DEPARTMENT
OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
CSC454/2527S:
The Business of Software
January-April
2003
Assignment
C: Short Critique
Described
in Tutorial:
Handed Out:
Due
In:
Marks:
4%
Each student will submit to their respective
TAs (via email) a short critique of another group’s idea, as designated
by the TA in the Tutorial on Jan 20th. THE TITLE OF YOUR SUBMISSION
SHOULD BE “ASSIGNMENT C: CRITIQUE OF XXX”, where
‘XXX’ is the name of the project you were designated to critique.
PURPOSE
The purpose of the Assignment is twofold.
First, it gives you the opportunity to harness the content of the readings and lectures
to date to evaluate a business proposal. As an entrepreneur, you will regularly
be required to assess business proposals promoted by from business partners and
employees, among others. Secondly, because you will be responding as an ‘outsider’
to another group’s v.0 submission, you will enable them to see the issues
that may require the most effort to analyze and/or communicate effectively to third
parties (e.g., prospective investors!).
A critique does need to focus on weaknesses;
its core purpose is to identify and assess those elements in the other group’s
business proposal that will most benefit from deep analysis, research, clear explanation
or highlighting in the business plan that they are developing. Even if you
focus on weaknesses, make sure your critique is constructive!
FORMAT
·
Length: 1 page (Adriana’s
groups may go beyond a single page, but please use this flexibility judiciously!)
·
Point form is
ok.
·
Please provide
your name and student number.
CONTENT
Consider the following in your submission:
Find the proposal's most threatening
competitor and compare the two (submitted proposal and the competitor) over the
framework discussed last week. At least 3-4 of the following topics should
be covered (if you are in Yogesh’s tutorial, your emphasis should be on
items 4, 5 and 9 below):
1.
product vs service
2.
customer vs user
3.
intellectual
property or competitive advantage
4.
market
5.
competition
6.
distribution
7.
strategic
alliance
8.
complementary
product or technology
9.
necessary infrastructure to make it possible.
If you are in Pedram’s tutorial, you
may focus on the major perceived weakness but you must provide specific suggestions
to mitigate or alleviate it.
NOTES
The submissions will be shared with the
critiqued group.
The TA’s email
addresses are:
·
·
·
Yogesh
Kalra yogesh.kalra03@rotman.utoronto.ca
·