Daniel Forbes

Daniel Forbes is an Associate Professor in the Strategic Management & Entrepreneurship department at the Carlson School. He has also been named a Schulze Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship by the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation. Since joining the Carlson School in 2000, Dan has taught courses on strategy, innovation, and entrepreneurship to students in the MBA, undergraduate, and executive education programs. He also does research on how people make decisions related to the creation, financing, and management of new ventures. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation and published in the Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science, and the Journal of Business Venturing, among other outlets. He also serves as a Senior Editor for Entrepreneur & Innovation Exchange, which publishes content for a broader audience. He has worked closely with several initiatives that connect the University with businesses and communities around the world, including the Minnesota Cup, the Carlson Ventures Enterprise, and the Product Design Program. He has also worked with strategy- and innovation-related programs for a variety of companies, including 3M, Allianz, CHS, Donaldson, Ecolab, General Mills, Medtronic, Polaris, and US Bank. He has served as a visiting fellow at the University of Virginia, Darden School of Business (2013-'14) and as a guest instructor for the Warsaw School of Economics (2023). In 2020 he was named a Fellow of the University of Minnesota's Institute on the Environment, where he focuses on the commercialization of environmental technologies. Prior to his academic career, Dan worked in investment banking and as a program manager for a nonprofit organization. He holds a Ph.D. from New York University, and his undergraduate degree is from the University of Chicago.