On Tuesday 22th March we had the pleasure to listen to Professor Olav Sorenson from University of California, Los Angeles giving a research seminar on "The Silicon Valley Syndrome".

Olav Sorenson is currently the Joseph Jacobs Chair in Entrepreneurial Studies, Professor of Strategy, and Faculty Research Director of the Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA. In addition to mentoring student startup teams, he teaches electives on venture capital strategy and on entrepreneurial venture initiation.

His primary stream of research pertains to economic geography, focusing on how entrepreneurship influences the growth and competitiveness of regions within countries and on why some regions appear more supportive to entrepreneurs than others. He has called attention to some of the unexpected consequences of the fact that social capital plays an important role in entrepreneurial success. Largely in recognition for this research, Professor Sorenson received the 2018 Global Award for Entrepreneurship Research.