Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Technology Management (EIT)

Students develop an entrepreneurial mindset and related organizational skills to identify problems that can be converted into opportunities, attract and deploy resources in pursuit of those opportunities, and lead through innovation in both new and established companies.

This option prepares students to take an entrepreneurial approach to build and enhance organizations, from large firms to new startups. It is also suitable for students who intend to run their own businesses.

Student Competencies

• Use an entrepreneurial mindset to achieve organizational goals and objectives
• Innovation process and tools that generate ideas
• Apply design thinking to derive human-centered solutions to complex problems
• Translate opportunities into iterative business models
• Define product/service value propositions that align with customer segments

Experiential Learning

•  Ideation workshops with leading entrepreneurs
•  Practical experience defining real problems to be solved
•  Financial and market feasibility for new opportunities
•  Field work to assess viability of a business idea
• Active learning opportunities to bring ideas to the marketplace
• Engagement in the Entrepreneur Club and the Apex Center for Entrepreneurs 

Targeted Skill-sets

The option targets the development of the following entrepreneurial characteristics among students:

• Comfort with ambiguity
  
• Visionary tendencies.
• Risk-taking
• Tenacity
• Action-oriented
• Collaborative
• High energy
• Grit

Example Career Positions

New Business Development Specialist, Product Development Specialist, Business Designer, Innovation Analyst, Management Analyst, Founder, Market Development Manager, Business Consultant, Lean Start-Up Coach

What is Entrepreneurship and Innovation? 

The EIT curriculum collaborates closely with the Apex Center for Entrepreneurs who provide extraordinary experiential learning opportunities and collaboration across all of the colleges within the University. The Apex Center for Entrepreneurs in the Pamplin College of Business has two management faculty members to lead its teaching and research programs. Assistant professor Rick Hunt serves as the research director; assistant professor David Townsend, academic director.