National Entrepreneurship Week Day 1: Eship Education
In celebration of National Entrepreneurship Week, FORGE is bringing you an entire week of opportunities and resources, with each day highlighting a different area. We're kickstarting the week today with day one: Eship Education.
Before we get into that, we do however want to take a moment to highlight that today is also Giving Day! Any gifts to FORGE will be matched up to $5,000. Donations will fund student-facing programs and opportunities within FORGE. Click the button below to donate.
Upcoming Eship Education opportunities
Venturing 101
Interested in starting a new venture but not sure where to start? Venturing 101 is a set of short courses on topics relevant to launching a venture. After completing the experience, you will have more knowledge about the venturing process using the Lean Canvas framework. You can use the mini-course content to gain exposure to venturing and self-assess your readiness to advance in the venturing process. Courses are offered online through D2L and you will complete the courses asynchronously at your own pace.
Course topics include:
- Finding your purpose: Reflection and self-assessment
- The building blocks: Overview of Lean Canvas and Entrepreneurial Mindset
- Ideation: Identifying a problem, opportunities, and a solution
- Validating the value of your idea: Researching and understanding your customer
- Business modeling and articulating your solution
- Building your team, getting connected, networking, ecosystem resources
- Intellectual Property and Business Formation
- Failure and iteration: Stories of resilience, learning from failure, reflective practice
Founder Collaborative Lunch and Learn Workshops
Come together with other founders and change-makers to build community and explore topics on innovation and creating solutions for pressing problems. These workshops will include a free lunch, a short topical workshop, and time to get to know others who are pursuing ventures and solving problems. All students, faculty, and staff are welcome to attend, but registration is required and lunch will be provided for in-person participants. For a list of upcoming lunch and learn workshops see below.
Getting Started with a Venture
When beginning a new venture, it is important to take a moment to assess where you have been and where you currently are. It is important to know who you are, what you value, and what drives you to create solutions for a problem. In this workshop, we’ll help you reflect on where you have been and introduce you to a simple process framework you can use to map out your venture idea.
Wednesday, February 23, 12-1 pm @ ENR2 Room S120A (Next to Slot Canyon Café)
Developing Human-Centered Solutions
The goal of this workshop is to introduce you techniques for designing human-centered solutions. You’ll learn about the design thinking process and how it can be used in tandem with the Lean Canvas model we introduced in the first workshop. Lastly, you’ll learn strategies to improve your opportunity recognition, problem-solving, and collaboration skills.
Wednesday, March 30, 12-1 pm @ ENR2 Room S120A (Next to Slot Canyon Café)
Developing Human-Centered Solutions
In this workshop, you will learn more about the customer development model, what it is and why it is important for building out your Lean Canvas. We’ll also share strategies and important considerations regarding the process so you are prepared with the skills to do it effectively. Specifically, the skills of active listening and interviewing and how they are connected to customer development.
Wednesday, April 27, 12-1 pm @ ENR2 Room S120A (Next to Slot Canyon Café)
McGuire Innovation Expo
The McGuire Innovation Expo showcases new student ventures, campus innovators and entrepreneurial education opportunities that make up our thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem. The trade show will include student booths showcasing cross-disciplinary student startup teams from the McGuire New Venture Development Program. The event is free and open to the public!
Thursday, February 17 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., University of Arizona Mall
That's all for today! We will be back tomorrow with Day 2, Eship Ecosystems.