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Entrepreneurship, reconsidered: What OSEF 2025 taught me about building what matters

Go to the profile of Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova
Entrepreneurship, reconsidered: What OSEF 2025 taught me about building what matters
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In her blog, Laidlaw Scholar Harshita reflects on the key lessons she took away from the Oxford Saïd Entrepreneurship Forum (OSEF) 2025. Drawing on her background in social impact and systems change, Harshita challenges traditional views of entrepreneurship centred on speed, scale, and disruption, instead highlighting the importance of purpose, empathy, resilience, and responsible leadership. She explores how conversations at OSEF encouraged founders to think beyond profit and valuation, focusing instead on long-term impact, climate innovation, ethical use of technology, and addressing real human needs. Harshita describes the Forum as a space that brought together entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, and students to explore how business can drive meaningful change, leaving her with a renewed belief that entrepreneurship is not simply about building ventures, but about building what matters.

Read more here. 

Go to the profile of Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova

Contributors

Author

Go to the profile of Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova

Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova (She/Her)

Scholar Engagement, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

Contributing author

Go to the profile of Harshita Jain

Harshita Jain (She/Her)

Oxford MBA'26, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

Multiple Contributors
Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova and Harshita Jain

Contributors

Author

Go to the profile of Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova

Stanislava (Stana) Orihelova (She/Her)

Scholar Engagement, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

Contributing author

Go to the profile of Harshita Jain

Harshita Jain (She/Her)

Oxford MBA'26, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

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