Business Essentials
Business

Business Essentials

⏱ 6 hours

Business Essentials turns business from confusing to readable. In six hours across three self-paced modules, you learn to look at any company — including your own — and understand what it is trying to do, whether its strategy holds up, and what its numbers are saying.

Module 1 covers business fundamentals: goals, stakeholders, and how a company actually creates value. Module 2 covers strategy, running a gap analysis with SWOT, PESTEL, and SMART goals. Module 3 covers finance — reading statements, understanding margins, and checking liquidity. Each module includes an AI tool: Business Acumen Coach, Strategy Sounding Board, and Business Snapshot Evaluator.

One running case study threads through everything. Riverstone Coffee, a small roaster and café, shows every idea in action before you apply it to your own business, so nothing stays abstract.

The capstone pulls all three modules into a one-page Business Snapshot. Reach a READY verdict and you earn the AI-Powered Business Essentials badge plus a Certificate of Completion.

Built for beginners and written in plain language from start to finish. You use AI as your analyst for the fast mechanical work, and you keep the judgment calls that only a person can make about what happens next.

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What you’ll learn

Name any company's goals, stakeholders, and how it creates value Run a strategy gap analysis using SWOT, PESTEL, and SMART goals Read financial statements and interpret margins and liquidity ratios Assemble a one-page Business Snapshot of a company you choose Use AI as your analyst while keeping the judgment calls yourself Earn the AI-Powered Business Essentials badge at a READY verdict

Who this course is for

Beginners who need to read a business quickly — new managers, career changers, founders, and anyone joining conversations about strategy and finance.

Course curriculum

  1. Get Started

    Orientation: how the class works, the V.I.B.E. map, and how to use the AI Tools.

    • Get Started
  2. Course Book

    The full self-guided Course Book and Workbook for Business Essentials.

    • Business Essentials — Course Book
    • Business Essentials — Workbook
  3. Module 1: Business Fundamentals

    Goals, stakeholders, and how a business creates value — with the Riverstone Coffee case and a knowledge check.

    • Module 1 — Content Page
    • AI-1: Business Acumen Coach
    • Module 1 — Knowledge Check
    • Module 1 — Workbook Reflection
  4. Module 2: Business Strategy

    Gap analysis, SWOT, PESTEL, and SMART goals — with the Riverstone case and a knowledge check.

    • Module 2 — Content Page
    • AI-2: Strategy Sounding Board
    • Module 2 — Knowledge Check
    • Module 2 — Workbook Reflection
  5. Module 3: Business Finance

    Statements, margins, and liquidity — with the Riverstone case, a knowledge check, and the capstone.

    • Module 3 — Content Page
    • AI-3: Business Snapshot Evaluator
    • Module 3 — Knowledge Check
    • Module 3 — Workbook Reflection
  6. Course Materials & Capstone

    Assemble your one-page Business Snapshot and collect your completion materials.

    • Your Capstone — the Business Snapshot
    • Certificate of Completion
  7. Course Wrap-Up

    Where you go from here — journey recap, what you can do now, and your next steps.

    • Where You Go From Here