The Importance of 'Getting Real' In a conversation with the Wharton Alumni Club of Southern California, Routehappy founder Robert Albert WG98 shares how he earns buy-in on seemingly impossible ideas, thoughts on the future of the airline industry, and more. Are you an MBA alumnus or alumna looking to make entrepreneurship & innovation part of your own career path? The course covers topics like the creation of competitive advantage through commitment, competitor analysis, different organizational responses to environmental changes, real options, modularity, and increasing returns. Alumni Orientation is an opportunity for graduating MBA students to meet with members of the Wharton staff (Alumni Relations, Clubs, Online Engagement, Wharton Fund, Graduate Division and Career Management) and learn about the vast array of alumni resources available post-graduation. Search the Alumni Directory by Alumni Name, Company, Class Year, City, and more. With individual advising, dedicated seed funding and awards, networking with and mentoring from entrepreneurial alumni, and access to co-working space at Wharton San Francisco. It shows people that you know what you’re doing and where you’re going.”, Background: “Shortly after coming to Wharton, I transitioned from my job at eBay to founder of Boomerang Commerce. Apply to join VIP-Community (rolling application), and become part of the most dedicated community of entrepreneurs at Penn. Value of an MBA: “I didn’t have plans to become an entrepreneur when I came to Wharton, but while there I gained the skillset, toolkit, and confidence to become an entrepreneur so when the opportunity came, I felt well prepared to take a risk.”. Half.com was acquired by eBay in July 2000. Former MBA for Executives Classmates Launch Security Awareness Startup VIP-C members meet regularly in the group co-working space to support each other, set goals for their startups, take workshops, and get group advising on their ventures. One thing that kept coming to mind from Marketing classes at Wharton was that you shouldn’t sell what you make, but rather make what you can sell. Wharton San Francisco, 5 Ways to Get Started with Entrepreneurship, Wharton Alumnae Founders & Funders Association >, Recruiting Relationship Manager for Startups & Entrepreneurship, MBA Career Management’s Alumni Resources page, Penn Wharton Entrepreneurship Alumni Achievement Award. When you become a mentor, you participate in the education of a student entrepreneur. Current Venture: Shelly founded MedRisk in 1994 and currently serves as executive chair of the company, which is a leader in physical rehabilitation solutions for the workers’ compensation industry. Email Jill Anick. I had conceived the idea for Boomerang after observing the increasing digital divide between e-commerce giants like Amazon and other retailers. About Wharton Entrepreneurs Workshop. It’s not uncommon to hear the phrase “entrepreneurship is in the water” when students describe Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives. VIP-Xcelerate is an intense 4-month accelerator program on the Penn campus. Quakernet, Penn’s directory of students and alumni, provides an extensive directory of entrepreneurs. This is why, whether you’re two years out or twenty, you may notice some changes. A Passion for Startups Led This EMBA Grad to Venture Capital, Student Rel Lavizzo-Mourey on Launching a Startup in School, Wharton EMBA Alumna Talks about Lasting Lessons from First Day of School, A Passion for Startups Led This EMBA Grad to Venture Capital. Alumni Spotlights . The specific goal of the company was to create a big data retail analytics platform to help next-generation e-retailers drive smart pricing and assortment decisions.”, Why an MBA: “I wanted to earn an MBA to learn the tools of the trade to become a CEO. This guide can help. Indeed, entrepreneurship is a significant interest among many EMBA students at the San Francisco and Philadelphia campuses. …and more, to find alumni who are active in the entrepreneurial community. Dean met Wharton Alumni Entrepreneurs in Japan. I also had an idea for a venture that I wanted to develop.”. That got me into the media world where I helped relaunch Honey magazine. When you judge the Startup Challenge, you enhance the entrepreneurial experience for today’s students, and strengthen our entrepreneurial community. First, my classmates were a great resource. Chestnut Street Ventures is a community of Penn alumni investors, investing in Penn alumni-led companies. Value of an MBA: “Michael took a job in the private sector after graduation and was hearing feedback from security officers that they needed more people to be aware of what is happening with cybersecurity. So come and network with other Wharton Club members and their Entrepreneur Friends this Dec 8th. Suite 250 Where we're working. “I wanted to get an MBA to fill that gap and learn what it takes to run a business.”. Two years after graduation, they launched Ataata, a security awareness platform. Meet our award winners! Having trouble turning your startup’s needs into a job or internship description? The venture must be based in Philadelphia to participate. VIP-C is our in-house incubator, offering a supportive community of fellow entrepreneurs and workshops on the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, while VIP-X, in Philadelphia, and VIP-SF, in San Francisco, are our accelerators, for when ventures are ready to launch. It was Amazon’s analytical abilities that really set it apart. 220 S. 40th Street Employers interested in hiring MBA students for summer internships and/or full-time positions are encouraged to contact the Recruiting Relationship Manager for Startups & Entrepreneurship. Our members are entrepreneurs, and senior business executives, and institutional investors with a global reach. With 96,000+ alumni in 153 countries, 76 regional clubs, and 1,000+ alumni events every year, the Wharton Alumni Network is an amazing resource for making connections. Michael was an executive in the Treasury Department, where he helped develop strategies to identify and mitigate cyber risks and vulnerabilities. He also helped build Ride, a TPG Growth portfolio company that enables coworkers to find each other to carpool with an app. Red + Blue Ventures is a privately owned and operated seed and early-stage venture capital fund that invests in companies from the Penn ecosystem. Eventually, we realized that this is what we should be selling and we could form a business around it,” says Tim. Teams are supported by a 2nd year or Senior Engagement Manager. Also, the Wharton MBA adds a lot of credibility to your resume. Student Rel Lavizzo-Mourey on Launching a Startup in School I wanted to offer all retailers the advanced analytical capabilities needed to survive and succeed. “The coats have an element of secrecy, as one side is traditional and the other side is wilder. I was able to get advice on everything from how to talk to CEOs and CFOs to product pricing. Here is what they said: Background: Previously, Tim ran his own accounting practice and had experience with an internet startup. To do something broader, he sought an MBA. Penn Entrepreneurship Ecosystem >