Carol Bartz to get entrepreneurship award in Madison

Carol Bartz, CEO of Autodesk, the world’s leading design software and digital content company, will be inducted into the Entrepreneur Hall of Fame, an honor bestowed annually by the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship at the School of Business, on Tuesday, Oct. 12.

Bartz is a 1971 graduate of the UW–Madison Department of Computer Science.

A nationally known business leader, Bartz has led the Fortune 100 company Autodesk to extraordinary growth and success. Autodesk’s growth from $285 million in 1992, when she was named CEO, to nearly $1 billion this year has made it the world’s leading supplier of design software. Forbes Magazine calls her one of the 100 most powerful women, and Fortune Magazine named Autodesk as one of the nation’s 100 most desirable places to work.

Bartz will receive the award at a Wisconsin Innovation Network (WIN) luncheon at the Pyle Center. At the luncheon, she will discuss the topic “The Next Innovation Challenge: The Marriage of the Digital World and Connectivity.”

Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, will moderate a question-and-answer session after Bartz’s talk. Also expected at the luncheon are Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton; Larry Cox, director of the UW–Madison Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship; Gurindar S. Sohi, chair of the UW–Madison Department of Computer Science; and other dignitaries. The $35 luncheon is limited to the first 70 who sign up.

To register for the luncheon, visit: http://www.wisconsintechnologycouncil.com/pop_ups/event.php?itemID=78.

Also on Oct. 12, Bartz will meet with UW–Madison computer science and business students from 8-9:15 a.m. and lead a discussion of women’s leadership hosted by the business school’s Women in Business Council from 10-11:15 a.m.

“Carol Bartz is an outstanding example of incorporating entrepreneurial thinking throughout an organization,” says Cox. “Honoring those who serve as examples of entrepreneurial thinking is one of the best ways to inspire others to launch their own entrepreneurial ventures.”

Bartz is the Weinert Center’s second inductee to its Entrepreneur Hall of Fame. Last year’s recipient was Aaron Kennedy, founder of the restaurant chain, Noodles & Co. The center teaches entrepreneurial skills to students who are interested in careers in business, economic development and industry. One of the hallmarks of the center is its involvement with students as they develop ideas to launch their own businesses.