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Summer 2020 Recap

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  For MBA students looking for an unconventional internship alternative, Entrepreneurial Solutions (ES) provides students at Leeds School of Business with the opportunity to start their own consulting business. This year’s team including Jenny Swonger, Evan Land and Hayden Siekman, with the support of advisors from the University of Colorado, faced a challenge no previous Entrepreneurial Solutions teams have faced before - starting a business during a global pandemic. About 6 weeks into the launch of Entrepreneurial Solutions 2020, the team was advised to consider scrapping the idea of turning a profit, and to instead seek out pro-bono work. Despite a collapsing economy, Jenny, Evan and Hayden decided to test their luck and seek out paid projects after much deliberation. With the exception of one unpaid project helping the University of Colorado - Boulder prepare for returning to classes online, this year’s team was not only happily surprised to become profitable, but have learned so
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COVID Continues to Deliver the Unexpected

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We often get asked - “How hard is it to run a consulting business during a pandemic?” Our answer never seems to change, we haven’t known anything different!  While every new company has its challenges, starting a company when COVID-19 hit was, and still is, a risk. After committing to Entrepreneurial Solutions in March, one of the first meetings the team had with our highly experienced advisors was a brainstorming session on how to move forward given the state of our world. The meeting ended with a suggestion that the team would have never dreamed of: to spend the next year opening our own consulting business and taking on work pro-bono.  After kicking the idea of pro-bono work, the team decided to go against the advice of their advisors and seek out paid projects. Apprehensive and questioning our decision to plunge forward into the unknown economic setting of a global pandemic, we were pleasantly surprised when we landed our first client. Five months into our new company, we recen
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Meet the 2020 ES Team!

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The newest Entrepreneurial Solutions team could not be more excited to dive headfirst into everything ES has to offer. Coming from a variety of backgrounds while also looking to concentrate in different areas of business, the Entrepreneurial Solutions 2020 team offers a significant amount of diverse insight. Evan’s consulting experience allowed him to develop strong analytical and problem solving skills, and during his MBA he is focusing on Finance and Entrepreneurship. Hayden brings sales, marketing, and business analysis skills to the team from his experience in the Beverage Industry while also complementing his MBA with a Masters of the Environment. Prior to joining Entrepreneurial Solutions, Jenny worked as a Wildlife Biologist which allowed her to developed her management, research and marketing skills. She is specializing in Renewable Energy and Marketing during her time at CU Boulder. While each team member presents different work experience, tool kits and perspectives, each mai
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Location: Boulder, CO, USA
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ES vs traditional MBA Internships

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Last Thursday, we organized an impromptu gathering of MBAs to catch up and discuss our internships. We have a lot of Boulder-to-Denver(and vice versa) commuters so we decided that it would be convenient to meet at Union Station. Terminal Bar in the main hall is a great spot with roughly 20 draft beers and large tables perfect for group gatherings. Look at all the happy interns!  It was interesting hearing about the variation in everyone's internship experiences. Some people felt very fulfilled with purposeful work and some people felt bored to tears. In general, it seemed like the smaller the company, the more work that the intern was trusted with. The larger the company, the less the intern was asked to do and a greater degree of boredom persisted. Hearing all these stories really highlighted the uniqueness of the Entrepreneurial Solutions experience. We own and operate the business, so how much we work depends on us. It's a fun way to prove to ourselves that we can b
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Recap of Trend Workshop #1

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Last night, ES conducted our first ever Trend Workshop! It was a big success and is something we're planning on doing quarterly. The process of researching and collecting the trends was extremely educational and the workshop was a lot of fun. Attendees were engaged and I think that the trends challenged some of their preconceived notions of consumer behavior. We looked at hundreds of trends from different sources, filtered them down to the 12 most intriguing, then analyzed and discussed the implications of the trend and whether it was an opportunity or a threat for our attendees. Here's an action shot, discussing our trend titled "Click and Mortar" which details the importance of business having both an online and physical presence. Here's one of my favorite slides, detailing how we selected the trends that we wanted to discuss. It's a little sloppy, but the design is supposed to be reminiscent of the classic marketing funnel with Awareness-Consideratio
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Sustainable Real Estate with Chris Antonov

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It's a double dose of sustainable real estate! Like Ashley, Chris also interned at Morgan Creek Ventures this summer. However, they worked on different projects. We think it's incredibly awesome that this boutique firm is recruiting so heavily from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder - GO BUFFS! You worked as a Sustainable Real Estate Development Intern at Morgan Creek  Ventures (Boulder, Colorado) this summer and were recently offered an Associate position with the firm (congratulations!). Can you tell us a little bit about Morgan Creek Ventures? Morgan Creek Ventures (MCV) is a real estate development and consulting company based in Boulder, Colorado. A boutique firm specializing in green building, they are in the business of developing spaces that feature sustainable design, enduring quality, and lasting values. The goal at MCV is to convey how sustainable development, built in accordance with rigorous standards and a focus on design
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Sustainable Real Estate with Ashley Dancer

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You  worked as a Sustainable Real Estate Development Intern at Morgan Creek Ventures (Boulder, Colorado) this summer and are currently still working there part-time (congratulations!). Can  you  tell us a little bit about Morgan Creek Ventures? Morgan Creek Ventures is a small (5 person business, including myself) sustainable real estate development and asset management company. Morgan Creek focuses on commercial mixed-use projects that seek to push the envelope of sustainable building practices and innovation. The company also considers and incorporates the social, environmental, and economic impacts created by each project. Our Boulder Commons project, currently under construction, will provide leasing space for retail, office, and a farm to table restaurant and will also serve as a gallery for local artists. The project is also set to be the first Net Zero commercial building in Colorado. What types of projects did  you  work on as a Sustainable Real Estate In
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Good Karma with Jeremy Bramow

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You worked as a Sustainability Intern at Good Karma Foods (Boulder, Colorado) this summer and are currently still working there part-time (congratulations!). Can you tell us a little bit about Good Karma Foods? Good Karma Foods, Inc. is a small Boulder-based natural foods CPG company producing flax-based non-dairy alternatives. We consist of 12 employees, most of which have joined the team in the last year. The founder started the company with the idea that the plant-based milk space was growing exponentially but had not yet been introduced to the nutritional value that flax offers. Our products contain some of the only sources of plant-based Omega 3s on the market while also being free of all major allergens. This is Good Karma's differentiator which has helped the company grow quickly. Our products can now be purchased nationwide in countless natural grocers as well as Target and Albertsons' stores. What types of projects did you work on as a Sustainability Int
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