VOLUME 13, NO. 1     DEC 1999

Entrepreneurial spirit renewed at WPI

The entrepreneurial spirit that moved John Boynton and Ichabod Washburn to establish the Worcester County Free Institute of Industrial Science 134 years ago is being reenergized this year with an expanded emphasis on entrepreneurship at WPI.

Under the leadership of McRae C. Banks, Harry Stoddard Professor and head of the Department of Management, an expanded program in entrepreneurial studies is being developed. "Our students do a tremendous amount of creative work, and WPI wants to encourage them to become entrepreneurs," says Banks, who recently assumed the post of director of WPI's Entrepreneurs Collaborative. "WPI has a strong history of entrepreneurship and we want to reinvigorate that."

The Entrepreneurs Collaborative was created in 1993 by former University Relations Vice President Donald F. Berth '57 and management Professor Arthur Gerstenfeld. It focused on combining technological education and entrepreneurial skills. Diran Apelian, Howmet Professor of Engineering and director of WPI's Metal Processing Institute, took the helm of the collaborative after Berth retired. Under Banks, the collaborative and all entrepreneurial activities will be consolidated within the Department of Management.

In keeping with WPI's heritage of combining theory and practice, students learn about entrepreneurship through course work and opportunities to meet with entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. Three courses provide an integrated approach to understanding entrepreneurship. The first, taught by WPI's entrepreneur-in-residence (see story, this page) focuses on identifying new business opportunities, understanding how to determine the difference between good and bad ideas, and examining/identifying the initial stages of planning a business. In the next course, students complete a business plan and come to understand the financing issues associated with launching a business. Finally, they learn about growing and managing a business and the many problems attendant with growth.

Guest entrepreneurs and venture capitalists keep the students tied to real-world experiences throughout all three courses. Concurrently, students may participate in monthly meetings of the WPI Venture Forum, a group that brings together current and aspiring entrepreneurs, including WPI alumni, to discuss technology and entrepreneurship. Several other opportunities are planned for students, including a student organization and a venture plan competition.

"Programs designed to foster entrepreneurship among WPI students have taken root and begun to grow," says John F. Carney III, provost and vice president for academic affairs. "WPI is once again creating a campus culture that recognizes that new scientific and technological ideas cannot lead to products or services that contribute to national wealth or the improvement of our well-being unless they can survive in the marketplace."