Entrepreneurship — Building Without a Playbook

Entrepreneurship isn’t a personality trait or a job title. It’s a way of thinking—and a willingness to take responsibility when outcomes are uncertain.

In this panel, Peter Stris ’93, Matt Stein ’92, and Ben Karlin share what it actually looks like to build organizations from the ground up across very different fields: technology, consumer products, and professional services.

Drawing on experiences that include founding and scaling venture-backed startups, launching and growing consumer brands, building a national litigation firm, and co-founding a successful restaurant chain, the panelists will discuss:

• Making consequential decisions without perfect information
• Taking real ownership of outcomes—good and bad
• Navigating failure, risk, and reinvention
• Translating entrepreneurial thinking across industries and careers

This session is designed to be highly interactive, with substantial time reserved for audience questions and discussion. Students and alumni are encouraged to bring real dilemmas, career questions, and hard calls they’re wrestling with.

Rather than offering formulas or clichés, the conversation focuses on judgment, adaptability, and values—the habits that allow leaders to build durable things even when there’s no clear roadmap.