"Our mission is to bring jobs to the Central Valley," said Sonal Gadre, business development analyst for the university's Office of Research and Economic Development.
The first-time effort was a way to expose students in all areas of study to how modern business operates in a global marketplace, she said. Speakers at the event held up Netflix, Facebook and Starbucks as examples of companies that started small but were able to become viable across the globe.
Gadre said the university and its partners, including the campus' Small Business Development Center, can give those entrepreneurial students a hand in their ventures.
There were a handful of speakers at the event, one of whom was S.A. Davis, the director of innovation and entrepreneurship for the university's Ernest and Julio Gallo School of Management.
She spoke to students about intellectual property, technology, evolving as a company and finding the target audience, but the bulk of her lesson was about innovation. "I wish I was you guys right now," she said to the crowd. "The whole world of innovation is opening up."
The effort was a first at UC Merced, but leaders in dozens of countries have been partaking in Global Entrepreneurship Week since 2007. During one week each November, the effort works to inspire people to explore their potential as self-starters and innovators, according to www.gew.co.
For many years, Merced city leaders have said UC Merced will help bring jobs and innovation to the city and the region.
Frank Quintero, director of economic development for Merced, said businesses such as J&R Tacos and the Bali Learning Center have already come from UC Merced graduates. City leaders are hoping to see more, he said.
The task for city leaders is to persuade those entrepreneurial students to take the risk to start a company here.
One of the students in the room was 21-year-old senior Connor Runnels. The management major said he's worked with engineers to develop a "smart" irrigation system.
He said coming up with an idea that could be used in the region is easy, because there are problems that need to be solved, such as water management. The difficult decision comes, he said, when he graduates.
Runnels said he has to weigh whether to put in the time and effort to get a business off the ground, or take a better-paying and secure job at an established company.
"The biggest difficulty is the uncertainty," he said.
©2014 Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.)
