Author speaks on the power of young entrepreneurs

Author and veteran business journalist Donna Fenn will be at the University of Wisconsin–Madison during the week of Nov. 9 as the fall Business Writer in Residence, a program that brings nationally known business writers to campus to interact with students.

Members of the UW–Madison community and the public are invited to attend a question-and-answer session with Fenn on Tuesday, Nov. 10, to discuss her new book: “Upstarts! How GenY Entrepreneurs are Rocking the World of Business and Eight Ways You Can Profit from Their Success.”

The free event will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Plenary Room at 1310 Grainger Hall, at 975 University Ave. A live webcast of the event will be available at: http://www.bus.wisc.edu/upstarts and a book signing will follow the event.

Fenn has more than 20 years experience writing about entrepreneurship and small business trends. Her latest book analyzes young entrepreneurial success strategies and what to expect from these highly collaborative and team-oriented individuals in the future. She provides readers with eight critical lessons every entrepreneur and marketer must learn.

In addition to “Upstarts!” Fenn is the author of “Alpha Dogs: How Your Small Business Can Become a Leader of the Pack,” which profiles eight successful small companies in ordinary industries, including a sock manufacturer and motorcycle dealership.

Fenn is a contributing editor at Inc. magazine, a community leader at Work.com, a featured expert on SBTV.com, and a blogger on Inc.com. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Newsweek, and many other national publications.

In 2001, Fenn was a co-recipient of the Women’s Economic Round Table Entrepreneurship Prize, sponsored by the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. From 1988 to 1992, she lived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where she was a correspondent for The Associated Press and covered a variety of issues including business, culture, the economy and the Gulf War.

Moderating the session will be Dan Olszewski, director of the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship.

The Business Writer in Residence Program is co-sponsored by the School of Business, the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and University Communications, with support from the UW Foundation.