Since the programme was conceived in 2008, we have now grown to 100 Entrepreneurs in Residence from around the globe.

Their activities include delivering Masterclass talks, breathing life into the theories with student classroom teaching, mentoring students, offering student projects within their businesses and taking part in academic research to further extend our understanding of business and entrepreneurship. The entrepreneurs have their own dedicated space in LUMS where they can work and run meetings when they are on site.

What is an Entrepreneur in Residence?

An Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) is an entrepreneur steeped in the way of life of the small-and-medium-sized business (SME) world, who will become immersed in the cultural world of Lancaster University. By relying on their worldview an EiR can understand and interpret the way things work within a Higher Education Institution (HEI) and support its engagement within the SME community. Such engagement will become integrative with ongoing and future research, teaching and outreach activities. In a nutshell, an EIR is a committed individual who will be invited to work inside the Department of Entrepreneurship and Strategy to generate a better understanding in two directions: the university’s understanding of the SME world; and the SME view of the HEI world.

Watch the videos below to hear from some of our Entrepreneurs and Residence and students about how they have benefitted from the network.

Discover the case studies of some of our featured entrepreneurs. We’d like to hear from you if you’d be interested in finding out more about the programme, be that from a student perspective, an academic perspective or as a potential Entrepreneur in Residence. You can get in touch via email to find out more.