Entrepreneurship

Big plans, small parts

March 29, 2012
As chief financial officer at Waste Management, Don Flynn raised millions so that the company could acquire hundreds of little haulers and build itself into an empire. When he died in 2011, his baby, LKQ, had $2.5 billion in sales.

What’s in your waste can?

March 8, 2012
“Most of the things in your room right now will eventually become garbage.” That’s the simple idea that in 2001 drove Tom Szaky to launch Terracycle, a company that collects waste and converts it into new products. He says, “Right now is the time for innovation.” Skittles wrappers become a kite; Honest Tea containers become a laptop case …

David Kahn: serial entrepreneur

February 6, 2012
David Kahn, once owner of Blockbuster and Subway franchises, not to mention a mansion and a Hummer, watched his profit assumptions go down the tubes. But he never cashed in his dreams:

Flirting with Groupon

January 30, 2012
Chicago-based Groupon has spawned an industry of deeply discounted coupons. If its model catches your business’s fancy, try it, with precautions. Make sure you’re solid on Yelp. If you’re afraid of a customer deluge, cap the number of coupons. And never take your eye off quality.

Got an idea? Light the fuse now

August 29, 2011
Media mogul Jim Dolan’s signal characteristics include becoming easily bored and getting a thrill from taking calculated risks. In fact, he took his company public in 2007, having long ago learned about timing investments—that lesson came when he was a little kid selling fireworks.

What’s your defining moment?

April 5, 2011
When Bill Rasmussen borrowed $9,000 on his credit card for a new venture in 1979, he didn’t realize he was making a decision that would define his career—and the future of sports broadcasting. ESPN aired for the first time because of that defining-moment decision by Rasmussen.

Inside the mind of great entrepreneurs

April 1, 2011
What distinguishes great entrepreneurs? By eavesdropping on the thinking of the country’s most successful entrepreneurs, Professor Saras Sarasvathy discovered that master entrepreneurs are like Iron Chefs: They’re at their best when presented with a spread of ingredients, then challenged to push their imagination to the limit.

Tyson’s bare-knuckles businessman

March 8, 2011
Donald J. Tyson was an entrepreneur with a vision when he dropped out of college and built his father’s Arkansas chicken business into one of the world’s largest producers of poultry, beef and pork. But his risk-taking style often led him to the limits of the law—or just beyond. Where he got it right:

Under Armour’s road to sweat equity

February 15, 2011

For Kevin Plank, founder and CEO of Under Armour, the journey to leadership began with a vexing problem he had personally experienced: As a walk-on player with the University of Maryland football team, he perspired a lot. So, after he finished playing with the team, he decided to find a solution to his sweat problem. His mission: to create a no-drip T-shirt.

Ben Franklin: The ultimate Renaissance man

January 26, 2011
Ben Franklin was a real promoter of unity, hard work, scientific progress and a pluralism way ahead of its time. Here’s a time-machine interview with Franklin, adapted from The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.