In October, Weatherhead School of Management hosted the 2nd Annual Richard L. Osborne Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) Symposium at the Tinkham Veale Center on the campus of Case Western Reserve University, and based on all measures, from the attendance levels and the expertise and diversity of presenters to the feedback received from participants and the amount of engagement during breakout sessions, it was another big success.
The symposium was attended by 250 entrepreneurs and private business owners, surpassing an original goal of 200, and exceeding last year’s symposium by 100. Those attending were able to participate in workshops on various aspect of ETA during morning sessions, and learn from individuals who made ETA investments, as well as expert business advisors. Added this year was a student “Fast Pitch” competition, with $4,000 awarded to the winning teams.
Pictured: Pranita Chaudhari, Aryaman Aggarwal, Cedrick Barber, Andrew Medvedev, Maxwell Ganzhorn, Zachary Brown and Youssef Massoud.
ETA is a win-win for business professionals looking to make an impact and wanting to own their own business, and for private companies with the potential for growth and the need for smart leadership as part of a growth or succession plan.
“There are so many upsides to ETA,” said Scot Lowry, professor of ETA at Weatherhead. “For those looking to become owners you avoid the startup challenges by acquiring a proven business model and established team often with support of experienced investors. For the private business, working with ETA entrepreneurs provides leadership with knowledge in changing business approaches for growth and broader exit options.
Weatherhead is proud to be among a small and elite group of business schools in the United States to be leading the expansion of ETA.