Mediaspace scheduled maintenance: Aug 25, 2026 07:00 - 12:00 AM. During this time, videos will be temporarily unavailable. Check status updates.

Lecture

Introduction to Entrepreneurship

In course

MGT-201: Introduction to entrepreneurship

This course provides an introduction to the field of entrepreneurship, in particular the process of new venture creation and the commercialization of technologies. It integrates theories of entrepreneurship with a practical, process-based project, where st ...

Description

This lecture introduces the concept of entrepreneurship as the process of creating something new, assuming risks and rewards. It covers key elements, factors influencing start-up activity, and the impact of new firms at individual, industry, and society levels. The lecture also explores the role of entrepreneurship in tackling societal challenges, the success of start-ups, and the disruptive opportunities in the entrepreneurial landscape.

This video is available exclusively on Mediaspace for a restricted audience. Please log in to MediaSpace to access it if you have the necessary permissions.

Watch on Mediaspace

Instructors (4)

Eva Maria Weissenböck

Enrico Bergamini

Davide Bavato

Marc Gruber

Administrative & Editorial Positions 2017- Vice President for Innovation at EPFL 2013- Deputy & Associate Editor: Academy of Management Journal (AMJ 2009-2016 Director of the MTE Master Program at EPFL 2000-2005 Manager of the LMU Entrepreneurship Center Academic Positions 10/2005 - present Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Assistant Professor (2005-2008), Associate Professor (2008-2010), Full Professor (since 2011) 9/2004 -12/2004 Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Visiting Scholar 9/2000 - 9/2005 University of Munich (LMU), Munich School of Management Habilitand Vice-Director of the Institute for Innovation Research, Technology Management and Entrepreneurship (Director: Prof. Dietmar Harhoff, Ph.D.) Manager of the ODEON Center for Entrepreneurship 1/1999 -12/1999 Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Visiting Scholar 10/1995-12/1998 University of St. Gallen, HSG Research Assistant, Ph.D. candidate Degrees and Nominations 4/2005 University of Munich (LMU), Munich School of Management Venia Legendi for Management (Habilitation) 10/2000 University of St. Gallen, HSG Ph.D. in Management 10/1995 University of St. Gallen, HSG Master in Business Administration (lic. oec. HSG)

Official source

Related concepts (17)

Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values than simply economic ones. An entrepreneur is an individual who creates and/or invests in one or more businesses, bearing most of the risks and enjoying most of the rewards. The process of setting up a business is known as "entrepreneurship".

Startup company

A startup or start-up is a company or project undertaken by an entrepreneur to seek, develop, and validate a scalable business model. While entrepreneurship includes all new businesses, including self-employment and businesses that do not intend to go public, startups are new businesses that intend to grow large beyond the solo founder. At the beginning, startups face high uncertainty and have high rates of failure, but a minority of them do go on to become successful and influential.

Social entrepreneurship

Social entrepreneurship is an approach by individuals, groups, start-up companies or entrepreneurs, in which they develop, fund and implement solutions to social, cultural, or environmental issues. This concept may be applied to a wide range of organizations, which vary in size, aims, and beliefs. For-profit entrepreneurs typically measure performance using business metrics like profit, revenues and increases in stock prices. Social entrepreneurs, however, are either non-profits, or they blend for-profit goals with generating a positive "return to society".

Creative destruction

Creative destruction (German: schöpferische Zerstörung) is a concept in economics that describes a process in which new innovations replace and make obsolete older innovations. The concept is most readily identified with the Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter, who derived it from the work of Karl Marx and popularized it as a theory of economic innovation and the business cycle. It is also sometimes known as Schumpeter's gale. In Marxian economic theory, the concept refers more broadly to the linked processes of the accumulation and annihilation of wealth under capitalism.

Entrepreneurship ecosystem

An entrepreneurial ecosystems or entrepreneurship ecosystems are peculiar systems of interdependent actors and relations directly or indirectly supporting the creation and growth of new ventures. "Ecosystem" refers to the elements – individuals, organizations or institutions – outside the individual entrepreneur that are conducive to, or inhibitive of, the choice of a person to become an entrepreneur, or the probabilities of his or her success following launch.

Related lectures (32)

Rolex Learning Center Inauguration

Discusses the inauguration of the Rolex Learning Center and the significance of innovation and entrepreneurship for Switzerland's future.

Launching New Ventures - Outlook

Explores entrepreneurship, early observations, perspectives, funding stages, and business expansion.

Robotics alumni interview

Showcases an EPFL alumni's inspiring journey in robotics and entrepreneurship.

Launching New Ventures: What is Entrepreneurship

Explores the concept of entrepreneurship, its perspectives, macroeconomics, and technology-driven startups.

Launching New Ventures MOOC: Launching New Ventures