Scholars from Around the World Are Headed to Babson
This June, Babson will host not one, but two, esteemed entrepreneurship research conferences as part of its ongoing Centennial year events.
The Diana International Research Conference, a forum focused on women entrepreneurs, will be held June 2–4. That will be followed on June 5–8 by the Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference, or BCERC, a gathering now in its 39th year.
“Babson College is proud to host the two premier entrepreneurship research conferences in just one week,” says Candida Brush, vice provost of global entrepreneurial leadership and the F.W. Olin Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship.
As the College celebrates 100 years of changing how the world does and sees business, it continues to develop and disseminate research rooted in purpose, focused on improving entrepreneurial perceptions and opportunities worldwide.
The two conferences will bring prominent scholars from around the world to campus.
“Bringing together thought leaders in entrepreneurship is an important factor contributing to Babson’s leadership position,” says Mark Rice, Babson’s provost.
An Impact
First held in 2003, the Diana Conference will host 80 scholars to discuss women entrepreneurs and how they grow their ventures.
“It’s the only academic conference providing a platform for researchers to develop, conduct, and share a global research agenda,” says Brush.
For the first time, the conference will be succeeded on June 5 by Diana International Research Institute Impact Day. Sponsored by Bank of America, Impact Day seeks to address the notoriously low levels of venture capital funding provided to female-founded startups.
About 200 people are expected to attend Impact Day, which will convene investors, policymakers, researchers, and leaders of accelerators and hatcheries. The event’s keynote speaker will be Richelieu Dennis ’91, CEO of Sundial Brands.
Why It’s No. 1
Founded in 1981 as a way to increase quality research in entrepreneurship, BCERC will bring to campus 303 scholars, who will present just over 200 papers. Twenty-five doctoral students will attend the doctoral consortium that’s held in conjunction with the conference.
“The long-standing conference attests that Babson has been not only a pioneer but also a leader in the scholarship of entrepreneurship,” says Ken Matsuno, professor of marketing who will become Babson’s new dean of faculty next month. “It’s not surprising that the publication of the conference proceedings, Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research, is one of the most comprehensive research collections in the field.”
Taken together, BCERC and the Diana Conference help cement Babson’s status as a hub for entrepreneurship. “Babson is No. 1 in entrepreneurship,” says Brush, “and these two conferences are one of the major reasons for this. We are convening the top researchers. Thought leadership is crucial to our market positioning and our reputation.”
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