Andrew Hargadon, Associate Professor and faculty director of the UC Davis Center for Entrepreneurship, delivered the closing keynote address at National Instrument’s NIWeek 2008 in Austin, Tex., in August. The three-day event is the world’s leading graphical system design conference and exhibition. It brings together more than more than 3,000 engineers, scientists, educators and developers for interactive technical sessions, exhibitions and workshops on the latest technologies for control design, measurement, automation, manufacturing and testing.

In particular, attendees were interested in exploring green engineering as the solution for more efficient and cost-effective applications. In his remarks about green entrepreneurship, Hargadon shared insights from his book How Breakthroughs Happen: The Surprising Truth about How Companies Innovate, focusing on how innovation will meet the today’s energy challenges. View the video of Hargadon’s talk at www.ni.com/niweek/keynote_videos.htm.

California’s 100 Companies are Honored

In June Hargadon gave a keynote address about networks of innovation at The New California 100, a conference at the Mondavi Center at UC Davis. The summit honored 100 successful companies that have sparked growth and innovation in California’s 19-county Central Valley. Collectively, these companies generate more than $50 billion in revenue and have more than 250,000 employees.

Hosted by the Golden Capital Network, the June 17 gathering showcased the region’s high-growth companies to leading venture capital, angel and private equity investors. Attendees included C-level executives and management teams from the region’s largest firms, entrepreneurs, economic development professionals, service providers and elected officials.