Our Team

William B. Gartner is the Bertarelli Foundation Distinguished Professor of Family Entrepreneurship at Babson College and Director of Research at the Bertarelli Institute for Family Entrepreneurship. He is recognized as a leading scholar in the field of entrepreneurship: 2005 Swedish Entrepreneurship Foundation International Award winner for outstanding contributions to entrepreneurship and small business research; 2013 Academy of Management Entrepreneurship Division Foundational Paper Award winner; and the 2016 Academy of Management Entrepreneurship Division Dedication to Entrepreneurship Award winner. According to the latest datasets released by Elsevier BV, Professor Gartner is among the top 1.5% of scholars in the world. He was recently honored with a Justin G. Longnecker Fellow Award by the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) at its annual conference in January 2022.

His book: Entrepreneurship as Organizing: Selected Papers of William B. Gartner recently was published in a paperback edition by Edward Elgar. He has served in various academic positions at the University of Virginia, Georgetown University, the University of Southern California, Clemson University, San Francisco State University, California Lutheran University, ESSEC in Paris, and, the Copenhagen Business School. His scholarship spans a wide array of topics in the entrepreneurship field, including entrepreneurship as practice, the social construction of the future, varieties of value creation and appropriation, “translating entrepreneurship” across cultures and countries, the demographics of entrepreneurial families, and, the nature of legacy in family entrepreneurship.

William Gartner’s Latest Thought Leadership Articles »

I am passionate about working with entrepreneurial leaders who are committed to creating positive change in their communities.

Growing up in an extended family that operated a variety of family enterprises, I have seen firsthand the opportunities and challenges of family entrepreneurship—but more importantly, I see the potential of family entrepreneurs to create real and positive change in their communities.

As an alumna, I appreciate how Babson prepared me to be entrepreneurial in different sectors throughout my career. I started out my career in corporate consulting, advising clients on business incentives and valuations in a variety of industries, including financial services, consumer products, and technology. My work included liaising with our international offices in in Southeast Asia.

In my social sector work, I led consulting engagements in strategic planning, growth planning, performance measurement, board restructuring, and prospectus and road show development for fundraising. I have extensive experience helping clients compellingly articulate their work to a funder audience, and have demonstrated success launching and running national initiatives and programs.

My entrepreneurial journey included starting an innovative food-services concept with family, advising early-stage entrepreneurs, and serving on the board of a family foundation supporting education in Thailand.

My passion for entrepreneurship and social impact came from my experience growing up in northern Thailand. I witnessed a clear discrepancy in life outcomes between those born into privilege and access, and those born into poverty. I saw my father—a social entrepreneur—strive against all odds to found a nonprofit college in my hometown, giving rural youth access to higher education. I saw how the trajectory of one’s life can be changed through entrepreneurship, education, and opportunity.

I am excited to be working with our next generation of Babson entrepreneurial leaders who are committed to creating economic and social value around the world.

Dr. Angela Randolph’s initial interest in entrepreneurship was inspired by working with entrepreneurs as they developed and grew their businesses. Her areas of expertise and research interests include nascent entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial cognition, entrepreneurial persistence, adolescent development on entrepreneurial behavior, underrepresented and underestimated entrepreneurs, and marginalization and inclusion.

Professor Randolph has a Ph.D. from the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, an MBA from the College of William and Mary, and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Virginia. Prior to entering the Ph.D. Program at Texas Tech University, she enjoyed a diverse career working for private and public companies, including Pepsi Bottling Group and Wachovia Bank.

Some of her previous professional experience includes new venture start-ups, consulting social and commercial ventures, consulting large organizations in treasury management practices, evaluating potential business acquisitions, and process improvement.

Sarah Parker Schlesinger has worked with multigenerational successful families for over 20 years. Over her 25-year career, she has helped more than 100 families structure solutions for issues inherent in multigenerational family businesses and shared, generational wealth. Sarah works with families in a thoughtful and structured manner to ensure that future generations understand the foundational values of the family. Sarah provides insight and guidance to help the next gen find their voice within the family and productively integrate the family value with their personal goals and passions.

Before joining Babson, Sarah helped build the CCC Alliance, one of the world’s largest peer-to-peer organizations for UHNW families and single-family offices. She also founded Kinship Services to work more in-depth with families to become successful wealth stewards. Prior to that, Sarah worked for BNY Mellon Private Asset Management, where she educated financial service professionals to better understand the needs of HNW families and family offices.

Sarah’s career was inspired by her own family enterprise and philanthropy in her native New Orleans, which involved a professional sports team, real estate, and family foundation addressing health care and education.

She has a degree in Business Management from Boston University and completed the Trust and Estate planning program at Williams College. She and her two children reside in Newton, MA.