Korean entertainment mogul Lee Soo Man has introduced some of the biggest names in pop music to the world. His SM Entertainment is helping Korean pop music make waves internationally.
In the 1980s, John Paul DeJoria weathered 12% inflation and 18% interest rates. It was a tough path but he succeeded in founding John Paul Mitchell Systems, a hair care firm that registered $900 million in sales in 2010.
With nearly 32 million visitors last year and its first quarterly dividend in the bank, Latin America's MercadoLibre e-commerce site is on its way, founder Marcos Galperin, MBA '99, told a Stanford Graduate School of Business audience.
Silicon Valley isn't the only area in which technology companies can flourish, says Niklas Zennström, who founded the high-flying internet communication firm Skype in Luxembourg. Populations and internet use are growing fastest outside of the United States.
A shortage of middle management talent is slowing business development in Africa, but the continent still offers opportunities for entrepreneurs who recognize the differences between Nairobi and Silicon Valley, say business school conference speakers.
Jonathan Abrams, the founder and former CEO of the social networking website Friendster, was asked by MBA students how to survive the torrential waters of entrepreneurship. His response: "I don't know."
Rio Tinto, the world’s leader in production of copper, coal, diamonds, and iron ore, must go where the minerals are, taking it into far-flung parts of the world, says group executive Bret Clayton.
While businesses have worked for hundreds of years to improve quality and reduce costs, the social sector has failed to make similar improvements in programs such as education or welfare, says Bill Drayton, founder and CEO of Ashoka, the world's oldest support organization for social entrepreneurs.
Applications now being accepted for the 20-week Program in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, aimed at Silicon Valley innovators, scientists and engineers. Classes begin in January in the new home of the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
