News
Social Entrepreneurship
Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator brings student concepts to reality
Aug 3, 2012
Over the last semester, students at the Beedie School of Business have been bringing to life projects to address tomorrow’s social, environmental and economic challenges with help from the new Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator (SEA) program. The brainchild of Beedie lecturer Shawn Smith, the program ran for six weeks at the SFU Surrey campus, with $10,000 in support from Vancity, and allowed students to enter as teams or individuals in order to generate a feasible business more »More...
SFU MBAs showcase social entrepreneurship projects at Opportunity Fest Fair
Jul 27, 2012
Students from the MBA program at Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business last week demonstrated their social entrepreneurship business plans at the Opportunity Fest Fair. The exhibition, held in the atrium of the Harbour Centre towers on Wednesday, 18 July, was part of Beedie Professor Eric Gedajlovic’s MBA Entrepreneurship class. Students were split into groups and tasked with creating their own business plans before presenting to a panel of judges consisting of members of more »More...
BC Business: Carolyn Egri on the case for more social entrepreneurship
Jul 16, 2012
The following article was published by BC Business on July 3, 2012. Traditional sources of revenue for charities are drying up, but putting society’s biggest issues in the hands of socially minded entrepreneurs is a tricky business. On the cheery, yellow walls of the Downtown Eastside’s Potluck Café are the faces of several of its customers, captured in a black-and-white instant. Their complicated eyes and the deep lines in their faces tell sad stories of more »More...
Students create a recipe for success
Jul 6, 2012
The following article was published by Burnaby Now on July 6, 2012. Two Simon Fraser University students have created a business where immigrant women host cooking classes; gaining work experience while sharing their cultures. Surrey resident Chantelle Buffie and New Westminster’s Sonam Swarup – both in their early 20s – came up with Fusion Kitchen in a social entrepreneurship class at SFU. “It was just natural for us to gravitate towards working with immigrant women. more »More...
Beedie students building socially impactful careers
Jun 20, 2012
As a result of economic uncertainty and a less-than-optimal employment outlook both globally and locally, some students at the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University are taking an alternative path to growing their careers. In the process, they are making hands-on contributions to the economy and society through entrepreneurial activity, community engagement, and international development. A case in point is Education Generation, founded by Shawn Smith, a Beedie School of Business alumnus and more »More...
Opportunity Quest sees SFU MBAs deliver business ideas to Vancouver’s Heritage District
May 31, 2012
Students from the MBA program at Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business have been pounding the pavement in an effort to bolster business prospects in the Heritage District of downtown Vancouver during evenings and weekends – when thousands of area office workers have gone home. The district – the historic commerce and banking area of Vancouver’s West Hastings Street – is a dynamic area for retailing and includes some world-renowned brands in addition to numerous small- and more »More...
New program accelerates social ventures
May 16, 2012
Contact: Shawn Smith, Beedie School, 778.782.9262, ssmithe@sfu.ca Derek Moscato, Beedie School, 778.782.5038, derek_moscato@sfu.ca Chantelle Buffie, 604.763.7211, clb14@sfu.ca Sonam Swarup, 604.809.5477, slswarup@sfu.ca Lorraine Wilson, 778.837.0394, mediarelations@vancity.com Students at the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University can further their social venture ideas with the launch of the new Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator (SEA) program, starting this semester at the SFU Surrey campus. The program provides students with the resources to generate feasible business models, meet with clients to discuss project details, and gain an more »More...
Opportunity Fest winners highlight innovation at Beedie
Apr 13, 2012
A hot tub water care system, an employee wellness solution for companies and a sustainable recycling initiative aimed at helping Vancouver achieve its goal of zero waste for 2020 were the big winners at a Beedie School of Business social entrepreneurship competition. Opportunity Fest 2012 gave SFU business undergrads the opportunity to showcase their class-produced ventures to judges from industry, academia and the wider business community. Held at SFU’s Surrey campus on April 11, more »More...
Beedie undergrad Stephanie Wong first recipient of HSBC Women in Business Leadership Award
Mar 1, 2012
Stephanie Wong, an undergraduate student in the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University, has been selected as SFU’s first recipient of the HSBC Women in Business Leadership Award. Wong was selected for the honour based on her outstanding academic achievement and record of student leadership. At Simon Fraser University, she has parlayed her passion for the progression of professional women into establishing SFU’s Young Women in Business (YWiB) chapter. Additionally, she founded programs more »More...
MBAs tackle digital marketing for social good
Dec 15, 2011
Students in SFU’s Full-Time MBA program at the Beedie School of Business have garnered real-world marketing lessons that have taken them from social agencies in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to a hospice society in Pitt Meadows to a seniors wellness centre in North Vancouver. In the process of helping these groups raise awareness or operating funds, they have enjoyed early-stage support from the likes of celebrated author Margaret Atwood and Vancouver hockey star Roberto Luongo. The community interactions are part of the marketing class Business 702, taught by SFU marketing professor Leyland Pitt. Within the class, students are challenged to strategically design a social media marketing program for not-for-profit organizations in Metro Vancouver. By working outside of the classroom with social agencies and community groups, the students have been able to broaden their perspective around business and society – and further integrate social entrepreneurship and sustainability into their marketing coursework.More...