My approach to teaching is heavily influenced by a liberal arts philosophy and is based on three complementary beliefs.

First, I believe in the value of an integrated and critical approach to learning. My teaching emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, openness to multiple perspectives, and attention to a broad range of questions including the scientific, historical, cultural, practical, philosophical, ethical, and aesthetic.

Second, I believe in the value of knowledge and liberal thought as key components in advancing society and in helping individuals become informed and contributing citizens of their communities and the world. My teaching emphasizes both critical thinking and “real world” relevance.

Third, l believe in the value of intentional, dedicated practice to effective learning. For this reason, my teaching emphasizes experiential learning, learning in close collaboration with others, and the importance of learning from failure.

In the context of teaching entrepreneurship at Miami, these beliefs lead me to create opportunities for students to work closely with me, other students, and practicing entrepreneurs in an environment that emphasizes diversity of background, culture, and experiences. In that context, I provide instruction based on entrepreneurship and organizational theory, but also draw on the disciplines of economics, sociology, psychology, political science, and philosophy as well as my own professional experience in business, technology, and the arts.

I challenge students to apply what they are learning through writing and discussion, consulting projects with real organizations, and developing real-life opportunities to start their own businesses, non-profits, organizations, projects, and programs.

ESP102 / GHS301 – Social Innovation Weekend

• Social Innovation Weekend is a 54-hour long, intensive, experiential workshop during which students form teams and ideate, test, develop, and pitch plans for companies, projects, or initiatives to address a pressing social or environmental problem.
• Find out more here: https://www.socialinnovationweekend.com
• Or here: https://www.profconger.com/social-innovation-weekend

ESP102 – Startup Weekend

• Startup Weekend is a 54-hour long, intensive, experiential workshop during which students form teams and ideate, test, develop, and pitch plans for new business ventures. Miami’s Startup Weekend was the first event of its kind to be implemented on a college campus with student participants.
• Find out more here: https://www.miamistartupweekend.com
• Or here: https://www.profconger.com/startup-weekend

ESP201 – Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Business Models

• This course is designed to help students achieve three specific learning objectives:
  • First, students develop the ability to think critically about the nature and purpose of entrepreneurship and its role in creating new markets, disrupting existing industries and institutions, and solving problems to create value for individuals and society. In doing so, they are able to see their own potential as an entrepreneur and become informed citizens in a society where entrepreneurship is becoming ever more consequential to business, politics, and society at large.
  • Second, students become fluent in business models and how to develop and evaluate new business opportunities.
  • Finally, students apply these skills in a “real life” context by identifying a new entrepreneurial opportunity and developing it into a ready-to-launch venture.

ESP331 – Social Entrepreneurship

• This course introduces students to the opportunities and challenges associated with building and growing enterprises that are both self-sustaining and focused on a social mission. Students will engage in an experiential learning process with others to develop a better understanding of the domain of social entrepreneurship including the development, measurement and assessment of various social enterprises.

ESP401 – New Ventures

• This course provides students with first-hand experience developing a high-growth business startup. It provides them with the concepts, tools, and frameworks necessary to identify market opportunities, to evaluate the feasibility and attractiveness of those opportunities, and to plan and launch a new venture to exploit opportunities students consider most attractive. This model offers a blueprint for how the startup creates, delivers, and captures value. At the end of the course, student teams present their launch-ready startups, Shark Tank style, to a panel of guest judges made up of experienced entrepreneurs, investors, and other professionals. Through this capstone experience, students develop critical thinking, communication, management, and entrepreneurial skills.

ESP670 – MEET: Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Business Models

• This course is part of the Masters in Entrepreneurship and Emerging Technologies (MEET) program.
• This course provides students with a taste of the startup experience and hands-on practice working with and developing the business model of a real startup company. Students identify and assess potentially valuable problem/solution opportunities/ideas, evaluate the feasibility and attractiveness of those ideas, the plan to launch and grow a startup. This will be accomplished through a course-long team project focused on a real startup company that has recently launched through a startup accelerator program.
• Find out more about MEET here: https://miamioh.edu/online/programs/graduate/masters-in-entrepreneurship-and-emerging-technology

ESP490 / MGT495 – Brewing Industry Field Study: Entrepreneurship & Strategy

• This course is part of the Brewing Industry Field Study program that I run every Winter term over the month of January. The program focuses on the dynamic and rapidly growing brewing industry in the United States as an immersive context for teaching operations and strategic management.
• ESP490/MGT 495 is the entrepreneurship and strategic management element of the program. The course covers foundational topics in the field of entrepreneurship and strategy including new firm launch, new product development, market opportunity analysis, decision-making, strategic positioning & competitive advantage, the IO theory of the firm, transaction cost economics, the resource-based view, the behavioral theory of the firm, organizational identity and culture, and business models. Students learn about these topics and apply them to multiple projects analyzing the over 50 breweries, yeast labs, hops farms, malt producers, equipment manufacturers, and industry associations they visit.
• Find out more here: https://www.brewingfieldstudy.com

BUS301 – Miami PRIME: Entrepreneurship & Strategy

• This course provides an introduction to the basic principles of entrepreneurship and strategy
• It is part of Miami’s PRIME program. PRIME is a four-week summer program designed to introduce non-business majors to fundamental concepts in business. I teach the Entrepreneurship & Strategy section of the program and am a coach for the client consulting project. 
• Find out more about PRIME here: https://www.miamioh.edu/fsb/academics/prime