting up a sustainable, scalable, and creative way to solve a tough problem.

Learning objectives: what will you learn?

• Startup ecosystem overview: You will learn about the current context and complexities of the Latin American region and diagnose problems and challenges that require creative and innovative solutions.
• Innovation frameworks: You will experience the process of discovering, defining, designing and delivering a startup concept for the Latin American context.
• Experience from the field & experts: You will talk to guest speakers and entrepreneurs to understand the opportunities that Latin American hubs provide to entrepreneurs and innovators for scaling startups to achieve positive impact.

We will guide you through a project-based learning process, using the Double-Diamond framework to craft an innovative solution for the Latin American region, and spending time during our class sessions to work on your project. We selected articles and videos that will enhance your learning experience, giving you the essential knowledge that you need.

How will you pass this course? Grading and attendance
At UAI, all our grades are determined on 1.0-7.0 scale, and you pass with a 4.0 minimum:

• Individual attendance (10%)
• Individual participation in class (30%)
• Individual homework assignments (x2) (20%)
• Team Project
  • Deliverables (x2) (20%)
  • Final Presentation (20%)

STUDENT’S CLASS ATTENDANCE

- The attendance must be over 75% to pass the course.
- The justifications duly reported for health problems and activities of the exchange program (for example, academic excursions) are excluded from this rule.
- The justifications duly reported for health problems and activities of the exchange program (for example, academic excursions) are excluded from this rule.