CELEBRATION RECAP ME MO

TO: PROFESSOR OLSEN

FROM: INNA GRANT

One of the main things I learned during the Entrepreneurship Celebration Week at Cornell is just
how many resources there are for entrepreneurs at Cornell. I am sure that I’ll be able to leverage
resources here on campus moving forward, even after graduation, especially if I choose to come
back here to obtain an MBA. From the breadth of alumni involved with Cornell-affiliated
entrepreneurs, the Start-Up tree, venture capital firms who are looking to invest in start-ups here,
mentor availability, incubators, and job listings, Cornell does a wonderful job trying to match
every single student with whatever they can possibly need for their entrepreneurship goals.

If I ever decide to go forward with creating my own start-up, I know now that there is a whole
support system available to me here on campus if I will need it. There are entrepreneurs I can
talk to, professors who are willing to help, and other companies on campus that are going
through the same thing and are a great resource. I can leverage Cornell’s start-up tree, which has
all the start-ups that are Cornell affiliated and gives you access to them and whatever else you
may need, to get on my feet and get any questions that I may have, answered. I can also try and
get involved with an incubator, like eLab, if I do decide to come back to campus. These
incubators allow me to try new things for my company and give me room to fail, which in turn
gives my company opportunity to grow in a supported environment. These incubators also allow
me to pivot my company if I realize my idea needs to change, something that happens very often
at the beginning of a start-up’s life.

Cornell also has alumni and mentors that they are willing to match you with if you ever need any
help or have any questions at all about every aspect of your business. Because there are so many
alumni and so many of them are willing to help and take time out of their day to attend these
Celebrations and talk to student entrepreneurs, you will never find yourself at a loss for someone
to chat with and discuss your business ideas and obstacles with. This is something that can be
incredibly useful to me, even if I don’t come back to Cornell, because these alumni are always
reachable by phone or email and are an excellent resource since they’ve already been through the
same struggles and have the wisdom and experience I may lack.

Finally, the fact that so many venture capital firms are interested in Cornell companies and
Cornell alumni is amazing, and something I had no idea was so prevalent before the Celebration
week. I know I will definitely want to move into the start-up or venture capital space after I go
back for an MBA, so having those resources and those connections available can open so many
doors for me. Getting backed by a venture capital firm is quite difficult, and you really need to
have some sort of connections to get through the front door, and Cornell provides those
connections. Cornell also has list-servs for job opportunities in both the start-up and venture
capital sphere, which is great to know when I eventually start looking to move into that area.