The Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization, or CEO, serves over 16,500 young entrepreneurs a year. These budding business owners are backed by resources that 250 universities across the world work to provide spanning from legal advice and documentation to success secrets from already established entrepreneurs. Students are also given the opportunity to network with other young and inspired students like themselves.

Now, the numerous opportunities and innovative environment of CEO is coming to Drury University! Druy’s emerging CEO chapter is just beginning to get its feet on the ground, and the chapter is interested in recruiting creative and ambitious students of any discipline. CEO is open to more than just those studying business! If you’re interested in owning or starting a business, of any kind, in the future, learning about the process of creating a new venture, or just want to discuss ideas and improve teamwork, then CEO the will benefit you.

A Welcoming Environment

Dr. Clifton Petty, the Interim Dean of the Breech School of Business Administration, believes CEO is a perfect forum for students with new ideas.

“Students should join CEO who are interested in new ideas and new ventures. You don’t need to be an entrepreneur to join! I would encourage students to join if they are curious and if they enjoy conversations about how something might be made better, smarter, or more sustainable. Some of this pondering might include questions like these:  What product or service might serve an important need in our society? How could we make transportation better and more fuel efficient? What are some products or processes that lead to aggravation, lost time, lost value, or other hassles, and what could we do to make these products/services better?”

Dr. Petty on the benefits of CEO membership

The Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization has numerous resources for sparking conversations and projects between curious and talented students. Yet, CEO is also interested in helping improve the skills and knowledge of individuals and teams at any point in their journey. From those with nothing more than an interest in learning and discussing the possibilities to those already beginning to lay the groundwork for their own startup business, CEO is designed to help.

Tools of the Trade

“Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO) provides a vibrant national organization and a strong set of tools for building a healthy local (Drury) chapter. CEO provides excellent opportunities for individual and chapter competition at the local, regional, and national levels. CEO supports chapter project and service work that builds individual and team venturing skills. And finally, the organization has great visibility and support from the broader community of venture creators and investors.”

Dr. Petty on the CEO toolkit

The set of tools CEO offers includes interactive legal solutions via LawCloud, a high powered e-commerce tool called Klaviyo, the largest equity crowdfunding site in the US, known as StartEngine, and other resources for those prepared to get a business started. Meanwhile, opportunities for those looking to simply discuss and learn about ideas and entrepreneurship span from access to webinars featuring successful entrepreneurs to regional and global conferences to speakers within the local chapter. Most importantly, CEO is a place for Drury students to meet with one another and begin forging connections for ventures and discussion alike.

Competition is added to the CEO mix for students that wish to participate in elevator pitch competitions at conferences. The Global Conference hosts the largest student pitch competition in the world. Students get the opportunity to share their business concepts with a panel of judges and can win money prizes to fund their business idea.

Drury’s CEO Chapter

“I wanted to join CEO because I have always planned to be a business owner. My majors are in Architecture and Business Management, and I hope to blend my knowledge of both of these disciplines to become a successful entrepreneur. Being a part of CEO will allow me to grow as a leader as I learn about my colleagues’ passions. “

Nick Rauscher answering “Why did you want to join CEO?”

Drury’s Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization is advised by Dr. Juan Andres Rodriguez-Nieto. The chapter is excited to answer questions and invite interested students to meetings. Members that have already joined come from different backgrounds and have different goals, but they see CEO as a way growing and achieving their goals.

“As an aspiring physician, entrepreneur, and real estate investor, I have always dreamt of starting my own business. My parents, who grew up in pre-revolution-communist Romania, experienced constant stress of extreme poverty and financial insecurity. Without a free-enterprise system, their parents (my grandparents) could not sell their farm products at fair prices, crushing the drive they once had to expand their farm and improve their business techniques. Because of this heritage, the opportunity to create a business and (actually control it) is not a freedom I take for granted. I believe that CEO will grow my ambitions into more than passive dreaming – into tangible success in the public sector. “

Michael Tuhlei answering “Why did you want to join CEO?”

Michael serves as the Drury CEO chapter president. When asked about the goals of the chapter on campus, he said,

“At CEO, we believe that Drury students have incredible potential to make profound differences in the future of business, technology, marketing, and many other disciplines. We strive to nurture this potential by informing, supporting, and inspiring college students to be entrepreneurial and seek opportunity through enterprise creation.”

For more information on CEO and the new Drury chapter, contact Dr. Rodriguez at arodriguez004@drury.edu. You can also contact Matthew Dalton, chapter president, at mdalton004@drury.edu.