With an objective to inventory local business assets for startup ventures, local entrepreneurs, as well as several community organizations assembled on September 13th, 2011 in RJI’s Palmer Room to hear from local leaders as well as to participate in hands-on information gathering exercise. The event entitled “Economic Gardening: Gathering Our Entrepreneurial Resource - Putting the Pieces Together” was the second such event produced in collaboration with Regional Economic Development, Inc. (REDI).
“We have passing through our gates the best and brightest, and we want those bright minds to innovate, to create, and then we’d like for them to stay here and become very prosperous” said Columbia Mayor Bob McDavid in his opening remarks in kicking off the event. Mayor McDavid was then followed by an assortment of others speakers who presented resources and upcoming events designed to advance and proliferate entrepreneurial activities in the region.
REDI President Michael Brooks set the overall objective for the event reinforcing the City of Columbia’s commitment to entrepreneurship, announcing the creation of a downtown entrepreneurial incubator, set to open early 2012. The incubator will be complemented with two counselors from the state’s Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC). “The growth opportunities of entrepreneurship is really an area we’ve got to focus on,” said Brooks, adding that the facility “will be a very attractive, functional and meaningful space to our entrepreneurial community.”
Entrepreneurial initiatives of the University of Missouri were explored through both the campus’s Entrepreneurial Alliance, as well as getting the view from student entrepreneurs. Trulaske School of Business Associate Teaching Professor Greg Bier shared that the Entrepreneurship Alliance was created “because we do realize that although we might have some coursework in entrepreneurship, that entrepreneurship is a mindset, and we need an organization on campus that takes entrepreneurship well beyond the classroom.” Illustrating that point were Joshua Johnson and Mathew Kamp, who offered the attendees a student perspective of how effective entrepreneurship is supported by the campus, as well as the College of Business and the School of Journalism. Johnson and Kamp then offer opportunities to strengthen the entrepreneurial culture on campus.
The emergence of entrepreneurial activity has affected the community’s scope of business initiatives and has led to an expansion of opportunities. Vicki Russell, Columbia Chamber of Commerce Chair share how the area is responding to the growing number of area startups and announced Friday, February 10, 2012 as the date for the next REDI Entrepreneurial Summit. “Columbia right now is about putting together the right people, in the right places to create team-like approaches to help our entrepreneurs, of all ages and stages,” said Russell.
The presentations wrapped up with Keith Politte, Manager of RJI’s Technology Testing Center. Politte first gave a sneak peak at a project to rapidly expand the number of students with technology-enabled skill sets that are capable of taking advance of emerging technology-based opportunities. The effort to brand the initiative was explained by YaYaConnection students Eliss Miller and Julie Willbrand. Politte then shared briefly a progress report on three projects underway on campus with support of the Kauffman Foundation
Following the presentations, attendees were instructed to contribute comments and ideas to a collection of twelve easels, each asking for a specific suggestion. The exercise not only generated thoughtful information, but provided a mechanism for conversation among attendees, affording networking opportunities.
Information contributed on easels:
What meetings or regular events are available to entrepreneurs?
- Social Media Club
- Mu Entrepreneurs-alternate Tuesdays 7:30pm in S204 Union
- Innovation parties at the LOI
How can local entrepreneurs share information with each other?
- Google +
- Columbiatechnetwork.com
- The league of innovators
- Social media club
- Online discussion group with topic categories (photo typing, marketing, contact MFA’s and etc.)
- Facebook/twitter
- Webinars
What role can local high schools have in promoting entrepreneurship?
- Take field trips to local businesses
- Strengthen/start student orgs/clubs (DECA, FBLA, Jr. Achievement, 4-H)
- Provide basic introductions to instructions
- Present entrepreneurship/small business as a viable career choice
- Have work shops for students
- Start up competitions at HS, mentors, from Columbia community
- Invite them to the LOI events
- Partner with College clubs
What are the goals of growing entrepreneurships locally?
- A more creative and energetic society
- Economic growth and job growth
- Local Angel investors
- Encourage graduates to stay in Columbia
- To contribute to economic growth that is
- Sustainable
- Environmentally responsible
- Reduces economic, educational, social inequalities
- Keep valuable student and resources in the area
- Access to capital
How do we measure entrepreneurial success?
- Sustainable
- Jobs created
- Numbers as old computers, from “original” entrepreneurial older and better
- Financial stability
- Healthy cash flow
- Better quality of life
- Setting goals and achieving
- Retaining young business and growing them
- As an economic development strategy, by raising the median HH income of the bottom 2 quintiles by 30-40% in 10 years of course not by itself
What entrepreneurial assets are we missing?
- Network of former datastorm employees
- Look to homeschool as an entrepreneurial asset
- Youth/youth programs/school-based programs (add to Columbia asset map)
- Little league entrepreneurs are farm leagures in training
- A way of contacting each other to ask questions and share information
- Reaching out to those entrepreneurs to different parts of the networks
- More women success stories
- Minority men networks
How do we connect entrepreneurs to resources outside the region?
- Tech companies and social media
- Google +
- Create a facebook group for entrepreneurs
- Internship exchange programs
- Online venture capital pitch sessions
What groups are helping build a local entrepreneurial culture?
- Socail media club
- League of innovators
- International business association
- Centennial investors
- Mu extension 4-H build a business camp at mu July 2012 show me 4-h wars youth selling @ county and state fairs, local 4-h clubs/members
What entrepreneurial resources do we have that people don’t know about?
- McQuinn Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership
- Centennial Investors
- MU, IE Lab usability
- MADE in Mo State Entrepreneurship Competition istart.org
- Columbia rich web Google group and meet up
- Student Angel Capital Program
- Hacks/Hackers IRE
- Columbia Area Career Center career center.org
- Bakowsky’s meetups
- The League of Innovators
- Business in the district .com
- Webinars
- Clusters
- Minority men’s networks
- Mu extension 4-H entrepreneurship projects for MS/HS students
- Reaches 1 in 10 kids
- Mission mandates science, technology and engineering
What mentor infrastructures do we have for entrepreneurs?
- League of Innovators—need to create one
- Advisory board and mentor programs
- Women in entrepreneurships
- Score
- SBDC
- qmb@chamber needs a pitch by an entrepreneur
Where can the questions of entrepreneurs get answered?
- Small Business and Technology development center
- Peers and former teachers
- Business incubator
- REDI
- Other entrepreneurs and small business people willing to share
- Friends/clubs/people
- RJI
- Chamber of Commerce
- SBDC-Jim Gann
- Centennial Investors
- Library
How can government promote entrepreneurships?
- Grants, tax breaks, facilities
- Leadership programs run by the government
- Seminars on funding opposition
- Continue to support REDI, CORE
- Partnership both internal and external
- Reduce regulatory burdens on businesses
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