Entrepreneurship in Transitioning Economies — The Greek Story
Thinking of becoming an entrepreneur and need practical ideas on how to build a business? Looking for guidance on how to tap private and government resources? This spring, join people from all corners of the world in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on entrepreneurship entitled “Beyond Silicon Valley: Growing Entrepreneurship in Transitioning Economies.”
The U.S. Embassy in Athens partnered with the ALBA Graduate Business School at the American College of Greece and business incubator Metavallon to offer the MOOC on the popular Coursera platform, the first ever with Greek content.
The course, which runs April 28 until June 2, 2014 has been designed by Professor Michael Goldberg of Case Western Reserve University, and offers insight into how entrepreneurial ecosystems develop in economies that go through hardship and crisis. The course offers practical information on how aspiring entrepreneurs can identify and tap into available resources, as well as get support from intermediary organizations and networks such as incubators and accelerators. Professor Goldberg will be using the example of Cleveland, Ohio and several other transitioning economies around the world to highlight the opportunities and hurdles in different entrepreneurial environments.
Our goal is to reach local audiences and at the same time discuss entrepreneurship in a hands-on, practical way, offering the American university experience plus face-to-face interaction with business experts from local Greek communities.
The MOOC will present a series of videos featuring Greek entrepreneurs, funding experts, and government officials in a series of 36 interviews. Several of the Greek business leaders and thinkers include Ioanna Pepelasi, Aristos Doxiadis, Alexander Trimmis, Dimitris Stratakis, Artemis Saitakis, and Apostolos Apostolakis. The Greek content will cover universities, support organizations, financing institutions, startup entrepreneurs, family businesses, and government. It is the first time that a MOOC will have such extensive content from Greece.
Registration is open to all and free of charge. In addition to the weekly course sessions online, we will organize four meet-ups in four different Greek cities to bring students together to discuss what they have learned. Meet ups will be held in Athens, Thessaloniki, Heraklion, and Ioannina and will feature additional footage from Greek interviewees, Q&A with a local academic liaison on the topics of the course, and guest speakers based on each week’s theme.
People from Greece interested in joining this unique learning experience are welcome to join at
http://www.alba.edu.gr/mooc . For more details please feel free to contact Ms. Fani Maxilari, fmaxilar@alba.edu.gr
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