Justin Hall
Mechanical Engineering Major, Class of 2017
In regards to innovation and entrepreneurship, my experience exceeds a simple interest. Personally, I am working with three of my peers in a start up to develop a specific web service and even recently, we received IDEA grant funding to continue the development of our project. In addition, I have assisted in innovating a new design for flywheel energy storage by capitalizing on recent research. I have recently been involved with Stanford University as a University Innovation Fellow. Fellows take a course with Stanford along with other students across the nation and conclude their training by visiting Stanford and Google to see some truly entrepreneurial and innovative environments. The goal of this fellowship is to teach an individual the best ways to promote entrepreneurship and innovation in their communities.
The Harvard Illuminate conference immediately took my interest. A conference covering the topics of entrepreneurship and innovation while featuring some notable speakers and collecting an audience from a variety of universities provides a plethora of opportunities. After attending, I can say with confidence I was not disappointed and the conference even exceeded my expectation. Keynotes included panels by leaders from both Pandora Radio and PepsiCo. These talks showed that entrepreneurship and innovation is crucial in any environment, even in a larger company. Additional guest speakers from successful startups provided students with not only inspiration but also a better understanding of topics such as creating a culture or seeking venture funding.
From this experience, I took away many things. Not only did I leave with a greater understanding of how to be a successful entrepreneur. I also left with many new friends after having the opportunity to discuss entrepreneurial ventures with students from universities across the northeast. These discussions led to ideas of my own and ultimately to a better understanding of how to become a successful entrepreneur. I would recommend this conference to any aspiring entrepreneur.