Penn State Executive Programs offers new course for entrepreneurs

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Launch Pad: Mastering the Essentials of Business Start-Up is a new Penn State Executive Programs offering set to provide participants with an understanding of the issues and demands facing entrepreneurs. Recommended for entrepreneurs with a current business idea, the program is slated to debut this November in the Philadelphia suburb of Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania.

The hands-on, practical learning environment will help Launch Pad participants brainstorm and design each part of a new company and test its value in the marketplace. Some specific issues covered will include customer segmentation and development, bootstrapping, business partners, financing, networking, angel investors, organizational culture and change management.

“The Launch Pad program is designed to help people with great ideas acquire the knowledge and resources necessary to solve that wide range of unexpected problems that invariably crop up throughout the entrepreneurial process,” said Robert Macy, director of the Farrell Center for Corporate Innovation and the Center for Teams and Negotiation in the Smeal College of Business.

Macy will serve as faculty leader for the Launch Pad program, along with Jack Kaplan, president of Robotic Systems & Technologies Inc. and adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at Columbia Business School.

“We have a long history of utilizing talent from across the University as well as tapping into our wider networks to provide the very best in executive education,” said Maria Taylor, director of Penn State Executive Programs. “These strong networks allow us to respond quickly to very specific business challenges that our customers face today.”

To learn more about the program, including how to register, visit www.smeal.psu.edu/psep/strategic-thinking/launch-pad.

About Penn State Executive ProgramsAs part of the Smeal College of Business, Penn State Executive Programs builds leadership and organizational capabilities to address pressing business challenges. Open-enrollment programs for executives are offered in areas such as strategy and leadership, supply chain management and finance. Penn State Executive Programs also partners with major multinational organizations to deliver customized learning solutions. Learn more at www.smeal.psu.edu/psep.