The Art of the New
About the class
Conventional wisdom in this country has reduced entrepreneurship to a veritable formula:
PROPRIETARY TECHNOLOGY + BUSINESS PLAN + VENTURE CAPITAL = SUCCESS
This notion is promoted by the business media, institutional investors, academicians, policy-makers, and entrepreneurs themselves. The simple fact of the matter is that it is wrong. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that it is misleading, and ultimately distorts our understanding of the origins of most successful growth companies. Each year, there are approximately one million new ventures created in the U.S. And each year, fewer than 3,000 of these will receive venture backing. This course will explore the roots of the overwhelming majority of successful growth companies, new ventures that either never seek institutional backing or do so only when they've achieved viability.
The course will identify and explore the discreet steps involved in transforming an often vague and unrefined idea into a clearly articulated business model and eventually a launch plan designed to get into the market as quickly and inexpensively as possible. It will also focus on both opportunity and risk assessment, so that students begin to develop the skills to make clear-eyed evaluations of opportunities.
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Professor George Gendron As the founder and Director of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program at Clark University, George Gendron is responsible for inspiring and fostering the entrepreneurial spirit of numerous Clark students. Read more |
Former guest speakers
Alan Khazei, co-founder City Year; named as one of the 40 most important young leaders in America by Newsweek Magazine
Ted Nelson, former Managing Director of Mullen Advertising, and founder and Managing Director of Mechanica, one the leading brand-creation firms in the country
David Kurlan, author of the book “Baseline Selling” and the founder and CEO of Dave Kurlan & Associates
Larry Bohn, founder of Net Genesis; Partner at the venture-capital firm General Catalyst
Kim Bent, Director and Producer of a series of shows on PBS about science for elementary school children
Lucy McQuilken, former CEO of Chaoticom, and venture capitalist for Intel Ventures