2006 Activities
Ron Brown Alumni Program
In April 2006, Babson hosted a workshop for 13 past participants of the Ron Brown Program. The workshop was designed as a follow-up to the Ron Brown program. Its goal is to provide advanced entrepreneurship study for small business and corporate entrepreneurs. Professor Anne Donnellon served as the Faculty Director. Participants from programs in 2000 – 2005 were represented. Named for the late U.S. Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown, the Ron Brown program is intended to foster economic growth and business development in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties of Ireland. The Ron Brown Program is sponsored by the International Fund for Ireland.
ESADE
ESADE Business School in Barcelona, Spain sent seventy six part-time MBA students to Babson in April 2006. The program is part of a capstone entrepreneurship training that involved four days of rigorous study. The focus of the program was on managing an entrepreneurial venture. Professor’s Leslie Charm, Edward P. Marram and Michael Gordon delivered a very successful program. This was the second year that ESADE has come to Babson. Babson anticipates another 100 students to visit in March 2007.
Berne University of Applied Sciences
The Berne University of Applied Sciences is running a successful executive MBA program and chose Babson College to deliver the U.S. module of the program. The participants are executives of national and international companies with extensive business experience. The group spent a week at Babson in April 2006. Professors Jean-Pierre Jeannet and David Hennessy delivered three days of teaching followed by two days of company visits organized by Consulate of Switzerland, known as the Swiss House for Advanced Research and Education (SHARE) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The program will run again in April 2007. In addition to students from the Berne University of Applied Sciences, approximately ten students from the St. Gallen University of Applied Sciences will attend also.
Venture Leaders Workshop, 2006
Babson was the host for the Venture Leaders Workshop in June 2006. The program is part of a national initiative sponsored by CTI Innovation and the Gebert Ruef Foundation. Venture Leaders brings together Swiss high tech and life sciences entrepreneurs to Boston for 10 days of intensive entrepreneurship training. The program supports Swiss entrepreneurs in their pursuit to establish a Science or Technology based venture. Faculty directors were Professor’s Les Charm and Ed Marram. The Venture Leaders program will return to Babson in June 2007.
New Trans-Atlantic Scholarship Program (NETS UK), 2006
Over the past three years Babson has enjoyed hosting the NETS UK program. This past September and October 2006 Babson hosted two - 10 day programs for NETS UK scholars. Sponsored by the National Federation of Enterprise Agencies (NFEA), the program is designed to develop and support new entrepreneurs from disadvantaged areas within the United Kingdom. The NETS program enables the participants to learn “best practices” from Babson faculty and entrepreneurs. The goal is to provide the participants with the skills and tools necessary to grow their businesses. The opportunities for scholars who are chosen for the New Entrepreneur Transatlantic Program (NETS) are great as they are exposed to American thinking on entrepreneurship as well as the entrepreneurial culture of America. Faculty Director Michael Gordon designed and led the program. Babson’s Europe Institute looks forward to hosting this program again in the fall of 2007.
Ron Brown Program, 2006
For the 7th consecutive year, Babson College welcomed entrepreneurs for the Ron Brown Program in Business Development from October 30- November 3, 2006. The Ron Brown Program was launched by The International Fund for Ireland in 1996 and is named for the late U.S. Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown. The five day program is designed specifically to foster economic growth and business development in Northern Ireland and the border countries of Ireland. The goal of the program is to provide entrepreneurs from small and medium businesses in these two regions with a short course in business development. The group experienced an intensive training in managing their firms.
Upcoming activities in 2007:
SEE in Europe
Babson College has received a (CHF 150,000) development grant from the Gebert Ruef Foundation, Basel Switzerland in preparation of its August ’07 launch of the Babson Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE) in Europe.
Babson SEE will launch its highly successful program at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland with final partnership arrangements in discussion with EM-Lyon, ETH-Zurich, Vienna University of Economics and Business, and Trinity College, Dublin.
Jean-Pierre Jeannet, Babson’s Director, Europe Institute and Karl Boschler (Europe Institute’s Executive-in-Residence based in Switzerland), represented Babson College for the official signing ceremony with the Gebert Ruef Foundation on Dec. 13th in Basel, Switzerland.
The Gerbert Ruef Foundation currently supports and monitors over 117 projects with varying levels of funding and coaching. It supports projects at institutions of higher learning by promoting innovation through funding new approaches and thus fostering the development of promising next-generation academics.
Trinity College, Dublin Explorer Week
The MSc (Mgmt) in International Business is a two year part-time graduate program in management which aims to develop managerial competencies on all issues related to competitive success in the international business environment, with a particular emphasis on International Marketing. Approximately Twenty students plan to come to Babson March 2007 for the Explorer Week program. The primary goal for this week is to provide program participants with an opportunity to concentrate on an international business challenge in an overseas location. The focus is on growth opportunities in the U.S. markets.
University of Ulster
The University of Ulster is partnering with Babson to deliver two modules of UU’s MSc Innovation and Entrepreneurship program in partnership. The Babson piece will be delivered in March and August of 2007, and covers the entrepreneurial process from conception to birth of a technology venture. It concentrates on attributes of entrepreneurs, searching for opportunities, and gathering resources to convert opportunities into businesses. Approximately twenty students will participate in the program.
