Program Orientation Webinar

Thursday, August 1st 2013 Presented by Nick Chapman nchapman@veinternational.org

122 Amsterdam Ave. New York, NY 10023 Phone: 212-769-2710 www.veinternational.org

What is Virtual Enterprises International?

VEI is an in school entrepreneurship program Students learn business by doing business Classes are firms that do business virtually with other firms across the U.S. and internationally
Approx. 500 firms nationally and 5,000 firms internationally The VEI approach emphasizes learning in four key areas: 1. Ownership: Students take responsibility for their own learning. 2. Experiential: Students learning is authentic and realistic. 3. Cooperative: Students learn with and from others and understand the dynamics of working as part of a team. 4. Reflective: Students experience the consequences of their decisions and apply that learning to future challenges.

Program Links
www.veinternational.org
National website

www.veinternational.org/about/
Videos & background information

www.veinternational.org/resources/
Links to all resources for students and teachers

1000

1500

500

VEI/Practice Firms by Country

Argentina Australia Austria Belgium Brazil Bulgaria Canada China Czech Republic Denmark Finland France Germany Great Britain Italy Lithuania Luxembourg Malaysia Netherlands Norway Poland Romania Slovak Republic Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland USA Map of all VE schools in the United States (source: http://batchgeo.com/map/eaaa2350282d188b8208b037b8304390)

Where we are

VEI Regional Offices

VEI National Office Iris Blanc National Director iblanc@veinternational.org Deni Frand External Relations dfrand@veinternational.org Tyler Fugazzie Digital Communications tyler@veinternational.org

College Network Kristen Callahan callahak@mccc.edu

Western Nancy Phillips nphillips@khsd.k12.ca.us

Mid-Atlantic Rhonda Doak rdoak@veinternational.org

Northeast Kathy Gielow kgielow@veinternational.org

Midwest Cindy Boyd cboyd@veinternational.org

South Chris Haff chaff@veinternational.org

New York City John Jastremski jjastre@schools.nyc.gov Nick Chapman nchapman@veinternational.org

Long Island Ellen Palazzo ellenp@spnet.us Irv Wortman iwortman@veinternational.org

Basics of the VEI Model

What do firms sell?
Everything!

Who is the Target Market?

Products: Apparel Electronics Food Sporting Goods Furniture

Services: Advertising Financial services Adventure tours App developers Legal services

VEI Employees (students) and other VEI Firms

What makes it all work?

The US Network Bank links all firms in the US Networked to all international banking systems The online bank works exactly like your personal online banking system
Direct deposit, automatic payments, electronic data

The Role of the Facilitator

Moving from sage on the stage to guide on the side VEI is a student-centered approach
Emphasis on project-based, collaborative learning

Primary responsibility to facilitate and direct student learning

NOT to deliver a prescribed daily lesson

Role of a Business Partner

Business partners are an essential element of the VEI program
Connecting students with adults and classrooms with the real world of business

Partners provide guidance, resources, opportunities and advocacy Opportunities may include:
Site visits, job shadowing, mentoring, work samples

What does a VEI firm do?

Research

Report

Plan

Evaluate
Implement

Present

Pacing Guide
A sequential guide to help teachers manage firm operations Aligned to Curriculum Tasks and available resources
Name of Task Reference to Curriculum Task Available Resources

Write the firms Mission Statement ADMIN Task 8 Establish procedures for managing the firms bank account ACCOUNTING Task 10

Sample mission statements US Network Bank User Guide

Pacing Guide will be available on the curriculum page http://veinternational.org/curriculum/

Curriculum
Task based curriculum Available online Organized by department
Orientation Accounting & Finance Administration Communications Human Resources Graphics Information Technology Purchasing Sales & Marketing
NOTE: All Curriculum and Resources are password protected. Please contact your regional director for access.

Resources
Website VEI Portal US Network Bank Wholesale Marketplace US and International Firm Directories Reference Files

The VEI Classroom

The VEI Classroom

An office instead of a classroom
Networked computer workstations Workgroup clusters of furniture Conference table and chairs Telephone, Printer, Fax/Copier/Scanner Filing cabinets Microsoft Office Suite or suitable alternative

The Business Plan

Every firm is required to write a comprehensive business plan
Outlining the goals and objectives of the firm

Regions conduct local BP Competitions

Contact your regional director for details

Winning teams qualify for the National Business Plan Competition in NYC during the Youth Business Summit
Held in April 2014

Written and Oral Rubrics can be found on the VEI website Reference Files

E-commerce Website
All firms should have an e-commerce website
Provides information about the firm & program Product/Service descriptions & pictures Online shopping cart utility or ordering procedure
Mals E-Commerce is very popular among VE firms (www.mals-e.com)

There are many template-based programs for designing simple, yet effective, websites
Google Sites, Weebly, Wix, etc.

Introducing the Better Business Rating

Similar to star ratings on Amazon.com Based on ease of use, customer relations, turnaround time, etc

Trade Shows

Contact your regional director for information on your local trade show

Visit veinternational.org for a list of all trade shows

2014 Youth Business Summit NYC

April 1-3, 2014
National Business Plan Competition Global Business Challenge International Trade Show

veinternational.org/youth-business-summit/

The Annual Report

Summarize and report on the firms operations over the Fiscal Year
1. What did you say you were going to do in your Business Plan? 2. What actually happened? 3. Explain the differences.
Why were you successful? Why werent you successful? What did you learn from the experience?

Preparation of Firm Financial Statements

Income Statement Balance Sheet Cash Flow Statement

Assessment & Evaluation

Pre/Post Assessments Economics Exam VEI Technical Assessment NOCTI
Test Code 7975

Student & Teacher Surveys

Pre/Post

VEI and the Scientific Method

Can we make this business profitable?

Learn about the industry and marketplace Hypothesis = Sales & Expense Projections Cash Budget The Business Plan Implement the Business Plan website, trade shows, etc Accounting sales journal, bank data

The Annual Report!

The Student Experience

66% of VEI students are minorities 90% of VEI students feel the program successfully prepared them to interview for a job and how to behave in a professional situation

91% of VEI students plan to attend college next year either full- or part-time
The opportunities here are tremendous. You find yourself, your abilities, your future and your desires solely from this one program. If only I could stock-market-style invest in it! Jeffrey Grinberg Francis Lewis High School, Class of 2012 Binghamton University, Class of 2016 The VE experience is different than any other class in the fact that it is not sugar coated. What you receive from the program is real, and can help you make decisions with what you want to do after school. Kelvin Vick East Wake High School, Class of 2012 University of North Carolina, Class of 2016

Questions & Answers

For more information: Nick Chapman NYC Program Coordinator nchapman@veinternational.org Iris Blanc National Director iblanc@veinternational.org