November 16-20, 2020
Startup Week is a week-long series of cross-campus events and activities that highlight entrepreneurship, startups, university commercialization and university spinouts at the University of Oregon and across the Eugene/Springfield region. Students, faculty, staff and community members can learn how to get started with a for-profit or nonprofit idea, navigate the university and local resources available for launching or scaling a venture and meet others with shared entrepreneurial interests.
UO Elevator Pitch Competition (Apply Now!)
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
Have a business or nonprofit idea? Can you share your idea in 60 seconds or less? Apply to compete in Thursday’s Elevator Pitch Competition (November 19th) with a cash purse of $1,000! Click on the link below to learn more how you can compete (open to all UO students).
Monday, November 16
Crafting Your Elevator Pitch 4:00-4:45pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
In preparation for the November 19th UO Elevator Pitch Competition, we will discuss what goes into crafting a solid elevator pitch and dissect past winning student pitches. We will also highlight the differences between a business elevator pitch and a personal elevator pitch and prepare you for success with each.
Monday, November 16
Spotlight on Women Entrepreneurs in Oregon 5:30-6:30pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by Onward Eugene
Women-owned businesses are growing faster than ever – but women have been historically underfunded in business ventures nationwide. According to Forbes, 79% percent of women entrepreneurs in the U.S. feel more empowered now than they did five years ago, but 66% still report difficulty in obtaining the funding they need to succeed. Join us as we discuss the paths to success with examples here in Oregon.
Guest Presenters include:
- Alisia Ford, Founder & CEO, Glory Skincare
- Amber Willett, Creator, Will It Fit
- Shula Jaron, Founder & CEO, Enviral Tech
- Wendy Morgan, Founder & CEO, Shift Bias
Moderated by Kate Hammarback, Principal, Occam Advisors
Onward Eugene is very thankful for the support and partnership of the University of Oregon, Lane Workforce Partnership, Northwest Community Credit Union and Summit Bank in this work.
Monday, November 16
Lundquist College of Business Research Slam 5:30-6:30pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
Watch as eight business faculty members present their innovative research in 5 minutes all while their presentation slides advance automatically every 20 seconds on a loop. Research presentations include topics from cryptocurrency to brand activism. Who will be crowned our inaugural Business Research Slam faculty winner? Participants include:
- T. Bettina Cornwall-marketing
- Steve McKeon-finance
- Dane Christensen-accounting
- Alex Murray-management
- Chris Liu-management
- Michael Pangburn-operations and business analytics
- Maria Chaderina-finance
- Andrew Edelblum-marketing
Andrew J. Nelson, Associate Vice President for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the Randall C. Papé Chair in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, will emcee this event.
Tuesday, November 17
Ducks Disrupt: Silver Linings Pitchbook 12:00-1:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Oregon Executive MBA
Watch a team of entrepreneurs reflect on how they first met and share their experience with pivoting and pitching. Team “Edge” participated in the inaugural Ducks Disrupt event earlier this year. As you hear about their experience, consider joining the 2nd Annual Ducks Disrupt event coming in February 2021, entitled “Silver Linings Pitchbook”; lessons learned and opportunities available despite the challenges of our new reality.
Paul Allen, Associate Director at the Oregon Executive MBA will emcee this event.
Tuesday, November 17
COVID-19 Surveillance and Early Warning: A Startup Story and the Science Behind Making Buildings Safer
4:00-5:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the University of Oregon Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors, Klarquist IP Law and Innovation Partnership Services
Tuesday, November 17
Legal Fundamentals for Founders 5:00-6:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation Partnership Services
Learn what legal resources and actions you need to complete before launching a business and how to avoid expensive mistakes in the process. A panel of legal experts will share best practices for founders when starting and growing a business. Our esteem legal panel includes:
- Eric Priest, LL.M. and JD, Associate Professor and Faculty Director, School of Law
- Katherine L. Moyer, JD, Hershner Hunter LLP
- Jim Deane, Ph.D., MBA, CLP, Innovation Partnership Services (moderator)
This event is free and open to the public.
Wednesday, November 18
Startup Market Research Open Hours 1:00-3:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Knight Library
Market research can be challenging to navigate if you don’t know what you should be researching or the resources to find the necessary information.Business Librarian Genifer Snipes will be holding open hours to discuss research strategies and resources with current & would-be entrepreneurs. Sign-up to meet with Genifer for a 20-minute conversation.
Wednesday, November 18
Entrepreneurship and the Sciences 5:00-6:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
What pathways can entrepreneurship pave in the sciences? Hear from Professor Andrew J.Nelson, Randall C. Papé Chair in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Associate Vice President for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, as he discusses how one might leverage entrepreneurship with a science background and hear from three student panelists whose careers were positively impacted from adopting an entrepreneurial perspective. Panelists include:
- Avinash Singh, PhD and PostDoc (Neuroscience); founder, Perceptivo LLC
- Ruth Maust, PhD Student and NSF Graduate Research Fellow (Chemistry)
Thursday, November 19
UO Elevator Pitch Competition 5:30-6:30pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
Can you share your idea in 60 seconds or less? Watch as students compete for the opportunity to win $1,000 in cash prizes during our annual Elevator Pitch Competition! Students will receive feedback from our esteemed alumni panel:
- Cameron Colvin is the President of CamCo Commercial Inc. which holds global investments in commercial real estate and is the CEO of Rise Above Enterprises which provides marketing and strategic communications to clients. He is a venture capitalist, philanthropist and former professional (and Duck) football player.
- Cameron Forni is the founder and President of Select Oil at CuraLeaf and the co-founder and prior CEO of Cura Cannabis Solutions, companies that have revolutionized and innovated the cannabis industry.
- Sarah Hoffman is the Chief Marketing Officer of Jenny Craig. She has held multiple C-suite level roles at global companies including DryBar, JCrew, Cole Haan and Converse.
Tune in to see who will win this year’s UO Elevator Pitch competition!
Friday, November 20
Entrepreneur-In-Residence Open Hours 9:00am-3:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
Have a business idea and want to get some feedback? UO alum and serial entrepreneur, John Dimmer, will be on hand to talk to students, faculty/staff and community members about their ventures. Information shared is confidentially held. Sign up to meet with Mr. Dimmer here.
Friday, November 20
Entrepreneurship and the Arts Workshop 12:00-1:00pm Location: Virtual
Sponsored by the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship
Want to monetize your craft? In one jam-packed hour, join Ness Zolan, arts innovation researcher and consultant, in understanding the state of the arts in our economy and learn why it’s important to begin applying entrepreneurial thinking to your artform. Come ready to expand your repertoire and get creative with how the arts can help overcome challenges in our community and beyond.