“Somebody should invent a better way to do this.” We’ve all said it at one time or another. Meet the Cincinnati parents who not only said it, but actually did it. Their newly launched website takes all the guesswork out of finding a childcare provider for Greater Cincinnati's working parents.
Last Tuesday evening, Ohio Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher unveiled the Ohio Third Frontier annual report for fiscal year 2008 (PDF) during his keynote address at the Ohio Innovation Summit. The report outlines the performance metrics as measured by the Technology and Innovation Division at the Ohio Department of Development, administrator of the Ohio Third Frontier initiative. "In 2008, Ohio Third Frontier reached another high water mark, attracting $3.5 billion in additional resources to projects and companies, representing nine new dollars for every one dollar expensed by Ohio Third Frontier programs," Fisher said. Since 2002, Ohio Third Frontier has assisted in the creation, attraction, and capitalization of more than 500 businesses. Read the full release here.
For several years, the Hamilton County Business Center has enjoyed a close relationship with Queen City Angels' administrative arm C-Cap, producing a variety of programs benefiting entrepreneurs throughout southwest Ohio. Morning Mentoring, held monthly, seeks four companies to participate in a structured mentoring and networking session that allows for focused dialogue between the companies and professional advisors about their markets, products, services, and management practices. The Regional Entrepreneurs Forum, held on the third Friday of each month, assembles 60 to 80 local entrepreneurs to network and to discuss entrepreneur-requested topics related to their businesses. The two-day Entrepreneur Boot Camp, held once a year in late spring, helps aspiring entrepreneurs plug into business assistance, capital, and professional service networks in Greater Cincinnati. Read the full release here.
Peak 10, Inc. has announced the creation of the Greater Cincinnati and Dayton Technology Assistance Program (TAP), a partnership of key local technology and business associations that will help cultivate business incubation in the region. The first 30 companies accepted into TAP will receive cabinet space within Peak 10's enterprise-class Cincinnati data center and will have any one-time or monthly recurring costs, up to $5,000, waived. Collaborating partners include the Hamilton County Business Center, the Greater Cincinnati Venture Association, BIOSTART, Northern Kentucky ezone, C-Cap, and the Entrepreneur Center in Dayton. "We are very excited that Peak 10 has organized the TAP program in an effort to bolster our innovative businesses by aiding their competitiveness," Patrick N. Longo, director of the Hamilton County Business Center, tells dBusinessNews. "This program's impact will be felt by local entrepreneurs and individuals seeking employment from these start-ups who now have the option to take advantage of a technology program fueled by Peak 10's enterprise-class facility, support and technology services." Read the full release here.
The “Green Energy Promoting Tomorrow’s Harvest” seminar, May 7 at Melink Corporation in Milford, is a joint effort aimed at giving Cincinnati area farmers a glimpse into the future of renewable energy opportunities. Among the topics will be a presentation of federal and state “Green Energy” financial incentives and information on integrating wind turbines, geothermal heating and cooling and solar energy into farming or other business operations. The state of Ohio has a $150 million economic stimulus plan offering grants and loans for existing businesses to retool, or for new ones to become part of the green energy manufacturing chain. Through President Obama’s federal stimulus package $8.2 billion has been set aside for Ohio. Those federal dollars include $399 million for energy and weatherization programs.The free, evening seminar is an effort of The Ohio State University Extension Office in Clermont County and Melink, a Milford-based renewable energy and efficiency systems provider. The seminar is geared toward the farming community, but is also useful for rural small business owners, said Latham Farley, Program Coordinator of Agriculture and Natural Resources for the OSU Clermont Extension Office. The seminar will be from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. May 7 at Melink headquarters, 5140 River Valley Road. It will include a tour of Melink. In 2005, the company designed and built its LEED-Gold certified headquarters. The company specializes in energy consulting, as well as installing geothermal heat pumps, solar thermal systems, solar PV systems and wind power. “Not only do they hear about it, they get to see and get a feeling for what can be done, and what’s already going on,” though the tour, Farley said. Less than a dozen spots are left for the seminar, RSVP by May 1 at the Clermont Extension office by calling (513) 732-7070. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSources: Melink Corporation, Latham Farley OSU Clermont Extension Office
In the business world, what truly separates the winners from the losers is how they deal with failure. Setbacks can and will happen. Some entrepreneurial Northern Kentuckians who know a thing or two about growing a business tell Thrive that those challenges have to be met head-on. And if you learn from them, like they did, you can grow and come out of adversity stronger, smarter and better prepared.
Entrepreneurship is a necessary and integral component of the business community in any vibrant and growing region. Contrary to what people might think, entrepreneurship often thrives during down economic times. Northern Kentucky has a thriving entrepreneurial climate that is largely driven by the ezone, a division of Northern Kentucky Tri-County Economic Development Corporation (Tri-ED)
Northern Kentucky University and Vision 2015 have teamed up in an initiative to fuel the region’s entrepreneurial spirit. Dubbed the Northern Kentucky Entrepreneurial Alliance (NKYEA), this dynamic collaboration is a key component in attaining Vision 2015 goal for the region: to make entrepreneurship and innovation one of this region’s defining features. Lining up with Vision 2015’s strategic planning for economic development, NKYEA brings together some of Northern Kentucky’s best-known innovators and business incubators in an effort to spur job growth through collaboration, communication and marketing. John Beehler, Associate Provost for Economic Initiatives and Dean of the Haile/US Bank College of Business at NKU developed the idea behind NKYEA as the central go-to place for entrepreneurship in the region. “One of the first things I did when I took the position was to take a look at the players involved with driving economic development for Northern Kentucky,” says Beehler who came to NKU from the Barton School of Business at Wichita State.” Beehler found a number of different agencies working towards creating new growth but little coordination between them. “Looking at landscape I noticed a lot of activities in agencies in region who were providing services to small businesses. When you have multiple organizations doing the same thing it can turn into competition over a coordinated effort.” With Vision 2015’s ambitious goal of creating 50,000 new jobs, Beehler determined that the only way to reach that number was through “coordination, communication and cooperation.” In December of ’08, a core group of key organizations was convened to discuss how to increase the number of small businesses and grow development for Northern Kentucky. “Our key goal is trying to get those who need help to get the help they need to launch their businesses. We need to understand what training these businesses need and figure out how to focus that effort. Economic development and entrepreneurship go hand in hand with the College of Business. I knew it would be important for me to get everyone in the same room and talking about this,” says Beehler. NKYEA’s work has already started thanks to the programs that the region has already had in place. “I’m a firm believer that regions grow by growing their own and that means fostering entrepreneurship. There’s a lot of potential in our region thanks to the fact that we already are a logistical center, a manufacturing center. We don’t have to start from scratch because there’s already a lot of activity on both sides of the river,” says Beehler. The alliance is ready to leverage those resources by identifying key targets in making Northern Kentucky a place where entrepreneurs can create and flourish. Among them include: setting up a clearinghouse for basic entrepreneurship and growth information, facilitating education, training, and mentoring for entrepreneurs and increasing the available capital to fund new and exciting projects. Another major piece of the alliance is marketing the region as a hub for entrepreneurship and leadership. “It’s not enough to have all these tools if you don’t tell anyone about them,” says Beehler. Among those who’ve joined the alliance are: NKU’s Haile/US Bank College of Business (including its Fifth Third Entrepreneurship Institute and International Business Center Global Connections), ezone Innovation and Commercialization Center (ICC), Northern Kentucky Area Development District, Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Development Center (SBDC), SCORE, Southbank Partners, Tri-ED, and the Williamstown ICC. Bill Scheyer, President of Southbank Partners, said NKYEA is the type of targeted alliance the region needs. “We have needed a coordinated effort to spur entrepreneurship in this region for many years. NKYEA gives us the opportunity to work together to make this happen.” Rebecca White, Director of the Fifth Third Entrepreneurship Institute at NKU, added the alliance is a way to attract and retain some of the region’s brightest students. “As they continue their education and prepare to establish their future businesses, they can get hands-on experience with people facing many issues in establishing and growing their businesses.” Writer: Feoshia Henderson and Jeff SyroneySource: John Beehler, Northern Kentucky University
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Northern Kentucky University’s Fifth Third Bank Entrepreneurship Institute has reason to celebrate two of their students this month. Nathan Young and Eric Tanner placed first in the 2009 Kentucky Idea State "U" Undergraduate Business Plan Competition, receiving over $12,000 in prize winnings. Students from across the state competed in the second annual business concept and business plan competition in Lexington March 27-28. The competition is designed to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship by rewarding participating teams from the Commonwealth's eight four-year state universities. The competition places emphasis on business concepts and plans that are scored by independent judges as most likely to result in successful, high-growth ventures. The duo's business brain-storm, Renewable Horizons, would manufacture solar thermal systems for local companies wanting to invest in renewable energy. Young, a construction management major with a minor in entrepreneurship, and Tanner, an entrepreneurship major with a business administration minor, developed the idea as a way to promote renewable energy to local companies and homeowners. Both graduate from NKU in May and hope to launch their company soon thereafter. "This experience has been extremely invaluable as I have learned a wealth of knowledge about business, experiencing first-hand the trials and tribulations of writing and presenting a business plan," said Tanner. "I'm very appreciative to have had such an amazing opportunity. We owe a debt of gratitude to the faculty and staff of the Entrepreneurship Institute and to the College of Business for presenting this opportunity before us and for all the help we received throughout the process." The nationally recognized Fifth Third Bank Entrepreneurship Institute at Northern Kentucky University offers innovative educational programming to help students develop business concepts and build sustainable businesses. “This student competition is helping create a new generation of entrepreneurs and innovators that will expand our base of business and provide more jobs statewide,” said Gov. Steve Beshear. “The evaluations and feedback provided by the business experts who judged the event will be invaluable to the students as they move forward in developing these and other ventures.” Writer: Jeff SyroneySource: NKU
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