Using Entrepreneur Experience in Business Strategy Research - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 9 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Has Your Own Entrepreneurial Experience Informed Your Academic Development?" Hallen notes how it has given him a great appreciation of what entrepreneurs do each day. As an academic, Hallen embraces his ability to take the time to research different entrepreneurs and learn optimal behaviors shaping positive outcomes. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How Social Scientist Cultivates Technology Passion - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 10 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Keep Your Passion for Science and Technology Relevant in Your Pursuit as an Academic?" As an academic in a business school, Hallen's work is applied - what he learns gets applied to create value in business. Outside this, Hallen enjoys studying new technology companies and their respective innovation. He also applies his social science and engineering education to understand the behaviors driving technology adoption and growth. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Applying Entrepreneurship Passion Teaching MBA Strategy - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 11 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Apply Your Passion for Entrepreneurship as an MBA Professor?" Hallen notes how fortunate he is to do both research and teaching. In the classroom, he gets to work with students who want to learn low power strategy and give them a tool kit for students the to go out and affect change in the world when there are limited resources. Entrepreneurship provides Hallen a great research and teaching platform to understand not only entrepreneurs but management, social behaviors, and strategic thinking underlying performance. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Using a PhD to Help Entreprenenurs Be More Successful - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 12 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Did Your PhD Inform Your Beliefs About How Entrepreneurs Can Be More Impactful?" Through his PhD research, Hallen finds an opportunity to cut past entrepreneurship challenges and improve prospects for entrepreneur success. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Entrepreneurship Teaching Methods - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 13 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Approach the Learning Dichotomy When Considering Whether to Teach Entrepreneurs in a Classroom Environment Versus a Hands On Experiential Environment?" Hallen balances teaching using theoretical frameworks with putting skills to practice. Whether students are learning to be entrepreneurs or advancing existing skillsets, Hallen finds engaging outsiders - mentors, entrepreneurs, potential customers - an effective and complementary learning approach. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How to Develop Trust When Building Relationships - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 14 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?" Hallen notes trust develops in different ways. First, trust develops over escalating and repeating interactions. Second, trust can develop via signals where you have a reason to believer another person is credible. Third, trust can be transferred via a third party. Fourth, Hallen shares how sincerity and transparency can create trust. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How to Assess Business Network Relationship Strength - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 15 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Balance Statistical Modeling and Interviewing to Better Understand and Deconstruct Relationships?" Hallen does both because each has its strength. Interviewing provides rich insight that is often unexpected. Statistical analysis - quantitative or empirical analysis - offers the ability to look at large patterns and draw conclusions between inputs and associated outcomes. He applies these approaches in understanding how entrepreneurs and venture capitalists form relationships. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Making Sense of Social Graph and Network Relationships - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 16 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Have You Applied Your Computer Science Education to Better Understand Relationships?" Hallen notes the popularity of "the social network" and "the social graph" as social media and networks have developed. He also notes how graphs have been studied by social scientists for decades. There is research covering the structural representation of networks and graphs, and Hallen cautions we not oversimplify our relationships and consider richness of the bonds. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How to Optimize and Expand Your Network - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 17 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Do You Teach Aspiring Entrepreneurs How to Use and Expand Their Networks?" As an educator, Hallen considers himself a consultant to his students, helping them use tools and approaches, including network theory, case studies, self-reflection, and relationship building fundamentals, to engage and develop. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How Successful Entrepreneurs Build Business Networks - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 18 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "What Elements Most Affect the Strength of an Entrepreneur's Network?" Hallen notes entrepreneurs inherit networks from previous experiences - education, religion, social, etc. This leads to a large and diverse network that can be valuable. Entrepreneurs can also be building networks while managing inherited networks. He details how great entrepreneurs use "casual dating" to build new network ties. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How to Make Your Business Network More Useful - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 19 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "How Can One Make His or Her Business Network More Useful?" Hallen begins by identifying critical needs and also by making sure the network extends into existing and future challenges. He differentiates sales and advice giving networks and puts a heavy emphasis on diversifying network contacts. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

How Relationship Dynamics Impact Entrepreneur Fundraising - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 20 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "What Compels You to Focus So Much Time and Energy in Understanding the Process and Problems Involved with Fundraising?" Hallen channels his entrepreneurial experience into his academic research, focusing on high commitment relationship building and how entrepreneurs alter and change dynamics Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Why Networks Matter Pairing Entrepreneurs and Investors - Ben Hallen

In Chapter 21 of 21 in his 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, business school professor Ben Hallen answers "Why are Networks So Important for Pairing Entrepreneurs With Investors?" Hallen notes networks act as information pipes. When seeking investment, entrepreneur networks signal to investors who commands attention. This addresses character issues and turns the focus to the business and the classic and more recently developed networks that impact fundraising. Hallen is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Management and Organization at University of Maryland. Hallen earned his PhD from Stanford University and its Stanford Technology Venture Program (STVP). He has been a startup CTO and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Computer Science.

Stacie Bloom on How a College Class Inspires PhD Neuroscience Career

In Chapter 2 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, Stacie Grossman Bloom answers "How Did One College Class Unexpectedly Springboard Your Science Career?" While studying psychology at the University of Delaware, she takes a graduate level course in a neuropsychology. She finds the small class forum and the neuroscience study of the brain align her studies to her interests. Grossman Bloom then thrives in the classroom, earning As and continuing to Georgetown for a PhD.

Stacie Grossman Bloom is the Executive Director at the NYU Neuroscience Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center. Previously, she was VP and Scientific Director at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS). She earned her PhD in Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Georgetown University and did a post-doctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City. She earned her BA in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Delaware.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How did one college class unexpectedly springboard your science career?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: So, I went to college at University of Delaware. I was an okay student. It was nothing great. I was taking a lot of chemistry and psychology and I was in these giant, giant lecture halls with hundreds of other people. And, decided one day when I was looking through the course book for what to sign up for there was this really interesting looking class in Neuropsychology and I thought I’ll sign up for it. And when I went to the class it turned out to be a graduate level class and it was totally different from what I was used to. It was just in a small classroom. There were maybe twelve or fifteen students, and a professor. And I had never been in an environment like that before, that was so interactive. And it changed my life to be in a small class like that. I did amazingly well. I got A’s from then on. I started taking more of those graduate level classes, not because the content was so much more challenging but simply because the forum was a better fit for me. And, really helped foster my education. It was also that I had discovered at that time that neuroscience was what I was really interested in. So I think it was those two factors combined -- the forum and the content.

Erik Michielsen: What did you find most appealing about neuroscience?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: I was always just really interested in the brain and how the brain works and how your thoughts are controlled and why you need sleep and how you get addicted to drugs and why the brain fails. It was just a natural fit, I think, for my inquisitiveness. And, at the time neuroscience was really becoming a blossoming field. At the time that I was applying to graduate school most schools didn’t even have a neuroscience yet. Which now it’s 2011 that’s impossible to fathom. When I was going to Georgetown I ended up getting into the cell biology department because that was the closest thing they had to neuroscience. Now of course they have a full neuroscience program.

Stacie Bloom on Making Education a Top Family Priority

In Chapter 3 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, Stacie Grossman Bloom answers "In What Ways Has Your Family Cultivated and Supported Your Passion for Science?" She notes how her grandparents were Holocaust survivors who came to Brooklyn and made education a top family priority. Stacie's parents pass on these values in their own parenting, doing what it takes to support their children's education.

Stacie Grossman Bloom is the Executive Director at the NYU Neuroscience Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center. Previously, she was VP and Scientific Director at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS). She earned her PhD in Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Georgetown University and did a post-doctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City. She earned her BA in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Delaware.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: In what ways has your family cultivated and supported your passion for science?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: In my family, education was always really important. My father’s parents were holocaust survivors who lost everything and started their lives basically from the ground up. Came to America, came through Ellis Island, settled in Brooklyn. My father met my mother and they believed firmly that education was the key to success.

And, I have one brother and growing up that was the one thing that was always so important that we do really well in school and that they provide us with whatever we would need to do really well in school. And, we did. We did really well at school, they did a good job.

You know, I went to college; I was the first person in my family to go to graduate school -- that was a really big deal. And, I remember finding out that I had been accepted and calling my parents and I was very excited and I was going to Georgetown and it was so unbelievably expensive and my father said that no matter what he had to do, I was going to go and he would even take a second job. And it was like such an amazing thing. Fortunately, I ended up getting a fellowship and full ride and stipends and nobody had to get any second jobs. But, I would say that I was always really supported and given the resources that I needed to do well in school. 

Stacie Bloom on Choosing a Science PhD Program Over Medical School

In Chapter 4 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, Stacie Grossman Bloom answers "What Variables Did You Consider When Deciding Between Graduate School and Medical School?" She notes how we are conditioned to be a lawyer, doctor, engineer, etc. and not a molecular neurobiologist. As she started to apply to medical school, she become more exposed to what it meant to get a PhD. She finds the personalized study and sense of discovery more compelling than studying a standardized set of material.

Stacie Grossman Bloom is the Executive Director at the NYU Neuroscience Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center. Previously, she was VP and Scientific Director at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS). She earned her PhD in Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Georgetown University and did a post-doctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City. She earned her BA in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Delaware.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What variables did you consider when deciding between grad school and medical school?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: I thought I wanted to go to medical school because I think it’s a very typical career path that you think about. From the time you are a little kid, are you going to be a lawyer, are you going to be a doctor, are you going to be a fireman, are you going to be this that. Nobody ever really sits down as a little kid and says, am I going to be a molecular neurobiologist.

I would say as I got closer and closer and closer to actually going into the medical school track, my eyes were opened up to what other possibilities were out there.

When I was applying to graduate schools and medical schools and I still wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do and as I spoke to more and more people who had PhDs. I didn’t know anybody with a PhD when I was a kid. There is nobody in my family with a PhD. My friends, and their parents. I just didn’t have anybody in my circle.

But as I was starting to apply to medical school, Georgetown had a big PhD research arm and I started having conversations with people there and learning more about it. And as I was exposed more and more to it, I was more and more attracted to it.

And when I learned what it meant to get a PhD and what it entailed, that was something that I was more interested in. I thought, rather than sit in a room and learn everything that everybody else is learning, I’d rather be off in a lab discovering something that nobody else knows yet.

Stacie Bloom: How to Sell Yourself in a College Admissions Interview

In Chapter 5 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, Stacie Grossman Bloom answers "What Did Your Georgetown Admissions Experience Teach You About the Importance of Interviewing for Potential?" She notes the importance of interviewing skills, specifically the interpersonal, non-tangible element and its ability to give you an edge. Interviewing for a Georgetown PhD program, she learns how few spots exist and how competitive the selection process can be. The experience teachers her to believe in herself and be confident when faced with challenges.

Stacie Grossman Bloom is the Executive Director at the NYU Neuroscience Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center. Previously, she was VP and Scientific Director at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS). She earned her PhD in Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Georgetown University and did a post-doctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City. She earned her BA in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Delaware.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What did your Georgetown admissions experience teach you about the importance of interviewing for potential?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: Interview skills are so super important and it’s always that interpersonal non-tangible element that gives you an edge I think over the competition. When I finally decided to go to graduate school and was interviewing for graduate school, I was not a qualified applicant. A lot of the people who I was competing against had pretty extensive laboratory experience, and the number of spots in the programs are very small. It’s not like a medical school class with two hundred people or a law school class with five hundred people. When you are going to a graduate school department there is usually five spots or eight slots or two spots. So the competition is pretty fierce. And, I really sold myself, I mean I went on my interview and I did everything short of begging to try to prove that I would succeed in school there. And after I was accepted, one of the women who was on the admissions team told me, “you know, you weren’t the most qualified applicant but we just knew you could do it.”

Erik Michielsen: How did that make you feel?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: You know, it made me realize that I should have the confidence to speak up for what I believe I can do and not to be embarrassed of it and not to step down from it.

Stacie Bloom on The Long Term Value of a PhD Investment

In Chapter 6 of 19 in her 2011 Capture Your Flag interview with host Erik Michielsen, Stacie Grossman Bloom answers "What Do You Believe is the Greatest Long Term Value of a PhD Investment?" She notes that the training required to get a PhD creates a transferable skill set that allows one to solve problems in creative independent ways. She shares how her PhD in cell biology and post doc in molecular neurobiology proved extremely transferable in her career. Specifically, she used the core skills learned during her PhD to become an editor at Nature Medicine and also applies the skills in her role at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), which she held at the time of this interview.

Stacie Grossman Bloom is the Executive Director at the NYU Neuroscience Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center. Previously, she was VP and Scientific Director at the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS). She earned her PhD in Neurobiology and Cell Biology at Georgetown University and did a post-doctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City. She earned her BA in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Delaware.

Transcript: 

Erik Michielsen: What do you believe is the greatest long-term value of a PhD investment?

Stacie Grossman Bloom: I think the greatest long-term value of a PhD investment is that the training required to get a PhD, what it really, I think teaches you more than a specific niche that you are working on research-wise is it teaches you how to solve programs in creative ways, independently. I think it’s a very transferable skill.

I mean my PhD is in cell biology. I did a post doc in molecular neurobiology. That’s what my PhD is in and that’s what I was trained in. That doesn’t mean that I couldn’t become an editor at Nature Medicine and understand a much broader range of scientific topics. I would say now, even in my current job, I oversee not only life sciences and biomedicine but also now physical sciences and engineering, which was like a foreign language to me, but I think when you have a PhD you acquire skills that allow you to help figure out other areas.