A venture investor and innovation management teacher with a background in Belgium, Jean-Jacques Degroof graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Maintaining a strong connection with his alma mater, Jean-Jacques Degroof is author of From the Basement to the Dome: How MIT's Unique Culture Created a Thriving Entrepreneurial Community.
In the foreword, an MIT graduate (and inventor of the Ethernet) recounts his first experience visiting MIT in the mid-1960s. At the time, the institution was not yet known as an “entrepreneurial hotbed.” While formal programs and entrepreneurial courses were lacking, a unique combination of creativity and rigor were already in place. Jean-Jacques Degroof terms these a “secret sauce” of elements, including the school’s founding ethos and professors’ willingness to research and mentor in leading-edge areas. These provided a ground-up ecosystem for innovation that has proven to be both impactful and extremely challenging to replicate. As the author of the forward notes, this model of creating a thriving entrepreneurial center is one that emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach, and effectively combines management courses with science and engineering offerings. As he sees it, this approach is leading MIT toward a further evolution as a technology powerhouse and “innoversity.”
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