Marking 25 years of fostering, teaching and studying entrepreneurship in the academic and business communities, the Rothman Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship kicked off its anniversary celebration on April 2 with an evening of notable speakers, award recognition, good food and the company of key supporters.
The celebration at Florham Park’s Park Avenue Club brought figures like New Jersey Sen. Robert Gordon (D-Bergen) and Choose New Jersey, Inc. President and CEO Michele Brown to the stage to share their insight on the forces influencing and changing the New Jersey entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The gala, emceed by Fairleigh Dickinson Associate Dean of Innovation and Strategic Initiatives Ethne Swartz, also served as the debut for Rothman’s Institute’s new executive director, Joseph Gulfo. Honorees included L. Donald La Torre, Delisha Thompson, Ryan Urban, Mario Casabona, Linda Wellbrock, Norbert Gaelen, Bernard Tenenbaum, James Barrood,Leo Rogers, Kathleen DiChiara, Adenah Bayoh and Garret Szibdat.
Keynote speaker Robert Hugin, chairman and CEO of Celgene Corporation, shared his insight about entrepreneurship gained from his entrepreneurial and innovation success while building Celgene into a thriving multi-billion dollar company. He spoke candidly about the state of small businesses in New Jersey and elsewhere.
There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic,he said. But I’ll tell you, it’s tough out there.
Hugin offered direct advice to the Rothman Institute’s audience, emphasizing the urgency of creating an environment that supports the growth of small and medium-sized businesses.
Jobs are created by entrepreneurs, innovators and creatives, wherever they are. For the most part, they are small and medium-sized companies, and we have to recognize that and support those initiatives,Hugin expressed.
He stressed that service should not be understated, acknowledging the importance of what the Rothman Institute and other support institutions and organizations do for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
While the guidance and aid of organizations like the Rothman Institute are helpful to entrepreneurs, Hugin said that a lack of political advocacy has created an environment that is not conducive enough to supporting risk taking in business, particularly in New Jersey.
It takes the support of what (the Rothman Institute) is doing, it takes the support of what we’re all doing, and making sure we do it in the most constructive way, he said. But if we do not stand up and speak for the policies that are necessary to create the environment so people can take risks, they won’t take risks.
Many companies fail, according to Hugin, and fewer than 5 percent of companies are expected to survive over a 10-year period. He used this statistic to call for greater advocacy for entrepreneurship, emphasizing that those facing such low odds for success need to be acknowledged for the risks they are taking and the value they create for the state’s economy.
If we don’t take the risks so that they are successful, we aren’t going to have people starting small companies,he said. We need policies that incentivize risk, and in New Jersey, we have to recognize this is a tough place to do business.
