Experimenting As A Business Owner: Why It’s Essential And How To Do It

How do people build successful businesses? The path is as unique as the business owners who build them. While every entrepreneurs’ process is unique, there are some important themes on the road to success—and a key theme is experimentation. Those who learn how to experiment in their businesses—in the right ways, at the right times—can overcome market conditions, personal barriers, changes to business models and pricing, and even the competition.

Join us for this lunch & learn conversation. A bagged lunch will be provided for all registered in-person attendees at no cost, compliments of the Maryland Innovation Center. Founder and business owner Zachary Cochran will give a short presentation on his journey and lessons learned about experimenting in business, followed by an open conversation among attendees. This presentation is designed for business owners in their first five years (or pre-launch), but will be useful to business owners at any stage, because in today’s world, continuous innovation and ongoing experimentation are requirements for all businesses.

About our Speaker: Like many entrepreneurs, Zachary Cochran had several side businesses before starting his full-time, all-in business. From selling snow cones as a kid to running lawn care and dog sitting services as a teenager to solving computer problems for clients as a young adult, Zachary has found ways to create value for others throughout his life. In 2017, he decided to go full-time with a service he was providing informally to friends for many years—career coaching. Zachary just celebrated his 5th anniversary as founder and owner of Cochran Coaching LLC, a coaching practice designed to support young professionals who are still figuring out what they want to be when they grow up. Under that umbrella and through his experimentation process, he expanded his work to include support for high school students who need a better foundation as they make decisions on career paths and college majors. He also works with fellow business owners who have recently started businesses to support them as they launch and grow—which he does through a partnership with Clark Leadership, a peer advisory group and executive coaching company. At Clark Leadership, Zachary facilitates monthly virtual peer advisory group meetings for business owners who are dedicated growing themselves and their businesses. Zachary is on the board of the Howard County Chamber of Commerce, where he runs the Young Professionals Network (YPN) as the Chair, and is on the BWI Business Partnership’s Community Development Foundation—a 501(c)3–as a Trustee. Zachary was also honored as Young Professional of the Year in 2022 by the BWI Business Partnership. Pre-COVID, Zachary co-chaired a group for business owners at the Maryland Innovation Center, called the Founders Forum, to help business owners in Howard County continue to improve their businesses. Zachary and his wife Sylvie live in Baltimore, Maryland.

Registration closes on October 4.