This experiential learning course explores why entrepreneurial efforts inside governments succeed or fail. For students interested in entrepreneurship, this setting offers one of the most demanding environments for building and scaling new organizations. This topic matters because government innovation shapes public outcomes, national security, and long-term technological competitiveness. Over the last decade, the U.S. government has created more than MS&E 100 innovation organizations such as digital service teams and rapid capability offices to advance emerging technologies. Yet while some of these "government startups" achieve meaningful breakthroughs, others stall without widely understood reasons, revealing how little is known about entrepreneurship inside government. Students learn how to overcome organizational inertia, build legitimacy, navigate resource dependencies, establish effective governance, and structure organizations that can adapt and pivot. Together, these principles form a practical framework for improving performance. Each team studies a real government exploratory unit, essentially a startup inside the public sector, and explains its performance using course concepts. Student teams conduct rigorous research grounded in external interviews and produce publicly available reports with recommendations for relevant agencies. The course is intended for graduate and undergraduate students interested in entrepreneurship, national security, public policy, emerging technologies, and innovation. No prior government experience is required. Admission is by application.
4 units · Letter or Credit/No Credit
This experiential learning course explores why entrepreneurial efforts inside governments succeed or fail. For students interested in entrepreneurship, this setting offers one of the most demanding environments for building and scaling new organizations. This topic matters because government innovation shapes public outcomes, national security, and long-term technological competitiveness. Over the last decade, the U.S. government has created more than 100 innovation organizations such as digital service teams and rapid capability offices to advance emerging technologies. Yet while some of these "government startups" achieve meaningful breakthroughs, others stall without widely understood reasons, revealing how little is known about entrepreneurship inside government. Students learn how to overcome organizational inertia, build legitimacy, navigate resource dependencies, establish effective governance, and structure organizations that can adapt and pivot. Together, these principles form a practical framework for improving performance. Each team studies a real government exploratory unit, essentially a startup inside the public sector, and explains its performance using course concepts. Student teams conduct rigorous research grounded in external interviews and produce publicly available reports with recommendations for relevant agencies. The course is intended for graduate and undergraduate students interested in entrepreneurship, national security, public policy, emerging technologies, and innovation. No prior government experience is required. Admission is by application.
Offered in Winter 2026 at Stanford University.