Introduction to Entrepreneurship

Academic unit or major

Entrepreneurship courses

Instructor(s)

Nobuhiko Seki

Class Format

Lecture (Face-to-face)

Media-enhanced courses

-

Day of week/Period
(Classrooms)

3-4 Tue (M-101(H116))

Class

-

Course Code

ENT.B201

Number of credits

100

Course offered

2025

Offered quarter

2Q

Syllabus updated

Apr 11, 2025

Language

Japanese

※ Courses with parentheses in the course number have different subject codes depending on the student's year of admission.

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

This course aims to deepen students' understanding of entrepreneurship in a broad sense—ranging from academic research to startups. It also focuses on examining the impact of social systems on entrepreneurship from an interdisciplinary perspective. Specifically, the course will cover the fundamentals of systems surrounding entrepreneurship, including economics, politics, geopolitics, security, marketing, and management.

Course description and aims

This course aims to help students understand the significance of entrepreneurship in driving social change and the frameworks surrounding it. Students will acquire fundamental knowledge of the social sciences that underpin and shape entrepreneurship—such as economics, politics, geopolitics, marketing, and management—through an interdisciplinary approach that illustrates how these elements influence entrepreneurship.
1. Understand what it means to be an entrepreneur and see its relevance to their own lives
2. Think about the connection between science/technology and society through familiar topics
3. Gain essential perspectives on how society works—such as money, competition, and ethics
4. Practice finding problems and working with others to create new ideas
5. Reflect on how their field can contribute to society and begin forming questions for their future

Student learning outcomes

実務経験と講義内容との関連 (又は実践的教育内容)

The professor, who has extensive experience ranging from research on decentralized networks in Bali to project management and entrepreneurship—including work in the automotive industry, renewable energy, Linux OS startups, and international initiatives—will lecture on the significance, perspectives, and inevitability of startups in the modern age.
Projects
・ Le Mans 24-Hour Endurance Race Project (Mazda)
・ Renewable Energy Projects (Nishi-Izu Town in Shizuoka Prefecture, Sugadaira Highland in Nagano Prefecture, and others)
・ Startup focused on Linux OS (Client Cloud Computing)
・ Bangladesh Government Smart Meter Project
・ Corporate Restructuring Project for SAAB(Sweden)
・ Middle East Food Security Project
・ Drafted the concept for the establishment of the School of Data & Innovation at Kochi University of Technology
・ Member of the Skill Definition Committee of the Data Scientist Society　Japan
・ Awarded by the Indonesian Parliament as an "Intellectual on Bali"
and others

Keywords

Entrepreneurial spirit, interdisciplinary thinking, R＞G, authoritative distribution of value, logical thinking, project management, marketing, team building, scientific value creation, AI, ethics、data science

Competencies

• Specialist skills
• Intercultural skills
• Communication skills
• Critical thinking skills
• Practical and/or problem-solving skills
• Develop the ability to examine the relationship between society and technology from multiple perspectives, collaborate across disciplines to create new value, and apply learning to future challenges.

Class flow

・　Lectures
・　Reports
・　Group discussions
・　Thought exercises using case studies

Course schedule/Objectives

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

Course materials are provided during classes.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

• Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty
• Das Kapital by Karl Marx
• Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
• The Entrepreneurial State by Mariana Mazzucato
• The Savage Mind by Claude Lévi-Strauss
• Mind and Nature by Gregory Bateson
• UN Charter（United Nations）
• Money Creation in the Modern Economy (Bank of England)
and others

Evaluation methods and criteria

Grades will be based on in-class participation and dialogue, discussions on the LMS, weekly mini-reports related to class themes, and a final report. Active participation in class discussions is particularly emphasized in this course, so students are expected to engage proactively. To facilitate this, you'll need to prepare and review class materials.
・　In-class participation/dialogue and LMS discussions: 40%
・　Mini-reports: 30%
・　Final report: 30%

Related courses

• ENT.V401 ： Master's Introduction to Entrepreneurship 1
• ENT.V402 ： Master's Introduction to Entrepreneurship 2
• ENT.V601 ： Doctoral Introduction to Entrepreneurship 1
• ENT.V602 ： Doctoral Introduction to Entrepreneurship 2

Prerequisites

N/A

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).

cee.info[at]jim.titech.ac.jp

Office hours

Please feel free to contact me by email at any time if you have any questions or concerns.

Other

In each class session, a mini-report assignment related to the next topic will be given.
Discussions outside of class will take place on the LMS, and their content will be reflected in the final grade.