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January 31, 2003

Business students organize symposium on entrepreneurism

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue University's Krannert Entrepreneurship Club is organizing the second annual Entrepreneurship Symposium on campus on Friday, Feb. 14.

Fabio Kuhn, Krannert School MBA candidate and one of the symposium's organizers, said, "The entrepreneurship symposium will expose Purdue students and others interested in starting their own businesses to people who have done it all – from obtaining initial financing to start-up to expansion. There will also be consideration of technology and its role in innovation and entrepreneurship."

Tony Niese, a symposium organizer and Krannert School MBA candidate, said, "Our goal is to attract undergraduates, graduate students, faculty and the public to this symposium. We see it as a catalyst to seed and promote entrepreneurship at Purdue. It's also a great networking opportunity."

The symposium is free and open to the public. Online registration is encouraged.

The Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship is sponsoring the symposium.

The afternoon of discussion panels and speakers begins at 1 p.m. in Stewart Center's Fowler Hall with keynote speaker Robert B. Tucker, president of The Innovation Resource, a research and consulting firm in Santa Barbara, Calif. The title of his talk is "Driving Growth Through Innovation."

Tucker is the author of the bestseller, "Managing the Future: 10 Driving Forces for Change in the New Century." His forthcoming book is "How Leading Firms Are Transforming Their Futures," a three-year study of 23 of the world's most innovative firms. His talk is sponsored by Purdue's New Ventures Laboratory and the Lilly Endowment.

Tim Monger, executive director of the Indiana Department of Commerce, will speak on "Business Development in Indiana and Effects on Purdue." His talk is at 4:15 p.m. in Fowler Hall. Appointed by Lt. Governor Joe Kernan this month, Monger is charged with leading the commerce department's domestic and international economic development efforts, overseeing its numerous programs and its new regional delivery system. Monger received both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Purdue.

Between the two speakers are three concurrent panel discussions – "Starting a Business and Early-stage Funding," "Growing the Business" and "Control & Performance" – offered at 2:15 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. in Stewart Center, Rooms 214A, 214B and 206.

"Starting a Business and Early-stage Funding," is in Room 214A. Panelists are Jeffrey Lampe, senior associate at Gazelle TechVentures; Teri F. Willey, managing partner, Arch Development Partners LLC, a Chicago-based venture capital fund focused on research-based technologies including biotechnology/life sciences, wireless, software and technology infrastructure; Simran Trana, director of life sciences in Purdue's Office of Technology Commercialization; and Dennis Barket, president of Griffin Analytical Technologies Inc., a startup company at the Purdue Research Park.

"Growing the Business" is in Room 214B. Panelists are John Aplin, managing partner of CID Equity, an Indianapolis-based venture capital firm; and David Geliebter, founding partner of Carrot Capital, a New York venture capital firm specializing in helping college students and recent college graduates launch businesses.

"Control & Performance" is in Room 206. Panelists are Joe Degroff, a founding partner of Indianapolis law firm Ice Miller's IM Strategic Advisors Group; Todd Wilson, partner, Deloitte & Touche merger and acquisition services in Chicago; and Paul Madden a certified public accountant who is an owner of Diversified Systems Inc., an electronics manufacturing services company in Indianapolis.

At 5 p.m. there will be a reception in Room 118 of the Purdue Memorial Union.

The Entrepreneurship Club is based at the Krannert School of Management, but membership is open to all Purdue students, faculty, staff and community members.

The Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship brings together existing entrepreneurial efforts on campus, including technology transfer activities and other entrepreneurial competitions, speakers and events. The center also serves as a resource for Purdue researchers to commercialize their discoveries and as the intellectual center of education on, and discussion of, entrepreneurial philosophy and issues.

Writer: J. Michael Lillich, (765) 494-2077, mlillich@purdue.edu

Sources: Fabio Kuhn, (765) 743-0796, fkuhn@mgmt.purdue.edu

Tony Niese, (765) 471-4989, aniese@purdue.edu

Related Web site:
Entrepreneurship forum home page

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu


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