Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship
Our long tradition of research in Entrepreneurship goes back to the 1930's and 1940's with the “the father of venture capitalism,” General Georges Doriot, and Joseph Schumpeter’s theory of innovation as a process of “creative destruction.” Building on our intellectual roots, our scholars come from disciplines including economics, finance, sociology, strategy, business history, management, and social entrepreneurship. A number of our faculty come from practice as venture capitalists and start-up founders. We focus our research on the identification and pursuit of entrepreneurial opportunities; domestic and international funding of entrepreneurial endeavors; innovation, particularly technological innovation in international ventures; the environments in which entrepreneurs make decisions; and social entrepreneurship. As our research contributes new insights, we are advancing the world’s understanding of complex entrepreneurial issues and helping to increase the entrepreneurial success of our students and practitioners worldwide.
Initiatives & Projects
The Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship and the Social Enterprise Initiative encourage innovation to address the large-scale issues that beset society.
EntrepreneurshipSocial EnterpriseRecent Publications
Designed for Purpose: “Never a Failure. Always a Lesson”
- July 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
How to Identify the Perfect Cofounder
- July–August 2025 |
- Article |
- Harvard Business Review
Redefining the Edge: Jahez’s Strategic Pivot in Saudi Arabia’s Food Delivery Battle
- June 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
Scale AI Scales Up
- June 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
After the Idea: What It Really Takes to Create and Scale a Startup
- 2025 |
- Book |
- Faculty Research
IQanat: Empowering Rural Youth in Kazakhstan
- May 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
By 2025, the IQanat school and programs had produced more than 2,000 alumni who had been admitted to universities in 16 countries. The initiative’s funding model had also evolved, shifting from an exclusive reliance on Rakhimbayev’s donations to a donor base of 218 trustees—Kazakhstani business leaders who oversaw IQanat at the regional or district level. Salikova planned to oversee the opening of four new schools across the country over the next 5–10 years, along with expanding access to online programs. IQanat also began partnering with universities to track the long-term outcomes of its graduates, aiming to continually improve programs that supported the career success and well-being of its students. How would the foundation sustain momentum with donors and make the most meaningful difference for generations of rural students in Kazakhstan?
'Net Zero in Action': Impact Investing at the McKnight Foundation
- May 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
The CHIPS Program Office (Abridged)
- April 2025 |
- Case |
- Faculty Research
With a Little Help from My Family: Informal Startup Financing
- 2025 |
- Working Paper |
- Faculty Research
The Experimentation Machine: Finding Product–Market Fit in the Age of AI
- 2025 |
- Book |
- Faculty Research
Today’s most successful founders know that the startups that learn the fastest will win. In The Experimentation Machine, I reveal how AI is transforming the way startups find product-market fit and scale.
Applying timeless methods and cutting-edge tools, I will show you how to turn your startup into an AI-powered experimentation machine—learning faster and building smarter with leaner teams. Join the new class of ‘10x Founders’ who are building valuable companies faster than ever.
- Why founders who use AI will replace those who don’t
- How to design, sequence, and rigorously run startup experiments
- Tools 10x Founders use to create superpowers and leverage
- How to scale your startup without growing headcount
- Redefining ‘Product-Market Fit’ for the AI Age