Entrepreneurs’ Group: Life in start-ups
Wednesday 22 May, 18:30 for 19:00 – 21:30
This event is supported by Oxford Innovation
More than 50% of INSEAD alumni will venture into entrepreneurship at some point in their careers and for those of us that have, the excitement, pace and uncertainty can be exhilarating, addictive and exhausting too, as we all know it can also be a bit of a roller-coaster. This event will explore the start-up roller-coaster and the importance of autonomy, mastery and purpose in smoothing the ride.
Ben Blomerley (MBA 11J) is Co-founder and COO at MOHARA. After a career with EY in London, Manchester and India, Ben left the corporate world to set up his own business in 2011, after INSEAD. That start-up failed, but Ben has gone on to co-found MOHARA, which builds tech products for non-technical founders, as well as investing sweat equity in qualifying businesses. To date (August 2023) they have made over 30 investments.
Aditi Kibe-Heal (MBA 14J) moved into the world of start-ups and scale ups following a 15-year corporate career at Unilever and Deloitte, including stints at internal start-ups. After freelancing with companies at different stages, she joined Sipgood, a pre-launch consumer goods start up, as a cofounder and chief growth officer. Sipgood is now a VC-backed start up launching soon with the soft drink of the future.
Sharath Jeevan OBE (MBA 02D) is the Globally Recognised Authority on Leadership at Inflection Moments. He is an acclaimed advisor, facilitator and author supporting leaders and organisations to futureproof success. He advises a wide range of tech companies (eg Shopify, Skyscanner), start-ups and VC funds and venture studios (eg Omidyar Network, Adecco Group) as they navigate inflection moments in their growth. Sharath is the author of “Intrinsic” and teaches leadership at Oxford and Cambridge universities.
Justin Michaels (MBA 11J) is a serial COO in tech-focused startups and growth companies. After INSEAD, he did three very analytical years at L.E.K. Consulting in London. Later, under the umbrella of Ustwo, a global digital design agency, he scaled DICE FM (mobile ticketing), Ustwo Games (mobile game development) and Ustwo’s early-stage investment portfolio. He’s now leading integration and acquisition activities at Brooklyn Data Company, a US-based data consultancy that builds out modern data stacks for enterprise and high growth clients.
Moderator: David Crichton-Miller (MBA 89J) is Chief Executive of Oxford Innovation, which has over 1,000 small businesses in its innovation centres and incubators; provides advisory services and support to over 2,000 high growth small businesses annually; and runs both the UK’s most successful angel investor network, Oxford Investment Opportunity Network and a small venture capital fund that invests in 10 early-stage businesses annually. He is also personally an active angel investor.
Pre INSEAD, David worked for Morgan Stanley in Corporate Finance and post-INSEAD he joined McKinsey. David then raised VC capital to start his own business and developed an enduring respect for the challenges facing entrepreneurs. He has been on the boards of public and small private companies and is now dedicated to the support of entrepreneurs and innovative high growth small businesses.
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(Members will need to enter a promo code to access discounted tickets – contact [email protected] for details)