Dear students,
I have been an entrepreneur for the past 20 years. In that role, and as President of two different venture-backed businesses and an executive with one of the nation's leading healthcare companies, I have observed one common challenge.
The challenge is this: Businesses move quickly - customers, financing, selling strategies, operating improvements, technology enhancements - all create a daily environment of fast-paced decision making. Yet, when we added a new college graduate or intern to the company, they merged slowly, creating traffic jams and pile-ups. Not that they weren’t bright. Not that they weren’t determined to get up to speed and keep pace. It was simply that business life was new to them. In addition to teaching them the specifics of our business, we had to teach them about being in business.
As an employer, I needed – and other employers need – interns and new hires that can accelerate quickly and become “impact” and “go to” players from the start. I’m happy to say this is what Accelerator is all about. It’s an intense, live immersion into business life that will help you develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence to get up to speed quickly and make a real impact in your organization – to hit the ground running from day one.
I hope to have the opportunity to meet and work closely with you this summer.
Regards,
Michael R. Burcham
Faculty Director, Accelerator
Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management
