"The Perfect Storm"

This is a repost of one of my original blogs from August 2007. Thought Part 1 and Part 2 were originally published together, my editor has recommended that I split them to make each easier to read.

As many of my friends and business associates are aware, for the past 9 months, I’ve been actively (some would say obsessively!) involved in creating a vertical entrepreneurship program, starting with the educational component. To date, we have met with resounding success and like the theme of the Hollywood action film, “The Perfect Storm,” it appears that the “stars have aligned” in order to manifest my ultimate entrepreneurial goal…to create the country’s first and only fully accredited College of Entrepreneurship.

Starting in late August 2005, with a single class of 19 bright interdisciplinary students at Barrett Honors College at ASU in a course of my own making entitled “Ready, Fire, Aim,” our newly fashioned Barrett Honors Entrepreneurship Program now boasts 94 students in four interactive classes at Barrett’s. What is even more impressive is the fact that as of March 31st, we will have actually funded and started five student-inspired businesses launched from last semester’s class, which ended a scant three months ago!

One student project, Club Entrepreneur (www.club-entrepreneur.com), is now a fully functioning ASU-sanctioned student organization that may very well become the largest and most powerful club on campus in very short order. Initial estimates of potential membership exceed 1000 members, which is being accomplished by the assimilation of existing student organizations under the Business Council at the W.P. Carey School of Business. The creation of e-Lab, which utilizes selected Club Entrepreneur members in student teams to research business concepts provided by local EO (Entrepreneur Organization) members is another exciting student-inspired project. Each student team will prepare a marketing, feasibility or full blown business plan for the entrepreneur’s idea and if economically viable, that entrepreneur will fund the plan and provide internship and perhaps an equity position for both the student teams as well as compensate e-Lab with fees and an equity position.

From the overwhelmingly positive response garnered from students and their parents, guest speakers and local business people that have had the pleasure of interacting with students in the Barrett Honors Entrepreneurship Program…it seems only natural to continue with this momentum. Phoenix, itself, has been enjoying a recent Renaissance of sorts by fashioning itself as an entrepreneurial mecca and of course, ASU has become reborn as the “New American University.” It seems only a natural evolution to utilize this combined synergy and create a private, fully accredited, four year educational institution for the purpose of teaching, supporting and nurturing entrepreneurship in the first ever College of Entrepreneurship.

Recent press of our educational efforts in ASU’s State Press, The Arizona Republic and the Business Journal has attracted some very impressive attention. Dean Jacobs of the Barrett Honors College recently fielded a call and had a subsequent meeting with one of the co-founders of Quiznos Subs and now the current owner of Crocs Shoes. This 30-something serial entrepreneur told Mark Jacobs that he had amassed $100MM business, saw the article of our program at Barrett’s in the Business Journal and wanted to make an initial gift to our program of $1MM. He stated that his accountants and lawyers had told him that he had to give away some money and fortunately for us, that day saw our article in the Business Journal. I had the opportunity to speak with Anthony Kruse a couple of times on the phone and we plan on getting together when he returns to town in mid May to discuss how we can work together on the entrepreneurial front. (Update-I had an excellent lunch meeting with Anthony only days ago and he has wholeheartedly endorsed my sweeping entrepreneurship and has agreed to serve on my new College of Entrepreneurship’s Board of Advisors and is considering investing a significant amount in either the University Venture Fund to capitalize student-inspired enterprises or any of several other financial initiatives that I presented to him.)

Additional inquiries came from potential benefactors who read the press and wanted to contribute to “the cause.” One such potential partner had given $500k to ASU some eighteen years ago for the purpose of establishing an entrepreneurial program… which was never implemented. Now, this gentleman has access to the significant amount of many millions of dollars that he represented would like a “home” at an Arizona educational institution. In light of the unsatisfactory treatment by unnamed administrators at ASU, that gift may very well land in our camp for our own plans. I am in conversation with this gentleman and his associates at this time discussing just that possible scenario.

To be continued in a few days...

Peter