75336 - Due Diligence Laboratory

Learning outcomes

The purpose of this laboratory is to analyze the steps of the evaluation process (due diligence) employed by venture capitalists in the evaluation of the investment proposals they receive. At the end of the course, students learn how to effectively structure and evaluate the investment proposals underlying the business plans received by venture capitalists.

Course contents

The laboratory is in English and is focused on one of the main important phases for Private Equity Financing: the Due Diligence.

The laboratory will apply the concepts learned in the related theoretical course of Private Equity. We will use the Laboratory of Due Diligence to implement various applications and simulations, strictly connected to the theoretical concepts explained in the course:

- Revenues and cost forecasting for early ventures (from a VC point of view)

- simulations of the due diligence process applied to various business cases;

- simulations of business plan feasibility for private equity operations

Readings/Bibliography

Entrepreneurial Finance: Venture Capital, Deal Structure & Valuation, Second Edition, Smith, Janet Kiholm; Smith, Richard L. (2019), Stanford University Press

Investment banking: Valuation, Leveraged buyouts, and Mergers and Acquisitions, 2nd ed, Pearl, Joshua and Rosenbaum, Joshua. (2013), Wiley.

 

Teaching methods

The Due Diligence course has a very practical approach and therefore it is necessary that you follow the theoretical course, in order to apply each concept into the laboratory.

Assessment methods

It is required to build the business plan of an early venture with 3 year forecasting of costs and revenues. It will be valued from the perspective of a venture capitalist.

The passing grades for students are in the range 18-30 cum laude (30L). These grades are based on the following evaluation criteria:

18-23: The student has sufficient preparation and analytical skills, spread however, over just few topics taught in the course, the overall jargon is correct.
24-27: The student shows an adequate preparation at a technical level with some doubts over the topics. Good, yet not too articulated analytical skills with the use of a correct jargon.
28-30: Great knowledge about most of the topics taught in the course, good critical and analytical skills, good usage of the specific jargon.
30 cum laude (30L): Excellent and in depth knowledge of all the topics in the course, excellent critical and analytical skills, excellent usage of specific jargon.

 

Office hours

See the website of Andi Duqi