Newsletter April, 2010

   

 The Catalyst

April 2010

New energy and talent was added to the board of BizStarts Milwaukee at the organization’s annual meeting March 24 with the addition of five new directors. Coming on board were Geoff Bastow, serial entrepreneur and now CEO of Convergent Technologies; Tony Berndt, managing partner of Baker Thilly; Richard Telfer, chancellor of UW Whitewater; Shirley Lanier, a founder of Legacy Bank; and John Splude, executive chairman of HK Systems. The newly elected board thanked departing directors Woodie Adkins, investor and entrepreneurship professor at MSOE, and Keith Burns, managing partner at Ernst Young, for their service on the initial board. BizStarts is a non-profit corporation.

The officers for BizStarts for the coming year will be John Torinus Jr., president; Dan Steininger, vice president; Karen Ellenbecker, secretary; and Tony Berndt, treasurer. The board thanked out-going secretary Anne Zizzo and treasurer Keith Burns for their service in getting the new corporation up and running.

We have learned that not all would-be entrepreneurs can take out the time for Tech Venture, our ten-week intensive course for developing a solid business plan. So we came up with another model called an accelerator course, which takes place on a Saturday for most of the day. That format has been a huge success. The first accelerator exercise in Milwaukee drew almost 100 participants, and the reports were universally positive. The second at Racine drew 75 participants, and got equally high ratings. The breakout sessions are manned by experts who know their stuff about the session’s topic. Aspiring entrepreneurs can then move about the facility to seek counsel on whatever part of their business plan needs help. The next accelerator is scheduled for Waukesha on Saturday, September 25th. We expect to see a good number of accelerated start-ups come out of this process.

Got a business idea and don’t know what to do with it? Don’t know if it makes sense or not? Come to a BizStarts Ugly Baby Panel and run your idea in front of Venture Track Coaches and Mentors. We held our first panel in March, and the babies (the first cut on business plans) weren’t that ugly. The would-be business teams were grateful for the critiques. The next Ugly Baby Panel will be on Wednesday, May 12^th at 8:30 a.m. at the Research Park.

Twenty-two mentors, seasoned and successful entrepreneurs with plenty of scar tissue, are donating their time to serve in teams as unofficial boards of directors for new ventures. So far, ten matches have been made, and several will be pivotal in the launch of new companies in the M7 region. The counsel of these people cannot be measured in dollars. First of all, they don’t need money. Second, there is no charge. It is pro bono work to build the entrepreneurial spirit of the region. In addition to the mentors, we have a few dozen coaches on hand to help with their expertise. These are experts in areas like financial models, intellectual property and marketing. The coaches will team up with mentors when a new venture needs their combined strengths. New Entrepreneurs used to be orphans in this area; no longer; they now have a solid support system to help them get launched.

 The Kauffman Foundation has done research on Census data to find out where job growth comes from. It is not from large or small companies; it is from “young” companies. Almost all net job growth from 1980 through 2007 came from companies under five years old. We desperately need job creation in Wisconsin and the M7 region. That’s why the M7 Council has added an entrepreneurial strategy to its economic development agenda. BizStarts means to do its part to execute that strategy.

Since BizStarts Milwaukee formally kicked off in September 2008, it has tallied 20 start-ups in the region. These are potential high growth ventures that have an innovative edge in their business plans. They all export their goods and services. They are not counted unless they have attracted outside capital. Many players have contributed to these start-ups, and BizStarts applauds them all. Our initial goal in 2008 was 50 by the end of 2010; we are still shooting high. We need to double the activity from one a month, a great start, to a rate of two a month. Several more will be announced in coming weeks.

 CEO Kelly Fitzsimmons announced that her new venture had pulled in another round of financing at $2.7 million. HarQen uses its web applications to capture voice information, including telephonic job interviews, making the hiring process much more efficient. Her new investors included Phenomenelle Angels Fund of Madison and Golden Seeds Angel Fund of San Francisco. That is exactly the kind of action the M7 region needs, capital pouring in from the outside. There have been six such acceleration investments in the region since BizStarts started its tally in 2008.  

For up-to-date information on BizStarts Milwaukee, be sure to visit the website:

http://www.bizstartsmilwaukee.com

Classes and events relating to business can be found on the BizStarts calendar at:

http://www.bizstartsmilwaukee.com/Calendar.htm

Check out the BizStarts Milwaukee LinkedIn group!

http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1766387

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