Introduction to Entrepreneurship is designed for freshmen and sophomores who wish to learn about entrepreneurship, its importance to our society, and its role in bringing new ideas to the market. From a scholarly view, there are many definitions of entrepreneurship, ranging from Schumpeter’s view that entrepreneurial profit is derived from “unique combinations” to Stevenson’s view that “Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of opportunity beyond the resources that you currently control.” Through a speaker series sponsored by the College of Letters and Science and the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship a variety of notable entrepreneurs and their funders present their view of what ingredients are essential in successful entrepreneurial endeavors, at new or existing firms.

Lecturer Jennifer Walske

 

Speaker Video Library

Bruce Chizen	Former Adobe CEO & Chairman Bruce Chizen speaks on Corporate Entrepreneurship September 22, 2009. Bruce Chizen describes what was key to his successful entrepreneurial initiatives within Adobe. This includes how he structured new initiatives as Chairman and CEO, including PDF, so that they could thrive outside of the business unit structure in the start-up years. More about Bruce Chizen
John Dougery	Venture Capital and Entrepreneurship in India John Dougery and Mark Sherman, September 29, 2009. Both Mark and John discuss the current state of venture capital, and underscore why U.S. venture firms have begun investing in India.  Both speakers also suggest what makes any startup fundable and attractive to venture capital firms. More about John Dougery More about Mark Sherman
Dr. Aart de Geus	Growing, and Growing with the Entrepreneurial Firm Dr. Aart de Geus, October 6, 2009. Dr. de Geus speaks to how founders can grow, and grow with their entrepreneurial firms.  Included in this discussion are the three stages of growth necessary for both the startup, and the founder, in order create a viable and sustainable company. More about Dr. Aart de Geus

 

Speaker Biographies

Bruce Chizen

Mr. Bruce R. Chizen is a Venture Partner and Member of Advisory Board of Voyager Capital. He is also a Senior Adviser at Permira Advisers Ltd. which he joined on February 11, 2009. Mr. Chizen was a Strategic Adviser of Adobe Systems Inc. Mr. Chizen serves as an Advisor of Voxa, Inc. He served as Chief Executive Officer of Adobe Systems Inc. from December 2000 to December 1, 2007 and its President from April 2000 to January 2005. Mr. Chizen's customer-focused vision was ... transforming Adobe from a desktop software business to a technology platform provider for consumers, creative professionals, and enterprises at Adobe Systems Inc. Under Mr. Chizen's leadership, Adobe was expanded its presence in the enterprise through its Intelligent Document Platform strategy, addressing a growing market need to connect paper-based processes with corporate data systems. While evolving Adobe's market strategy and extending its customer reach, he maintained its legendary employee culture. He joined Adobe upon the closing of the acquisition of Aldus Corporation in August 1994 as Vice President and General Manager of Consumer Products Division. From December 1997 to August 1998, he served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Graphic Products Division and from August 1998 to April 2000, he served as Executive Vice President of worldwide Products and Marketing at Adobe Systems. During this time, he closely aligned marketing functions and product development to effectively respond to market dynamics with customer-focused solutions. Prior thereto, Mr. Chizen served as Vice President and General Manager for Consumer Division of Aldus Corporation from February 1994 to August 1994. In 1987, he joined Claris Corporation as a founding Senior Manager and served as its Vice President of Sales and worldwide marketing from November 1992 to February 1994. He served as Vice President and General Manager of Claris Clear Choice for Claris Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple Computer, Inc. In 1983, he joined as Eastern Region Sales Director of Microsoft Corporation. From 1980 to 1983, he worked in Mattel Electronics' merchandising group, helping grow it to a $500 million business. He started his career in the consumer Electronics business during the first wave of growth in the video game market. He has been Director of Oracle Corp. since July 2008. He has been a Director of Voyager Capital since 6 August, 2008. He has been an Independent Director of Synopsys Inc. since April 2001. Mr. Chizen has been a Director of Adobe Systems Inc. since December 2000. He serves as President of the board of directors for the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose. He serves as Board Observer at Elemental Technologies Inc. Mr. Chizen studied BS from Brooklyn College, City University of New York. He received a bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College, City University of New York.

 

John Dougery

John has been a venture capitalist for 12 years, most recently co-founding Inventus Capital to focus on early stage investments in companies based in Silicon Valley and India.   Prior to venture, John held a variety of operating roles in the computer industry, most notably with Sun Microsystems and Silicon Graphics during their high growth years.  He hold both a BA and MBA from U.C. Berkeley, and is a native of San Francisco.

Mark Sherman

Bio will be available shortly.

Dr. Aart de Geus

Aart J. de Geus Co-Founded Synopsys Inc. in December 1986 and has been its Chief Executive Officer since January 1994. Since December 1986, Dr. de Geus has held a variety of positions, including Senior Vice President of Engineering and Senior Vice President of Marketing. He served as the President of Synopsys Inc. from 1992 to 1998. From 1982 to 1986, Dr. de Geus was employed by General Electric Corporation, where he was the Manager of the Advanced Computer-Aided Engineering ... Group. He served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Logic Modeling Corp. He has been the Chairman of Synopsys Inc. since February 1998. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of Silicon Valley Leadership Group. From 1986 to 1992, Dr. de Geus served as the Chairman of the Board of Synopsys Inc. He served as the Chairman of the Board at Electronic Design Automation Consortium and serves as its Vice Chairman. He has been a Director of Synopsys Inc. since 1986 and Applied Materials Inc. since July 24, 2007. He serves as a Member of the Board of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, TechNet, the Fabless Semiconductor Association. Dr. de Geus is active in the community and is well known for his Philanthropic endeavors, particularly in promoting education in math and science. Dr. de Geus holds an M.S.E.E. from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Southern Methodist University. Dr. de Geus was made a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers in 1999.

 

 

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