Gregg Latterman

Executive Director and Clinical Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies

Gregg Latterman is the Executive Director of the Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies (ZLI) and Clinical Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan.

Prior to Ross, he was a faculty member of Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management, where he co-taught the Entrepreneurship classes, New Venture Discovery and New Venture Launch and helped entrepreneurs build companies through the Zell Fellows program. He also created and taught the class, Entrepreneurship for the Arts and Entertainment through the Farley School of Entrepreneurship.

In 2011, Gregg enrolled in the University of Pennsylvania to pursue a master’s degree in applied positive psychology and graduated in 2012, studying under Martin Seligman, founder of the field, and Angela Duckworth and Adam Grant. While at Penn, Gregg developed what he calls “Positive Entrepreneurship,” which combines the principles of positive psychology with an entrepreneurial mindset to aim for Success and Happiness in life. He taught the class he created at UPenn, Positive Entrepreneurship, Success and Happiness for over ten years to undergraduates at Northwestern University.

Previously, he was also an entrepreneur, angel investor, and founder of Aware Records and Positive Pretzels (the first organic, flavored pretzel).
While building Aware Records, Gregg enrolled in the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and graduated in 1996. While pursuing his MBA, Gregg established the first online music store, Awarestore, in 1995.

In 1996, Aware Records entered a joint venture deal with Columbia Records and established the Aware/Columbia label. Train, Five for Fighting, and John Mayer were his first three artists. He later signed Guster and Mat Kearney to his deal with Aware/Republic/Universal Records.

In addition, Gregg started a music management company in 1998, managing musicians such as The Fray, Brandi Carlile, Five for Fighting, Mat Kearney, Ben Rector, Jack’s Mannequin, Michelle Branch, Rachel Platten, and many others.

Gregg is also a board member at Interlochen Center for the Arts and is an advisor for many start-ups and organizations including the United States Soccer Development Council.