UMD's Labovitz School of Business and Economics (LSBE) will present the third annual UMD Entrepreneurship Conference on Tuesday, October 17, from 9 am – 4 pm in the UMD Kirby Ballroom. The conference is open to the public. Registration is required for everyone attending and spots are limited. Students may attend for free with a valid college I.D, but they must register online.
This year’s speakers include Chris Swanson, CEO of PureDriven and Mayor of Two Harbors, Minn., Shelly DeMotte Kramer, CEO and founder of V3Broadsuite and founder and principal analyst of Futurm, George Goldfarb, president and CEO of maurices, and Chad Allen Tafs, Sr., founder and CEO of Total Pro Flooring LLC. There will also be a Company Culture Panel with founders including Karine Woodman, owner of 24hr Bookkeeper, and Luke Riordan, founder and CEO of DAYTA Marketing.
In addition, two professional workshops will be given during the conference. The workshops will be led by Kartina Pierson, co-founder and principal of Vela Strategy, and Jamie Sundsbak, community manager of Collider Coworking.
"The Third Annual UMD Entrepreneurship Conference is a forum that features successful local, regional, and national entrepreneurs. This day-long conference offers a platform for the students and the community to hear and learn from entrepreneurial leaders who will share different perspectives on how to run, start, and grow a business venture,” said Conference Director Brandon Colucci.
About the Entrepreneurship Conference:
The UMD Entrepreneurship Conference started in 2015 based on an idea from UMD LSBE Dean Amy Hietapelto. The conference is completely student run, with the help of Nicole Wilde, Instructor in LSBE’s Department of Marketing.
Colucci, a senior at LSBE majoring in Marketing Analytics, and Andrew Achter, a senior at LSBE majoring in Marketing and Graphic Design, are this year’s Conference Directors. "Our student-run planning committee consists of 20 motivated and passionate students – 19 are from UMD and one is from UWS. We have been working hard to make this conference another success," said Conference Director Andrew Achter.
LSBE is accredited by the AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business). Less than 5% of business schools worldwide have earned this prestigious distinction. In Northeastern Minnesota, LSBE is the only school to have attained AACSB accreditation. Its website is lsbe.d.umn.edu.
Image above by Kaelt Simpson from the 2016 conference.