Entrepreneurs, investors, and over 600 aspiring students are planning to converge on the campus of Harvard Business School for its marquee entrepreneurship event on Sunday, March 4th, 2012. Although this is one of the oldest and most established conferences on campus, it carries new and exciting context this year.
Entrepreneurship is flourishing at HBS and has become ingrained in students’ everyday lives. From “Minimum Viable Product” to the annual Business Plan Competition to Startup Tribe, the pioneering spirit of entrepreneurship has been present on campus for those seeking it. However, Harvard is now taking an active role in making innovation resources available to all and challenging students from across its campuses to bring their best ideas to life. Walking into the newly dedicated Batten Hall, home to the Harvard Innovation Lab, one cannot help but be overcome by the energy of new ideas and activities for all Harvard Students.
Given this momentum, plus the fact that RC’s everywhere are engaged in FIELD 3 activities, the startup culture can be felt literally all over campus. It is only fitting that this year’s entrepreneurship conference provides something for seasoned entrepreneurs as well as those developing their first idea. Students will have the chance to meet and learn from the co-founder of Airbnb, the ex-chairman of Zappos, and several other accomplished entrepreneurs and VCs.
The conference carries a unique theme, “Inspire. Create. Execute.”, reflecting the changing landscape of entrepreneurship at HBS. “HBS students are increasingly launching their companies while still in school or soon after graduation. In addition to encouraging students to pursue entrepreneurship, we want to provide them the tools to scale and grow their company” said Gaurav Jain, the 2012 Conference Co-Chair. Each component of the conference is targeted at a different stage of an entrepreneur’s journey:
Inspire. Instill creativity and a passion for entrepreneurship.
Create. Generate new business ideas, meet co-founders, and find investors.
Execute. Learn how to scale an existing company and find the tools to make it successful.
Several new features such as a business pitch contest, product demos, and VC coffee chats will make this an exciting event that will inspire new entrepreneurs and provide resources for those wanting to take their company to the next level.
For more information about the March 4th conference, please visit hbseclub.com/conference.
