Waverly Deutsch, a clinical professor at Chicago Booth, teaches Building the New Venture – a unique course on entrepreneurial execution. Deutsch has also been a full-time coach for the annual New Venture Challenge business plan competition since 2002. From 2006 to 2009, in conjunction with the University of Chicago’s Collegiate Scholars Program, Deutsch pioneered and taught an intensive summer seminar entitled Elements of Entrepreneurship in which promising high school students from the Chicago Public School Systems turned an idea into a business plan in two weeks.
Deutsch is an active angel investor and advisor to start ups including the YESS Network, InterApt, SwingByte, the Stylisted, and Bē. She was on the board of directors for InContext Solutions, a leading 3D virtual store market research company from 2009 to 2011. She currently serves on the board of SmartBet Charities, which uses poker as a vehicle to facilitate entrepreneurial networking in Chicago and raises money for local programs that introduce young people to entrepreneurship education.
Prior to joining Chicago Booth, Deutsch was the founder of WaveWords Consulting, offering strategic consulting for startups on business plans, funding strategy, technology architecture and marketing. In her year as managing director of NetFuel Ventures, an Internet incubator, Deutsch helped raise seed capital and launch three technology companies before the firm merged with ARCH Development Partners. As executive vice president of marketing and strategy for Internet exchange company fob.com, she increased their media visibility by 500 percent.
Deutsch earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1985. She received a master’s degree in 1989 and a PhD in theater history in 1992 from Tufts University.