Information about the EnTERPreneur Conference event
The University of Maryland EnTERPreneur Conference is back! Whether you’re starting to explore entrepreneurship, working to strengthen a growing venture, or ready to scale what you’ve built, the EnTERPreneur Conference is designed to meet you where you are and help you take the next step.
Explore. Establish. Expand.
Choose the track that aligns with your goals and gain practical insights, tools, and connections from fellow Terps and experts.
Explore: For alums curious about entrepreneurship
Considering entrepreneurship as a career path or side hustle? The Explore track is designed for alums who are in the idea or early discovery phase. Learn how to assess opportunities, test ideas, and take your first steps with confidence—no business required.
Ideal for: Career changers, side-hustle seekers, and idea-stage entrepreneurs.
Establish: For alums building a stronger business
You’ve launched—but now you want to sharpen your skills and strengthen your foundation. The Establish track focuses on practical, hands-on learning to help you operate more effectively, from marketing and finance to operations and strategy.
Ideal for: Founders with an active business who want to grow smarter and more sustainably.
Expand: For alums ready to scale and raise capital
You’re established and thinking bigger. The Expand track is for experienced entrepreneurs looking to accelerate growth, scale operations, or explore funding options. Dive into advanced strategies, investor perspectives, and peer insights to help take your business to the next level.
Ideal for: Growth-stage founders focused on scaling, hiring, or capital.
Built for Terps, Powered by Experience
No matter your track, you’ll connect with a dynamic community of Terp entrepreneurs, gain actionable insights, and leave with tools you can put to work right away.
A delicious start to the conference, while connecting with fellow attendees.
Welcome: Jessica K. Roberts '02, Senior Executive Director, University of Maryland Alumni Association.
Opening Session: The Entrepreneurial Mindset
Think differently. Act boldly. Adapt constantly. Kick off the conference with a look at the mindset that fuels entrepreneurs at every stage, embracing uncertainty, spotting opportunity, and turning ideas into action.
Speaker: Oliver Schlake, Clinical Professor, Director of BSE Scholars Program, Distinguished Fellow, Academy for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Robert H. Smith School of Business
Choose 1 to attend. Sessions will be first come first served for conference attendees.
Explore: Startup Mindsets for an Uncertain Economy
Exploring entrepreneurship, but not sure where to start or how to move forward in an uncertain economy? This session features practical guidance and real founder insights on how to get unstuck, make smarter decisions, and take action even when conditions aren’t perfect. Expect an engaging, participatory format with practical takeaways and time to connect with experienced alumni entrepreneurs.
Hosted by the Dingman-Lamone Center for Entrepreneurship, UMD’s hub for educating, empowering, and equipping entrepreneurs.
Establish: Standing Out on Purpose: Authentic Leadership, Differentiation, and Customer Moments That Matter
Once your business is established, the challenge becomes standing out. In this candid panel, alumni entrepreneurs share how they’ve differentiated their brands while staying true to their vision and leadership style. Learn how authentic leadership, category-level thinking, and intentional customer moments drive loyalty, referrals, and sustainable growth. Walk away with practical insights to strengthen your position and deepen customer connection.
Speakers: Greta Okomo '07, Founder & CEO, Collaborative Change Consulting, LLC; Nicole Shaw '99, Founder/Co-Owner of Kurly Kürtősh®; Elyse Stoner '88, Founder & Chief Strategist, Fresh Perspective Consulting
Expand: Customer Discovery: Your Key to Faster Growth and Better Funding Options
Speaker: Evan Shubin '97, President and Founder, Results.now, Inc and Candlelight Partners LLC
Join Brett Schulman '95 and Mary Schulman '97 for an intimate fireside conversation exploring leadership, entrepreneurship, and the decisions that shape enduring success. Moderated by UMD Chief Innovation Officer Dean Chang, this keynote brings together candid reflection and forward-looking insight on building, growing, and sustaining impact over time. Expect thoughtful dialogue and takeaways that resonate across careers, industries, and stages of the entrepreneurial journey.
Refuel and connect with fellow attendees.
Choose 1 to attend. Sessions will be first come first served for conference attendees.
Explore: Exploring Entrepreneurship: Build Lab for Founders Powered by AI and Dingman Advisors
Curious how founders are using AI to get unstuck and move faster from idea to action? First, get rapid, practical input from experienced advisors on your real challenge. Then we’ll run a short AI design sprint to turn that advice into clear next steps. Come ready to share where you’re stuck, try a few tools, and leave with something you can use right away, plus new connections with alumni and peers.
Hosted by the Dingman-Lamone Center for Entrepreneurship, UMD’s hub for educating, empowering, and equipping entrepreneurs.
Establish: Building Without Boundaries: Using AI to Compete Like a 10-Person Team
This hands-on workshop cuts through the hype and shows you exactly how to leverage AI tools to accelerate product development, business operations, and customer acquisition without a technical co-founder or massive budget.
In 45 minutes, you'll get live demonstrations and guided practice with the AI tools successful founders are using right now to compress timelines from months to days. You'll learn how to use AI for market research and business planning, Replit and Windsurf for rapid prototyping, Gamma for pitch decks and investor materials, and how to combine these tools for maximum leverage.
This isn't theory - it's practical, actionable toolkit building. You'll watch real examples of how these tools work together to take you from concept to customer-ready product, then you'll try them yourself with guided exercises. Whether you're validating an idea, building your first prototype, or scaling customer acquisition, you'll leave with hands-on experience using AI tools that give you the leverage of a full team.
Speaker: Kingsley Madikaegbu '14, CEO/CTO of HealID Inc.
Expand: AI Is Bigger Than the Internet — How Business Leaders Can Use It to Scale Smarter
If you’re an entrepreneur, founder, or operator today, you’re not navigating another tech trend—you’re operating inside a full-scale business reset.
AI isn’t something you simply add on to an existing model.
It’s changing how companies are built, how decisions get made, and how small teams create outsized impact—without burning out their people.
Most businesses will use AI incrementally—faster content, better dashboards, cheaper operations. That’s now table stakes.
A smaller group will do something fundamentally different: they’ll rewire their business around intelligence itself—embedding learning, prediction, and decision-making into workflows where it actually matters.
That gap is where scale, leverage, and better work-life integration are being unlocked.
In this session, Seema Alexander '00 breaks down what this shift actually means for builders and operators. Drawing from two decades of helping companies scale to $100M+ collectively, corporate leadership experience, and hands-on work designing AI-powered operating models, Seema moves the conversation beyond tools and hype into practical application.
You’ll explore:
- Why AI represents a structural shift in how businesses operate and scale
- Where AI creates real leverage for founders and operators today
- How teams are redesigning workflows to work smarter—not longer
- What AI fluency really means for non-technical leaders
You’ll leave with clearer mental models, strategic language, and a practical roadmap to scale confidently as intelligence becomes the advantage.
Speaker: Seema Alexander '00, CEO & Founder of Disruptive AI and host of The AI CEO Podcast
End the day with an honest, no-filter conversation from alums who’ve been in the thick of it. In this interactive panel, seasoned entrepreneurs share real stories from the front lines, the tough calls, hard lessons, unexpected wins, and pivots that don’t always make it into highlight reels. Bring your questions and curiosities as panelists respond directly to the audience, offering practical insights and perspectives to carry you into your next chapter.
Hear from Bert Williams '96, President, University of Maryland Alumni Association Board of Governors
Connect with fellow Terps, expand your network and meet the presenters at the closing networking reception.
Thank You to Our Sponsors and Partners
