Auburn Entrepreneurship Takes Center Stage in Atlanta
Impact of the Auburn Entrepreneurship Ecosystem on full display in the epicenter of new business formation and development in the South
Atlanta has long been recognized as the center of multinational business in the South, with 16 Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the Metro Atlanta area, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport offering easy access to literally anywhere on the globe, and most of the leading enterprises in the world having some sort of presence there.
What is not as well-known is the role Atlanta has been playing for decades as a hotbed of emerging new business start-ups and spin-offs from world-renown corporations that fuels a robust environment for entrepreneurs looking to make their own mark in the business world.
With leaders in global manufacturing, financial services, supply chain management, technology and consumer products calling Atlanta home, there’s no better place for graduating students from Auburn to look for professional opportunities – all backed by an Auburn alumni community like no other.
That’s how Madison Allen, Atlanta Auburn Club president, sees it, a sentiment she shared just before a gathering of Auburn alumni, students, local Atlanta area business leaders and Auburn faculty hosted by the Atlanta Auburn Club at the Microsoft Innovation Hub in midtown Atlanta.
The first-ever entrepreneurship-based event held here by Auburn featured remarks from entrepreneurship instructor Joshua Sahib, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence Dan O’Keefe and Jennifer Nay along with a keynote address from Dean Jennifer Mueller-Phillips, who highlighted rising national rankings, student success and new start-up support initiatives across the entire Auburn Entrepreneurship Ecosystem.
The Auburn/Atlanta Connection
“There are a lot of Auburn grads who relocate to Atlanta after graduating, which is a big deal for Atlanta and for Auburn,” says Allen, who graduated from Auburn in 2022 with a degree in Public Relations. “I know of hundreds of Auburn alumni who come to Atlanta with degrees in engineering, business, supply chain, finance – all areas of expertise in high demand here – and find great success. Atlanta is a huge hub of local, national and international business on so many levels – and that’s a very attractive proposition for young people looking to start their professional careers.”
Allen also pointed to the wide range of companies serving so many different industries and markets – operations large and small – that call Atlanta home as one reason why so many Auburn grads end up in Atlanta. “The breadth and depth of opportunities – from entry-level on up – makes Atlanta a promising employment destination just an hour and a half from campus,” notes Allen.
The Auburn/Atlanta connection comes into play well before students graduate, according to Allen. Internships and co-op engagements offered by Atlanta-based enterprises enable Auburn students to learn more about the various professional options available to them in their chosen fields, while world-class employers get a chance to work with – and train – future team members.
“Of course, a lot of internships end up turning into full-time job opportunities,” continues Allen “And then, oftentimes, after they’ve succeeded during their first few years, gaining experience, many of them want to start their own businesses – try to do their own thing.”
The “Youth” Factor
It’s that singular drive of youth seeking to succeed – perhaps where others have not – that strikes Jennifer Nay as especially encouraging when it comes to the turnout at the Atlanta event.
“When most people think of ‘alumni,’” says Nay, “what often first comes to mind is a seasoned, successful businessman or businesswoman fully engaged with supporting his or her alma mater, typically dressed in full War Eagle garb at an Auburn Football or Basketball game. These folks have succeeded in their chosen fields – thanks to Auburn – and they are eager to give back.”
“But, as spot-on as that may be, Auburn alumni come is all shapes and sizes – and ages. That’s especially true when it comes to Auburn alumni in Atlanta. The demographic of Atlanta-based Auburn alumni skews younger than you might think – thanks to all the Auburn grads who come to Atlanta seeking their first post-graduation professional engagement.”
“This is the future of Auburn Entrepreneurship at work!”
Giving Back
The cohort of Auburn Entrepreneurs working in Atlanta was also in play at this flagship event, with the founder of Volcanica, Aaron Contreras, stopping by to show his support for the NVA’s entrepreneurship expertise and latest initiatives.
Contreras, a former and now returning Auburn student whose specialty coffee company is headquartered in Metro Atlanta, says he feels it is his duty to stay connected to Auburn and all of its entrepreneurship initiatives.
“Auburn and the NVA are such a core component of our success to date,” says Contraras, “When I heard about Auburn Entrepreneurship coming to Atlanta, I simply had to come out.”
Auburn’s Entrepreneurial Reach
Dean Mueller-Phillips repeated the report she delivered to a gathering of Auburn alumni in Birmingham just a few weeks before – “Auburn Entrepreneurship is on the rise! We are firing on all cylinders!”
Pointing to recent Princeton Reviews and Entrepreneur Magazine rankings of the Top 50 Undergraduate Schools for Entrepreneurship Studies that place Auburn’s Harbert College of Business among the top 50 for undergraduate programs in the country when it comes to entrepreneurship and innovation, Mueller-Phillips reported “As you can see by the metrics on this slide – we are the only ranked program in the State of Alabama, that’s a very big deal.”
Dean Mueller-Phillips noted that Auburn’s undergraduate entrepreneurship program came in at number 43 out of nearly 300 schools in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Europe. Among public universities, Auburn ranked number 24. The only Alabama school to make the top 50, Auburn was also ranked second among SEC schools.
Following presentations by Sahib and Nay covering the broad reach of Auburn Entrepreneurship – from the Louder Center for Family Business and Entrepreneurship, Auburn Ideas Jam and Halloween Pitch Competition to the Tiger Cage Business Idea Pitch Competition Research Park, and IP Exchange – the Dean reiterated her call to action from the Birmingham event – “The Time is Now!” – to support Auburn Entrepreneurship.
“Money Changes Everything”
The Dean’s challenge to Atlanta-based Auburn Alumni was echoed by O’Keefe in simple and direct terms – money matters.
“There’s one thing that we could always use more of, as Jennifer alluded to just now, and that’s the financial resources needed to support the very best of our student and faculty entrepreneurs – pitch contest winners who have proven their potential for success at the next funding level,” said O’Keefe.
“I became involved as a Tiger Cage judge about three years ago and had the opportunity to work with several of the NVA’s startup ventures, after which I was asked to become an EIR. One of the things that became evident early on was that some of our best teams and ventures die an unnecessarily early death because they simply don’t have the “polish” or financial resources to raise significant funding at the seed or Series A level.”
“I thought we could fix that.”
O’Keefe put together a proposal to build upon the success of Tiger Cage – the Auburn Kickstart Fund – which is a 501C3-qualified fund that runs through the Auburn Foundation that enables alumni and other Auburn community participants to create a financial resource pool that we can use to fund the most promising startups – give them even more coaching, more mentoring and more support to help make them investor-ready.
“Just look at the two student entrepreneurs you heard from today. What did they tell you they used a big chunk of their pitch contest winnings on? Filing patents that will provide instrumental value to their missions. That cost them money – money well-spent, indeed – but also money that could have been allocated to building initial products and/or setting up a viable marketing, sales and distribution network.”
“This shouldn’t be an either/or decision. It should be both.”
“And that’s why we need your financial help.”
Where the Rubber Meets the Road
“So, how do we donate?’ asked a member of the audience, right on queue.
“Come talk to me. Talk to the Dean, Jennifer, Joshua – any of us will be eager to show you how your donation to the AU KickStart Fund will help us make the Auburn Entrepreneurship Ecosystem we are building here at Auburn even more impactful.”
The Auburn Family at work in true War Eagle fashion, right here in Atlanta.
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Note: The KickStart Fund has been approved by Auburn Advancement for Tiger Giving Day 2025!
To learn more about the KickStart Fund please contact Dan O’Keefe at dto0009@auburn.edu.