Different Paths to Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition | Alumni Session

Different Paths to Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition: Alumni Perspectives

Entrepreneurship through acquisition offers many routes to business ownership, but which path is right for you? Join the Cornell ETA Club for a candid alumni conversation exploring four approaches: investing through a holding company, conducting a self-funded search and exit, pursuing a traditional search, and entering ETA as an operator.

Our guests will share lessons from their journeys, discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with each model, and offer practical perspectives for students considering business ownership, investing, or operating leadership.

Owais Aslam, HoldCo and Investor Perspective: Explore how a holding company strategy can support long-term investment, acquisition, and business building.

James Duong, Self-Funded Search and Exit: Hear the perspective of an entrepreneur who pursued the self-funded search path through acquisition and exit.

Daniel Ortiz, Traditional Search: Learn about the traditional search fund model and the journey from identifying a business to becoming its owner-operator.

Edgardo Falcón, Operator Path: Discover how operating experience can provide an alternative entry point into ETA and prepare future business leaders for ownership.

Whether you are already exploring ETA or simply curious about acquiring and leading a business, this session will offer a practical comparison of the paths available and the decisions that shape each journey.

Thursday, September 10 at 5:00 p.m. ET

Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition Club at Cornell (ETA) | Website | View More Events