Partnerships

Bertarelli Foundation Distinguished Professor of Family Entrepreneurship

Building on Babson College’s long history of educating family entrepreneurs and advancing the study of family entrepreneurship, Distinguished Professor of Family Entrepreneurship William Gartner leads a multidisciplinary approach to teaching and studying family entrepreneurship with an emphasis on expanding the entrepreneurial mindset and skillset across generations to ensure family entrepreneurs are equipped to create economic and social value in any context.

The professorship was generously endowed by the Bertarelli Foundation through a substantial gift to the College.

Ernesto Bertarelli ’89 said: “In establishing this chair, our aim is to enable new avenues of research and thought in an area of scholarship that is central to successful entrepreneurship and to how future family business leaders adapt to an ever-changing world. We are delighted that, in Professor Gartner, Babson College has a world class academic who, as the first Bertarelli Foundation Distinguished Professor, will challenge orthodox approaches and build a team to help lead Babson forward in this vital field.”

“Family entrepreneurs face a unique challenge,” said Dona Bertarelli, co-chair of the Bertarelli Foundation. “As their businesses grow or change, they, too, need to adapt and evolve. At the same time, they need to preserve the original and special strengths, passions, and entrepreneurial characteristics of the family as they move in new directions. Through this faculty chair and our partnership with Babson College, we will have the opportunity to study this dynamic and help a new generation of individuals become tomorrow’s family entrepreneurs.”

Student Organizations

The Babson Family Business Club provides a forum that promotes interconnectivity among students from business-owning families. The club sponsors events and forums for discussion on all aspects of family business, and is open to both graduate and undergraduate students.