De Anza Innovation Center
Fostering Creativity to Develop Social & Environmental Solutions
- Led by the Business Department at De Anza College
- Sponsored by the Business, Computer Science, and Applied Technologies Division
- Open to all currently registered De Anza students, in all majors
Unless otherwise noted, all events will be held on campus in the Business and Finance Village Center (AT 202).
Fall 2024: Startup Boot Camp
Do you …
- Have an idea for a new product or service?
- Feel you are missing the knowledge and skills to turn your idea into a new business?
- Need to move rapidly to seize a market opportunity?
Then the De Anza Innovation Boot Camp is right for you!
The free, non-credit Bootcamp is led by Prof. Rowland Chen, Business instructor and CEO of Silicon Valley Laboratory Inc.
- Six mandatory in-person workshops, Oct. 8-24, 2024, Tuesday & Thursday, 3-4:30 pm (room AT202)
- Value proposition, business modeling, funding, team building, pitching, and a mandatory pitch event, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 3-5 pm
- Certificate of completion for those who complete the Boot Camp.
- Admission into the Boot Camp by application only.
- Open to all registered De Anza College students in Fall, 2024, including all majors, affinities, clubs, and learning communities.
- Applications are accepted until 11:59 pm, Sep. 20.
- Interview for a select few applicants beginning Sep. 21, with notifications of acceptance/non-acceptance by Oct. 1.
- Preference is given to new ideas and new ventures that emphasize social responsibility and sustainability.
- Go to the online application.
For more information, contact chenrowland@deanza.edu
Winter, 2025: Practical Small Business Hub
Speakers from various business disciplines discussing key tools, skills, and knowledge for successfully launching and running a small business. Topics range from advertising & promotion, legal (formation, contracts, exiting), accounting, taxation, and financing. The speakers will identify issues and practical solutions. Students who currently have a small business or planning to start a small business or solopreneurs are strongly encouraged to attend.
Tentative schedule (more info to follow):
Jan 21 - legal - formation, contracts
Feb 4 - advertising and promotion
Feb 11 - accounting, inventory control
Feb 25 - taxes (legal, tax planning)
March 4 - financing
For questions, please contact Dr. Emily Garbe, GarbeEmily@deanza.edu ; Steve Jackman, JackmanSteve@deanza.edu
Speaker Series for Spring 2025: Stay Tuned!
Hear from industry experts on the latest trends in venture funding, technology innovations, and challenges and opportunities in venture development – focusing on artificial intelligence, robotics, big data, health, the environment, and social issues.
For questions, please contact Dr. Emily Garbe, garbeemily@deanza.edu
Past Events
Annual Business Model Canvas Competition (BMC)
This annual business model competition is open to all De Anza students. Led by Dean Manisha Karia, the competition is a team-based event where students develop a business model within a given time based on a market opportunity identified by the judge. Next BMC event Winter 2025.
Past Speakers
Speaker: Catherine Lin
Catherine Lin has more than a decade of experience in advertising, specializing in online marketing of products and working with clients such as Apple and Cadillac. She is currently the associate design director at Leo Burnett, a leading global ad agency. She was formerly art director at Kettle, a premier ad agency that integrates technology and creativity.
Speaker: Kevin McClelland
Kevin McClelland is a financial adviser with over 30 years of experience. He is on the Board of the San Jose Chamber of Commerce and chairs the Small Business Committee. He has been honored as Business Advocate of the Year by the San Jose Chamber of Commerce and received a Star Award from the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce.
Artificial Intelligence: Powers and Pitfalls
(Postponed to Fall 2024)
Speaker: Rowland Chen
Rowland Chen is the CEO of the Silicon Valley Laboratory and a Business instructor at De Anza. He has more than 40 years of experience as a scientist, engineer, management consultant, and educator who has worked with some of the largest and smallest companies in the world. Formerly a visiting scientist at Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science, he brings a unique perspective to the AI ecosystem.
(Image credit: prompt engineered by R. Chen, rendered by OpenAI's Dall-E)