The Capstone Course

i.e. Master of Business Administration | Course number

Course Description

Firsthand from Israeli tech entrepreneurs – the principles of innovation and entrepreneurship, including identifying unmet needs, ideation, MVP prototyping, and market entry strategies. This is an immersive course that will provide participants with an up-close and personal encounter with the Israeli startup ecosystem, exposing them to both tremendous success stories, and glorious failures – providing invaluable take-aways regarding the secret sauce of the startup nation.

Course objectives

  1. Learn about one of the most currently disruptive verticals in the most innovative country in the world.
  2. Learn and understand where the world is going in terms of digital banking, alternative data, blockchain, crypto, decentralized finance, and more.
  3. Get a first-hand view on the success factors of fintech innovation in general and blockchain innovation in particular.
  4. Discuss various topics with industry experts to find what drives them and how to become successful entrepreneurs. 
  5. Develop a critical reasoning approach to analyze innovation processes.
  6. Provide recommendations to startups as to possible solutions of their challenges.
  7. Engage with faculty, experts, and students in a practical workshop to develop an investor pitch decks and a trial pitch.

The Instructors

Email: [email protected] / [email protected] 

Consultation times: Friday 5-6pm. (since this course is delivered through zoom, please contact instructor for efficient scheduling).

  • Dr. Tal Peleg-Shulman

    Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus

    Tal is an experienced R&D professional in the pharma and biotechnology sectors. She currently advises early-stage startups and is involved in angel investments, pro-bono legal proceedings and social impact ventures. In her previous positions, Tal was editor-in-chief of medical and scientific content at Maccabi Healthcare Services and Director of CMC at Neurim Pharmaceuticals. Tal received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified member of the Israeli Bar Association.

  • Professor Roni Michaely

    At vero eos et accusamus et

    Roni is a professor of Finance and Entrepreneurship at the University of Hong Kong and a research member at the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI). He has extensive teaching experience with MBA, executive MBA, DBA and PhD students, and has been recognized as one of the most prolific academic researchers in finance. Roni is the co-founder of two startups and sits on the board of several others. He was the director of the Israeli Securities Authority (ISA) from 1998 to 2003.

  • Professor Roni Michaely

    At vero eos et accusamus et

    Roni is a professor of Finance and Entrepreneurship at the University of Hong Kong and a research member at the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI). He has extensive teaching experience with MBA, executive MBA, DBA and PhD students, and has been recognized as one of the most prolific academic researchers in finance. Roni is the co-founder of two startups and sits on the board of several others. He was the director of the Israeli Securities Authority (ISA) from 1998 to 2003.

  • Dr. Tal Peleg-Shulman

    Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus

    Tal is an experienced R&D professional in the pharma and biotechnology sectors. She currently advises early-stage startups and is involved in angel investments, pro-bono legal proceedings and social impact ventures. In her previous positions, Tal was editor-in-chief of medical and scientific content at Maccabi Healthcare Services and Director of CMC at Neurim Pharmaceuticals. Tal received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified member of the Israeli Bar Association.

Starts 01/06/2022

Ends 22/06/2022

  • Entrepreneurship and Innovation 101 – introductory lecture
  • Understanding the innovation DNA of Israel through history and culture – a series of inspirational talks and lectures
  • The Israeli tech-ecosystem: trends and challenges Domain-specific (fintech, smart cities, blockchain, digital health, femtech, construction-tech, food-tech, agritech, desert-tech, etc.) deep dives in collaboration with Israeli startups and accelerators Inspirational talks –
  • founder journeys (success and failure stories), the future of health, etc. Hackathon – join a local hackathon Weekend tours and lectures on how the innovation culture has been affected by Israel’s unique history Exploring the culture of Tel Aviv and Israel in general (and the great food!) Policy perspectives: meeting with government officials and the VC community Visits to innovation centers in Israel (for example, Fresh Start in Kiryat Shmona,
  • Margalit City in Kiryat Shmona, Yazamut 360 at BGN, Road2 Haifa/Biodesign Rambam Medical Center, Kineret Innovation Center, etc.).
Lecture Date/HK Time Instructor Startup participation/cases
1 Oct 20 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm

Ari Achiaz Kick off – Introduction to course

  1. Course’s objectives 
  2. Introduction to Fintech
Fintech Investor

Intro to first mini project

2 Oct 24 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm

Ari Achiaz The human factor in Fintech – Case of Robo-Advisors

Since most fintech solutions aim to solve retail clients’ needs, how does the human factor affect the success?

Guest lecture – VIDEA
Oct 27 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm

Ari Achiaz Grasping the disruption – The reaction of traditional financial institutions to fintech Guest lecture – Bank innovation department
4 Oct 31 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm

Ari Achiaz Regulation is both a challenge & an opportunity – Case of AI.

AI creates many opportunities for disruption; however it creates new problems – what is the role of regulation?

Group work and feedback on the mini-project.
5 Nov  3 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm

Evgeny Lyandres Introduction to blockchain:

Blockchain history

Blockchain design principles

Public and private ledgers

The blockchain ecosystem

Advantages and disadvantages of blockchain

Types of blockchain

Ivey Case:

Chow Tai Fook: Blockchain for the Diamond Industry

6 Nov 7 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm

Evgeny Lyandres Blockchain basics:

    Encryption

    Hashing

    Blockchain structure

    Propagation of data on the       blockchain and consensus mechanisms

Guest lecture on the most promising areas of blockchain: a leading VC in the blockchain space
7 Nov 10 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm 

Ari Achiaz Cybercrime and the role of cryptocurrencies in its rise  Guest lecture
Alex Gaff, Head of Forensic services BDO Israel
8 Nov 14 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm

Ari Achiaz Final presentation of the first mini project

Guest lecture – Lagoon Data

9 Nov 17 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm

Evgeny Lyandres Bitcoin blockchain:

    Bitcoin transactions

    Bitcoin consensus

Alternative consensus protocols

Ethereum blockchain and smart contracts

Alternative blockchains

Privacy-preserving blockchains

Guest lecture on Privacy-preserving blokchains: 

Former CEO of layer-one privacy-preserving blockchain

10 Nov 21 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm

Evgeny Lyandres Introduction to decentralized finance:

    Why do we need decentralized finance? 

DeFi primitives

DeFi governance via DAOs

DeFi applications:

    Decentralized exchanges

Guest lecture on DAOs: COO of a new, promising decentralized exchange
11 Nov 24 (Thu)

2:00-5:00pm

Evgeny Lyandres DeFi applications – continued

    Decentralized exchange — continued

    Lending/borrowing

    Derivatives/tokenization

    Bridges across blockchains

Guest lecture on bridges across blockchains:

CEO of an innovative cross-chain decentralized bridge

12 Nov 28 (Mon)

2:00-5:00pm 

Evgeny Lyandres DeFi risks

Student presentations of their blockchain application pitch decks

Additional Information

  • Price

    Tal is an experienced R&D professional in the pharma and biotechnology sectors. She currently advises early-stage startups and is involved in angel investments, pro-bono legal proceedings and social impact ventures. In her previous positions, Tal was editor-in-chief of medical and scientific content at Maccabi Healthcare Services and Director of CMC at Neurim Pharmaceuticals. Tal received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified member of the Israeli Bar Association.

  • Access to course materials

    Tal is an experienced R&D professional in the pharma and biotechnology sectors. She currently advises early-stage startups and is involved in angel investments, pro-bono legal proceedings and social impact ventures. In her previous positions, Tal was editor-in-chief of medical and scientific content at Maccabi Healthcare Services and Director of CMC at Neurim Pharmaceuticals. Tal received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified member of the Israeli Bar Association.

  • Shareable certificate upon completion

    Tal is an experienced R&D professional in the pharma and biotechnology sectors. She currently advises early-stage startups and is involved in angel investments, pro-bono legal proceedings and social impact ventures. In her previous positions, Tal was editor-in-chief of medical and scientific content at Maccabi Healthcare Services and Director of CMC at Neurim Pharmaceuticals. Tal received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified member of the Israeli Bar Association.

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