Erick Mueller (MBA’99)
Executive Director, Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
When Leeds spoke with Erick Mueller in 2022 (see previous article below), he was recalibrating after returning from solo teaching a weekend entrepreneurship workshop in Hayden, Colorado.
Fast-forward three years, and the Deming Center is still thriving under Mueller’s leadership. The Rural Colorado Workshop Series is now in its 11th year and has helped more than 800 rural and Native American entrepreneurs start and grow ventures. In 2024, the program earned the Excellence in Specialty Entrepreneurship Education award—the Deming Center’s third honor from the .
Despite Mueller’s unfaltering pace, his office remains a calming, welcoming space, with his therapy dogs, Khaya and Auggie, greeting guests. The center’s “mighty team” of three staff members organizes programs, events, speakers, workshops and mentorships that have a far-reaching impact on entrepreneurship at Leeds, CU Vlogƽ, Colorado and beyond.
The influence of programs like Entrepreneurship and Empowerment in South Africa (EESA), which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, continue to amaze Mueller.
One of many success stories is Peter Wanberg, who drew inspiration from EESA to create Jubilee Roasting Company and City Park Farmers Market. “He was inspired in South Africa to see how a company can be mission-driven,” Mueller said. “Peter worked extra hard to find sustainable resources—going to South America—and he has really built a purpose-driven coffee business.”
Strengthening entrepreneurial leadership
With a strong startup culture at CU, the Deming Center has positioned Leeds as a leader in entrepreneurship and innovation. This year, Mueller joined the GCEC board, a role he believes will benefit CU Vlogƽ, Colorado and the broader global entrepreneurial ecosystem.
“It really is a ‘high tide raises all boats organization,’” he explained. “We’re in the business of changing lives,” he emphasized, noting that it’s about collaboration more than competition. A prime example is Deming’s , a first-of-its-kind program for student-athletes, a model that Mueller has shared with other colleges, including Eastern Michigan University and UCLA, to create similar initiatives.
“We’re in the business of changing lives.”
Erick Mueller (MBA’99)
Applied learning
Mueller brings real-world experience to the center, having been an angel investor, business entrepreneur, and co-founder of Funovation, a company specializing in interactive attractions with over 600 locations in 33 countries. Though no longer in an operational role, he is still engaged in strategy and relationship building.
“I have always appreciated how lucky our students are,” he said. “They have faculty in entrepreneurship with a mix of thought leaders focused on research and practitioners who have been there, done that, had successes and failures, and everything in between.”
Sharing this knowledge, he added, is “really, really, really fun.”
Pioneering new programs
This year, the Deming Center introduced the Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) program, responding to student demand—particularly among MBA students—and to address the upcoming transition of millions of Baby Boomer-owned businesses, what’s being referred to as the “."
“We want to help society transition these businesses well,” Mueller said, emphasizing the risk of losing jobs and services. The ETA program, the first of its kind in the Rocky Mountain region, launched with a course and speaker series, with a conference in the works.
Additionally, the Founders Program, launching this September, will provide recent Leeds alumni with continued support to scale their ventures post-graduation.
Embracing change and opportunity
Mueller champions resilience in entrepreneurship. “We are one of the best countries that can put failure into context,” he believes, as the very foundation of America is based on experimentation.
For him, the entrepreneurial mindset is the best mindset to be able to navigate these turbulent times. “You know how to adjust to change, problem solve, and look at solutions innovatively … If everyone is looking at doom and gloom, who is looking at the opportunities that can emerge because of all this change?”
Entrepreneurs.
As the father of two teenagers, Mueller shares his optimism at home as he marvels watching his children’s lives unfold.
“You just love them, support them, high-five them and say, ‘I’ve got your back.’”
Just like what he does every day at Leeds—with students, colleagues and the entire entrepreneurial community. As the center continues its forward trajectory, Mueller’s steadfast dedication remains—to be of service.
Even Erick Mueller’s therapy dogs seem able to sense how tired he is this Monday afternoon.
Mueller has just returned from solo teaching a rural entrepreneurship workshop in Hayden all weekend—one way he volunteers to help budding founders—and is about to attend a reception for Buffs With a Brand, the initiative the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship created to help student-athletes market themselves in the age of NIL.
Perhaps out of respect, or just being tired themselves, his two English retrievers, Khaya and Auggie, are resting quietly under his desk.
But once he starts talking about his favorite subject, Mueller quickly gets his second wind.
“Entrepreneurship is an amazing platform,” he said. “It’s pretty special to know you’ve helped change the trajectory of someone’s life in a positive way, whether it’s employing someone in a business or giving a student the tools and knowledge to help them on their journey. It keeps me coming back for more.”
Mueller has been with Leeds since joining as an adjunct professor in 2003, but even as he rose through the ranks of the Deming Center, he remained a founder. He’s created five businesses and remains co-founder and chairman of Funovation, which specializes in developing fun attractions that, as he put it, remind the world to play.
“I’m a firm believer that our faculty should be doing what they teach,” he said. “I get to teach what I do and do what I teach. That delivers that much more of an impactful, practical, tangible learning experience.”
Entrepreneurship for all
Something he emphasizes in his teaching is that entrepreneurship is not just for people who want to start a company.
“Entrepreneurship is not starting a business—it’s a way of thinking that you can use at a big or small company,” he said. “We help people by giving them the tools, programming and classes to go as far down the path as they want.”
The opportunity to help create impact is what excites Mueller about his work.
“The word I use a lot is unleash—our work at the center unleashes the entrepreneurial excitement in everybody,” Mueller said. “It’s amazing to see the light bulb go on for someone who starts by saying, ‘I can’t do it,’ and then they leave by saying ‘I can do this, I have the tools to do it and I’m inspired to do it.’”
You won’t hear him use the word “unleashed” when he talks about his other avenue to create impact. After his mother died while he was young, Mueller and his siblings got a puppy, Tippy Tail, “and to an extent, she saved my life,” he said. “Having the unconditional love of a puppy when you’re a teenager, dealing with angst—it was a tough time.”
“It’s pretty special to know you’ve helped change the trajectory of someone’s life in a positive way, whether it’s employing someone in a business or giving a student the tools and knowledge to help them on their journey.”
Erick Mueller (MBA’99)
That firsthand experience with an animal’s power to heal left a deep impression. In his early 30s, he adopted a pair of dogs, Max and Pula, who became mainstays in children’s hospitals and, especially, retirement homes. He’s continuing that tradition with Auggie and Khaya, both recently certified as therapy animals.
“For me, it all comes back to impact,” Mueller said. “My journey has been about being of service—whether with puppies, as teacher, a founder, a dad or a community member. I feel very blessed to give back to others.”