Wired for success: local leaders trace their entrepreneurial roots.

• Author: Stewart, Heather

They are the rock stars of the business world--the heroic entrepreneurs who build empires out of the glimmer of an idea. They are the larger-than-life leaders who seem blessed with uncanny judgment and impeccable timing. Local legends like Jon M. Huntsman, Alan Hall and tech pioneer Josh James fit the mold perfectly; in their presence, you can feel their energy, intensity and intelligence.

Do such entrepreneurs have inherent, unique traits that enable their incredible success?

Maybe--and maybe not.

Business Class

The conventional wisdom, based on decades of research, is that entrepreneurs are not a rare breed. Indeed, one in every two people--half the population--will "engage in entrepreneurial activity at some point in their lives," says Robert Wuebker, faculty advisor for the Foundry, an experience-based entrepreneurial program at the University of Utah.

Much of the academic research on the subject points to the idea that entrepreneurs are made, not born, and that they have no combustible mixture of personality traits that fuel their drive for success.

"Entrepreneurial activity is quite common; we tend to think of it as a rare event, something that only special people do," says Wuebker. Instead, "there's no distinct personality trait that's really distinctive to entrepreneurial activity."

This viewpoint on entrepreneurialism has generated an entire industry dedicated to helping people learn to become entrepreneurs--coaching programs, self-help books, seminars, university programs--explains Wuebker. If entrepreneurialism can be taught, then anyone can learn it.

The Foundry, which is sponsored by the David Eccles School of Business, is geared toward helping students learn a specific skill: how to identify viable business opportunities. Wuebker calls it "business discovery" and says, "it turns out you can teach almost everyone how to do that."

Participants in the Foundry aren't just business school students--they come from every area of the university, from engineering to the arts. "Kooks," he jokes.

"The Foundry is a giant laboratory in which we discover businesses together," he says. He points out that, traditionally, seven out of 10 businesses fail. "The Foundry students learn to kill off bad ideas early or radically alter them."

The first cohort to go through the Foundry developed 15 companies that generated just under $800,000 in revenue within six months. The second cohort, after four months, killed off more of the businesses to end up...