Business plan proposals for inner-city neighborhoods: A Strategic Management assignment for MBA students at Loyola University Chicago

Beginning in 1992, MBA students enrolled in a capstone Strategic Management course at Loyola University Chicago have, as their major course assignment, researched and prepared an original business plan proposal to provide a needed good or service, as well as employment opportunities, to residents in one of Chicago's underserved innercity neighborhoods. This paper describes the genesis of the project, how it works, and what the outcomes have been to date. The pedagogical model is arguably appropriate for MBA programs in or near any area that is economically underdeveloped, be it urban or rural.Jill W. Graham is Associate Professor of Management at Loyola University Chicago, where she teaches the capstone strategy course to both undergraduates and MBA students. Her research concerns various forms of virtue in organizational life, including principled dissent, organizational citizenship behavior, activist loyalty, servant leadership, and value-driven strategic management. Graham received her Ph.D. in organization behavior from Northwestern University in 1983, and taught at the University of British Columbia before joining the Loyola faculty in 1986.