Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders

Entrepreneur and bestselling author Guy Kawasaki shares the secrets to being enchanting and developing influence through the "pillars of enchantment." In this funny and engaging lecture, Kawasaki examines the deep value in being likable, creating trust, and taking empowering action. He also shares keys to telling a great story, overcoming resistance, and enchanting your boss and colleagues.

Bill Gross thrives on turning innovative ideas into pioneering companies. He serves as founder and CEO of Idealab, which started over 75 companies since 1996. In this stimulating lecture, he shares how Idealab continues to bring incredible ideas to market, and his personal insights on starting and running successful organizations. Gross also describes the work of eSolar, a spin-off company of Idealab that works to make solar energy cost-competitive in the global marketplace.

As CEO of OptiMedica, Mark Forchette guides the company's continuing efforts to successfully deliver innovative medical technologies to market. In this lecture, he shares entrepreneurial lessons learned throughout his career, and discusses the importance of setting objectives and executing tactical plans. Forchette also touches upon the value of thorough preparation and overcoming early failures.

Square and Twitter Co-Founder Jack Dorsey is an entrepreneur driven by an innate curiosity to create amazing products and services. In this insightful lecture, Dorsey describes his early background and inspirations, the current focuses he keeps as a CEO, and his desire to create memorable experiences and solve problems.

UCSF Chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann has a track record of fostering environments conducive to innovation, in both the public and private sector. In this engaging lecture, the renowned oncologist shares insights from her career in biotechnology and academia on leading teams, managing risks against rewards, and innovative product development. Desmond-Hellmann also shares her belief as to why entrepreneurs must remain relentless when it comes to pursuing their goals.

Calera founder Brent Constantz is an innovator who believes that successful entrepreneurs are the ones who follow through on their original vision. Drawing upon his deep background as a successful serial entrepreneur, Constantz shares his entrepreneurial experiences and discusses many of the competitive and strategic issues facing his current ventures.

Box.net CEO Aaron Levie is an entrepreneur who seeks to reinvent how enterprise businesses share content across their organizations. In 2005, Levie saw the need for affordable storage on the Internet, and co-founded Box.net out of his college dorm room. In this high-energy lecture, Levie shares the successes and challenges of his company's move from early-stage startup to scalable cloud technology venture.

Wendy Kopp, Teach For America's CEO and founder, is driven to end educational inequity across the nation. In this seminar, Kopp shares her entrepreneurial story of starting Teach For America straight out of college, and articulates the sense of urgency that she and her organization still feel for producing fundamental changes to education in America.

Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Jennifer Aaker shares the power behind creating ideas that can build momentum. Through her research on the perception of happiness and meaning, Aaker describes how these concepts relate to a successful and powerful social media campaign. A well-planned effort catches audience attention and offers them an engaging story. Aaker, co-author of The Dragonfly Effect, also offers several personal and corporate examples of effective viral campaigns that garnered real world, and even life-saving, results.

In this lecture that parallels his book Good Boss, Bad Boss, Stanford professor Bob Sutton unpacks the best habits of beloved and effective managers, and details the worst habits of those who fail to lead. The best leaders develop and nurture those who work for them. However, when bosses gain more power, they can easily grow oblivious to the needs of those they lead.

Diego Piacentini, Senior VP of International Retail for Amazon, discusses the company's growth-centered business model, its global presence, and the strides it takes to sustain a successful customer experience. Piacentini also describes Amazon's innovative approaches to operations, mergers and acquisitions, and labor practices.

Stanford Engineering lecturer and FLOODGATE partner Ann Miura-Ko offers insight into the democratization of innovation in the Internet age, and its affect on investment cycles. Additionally, Miura-Ko speaks candidly about the need to test business models, her firm's desire to be an advocate for "thunder lizard" entrepreneurs, and the challenges of achieving true work/life balance.

Thomas Prescott, CEO of medical device manufacturer Align Technology, discusses disruptive product innovation and leadership in the medical device industry. Prescott shares the company's story, including insights on the launch of their signature product, the Invisalign orthodontic system. He also discusses operational trends and the need for sound analysis of financing, product execution, and business development tactics.

Entrepreneurship is an emotional and economic roller coaster, says venture capitalist and serial entrepreneur Mark Suster. In this candid and informative lecture, Suster defies some of Silicon Valley's conventional wisdom. Based on his extensive experience with multiple companies, Suster shares his thoughts on the real day-to-day life of startups, smart ways to raise the right kind of funds, and offers honest advice in making your way as an entrepreneur.

In conversation with KPCB's Chi-Hua Chien, Dan Rosensweig, CEO of textbook rental company Chegg, speaks about his professional history within Yahoo!, ZDNet, and Guitar Hero, and shares insights on business in the dot-com trenches. Rosensweig offers his perspective on the evolution of the online media and advertising industries. Additionally, Rosensweig encourages entrepreneurs-to-be to "bet on the inevitable" as they explore their passions and the growing future of online services.

Amit Chatterjee, founder and CEO of Hara, the growing energy management solutions company, shares the wisdom of his entrepreneurial experience. He covers an array of topics vital to launching and running a successful enterprise, including the importance of product innovation, new market development, thriving in a competitive landscape, and the critical importance of building a brilliant team.

Juan Andrés Fontaine, Chile's Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism, discusses his government's recent practices and programs that strive to develop Chile's entrepreneurial ecosystem. Topics touched upon include government incentive programs to attract international investment, growth and development to Chile's university research and development, and a desire to build the nation into the innovation hub of South America.

Alec Ross, Senior Advisor for Innovation in the Office of Secretary of State and Co-founder of global non-profit One Economy, discusses in detail innovation policy and how it can change national diplomacy. In addition, Ross offers advice to global innovators, stressing quality time management, effective hiring practices, the mutual benefits of mentoring, and assertive risk practices.

Josh Makower, CEO of ExploraMed, speaks briefly about his experience working in medicine and technology. Dr. Makower also discusses at length the numerous political, financial, and regulatory hurdles against future medical innovation, and calls for audience involvement in the tangled web of healthcare, patents, and insurance reimbursement.

Serial entrepreneur Marc Andreessen offers the Stanford audience a rare opportunity to pose open questions. Topics addressed include everything from the state of VC and the stock market, to Facebook's market dominance, to the rebirth of consumer electronics. In addition, Andreessen offers ground rules for the start-up, including tips on attracting top talent.