Entrepreneurial Finance and Venture Capital (15.4311)

About the Class

Faculty

Examines the elements of entrepreneurial finance, focusing on technology-based start-up ventures, and the early stages of company development. Addresses key questions which challenge all entrepreneurs: how much money can and should be raised; when should it be raised and from whom; what is a reasonable valuation of a company; and how funding, employment contracts and exit decisions should be structured. Aims to prepare students for these decisions, both as entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. In-depth analysis of the structure of the private equity industry. Meets with 15.431 when offered concurrently. Expectations and evaluation criteria for graduate students will differ from those of undergraduates; consult syllabus or instructor for specific details.

Matthew Rhodes-Kropf

Matthew Rhodes-Kropf is a Visiting Associate Professor in the Finance department at MIT Sloan where he teaches entrepreneurship. Rhodes-Kropf is also a managing partner at Tectonic Ventures. Rhodes-Kropf’s research on venture capital and exits has been published in many leading finance and economic journals. His work seeks to understand how capital markets interact with the creation of new firms, their financing, growth, governance, and their ultimate exit through a successful IPO or sale or through failure. He has published in leading finance and economic journals, including The Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Financial Studies, The RAND Journal of Economics, and The Journal of Business. His 2004 paper "Market Valuation and Merger Waves," published in The Journal of Finance, was nominated for the Brattle Prize for Best Paper in Corporate Finance in 2005. Previously a faculty member in the Entrepreneurial Management department at Harvard Business School, Rhodes-Kropf has also published many HBS cases. His work has been profiled in the Financial Times, The Economist, the MIT Sloan Management Review, Kauffman publications, Institutional Investor’s Alpha Magazine, PeHub, and many popular blogs. He is regularly quoted in major print media such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and the Financial Times, and has discussed his work on television, with appearances on CNBC, BBC, and CNN. Matt gives talks throughout the world on the financing of innovation. At Harvard Matt taught the VCPE (venture capital and private equity) course in the MBA elective curriculum and in executive education programs. He also oversees myriad student ventures and has advised literally hundreds of founders. He was also formerly the Daniel W. Stanton Associate Professor of Business at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, where he taught entrepreneurial finance and received the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Rhodes-Kropf is also a managing partner at Tectonic Ventures. Previously, he founded RK Ventures, the predecessor to Tectonic, where he managed two successful funds. Matt invested in companies such as Rackspace, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Xenex, Kymeta, Humatics, and Axioma among others. Matt was formerly the CFO of Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, where he worked with the founder to launch the firm and the world’s first Alzheimer’s imaging agent. Matt also helped launch a hedge fund as the COO, and has advised many financial firms including Correlation Ventures. Matt is presently a board participant at Appex, Auterion, Avant-garde Health, Butlr, OmniML, Rendered.ai, Vecna Robotics, Wyebot, and Xenex. Additionally, Matt is on the board of Neighborhood Trust, and the advisory board for Duke University’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship program (I&E Board). He was formerly the chairman of the advisory board for Duke University’s Graduate School. A graduate of Duke University, Rhodes-Kropf holds a BA in computer science and economics and a PhD in economics.