The 2023 Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centres annual conference is a global event on entrepreneurship education, hosted by The University of Texas at Dallas.

Professor-of-Practice Pete Williams, alongside Wade Halvorson, presented at the conference on the theme “Building a Business Using 7 Levers”

The GCEC is the premier academic organisation (comprised of more than 600 individual members from approximately 300 schools and colleges) addressing the emerging topics of importance to the university-based entrepreneurship programs. It has become the vehicle by which the top, established entrepreneurship programs, as well as emerging programs, can work together to share best practices, develop programs and initiatives, and collaborate and assist each other in advancing, strengthening, and celebrating the role of universities in teaching the entrepreneurs of tomorrow.

Pete presented on the unique approach where in teams of six, students work with small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to develop strategic plans to drive profit growth. Unlike many traditional academic consulting courses, BDC students tackle real-world challenges rather than pre-scoped problems. The BDC’s “blank canvas” approach uses the 7 Levers Framework allows teams conduct an in-depth analysis of an SME’s operational, financial, and strategic health. Working directly with business owners and managers, each team identifies “growth-gaps” and other challenges, leading onto developing an authentic, practical, ready-to-implement tactical plan for increasing profit.