About Dr. Greg Watson
Based in Tucson, Arizona, Greg has taught his whole working life. Every company he founded meant training a new team to a high standard; higher education changed the vocabulary and the format, not the practice.
The builder: Founder of 14 companies, 13 sold
Greg is the founder of 14 companies, 13 sold, all but one still operating in some form. He started Payroll Systems from his college dorm room; eighteen months later the largest national payroll processor bought it. During the dot-com boom he launched the America Beautiful Network, at the time the third-largest vertically integrated travel advertising network, with advertisers including Marriott. Its buyer was drawn above all to the ad-targeting technology his team built, which it rolled out across its digital and print publications.
The venture that taught him most began with an idea he fell in love with before confirming that customers had the problem, wanted his solution and would pay for it. It is why empathy for the customer's problem sits at the heart of how he starts, and teaches others to start, any venture. He shares these lessons in his keynotes and workshops.
The teacher: Professor of Business at Pima Community College
Greg is Professor of Business at Pima Community College, with nearly two decades of teaching entrepreneurship. He previously taught at the University of Arizona's Eller College of Management and directed the New Venture Development Program at the McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship.
Rated 4.9 out of 5 by students across 23 course evaluations, 2023–2026.
Teaching · His courses and research on ProfessorWatson.com
The author: Entrepreneurship Essentials and books for business owners
- Entrepreneurship Essentials: the open textbook, v1.0 used at 78 institutions, v2.0 releasing soon, with AI tools built in.
- Mindset Mastery for Entrepreneurs: The Thinking That Built Your Business—and What It Takes to Grow Beyond It.
- AI Can Make Us More Human: From Human Resources to Human Beings.
- The Innovation Teacher: Teaching Innovation Across the Disciplines, for faculty.
- Work On Your Business, the book behind the flagship workshop (coming soon).
Why he teaches
Building a company and building a course ask the same thing of the founder: help people reach outcomes, to a high standard. Greg moves between the two because each makes him better at the other.