Here we highlight selected innovation related articles from around the world on a daily basis. These articles related to innovation and funding for innovative companies, and best practices for innovation based economic development.
Committees don’t create successful startups. A single visionary entrepreneur almost always is the initial implementer of an innovative new venture, but that lone entrepreneur doesn’t have the bandwidth to grow the business alone. He or she needs the multiplier of growing from the “doer” to a team builder and leader. That’s a big transition, and many entrepreneurs never make it.
Image: http://blog.startupprofessionals.com
Most small business owners are buried in email. This is discouraging since they don’t always get to answer the important ones. Business etiquette suggests that each email should be replied to within 24 hours. Letting messages go unanswered for longer than this can have a profound negative effect on relationships in their business. The sender is worried that the email was not received or a “no answer” means a negative reply. In many cases, it means neither of these things.
Digital upstarts are rewriting the rules of strategy, adopting winning principles almost instinctively. Traditional incumbents and hybrids should take note.
The massive transformation of the business landscape in recent years has been driven by ‘Digitalisation’, mostly inspired by “pure plays”, companies that only have online activities and are not encumbered by either the assets or the organisational inertia of most incumbent, traditional companies.
If I could somehow rewind time and choose my vocation, I would choose entrepreneur.
My real life story wasn’t a clean-cut path to entrepreneurship. Sure, I did a few entrepreneurial things in school, but I also tried my hand at traditional jobs.
Somehow, fate pushed me into the entrepreneurial life. And I couldn’t be happier.
Life as an entrepreneur isn’t easy, but it is good. And there’s a difference. I’ve faced a lot of challenges, but those challenges have grown me and changed me in ways that I couldn’t have anticipated.
Why is it that innovation is so hard to seriously talk about in most companies?
Everyone agrees that it's important. In fact, when IBM interviewed 1,500 CEOs on what they thought the most important leadership quality was for the next 5 years, the most commonly cited trait was "Creativity", followed by "Integrity" and "Global thinking". They agree that coming up with new ideas for their business was vital for its survival and growth.
When the Oracle of Omaha talks, people make pilgrimages. In fact, thousands of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders flock to the tiny town of Omaha, Nebraska each year to hear him talk about investing.
Of course, if any business leader can command that level of devotion, it’s Mr. Buffett. He has practically doubled or tripled his net worth in every decade of his life, and is now worth $67 billion. A single share of his company’s stock? Try $191,396. That's enough to buy a house in any one of the 50 states.
Techstars had an incredible year in 2015 and grew the organization on many dimensions. If you want a full view of what Techstars is – and is doing – today, take a look at the 2015 Global Impact Report.
Image: http://www.feld.com
Maximo Trinidad was SUP surfing waves on Jupiter Beach Florida when he ran into an unexpected surprise and had to jump to get out of the way. 37
Image: http://www.paddling.net/
Methodology
This ranking is based on eight metrics, organized into four categories: concentration, which is the number of software developers per 1,000 workers in the metro area; prosperity, as measured by the regional price parity-adjusted average salary for developers in the area, the growth of wages from 2010-14, and job growth over the same span; talent, based on the number computer science degrees awarded per 10,000 workers, the percentage of of the over-25 population with computer or math degrees, and the replacement rate of IT degree holders in 2014; and the amount of venture capital investment per employee in 2015. Concentration received a 30% weighting with the remaining seven factors being equal at a 10% weighting. The study was conducted by BW Research Partnership for the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp.
Maryland legislators recently approved a $42.3 billion fiscal year 2017 spending bill that incorporates many of the funding levels included in Gov. Larry Hogan’s proposal. Gov. Hogan made education a main focus of his proposal, and the final bill would hold university tuition increases to no more than 2 percent. In addition, legislators formalized the growing strategic partnership between University of Maryland campuses in Baltimore and College Park. The unification is intended to bolster the state’s research profile, and drive high-tech industries in the Baltimore region.
“You aren’t good enough”.
That’s the message that’s been drilled into the majority of our heads from the day we started school. Every report card, every teacher instilling the fear of failure, and every student number doing exactly that – stating that you’re just a number.
At school every report I received confirmed that I was average. I was always two percent above or below the grade average. Without fail, my teachers would put how average I am into writing: “Jacques can do better… I’m disappointed in him”. I even had teachers tell me how much I’m not like my older sister, which was disappointing to them.
Penned by the Smart London Board – which is chaired by Imperial's Vice President (Innovation), Professor David Gann CBE – the report says that London must capitalise on its digital expertise to tackle challenges associated with the city's bourgeoning population - set to exceed 10 million people by 2036.
The Tom Tom Founders Festival held a Youth Summit at the Paramount Theater Thursday to support and highlight local student innovation.
The summit featured student-led presentations and several student entrepreneurial competitions. Wes Bellamy, vice-mayor of Charlottesville, gave the keynote address, and Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe signed a bill to protect the rights of student innovators.
The bill — House Bill 1230 — will clarify university intellectual property rights by specifying the conditions under which universities and colleges own intellectual property and when students own intellectual property.
This past week during a hearing at the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Raymond Keating of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) delivered prepared remarks to the Representatives in attendance. The title of the hearing was the JOBS Act at Four: Examining Its Impact and Proposals to further Enhance Capital Formation. Keating provided feedback on the four bills on the roster for the morning session – a list that included the Fix Crowdfunding Act that in our opinion, hopefully becomes law.
But the beginning of Keating’s presentation touched upon an important subject. Traditional methods of providing access to capital for most early stage firms – remains a challenge.
Image: http://www.crowdfundinsider.com
One of the most oft-repeated quotes about investing goes something like this: Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.
While Warren Buffett may not have had venture capital in particular in mind when he offered up that bit of sage advice, it is a fitting way to describe the current climate of the VC industry.
Over the last year, venture capital has undergone a paradigm shift of sorts with regard to the approach investors are taking in choosing where to put their money. Instead of playing it fast and loose with capital, VCs are now taking a more conservative stance when it comes to funding, much to the chagrin of fledgling companies.
Image: http://techcrunch.com
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Image: http://www.innovationinpractice.com
The era of stable lifetime jobs for business professionals within a single company are gone. Companies are rightsized quickly now as markets change rapidly, and business professionals are quick to jump to new opportunities for growth and survival, with no ties to special benefits or pension plans. Thus smart business professionals are rapidly becoming the new entrepreneurs.
Nanotechnology is rapidly gaining traction across a range of industries, from agriculture to water treatment to energy storage. While nanotechnology was first developed in 1959 as a way of manipulating matter at the atomic and molecular level, it wasn’t until the early 2000s that it really began to flourish. Today, nanotechnology is one of the most innovative, cutting-edge areas of scientific study and it continues to advance at staggering rates.
From scientists at technology-focused companies and institutions like NASA or Lockheed Martin, to students pursuing a nanotechnology degree, leaders in nanotechnology are creating the latest breakthroughs in the field. These breakthroughs are primed for significant worldwide impact. Below are five examples of some of the most innovative nanotechnology advancements to date.
Image: http://memeburn.com
When you are launching a startup, especially for the first time, learning to bootstrap, pitch and raise finance will be a bigger priority than developing leadership skills. But as the business grows and needs more people on board, your ability to lead a team will be crucial to its success.
There are countless books, online webinars and training courses on how to become an effective leader, but some might argue that the best teachers in the world are dogs. As species, humans and canines are worlds apart, but as pack animals, dogs are amazing team players, and it all comes down to strong and effective leadership.
Over the past few years, the discussion in Israeli tech has shifted. No more talk about innovation that leads to small exits, where both entrepreneurs and investors settle for less. Less talk about products that tackle very specific problems that result in smaller market opportunities. A lot more conversations in the community now revolve around building big, sustainable companies. The pivotal moment came with the acquisition of Waze, which was sold to Google for $1.1 billion. It was a game changer. First, this was the most successful consumer play Israel ever had, and second, it gave Israeli startups access to the exclusive “billion dollar club” dominated mostly by Silicon Valley startups.
