Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship are a pairing for success in the professional arena. To stay entrepreneurial you need to be digitally equipped; to be digitally innovative, one needs to possess an entrepreneurial mind. This was made apparent to me through the inclusion of the speaker series throughout the course. For example, most speakers referenced the necessity to stay tuned in on the newest, latest, and greatest in the digital sector for enterprise upward stability. By staying akin to newness in the market, I discovered a unique commonality between the principles of digital innovation and entrepreneurship.
This course largely validated my reasoning for choosing to be an MIS major. I believe that MIS and Digital Innovation are the overarching themes within the major. The courses are structured in a way that encourages an individual mindset with an acknowledgment of harnessing the power of a team; simultaneously, revolving this social structure around the upward trajectory of digital progress. In summation, this was almost the perfect encompassment of my time in the major at the University of Georgia. In the classroom, MIS students are taught to iterate and improve like technology which thereby makes them an entrepreneur of self.
Throughout this course, I’ve seen the troughs and peaks of this lifecycle possessed both by entrepreneurs and technology alike. It is interesting to see the commonalities. Although the “Hype Cycle” is a digital term, it can be redistributed to the professional flow of an entrepreneur. Take Dennis Crawley and Andy Ruben; their professional careers were not linear, they learned from each mistake and took corrective action to become better. To become model 2.0 of themselves. Crawley experienced an early boom-bust that opened a door for individual improvement, humbling him to a position he once might not have considered previously. This new version of Crawley was able to then go on to make FourSquare. In Ruben’s case, he experienced an extreme upheaval in overall purpose and repositioned after exposure to an uncharted interest he did not know he possessed. But, once acknowledged, he could then unlock that potential for ultimate marketing and monetization. I conclude that to be an entrepreneur one must think of themselves as a technological object in the digital sphere. The parallels stem straight from my 3 takeaways per speaker, in that, the terms “growth”, “iterate”, “learn”, “agility”, and many more usurp consolidation. Therefore, one must be agile and resilient, introspective to insecurity, and eager for improvement.
Moving on – as I said in class – “to not get too heady” – in reference to digital innovation through the lens of an entrepreneur…
I believe that society experiences fixations. In the 16th century that may have been visual art, in the 70s it was music, in the 60s it was fashion. Now, the renaissance is centered in the digital arena. Meaning, the entrepreneurial qualities of humans are being streamlined towards innovating technology and unleashing the potential it may hold. As a result, people are the drivers of where progress is felt, not the inanimate vortex of technological progress. When people decide where they want innovation to ensue they put forth their land, labor, entrepreneurship, and capital to hasten the pace.
Looking back to these periods of fixation, experts in the field are respected and admired, and supported through capital investment. Satoshi Nakamoto is the technological Banksy. Sam Bankman-Fried is the technological Kanye. And, Bill Gates is the technological Edison.
Each duo’s counterpart experienced immense success at the apex of their industry’s lifecycle. Funding poured into the likes or surroundings of Banksy, Kanye, and Gates during these periods to promote more of their work or others’ in adoration and replication. However, humans own a remarkably slim attention span; therefore, the societal focus is extreme yet short.
Right now, funding and focus surround the first person of each of the comparisons listed above. We want more from financial technology, digital education, and technological hardware that bring ease to everyday life. That’s why the fintech market is oversaturated and MIS majors are pursued heavily and SkyMall is colored with the most outlandish innovations. Therefore, this class is rather an apex in its stature and presence. We are studying the current and modern-day renaissance, where the potential is endless yet on the clock.
Ultimately, I believe humans will divert their attention to a new sociological stage or return to one that needs an update. As a result, progress will reach a stalemate in the digital age. Yes, it will still progress but it will not experience the same inertia it is and has been. That is also why I am not fearful of a “technological takeover.” We’ve discussed the scary inhumane qualities found within innovations like ChatGPT and AI and the potential harm they could inflict on humanity. However, humans are the drivers of these innovations, and as a result, this fear is obsolete.
Great blog post! It’s refreshing to see someone who understands the connection between digital innovation and entrepreneurship, and how they can work together for success. The speaker series sounds like a valuable addition to the course, and it’s interesting to see how the principles of digital innovation and entrepreneurship align.
Hey Maddy, this is a great blog post. I can relate to multiple points that you outlined especially when you spoke about why you chose the MIS major. As an MIS major, I should be informed on new and innovative tech and this class helped me do just that along with giving me the opportunity to meet and gain wisdom from speakers in Silicon Valley and entrepreneurship.
Hi Maddy. You summed up the major themes of this class very well while also including your personal experience and connection with this class. For me, this class showed me real-world attainable examples of entrepreneurship. This class simplified what it means to be an entrepreneur. You don’t need to create the next Apple or Spotify. Entrepreneurship is simply finding a pain point and solving it.
Hey Maddy! I enjoyed reading about explanation of choosing to be an MIS major, specifically when you said that MIS students are an “entrepreneur of self”. I never thought of us in that way, but I can relate to what you meant and I’m glad we were able to learn so much from this major.
Hi Maddy! Great post. I really love how you made this connection between innovation and entrepreneurship. I really liked your last sentence, where you state that although all of these innovations can become scary, humans are ultimately the people who make the decisions regarding the innovations. It will definitely be interesting to see what new technology comes in the next 5, 10, 50+ years. Also, the regulation for all of this!
I love this blog post, Maddy. I love the way to summed up the themes of the class by integrating your own personal experiences in the MIS major. I love how you brought up Dennis and Andy and how their careers were not necessarily set in stone and that they had to adapt to improve themselves and their career trajectory. I agree with what you said that one must be agile and resilient, willing to change and iterate in order to be the best version of themselves and get the most out of their experiences. The most valuable thing about this class was the ability to speak to our guest speakers and gain advice from people that have been where we aspire to be. They gave us a look into their journey and learn the lessons that they have experienced also. Like Kelsey said, “You want to hear from people that are also on that journey”, in this way, we are all on the journey together.
Technically, I think it’s your “next to last” blog post. You’ll have one more before the last week of class. Everyone blogs the same week.
I loved your comparison of people with their corporate counterparts. I think that was clever and honestly very relatable. You did a really good job with this and looking forward to your last blog post.
Hey Maddy, I’ve enjoyed the class so much like you’ve said about guest speakers and keeping up with the latest trends and it gives a good perspective. I also agree that the future of our world isn’t just all about the tech, because people push innovation.
Hey Maddy, this was so fun to read. You made some great points about MIS and Digital Innovation, most of which I completely agree with. I’m glad I took this class, as it focuses a little more on the innovation part that I think is crucial to the MIS field. I also liked how you talked about different time periods and how today’s “renaissance” is surrounded by technology. I think we’ll make some great strides for humanity within our lifetime, and the world will never be the same after.
Hey Maddy! I loved how you chose to dive into a more relatable and personable topic for all of us in this blog post. It was interesting to read about the comparisons you made as well as the small yet transformative decisions that you’ve made along the way as well. Awesome blog post!