Dominican presents Entrepreneur's Boot Camp

Dominican University’s Brennan School of Business will present its fifth biennial Entrepreneur’s Boot Camp on Saturday, October 5. Intended for aspiring entrepreneurs and those seeking to grow or expand their business, the Boot Camp will feature advice and perspectives from successful entrepreneurs from a variety of industries.

The Boot Camp will kick off at 9 a.m. with a keynote address by Pat Ryan, Jr., founder and CEO of Incisent Labs and co-chair of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s ChicagoNEXT technology leadership initiative. A noted businessperson and social entrepreneur, Ryan is a member of the executive committee of the Chicagoland Entrepreneurship Center.

“Entrepreneurial thinking is an increasingly valuable skill for everyone in the workforce, regardless of industry,” says Ryan.  “It is exciting that Dominican University has created its Boot Camp to empower people with these critical skills.”

Also appearing at the Boot Camp will be:

·        Bruce Lund, founder of the River Forest-based Lund & Company Invention, LLC. The award-winning Lund has designed and developed a number of best-selling toys and games, as well as household and consumer products, including TMX Elmo and Baby Alive Sip ‘n Slurp. Lund is dedicated to the proposition that great toys teach, entertain, surprise, inspire and invite inquiry and that play is an important business.

·        Technology entrepreneurs Caroline Sanchez Crozier, the founder, president and CEO of CSC Learning and a member of the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame; and Chee Kim and Andrew Hoog, founders of industry leading mobile security firm viaForensics.

·        Social entrepreneurs Rick Renjilian, COO of The Water Initiative, an organization focused on developing sustainable water solutions; Manish Shah, founder of Fos Biofuels, a private company using innovative technology to convert grease waste from local restaurants into environmentally safe fuel; and Thomas Coleman, co-founder, president, and CEO of the Bottom Billion Fund, a non-profit organization that economically empowers the extremely poor at the bottom of the pyramid through proven microfinance solutions.

·        Entrepreneurs in the fashion and retail industries, including Tracey Tarantino of special event and fashion production service Zzazz Productions; Lisa Hopkins Newell, founder of DIRT beauty products; and Heather Anderson, owner of Muse boutique in Oak Park.

·        Veteran entrepreneurs in the food and restaurant industry.

The Entrepreneur’s Boot Camp will take place in Parmer Hall on Dominican University's Main Campus, 7900 West Division Street in River Forest. Doors open at 8:30 a.m., with the opening keynote starting at 9 a.m.

The participation fee for the Boot Camp is $10 and registration is required at business.dom.edu. For more information, please contact the Brennan School of Business at 708-524-6810 or gradbus@dom.edu.