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Aug 16 2013

Dingman Center Angels: A Year in Review

The Dingman Center Angels connects regional startup companies seeking seed and early-stage funding with angel investors. In this special edition of Worth Reading, we are featuring an info-graphic showing the metrics from this year’s investment season.

Background on the companies Dingman Center Angel members invested in from September 2012 to August 2013.

6th Street Commerce: focuses on simplifying and streamlining the critical business processes associated with managing a successful E-commerce business.
Astrapi Corporation: Astrapi’s patented Compound Channel Coding™ (cCc™) allows for dramatic improvements in communication performance by smoothly integrating periodic and exponential signal parameters.
Brazen Careerist: a growing community of connectors, coaches, job-seekers, recruiters and entrepreneurs to help you find your next great opportunity.
Cirrus Works: a scalable integrated infrastructure solution that forms the basis of efficient technology management in commercial networking environments.
Distil Networks: protects websites against web scraping, content theft and competitive data mining.
E-ISG Asset Intelligence LLC: delivers cost efficient solutions to help customers manage and track their assets so they can reduce costs and improve operation efficiency.
ExecOnline: provides every executive at the world’s great companies with access to superb training opportunities.
Foodem: an online trading, business intelligence, and process automation solution for the $670 Billion U.S. wholesale food distribution industry.
InGo: the revolutionary solution which brings data-driven value to face-to-face sales and marketing. InGo provides Social Event Marketing with Meeting Matching for show growth and guaranteed value for every user.
Mobile Systems 7: allows enterprises to securely deploy smartphones and tablets by monitoring deployed systems, securing sensitive data and enforce corporate policies without relying on software agents.
Naaya: a game-based social learning platform for Elementary Schools (K-5) focused on global and social studies and 21st Century Skills – Communication, Collaboration, Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Character.
Nexercise: a free mobile application that rewards users with virtual medals, discounts and free merchandise for good health.
Plant Together: a platform to mobilize youth and families, in partnership with other agencies, to plant trees and promote reforestation in critical zones on the African Continent.
Riskive: provides enterprise grade security technology dedicated to identifying, monitoring and preventing risk across the socially connected enterprise.
Spinnakr: increases click-throughs and conversions by automatically displaying the right message to the right visitor.
Visisonics: brings to market state of the art products and solutions in 3D sound capture, analysis and reproduction.
YaSabe: connects businesses, Latino culture and community by allowing users to be “in the know” and confidently make choices about how and where to spend their time and money.

Tagged angel investing, Brazen Careerist, Check In Easy, Cirrus Works, DC Angel Group, DC Investing, DC Startup, DCA, dingman center, Dingman Center Angels, Distil Networks, entrepreneur, Foodem, Maryland Angel Investing, Nexercise, Portfolio Company, Spinnakr, startup, visisonics, YaSabe

Aug 08 2013

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EnTERPreneurs

Student Entrepreneur Pursues a Mega Idea for Staying in Shape

Over the last few years, the Dingman Center has been working with Obidi Orakwusi to launch his company, Gym Supreme and its first product the Mega Bar. The Mega Bar is an innovative and versatile piece of exercise equipment priced lower than its competitors. A member of the EnTERPreneur Academy, Orakwusi won a $1,000 grant from the Dingman Center earlier this year. We caught up with the student entrepreneur to get an update on his business.

How did you come up with the idea?

The idea came to me in May 2011. School was out for the summer, I had no plans, and I realized I probably was not going to have a job. So I thought to myself, “why note create a job?” I got motivated and began sketching the concept of the Mega Bar on the back of a job application.

I designed the Mega Bar with a friend in mind. My friend had no gym membership, so every time he went back to school he had to settle for resistance bands, which are incapable of working the entire body. With that in mind, my goal was to create a product that would provide an effective workout at home. Unknowingly, my friend was my first target customer. Once I had a reasonable sketch, I made my first prototype with plastic straws, toothpicks, and paper clips to test out the simple physics. Then, I built a full scale plastic prototype. It took me some time to order a production prototype because I was constantly making measurement adjustments. I’m a bit of a perfectionist sometimes.

Tell us about your team.

During the process of developing my startup, I learned not to rush into decisions. I don’t have a full team yet, but I do have friends with skills and connections like my corporate lawyer, web site programmer, investment banking buddy and a colleague of mine with connections to QVC and sporting good chains.

How have you been working with the Dingman Center?

The Dingman Center has been an amazing resource for me. I get to meet and connect with fun business-minded colleagues that give me advice and feedback. Dingman Center Angels Review Days, workshops, and everything Dingman offers gives me different perspectives on what I knew and what I need to do. It always feels good when I say Gym Supreme is a member of the Dingman Center EnTERPreneur Academy at the Smith School.

How are you using the $1,000 grant from the Dingman Center?

The grant was an amazing cushion that opened up cap space for legal fees associated with the utility patent, trademark and the purchase of social media advertising. Although the grant will be split across several expenses, I know it would not have been possible to get all the legal work finished this summer without the grant.

What has been the most challenging aspect of starting a business?

For me it has been a mixture of funding and tedious patent work. The lack of funding prevented me from rushing into decisions because when you have plans that cost more money than you have, there is usually a wait period between milestones. The wait allowed me to analyze needs and create a hierarchy of tasks.

What goals have you set for the upcoming year?

One of my patents arrived on my birthday–that was a nice gift. The main goals remaining for 2013 are the Pitch Dingman Competition and a Kickstarter pre-order. The Kickstarter campaign is time dependent on the number of potential consumers I attract using various social media campaigns. When I feel there is enough interest from a significant number of followers that will likely purchase the MegaBar, I will launch the pre-order. With good revenue from that, Gym Supreme will become eligible and will apply for Cupid’s Cup in 2014, beginning the search for capital.

Have you had to change your business model since you started?

Oh yes. Initially, I was focused on a model that cuts out the middleman in order to maximize profit from sales and avoid margin reductions from wholesale. I soon learned that avoiding the big retail orders might not be effective because I would give up visibility on very popular retail platforms and have to rely solely on my own marketing to make sales. This would result in an increase in consumer acquisition costs and a decrease profit. That strategy is possible, but requires too much capital infused into marketing. The model is evolving to include a platform that will provide recurring revenue if properly executed.

How do you stay motivated to work on your business when success doesn’t come as quickly as you hoped?

I believe there is a reward associated with the risk I am taking and the reward is success. When I imagine the success of Gym Supreme I stay focused, get excited, and keep going because I am determined to reach that goal. If I give up before anything significant happens, I have defeated myself.

GDP_9540 (1) Obidi Orakwusi is the Founder of Gym Supreme and a member of the Dingman Center’s EnTERPreneur Academy. Stay connected with Gym Supreme on Facebook and Youtube or visit http://www.gymsupreme.com.

Tagged dingman center, EnTERPreneur Academy, entrepreneur, interview, Q&A, startup, students

Jul 26 2013

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Worth Reading

Worth Reading 7/26/13

This week at the Dingman Center, board member and successful entrepreneur Andrea Keating was in the office mentoring students with business ideas. We also released a must-read post by Elana Fine, managing director, about the importance of being a global entrepreneur. Now, let’s end our week with what’s worth reading.

Entrepreneur Matt Garrison and his startup Energy.me are contracted to make $180 million in revenue over the next 18 months by buying and selling wholesale electricity. Find out the secret to the company’s technology in Lightning In A Bottle: Starting Up In A $190 Billion Market.

Investors in other cities may have more money to spend, but they don’t have the experience you’ll get from a DC investor. Tech Cocktail shows us why Angel Funding Opportunities Are Soaring in Washington, DC.

VCs don’t want to hear entrepreneurs pitch ten different ideas hoping one will sound good enough to invest in. Instead, they look for entrepreneurs that are passionate and convicted. Here’s why Successful Entrepreneurship Is Not About Winning A Popularity Contest With Venture Capitalists.

Is your startup having trouble pushing people to your website? Take a look at How PolicyMic, A Startup With A Handful Of Employees, Gets 6 Million People To Read It Every Month.

Tagged advice, angel investors, DC, dingman center, elana fine, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, VC, Venture Capitalist, worth reading

Jul 23 2013

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Fine Observations: All Entrepreneurship is Global Entrepreneurship

Over the past few weeks the Smith School of Business and Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship have welcomed MBA students from Peking University, our partner school in China. Their enthusiasm for everything American – our universities, our financial markets, our TV shows, our music (apparently John Denver in particular) and especially our MALLS – further highlighted the disproportionate interest foreign individuals and firms have in the U.S. compared to our interest in them. This fervor is not unique to Chinese visitors as we host delegations from around the world that are anxious to learn anything they can about how we teach entrepreneurship and incubate startups. Yes, it is flattering that other countries want to learn from us– but are we doing enough of the same? Beyond outsourcing developers and finding low cost manufacturing, are our entrepreneurs doing enough to become global entrepreneurs?

I’m going to venture an educated guess and say “no, not really”. After speaking with hundreds of entrepreneurs in the past few years, there are only a handful that are tackling a problem also experienced in Brazil, leveraging technology developed in Israel or are targeting customers in China. One of those handful, Dingman portfolio company CirrusWorks, immediately peaked the interest of our investors by first targeting Asian markets. Although their unconventional approach to testing their product in a foreign market appeared naive to some, other investors welcomed the contrarian strategy since most startups begin locally and then diversify abroad as they grow. Since the U.S.’s growth rate ranks #127^th , I’d argue that more startups need to take a “World is Flat” approach to launching their businesses. Given such feeble rates, startups may never experience the double-digit domestic growth rates that are typically viewed as milestones and therefore may never explore the global appeal of their product.

While exploring this issue with distinguished startup professors at the Smith School, I learned there are some exceptions. They pointed out that recent research has shown an uptick in transnational entrepreneurs, immigrants to the U.S. who leverage knowledge of the U.S. and their home country to start global, high tech startups. It makes sense that those knowledgeable and comfortable with multiple markets would be more likely to embark on a global venture. However, as a whole, U.S. entrepreneurs need to change their mindset to take advantage of international trends and opportunities:

Think global, start local. Startups need to understand and solve global problems. Uber launched in Paris in 2011, before many major U.S. cities, demonstrating the global pain point of inefficient taxi service.

Find comfort in what is uncomfortable. Talk and learn from people from different cultures. Travel to places with language barriers. Get lost on subways and experiment with food. The ability to partner with international companies and comfort travelling to meet a potential customer will give you a competitive advantage.

Understand Every Business is a Global Business. I repeat. Understand every business is global business and every entrepreneur is a global entrepreneur. For those of you who use the business model canvas as a planning tool – think of your canvas and look at which box represents a global opportunity. Is it a customer segment, a manufacturing partner or a distribution channel?

As entrepreneurs, advisors and investors, let’s learn from our zealous global peers. They are certainly learning from us.

Be fearless.

-Elana

Elana Fine (@elanafine) was appointed Managing Director of the Dingman Center in July 2012, after joining the team in 2010 as Director of Venture Investments. As Managing Director, Elana’s primary focus is leading the Dingman Center in support of its mission and strategic plan. Key responsibilities include oversight of our student venture incubator, Dingman Center Angels investor network, business competitions, and technology commercialization efforts. Elana also develops and maintains relationships with donors, board members, EIRs, the Smith School community and other campus and regional partners. She is also serving as co-chair of the Dean’s Task Force on Entrepreneurship and Innovation and will be working with our Academic Director to expand the Dingman Center’s research activities and curriculum development.

Tagged advice, China, dingman center, Elana, elana fine, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, startup

Jul 17 2013

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Student EnTERPreneur Develops a Better Way to Trade Fashions

This post is for all the gals out there looking for stylish clothes at a reasonable price. EnTERPreneur Academy member, Ayana Cotton, is building a fashion community that allows members to purchase clothing submitted by other users. Cotton takes a unique approach to her online shopping platform, Evlove, by not only focusing on fashion but building a system that delivers social impact. When a member of the community gives clothes to Evlove and no one acquires the clothes, those items are donated to a partner shelter for women.

This summer Cotton was one of seven EnTERPreneur Academy members to receive a $1,000 grant from the Dingman Center to evolve her startup. We recently interviewed Cotton about her progress. Take a look at where she is and where she’s going.

DCE: Where did you get the idea for Evlove?

Cotton: Almost every morning I would wake up to get dressed and get confronted with the pain of having a closet full of clothes yet feeling like I had nothing to wear. I had no time to deal with the pains of eBay or Etsy, or the disappointment associated with consignment shops and Goodwill. I knew I couldn’t be the only girl that felt this way so I decided to address what was a daily annoyance to me and probably many other habitual shoppers.

DCE: How did you come up with the name?

Cotton: Funny thing is, Evlove actually started out as a social activism blog I created as a Fashion Merchandising freshman gallivanting around New York City and resisting materialism; the irony. Evlove is evolve spelled backwards and it’s inspired by the idea of looking back and learning from our past mistakes to build for a better future. The name originally fit the mission of the blog, and it still fits the mission of our business model today only this time we’re focusing on coming up with more sustainable solutions for shopping habits.

DCE: How do you plan to use the $1,000 grant from the Dingman Center?

Cotton: The $1,000 grant from Dingman was a serious game changer for us. We were able to hire a programmer to enable us to add user’s points directly to their accounts, and he added “Buy with $” and “Use with Points” buttons. The grant enhanced our user interface and overall website usability, the site is less confusing, we were also able to stock up on necessary shipping supplies, and make smart logistical investments.

DCE: What have you been working on this summer to further your business?

Cotton: The first order of business was to improve the website’s usability, now our main focus is on user experience. We’re investing in branding efforts, anything that will add visible value for the customer, and I have access to a lot of local and NYC fashion influencers who we’re getting to try Evlove for free so they can share their experience with their followers.

DCE: Do you have any goals for Evlove that you hope to complete by the end of 2013?

Cotton: My biggest goal is to raise $10,000 before the year ends. I’ve realized our customer really needs to see the value of using our service before they jump in, and with that comes a photography budget, videographer budget, a contracted graphic designer, custom branded Evlove bags and stationary, supplies, someone to help with content and turnaround time for product listing and point rewarding, marketing budget, etc.

DCE: What has been most challenging for you?

Cotton: Financially bootstrapping this thing and convincing customers we’re not some obscure college girls trying to steal your clothes. Since the idea is so different we have a lot of people who still aren’t so sure yet.

DCE: Do you have any competitors? How do you differentiate?

Cotton: I would say our two biggest competitors are Nasty Gal and 99dresses. While Nasty Gal is simply a regular e-commerce site, they have done such an unbelievably excellent job at winning the hearts of our target consumers that they don’t mind paying their prices. But our obvious advantage is we’re way more cost efficient and we have a mission to promote social responsibility. 99dresses is pretty similar to us, only they use “buttons” instead of “points” and they are pretty similar to sites like eBay and Etsy because they make you photograph, post, and ship your items individually…our customer doesn’t want to have to deal with that.

DCE: What kinds of resources will you need next?

Cotton: Money, an Evlove generalist, money, and a mentor.

Find out more about Evlove: http://www.shopevlove.com

Instagram and Twitter: @shopevlove

http://www.facebook.com/shopevlove

Tagged DC Startup, DC Tech Startup, dingman center, EnTERPreneur Academy, Fashion Swap, Online Shopping, startup, students

Jul 02 2013

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Fine Observations: The Entrepreneurship Dive

School is out; the pools are open, and July 4th is upon us so what better time to write a blog post equating entrepreneurship to diving? On a recent panel at InTheCapital’s DC UpFront event, I had the opportunity to comment on the debate about teaching entrepreneurship. I offered a metaphor that might seem simplistic, but effective and timely.

Teaching entrepreneurship is like teaching someone to dive off the high dive. Let me explain. Let’s first look at one approach to finding dive talent: you line up a bunch of kids who appear to have the right stamina and grace, march them up the ladder and have them attempt a 2 ½ somersault cold. If they don’t appear to be Greg Louganis or surprise you with a perfect Triple Lindy, you suggest they go back to the baby pool. Or, you do what I did this weekend with my 6-year-olds; baby steps. I took them to the side of the diving well and taught them some basic skills – hands out, heads down. They watched some older kids on the board – the approach, the takeoff, the execution, and the rare perfect entry. They have models. When they showed some progress I cheered them on, celebrated their small successes. When they belly-flopped I laughed with them and encouraged them to try again.

Will they be Olympic divers? Probably not, but as the adage goes, they won’t know if they don’t try. If I never expose them, never show them how to start, never help assuage some of the fear, never give them a small taste of that plunge, they certainly never will. Failure and mistakes often intensify passion and drive. Look at the stories of legendary entrepreneurs like Henry Ford, Walt Disney, Richard Branson and Larry Ellison to understand how their setbacks fueled their successes. V 1.0 of a product is never right, neither is V 1.0 of an entrepreneur.

And so, this is how we are teaching entrepreneurship at University of Maryland’s Dingman Center. The same way we teach diving, or even medicine or math. We are exposing thousands of students through competitions like our Cupid’s Cup (named for Kevin Plank’s student business Cupid’s Valentine —a perfect illustration of starting small) and course offerings like our Real 660. We are equipping them with basic skills to identify opportunities, talk to customers, test assumptions on new business models, prove big concepts in small ways. We are connecting them with a community of seasoned entrepreneurs, sophisticated investors, local startups, subject matter experts, researchers and more importantly each other. Most importantly, we are celebrating them for their entrepreneurial spirit.

Do all entrepreneurs start this way? No, of course not. We know that Mark Zuckerburg and Steve Jobs didn’t enroll in entrepreneurship classes. We know all entrepreneurs have a unique path. We also know that our economy is desperate for more entrepreneurs than we have now and we can’t rely on luck that they stumble across the high dive. The more students we expose to the entrepreneurial mindset and process, the more we support to prove their initial concepts, big or small, the better our chances of seeding an innovation economy.

Be fearless.

-Elana

Tagged @elanafine, DC, dingman center, Elana, elana fine, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, UMD, University of Maryland

May 22 2013

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Center Stage

The Smith Venture Practicum Program – A Student’s Perspective

One of my favorite things about going to school at Smith is the ability that we have to learn and grow outside of the classroom in a variety of ways. Don’t get me wrong, the classroom is a great learning environment. But in a job market where employers are constantly looking for “real life” experience, it’s necessary to have tangible application stories to tell. But I was also interested in seeing what it looked like under the hood of a startup. What are the building blocks? What is the mindset required? What are the challenges that they face every day?

That is why I took the Venture Practicum for my Smith Experience. Venture Practicum connects MBAs with startups sourced through the Dingman Center. The course was the perfect combination for me to combine experience in marketing with exposure to an early stage venture. My team paired with DC tech startup Homesnap, which has an app that allows you to take a picture of any home to find out all about it. The project for the semester was to help drive downloads of the app at a make-or-break inflection point in their business. We did this by going to South by Southwest to promote the app (and winning awards in the process), launching new versions of the app and preparing for a round of fundraising.

We worked hand in hand with the Homesnap team to develop digital ad campaigns, targeting strategies and analyze their effectiveness in driving downloads. It was a great way to learn about a thriving career area, digital marketing. At the same time we got an insider perspective on why the Homesnap team is so successful: the ability to think on the fly, experiment, and be adaptable are all critical elements to their success. What a great way to learn about “real life”!

Shurid Sen is a 2014 Full-Time MBA Candidate at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. In addition to participating in the inaugural Venture Practicum program, Shurid is the 2013-2014 President of the Smith Entrepreneur’s Club as well as a regional finalist in the 2013 Venture Capital Investment Competition.

Tagged dingman center, entrepreneur, MBA, Smith Experience, startup, Venture Practicum

May 21 2013

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Events

Dingman Center Summer Preview

The Dingman Center is gearing up for a productive yet fun summer. While many students in our community will be away at exciting internships and visits home, the Dingman Center will offer a range of activities for those still in the area. Entrepreneurs-in-Residence will be here to advise students on their business ideas. A group of Chinese MBA students will visit to experience how we practice entrepreneurship. Finally, we’ll host Jumpstart, a bootcamp where budding entrepreneurs will learn and apply the principles of the lean startup methodology. Take a deeper look into our summer plans.

Pitch Dingman doesn’t stop for the summer. While sessions will not be held every Friday as they are during the academic year there are still opportunities to receive feedback and advising from Entrepreneurs-in-Residence. Go to ter.ps/EIR2013 to view available appointment times and sign-up.

In July, the Dingman Center along with the Office of Global Programs will host a group of MBA students from Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management with an interest in entrepreneurship. This visit reflects the ongoing relationship between the Dingman Center and Peking University, located in Beijing, China, as they host the Center’s annual China Business Plan Competition. The visit includes lectures from distinguished faculty and workshops focused on venture creation. The group will spend time off campus visiting local startups and institutions such as the World Bank, George Washington University and the Maryland Capital State House.

As is our tradition, we will close the summer with Dingman Jumpstart, an intensive five-day boot camp where University of Maryland students and alumni can learn to build and refine their own businesses. Jumpstart will take place August 19-23 at Van Munching Hall, home of the Robert H. Smith School of Business. Here’s a preview of what to expect at Jumpstart!

Learn from the best through hands-on workshops and interactive advising sessions led by successful entrepreneurs, business executives, and investors.

Meet like-minded entrepreneurs in your own community and start building your network of mentors and peers.

End the week by pitching your business idea to a panel of expert entrepreneurs. Following program completion, apply to the Dingman Center’s EnTERPreneur Academy where you can have access to a wide variety of workshops and the option to compete in Pitch Dingman Competitions held throughout the school year.

So what are you waiting for? End your summer by starting your business at Dingman Jumpstart! Details and registration information can be found at ter.ps/jumpstart

Tagged competition, dingman center, Dingman Jumpstart, EnTERPreneur Academy, entrepreneur, events, startup, startup success

May 13 2013

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Events

Congratulations to Vitus! Winner of the May 3 Pitch Dingman Competition!

On Friday May 3rd, 2013, five student startups pitched to a panel of judges for the last Pitch Dingman Competition of the school year. The student entrepreneurs ranged from University of Maryland undergrads to Executive MBAs, pitching everything from a food truck concept to a mobile application for farmers. In the end the judges and audience both chose Vitus, an IT platform for veterinarians, as their winning startup. Vitus won the $1500 grand prize and the $500 Audience Choice Award, bringing their total winnings to $2,000 of seed funding. BOVER, the aforementioned mobile app for farmers, received 2^nd place honors and $500 in funding. Congratulations to both startups, the Dingman Center can’t wait to see where you go next!

We’d also like to recognize Cart Noodles, Terpiture and Sweet Buds for giving great pitches as well. It takes a lot of courage and poise to pitch a business, and these enTERPreneurs showed them in spades! We’re excited to see how much all of our finalists have grown since their first advising session and wish all of them the best of luck!

About Vitus

Team: Mark Olcott, DVM; Kalpesh Raval; Aman Sharma; Greg Rea; Kristina Bailey

Affiliation: Executive MBA cohort 12

As a practicing veterinarian, Mark Olcott can say with complete confidence that the way medical information is shared in the pet industry is broken and outdated. Vitus will use modern information technology to create innovative, web-based personal health records for pets that will help veterinarians grow their practice, improve hospital efficiency and save lives.

Vitus will enter the market by focusing on ER/specialty hospitals, as these facilities have the biggest “pain” and outsized influence. By using a two-sided market model, Vitus will build a large, monetizable network of pet owners and veterinarians united to help pets live longer, healthier lives.

About Pitch Dingman Competition

Twice a semester, students can compete for $2,750 in start-up funding at the Pitch Dingman Competition. Everyone is welcome to attend Pitch Dingman Competitions as an audience member and there is no need to register. For those of you Interested in competing, start by attending an informal Pitch Dingman Session taking place on most Fridays at the Dingman Center!

Tagged dingman center, entrepreneur, events, pitch dingman, startup

May 10 2013

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Worth Reading

Worth Reading 5/10/13

Things are quietly winding down here at Van Munching Hall as the students prepare for their last finals of the year. The Dingman Center has also been quietly rumbling along, preparing for our last batch of Pitch Dingman Sessions and our upcoming summer programs. How’re you all preparing for the summer? Whether it’s taking a vacation, or finally putting together that business you’ve been meaning to start, the Dingman Center will be here to support you.

So let’s move on to what’s worth reading.

Let’s start by taking a look at the Dingman Center’s week in the news. In case you missed it, this week’s Business RX column in the Washington Post featured Elana Fine giving advice to TouchdownSpace, a startup looking to enter the virtual office industry. In addition, Terpiture, one the finalists from last Friday’s Pitch Dingman Competition was featured on the University of Maryland school newspapaer, the Diamondback.

Often times, entrepreneurs have brainstorms for a business, but can’t articulate the actual business problem that their business idea will solve. Well never fear, this inc.com piece gives you 4 steps to approach understanding your business problem.

Many of you may know that Israel is also known as start-up nation. In fact the center has been building a relationship with the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) for years now, even sending MBA students to Technion over the summer for an immersive entrepreneurial fellowship. This latest inc.com article articulates just some of the lessons we can learn from the entrepreneurial culture in Israel.

As we’ve often seen, many of the technological innovations in the past few decades have come from military and government research, but did you also know that a lot of what we see as everyday items now actually originated from space? Tested.com takes a look at a few surprising inventions that were actually developed by NASA for use in space!

And finally, in the debate for the importance of higher education in entrepreneurship and career success, the side of education finds a champion in a local VC. In this Huffington Post editorial, Jonathan Aberman, venture capitalist and lecturer at the Smith School of Business, gives his impassioned take on the importance of education to entrepreneurship and our society as a whole.

Tagged dingman center, EnTERPreneur Academy, entrepreneur, startup, startup success, Technion, worth reading

Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship

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