Ben & Jerry's Co-Founder Jerry Greenfield Featured Keynote for University of Michigan's Annual Entrepalooza Symposium

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Sept. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business is teaming up with entrepreneurship programs from across the University to host this year's Entrepalooza symposium on Friday, September 23 at the Michigan League. Participants at this year's event, "Creativity Through Entrepreneurship," will explore the power of creative thinking – solving issues and challenges that entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial members of larger companies face.

Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's, will take the stage for Entrepalooza 2016, sharing his passion for creative and responsible business practices with Stewart Thornhill, executive director of the Zell Lurie Institute, and the audience. Jerry will bring his business acumen and passion for creative and responsible business practices to life at the podium. His presentation will deliver an inspiring tribute to America's entrepreneurial spirit, full of anecdotes and radical business philosophy. Amid politically charged puns and campaigns promoting social responsibility in business, Jerry has effectively used his thriving business platform to raise awareness about important issues including fair trade, social justice, environment and sustainability. Jerry's talk will truly embody the great sense of fun that is the company's hallmark.

Following Jerry Greenfield's 9:00 a.m. keynote—and free Ben & Jerry's ice cream for all attendees—the symposium will channel attendees' creative energies into a series of workshops designed to help them explore new ways of thinking outside of the box. The workshops will be led by members of the U-M entrepreneurial community:

• Jeremy Peters, Music Publishing Director at Ghostly International, co-founder of Quite Scientific Records, and lecturer at U-M School of Music, Theatre & Dance, will lead a discussion of how to work the arts into your startup idea
• Eric Fretz, U-M lecturer in Psychology, Education, and Entrepreneurship, will discuss the psychology of creativity as individual inspiration and as group innovation
• Tom Frank, executive director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and adjunct professor at the College of Engineering, will cover strategies for fostering a collaborative team while establishing yourself as a leader
• Debra Mexicotte, associate director of U-M's ArtsEngine, will show how creativity is a process that can be learned and employed, not a character trait or event.
• Co-founders of CHISL Design Michelle Belbroad, BBA '18, and Lakin Vitton, BBA '18, will discuss why branding is important but what is more deserving of your attention than your logo

Co-hosted by the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, the Center for Entrepreneurship at the College of Engineering, the School of Public Health's Innovation & Social Entrepreneurship program, the School of Information's Entrepreneurship Program, the School of Music Theatre and Dance's EXCEL Program, and Innovate Blue, the University's campus-wide entrepreneurship initiative, Entrepalooza is an annual event that  brings entrepreneurial leaders together to share their insights and experiences with students, alumni, faculty and members of the broader business community.

For more information, including a full schedule, or to register to attend the event, please visit http://entrepalooza.umich.edu/. To receive event updates or share your thoughts from the symposium, use hashtag #epalooza on Twitter.

About the Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies
The Institute and its Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance bring together an impactful combination of deep-seated knowledge, enriching experiences and strategic opportunities from the front lines of entrepreneurship and alternative investment. Students' learning experiences are further enhanced through internships, entrepreneurial clubs, business competitions and campus-wide events that foster valuable networking and engage the business community. The School's five student-led investment funds, with over $8.5M under management, immerse students in the entrepreneurial business sourcing, assessment and investment process. Founding Zell Lurie advisory board members include Samuel Zell, chairman of Equity Group Investments, and Eugene Applebaum, founder of Arbor Drugs Inc. For more information, visit the Institute's website at www.zli.bus.umich.edu.

About Michigan Ross
The Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan is a vibrant and distinctive learning community grounded in the principle that business can be an extraordinary vehicle for positive change in today's dynamic global economy. The Ross mission is to develop leaders who make a positive difference in the world. Through thought and action, members of the Ross community drive change and innovation that improves business and society.

Ross is consistently ranked among the world's leading business schools. Academic degree programs include the BBA, MBA, Part-time MBA (Evening and Weekend formats), Executive MBA, Global MBA, Master of Accounting, Master of Supply Chain Management, Master of Management, and PhD. In addition, the school delivers open-enrollment and custom executive education programs targeting general management, leadership development, and strategic human resource management.

SOURCE The Zell Lurie Institute

Related Links

http://www.zli.bus.umich.edu