Will America’s entrepreneurial spirit continue to set its path? What can the rest of the world learn from America’s experience?
—Vikram Mansharamani, lecturer, Harvard University & author of Think for Yourself: Restoring Common Sense in an Age of Experts and Artificial Intelligenc
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A Book For Current Times
In LAUNCHPAD REPUBLIC: America’s Entrepreneurial Edge and Why It Matters (Wiley; Aug. 2, 2022), Howard Wolk and John Landry explore the institutional, political, and legal factors that have shaped our economy. They offer an in-depth look at how these have operated throughout history and can be improved going forward. They focus on the tension between creation and destruction that arises from the right to compete and the right to private property. Entrepreneurs seek to create thriving companies, but in doing so they almost inevitably threaten existing systems with a new alternative.
From the Launch Pad
WHAT People Are Saying…
“…the work as a whole is truly magisterial in its detail; the authors somehow manage to combine a granular account of the country’s entrepreneurial history with a general synopsis of its philosophical foundations. An impressive study of a timely and important topic.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“Wolk and Landry have written a highly original work on a subject hugely important to America’s future. Launchpad Republic tackles the economic promise and the social challenge of America’s start-up culture. Steeped in history and as up-to-date as Uber, the book nimbly shifts gears from the VC industry to the public interest and invites them each to find a common ground.”
— Roger Lowenstein, author, Ways and Means: Lincoln and His Cabinet and the Financing of the Civil War
“America’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and culture is special. Wolk and Landry’s brilliant book traces its history and uniqueness but also contains an important warning: not to take our special sauce for granted. Read it to understand the fixes and adjustments required to preserve this very special tool for growth, prosperity, and addressing society’s thorniest problems.”
— Jeffrey J. Bussgang, Co-founder, Flybridge Capital Partners; Senior Lecturer, Harvard Business School
“Wolk and Landry deeply understand the role entrepreneurs, including social entrepreneurs, play in the U.S. and their ability to disrupt systems and create meaningful systems change. I found this book refreshing and spot on, well worth the read!”
— Vanessa Kirsch, Founder & Co-CEO, New Profit, venture philanthropy organization
“Launchpad Republic is an insightful and nuanced exploration of the ‘why?’ behind America’s entrepreneurial culture. As a startup entrepreneur in the insurance industry, with incumbent firms as old as America itself, I’ve seen firsthand the competing and constructive tensions that Wolk and Landry describe. I’d recommend this book to anyone with an interest in supporting our innovation economy.”
— Jennifer Fitzgerald, Co-founder & CEO, Policygenius, unicorn start-up
“Thanks to Wolk and Landry for taking the reader on for a walk through the entrepreneurial foundations of the United States of America. For all the the social, economic, and political challenges the U.S. faces, the authors correctly spotlight the themes that make ongoing American exceptionalism a persistent and distinguishing strength against which other countries are to still be measured.”
— Greg Kidd, Founder, HardYaka, Silicon Valley investor; Founder, GlobalID
the Authors
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is an experienced entrepreneur, company builder and investor. He is co-president of the Cross Country Group, a privately-held firm consisting of start-ups and mature companies. He is a former senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, where he developed and led a study group on entrepreneurship and society. Howard lives in Boston and London with his wife and two daughters.
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is a business historian, writer, and former editor at the Harvard Business Review. He earned a PhD. in economic history from Brown University, and currently lives in Providence, R.I. with his wife and two sons.