Leeds’ Deming Center Wins Global Award for Entrepreneurship Education

Leeds School of Business won the “Excellence in Entrepreneurship Teaching and Pedagogical Innovation Award” at the Global Consortium for Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC) Annual Event in Stockholm, September 26-28, 2019.

The Deming Center for Entrepreneurship’s innovative education on high growth ventures stood out from a pool of 50 centers that applied. While many programs focus on startups, Deming goes a step further with its unprecedented High Growth Venture (HGV) Fellowship. The program drops MBA students into the world of scalable startups to build an in-demand, specialized skillset. A combination of coursework, co-curricular options, workshops and summer internships immerses students in academic and experiential learning unique to growth-stage companies.

In addition, Deming and Leeds’ MBA Program developed the High Growth Venture MBA Pathway—a recommended combination of courses and co-curricular programs to acquire targeted skills, knowledge and connections at scaleups. Students work directly with faculty, entrepreneurs, accelerators and investors to learn how to: rapidly scale a good idea, build a unique organizational culture and pivot quickly when a roadblock emerges.

Of the award, Deming Executive Director Erick Mueller says, “None of us in entrepreneurship education do our work to win awards. But this is a great opportunity to pause and appreciate the impact of our programs.”

GCEC is the premier organization for 250 entrepreneurship centers globally. It encourages centers to share best practices, develop programs and initiatives, and assist each other in advancing, strengthening and celebrating the role of universities in teaching the entrepreneurs of tomorrow.