Technology, funding and cultural developments are stimulating new business ownership.

It has been a laggard recovery thus far, but the economic outlook shows interesting potential. A combination of developments in technology, financing and corporate culture is behind the rising power and leverage of small companies. As a result, an increasingly diverse cross-section of individuals is leaving large organizations and pursuing the creation of their own businesses.

Image: http://fortune.com/ 

There have been numerous reports showing the decline of entrepreneurship in the U.S., including the tech sector, and we’ve all heard the gloomy reports of startup failure rates. There are a few things to consider before you start to doubt your dream.

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Humanity very rarely realizes the impact of world-changing information technologies when they are first conceived. For the past 5,000 years, it’s often the inventors’ force of optimism, combined with sweat and blood, that has powered innovation through the haters of the day.

Image: The great Nikola Tesla died financially broke 

Its no secret: the University of Colorado receives hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds that sponsor our research. My lab alone racks up expenditures of $800,000 a year to pay for post-doc and graduate student salary, tuition, materials and travel. Isn’t it preposterous to now ask the public for some more of their hard-earned cash as we, and many other universities now, do on CU Boulder’s new initiative?

Image: http://www.crowdfundinsider.com 

Elastice founder Christopher Drake believes entrepreneurship is the new internship.  

His startup is currently part of Brisbane’s ilab accelerator and helps online stores offer weighted discount incentives for social media users who post advertising on their social media streams, based on the amount of reach those users have.

Image: http://www.startupsmart.com.au/ 

What's the best place to live if you're a shark? (Hint: It's also a pretty great place to live if you're a human.) The British Virgin Islands. The archipelago recently became the third Caribbean territory to declare its waters a safe haven for sharks. 

The decision to establish a shark sanctuary in the British Virgin Islands was made official on May 22 by cabinet members of the British-controlled territory. The designation prohibits commercial fishing of all shark and ray species throughout the territory's 60 or so islands and islets.

Question: As an employer, what ONE quality do you look for in every team member you hire and why?

Work ethic

“You can be the smartest and most technically gifted candidate that I’ve ever met, but if I can’t detect that you’ll do whatever it takes to succeed in your job and help drive the organization’s growth, I probably won’t take a chance on you. Self-starters with indisputably strong work ethics are almost always a safe investment.”

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In a startup every employee is a cowboy or cowgirl. And that’s a good thing. What truly matters isn’t who does what, but rather how they do it. What matters is that stuff gets done.

Then you grow. You add people. Complexity ensues. Your business with a few people focused solely on making things happen naturally develops a number of different ways to do the same thing. Some are effective, some not. When things get a little out of control you create processes to drive consistency and build leverage.

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Two summers ago, in 2012, St. Ignatius High School student Ryan Linker was looking for a way to earn some extra cash. So he decided to start his own car detailing business. “My parents were bugging me to get a job,” he recalls. “My dad suggested I start some sort of business. He did car detailing as a kid and knew it pretty well and he said he could teach me.”  

The company took off, first with friends and neighbors, then quickly expanding by word of mouth thanks to the spectacular job he did on the interiors and exteriors of the cars he detailed.

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...well the dream of billion glar start-up sales are a draw for investors and 10 of last year's disruptor 50 have been acquired or filed to go public. an overall uptick are luring investors. in the first quarter 36 venture backed ipos the best quarter for new listings since 2000. there were also 105 m&a deals, that's the strongest quarter since 2012 according to the national venture capitalist association.

Image: http://video.cnbc.com/ 

Corporate venture capital is hot again. U.S. funding levels spiked in Q1 2014 to nearly $3 billion. Public tech companies are sitting on massive cash balance sheets and their venture groups are involved in some of the largest VC financings happening today (Cloudera’s $900M Series F rounds saw Intel Capital lead and Google Ventures participating).

Complete the registration form opposite to download a copy of the 2014 Business environment ranking & index

This inaugural Business environment ranking and index report is designed to provide multinational corporations with information that helps them determine which countries offer the most welcoming environments for them to do business in. As globalisation is undoubtedly only going to increase understanding the various factors facing an organisation looking to enter new markets is essential.

Discover which countries are the best in which to do business in the 2014 Business environment ranking and index

After all the angst generated by the Affordable Care Act, and all the punditry, noise, and debate that accompanied its rollout, you might conclude that there are no practical solutions to our healthcare challenges.  But, of course, there are new answers and solutions and new, creative approaches to solving healthcare problems. You just have to look at innovative, private sector enterprises.  And if you do, you might find one of the more innovative answers to eldercare right there in your old-fashioned television set.  Just ask Kian Saneii, CEO of Independa.

Many say the first few waking hours can have a profound effect on the success of your day. I have read articles about eating the right breakfast, exercising, meditating, even staying clear of your electronics. But what happens when the world demands you to be connected 24-7.We’ve created a culture that makes you feel left out if you’re not up to speed on the latest and the greatest. How do we keep our humanity in a technological age?

New York, NY – June 5, 2014 - The Intelligent Community Forum today named Toronto, Ontario, Canada as the 2014 Intelligent Community of the Year at its annual awards in New York City. Toronto’s win marked the conclusion of the annual Intelligent Community Summit.

This was the third year that Toronto reached the finals and the Top7 Intelligent Communities list (previously in 2005, and 2013). The award was accepted by the Toronto delegation led by Councillor Ann Bailao, Councillor Michael Thompson and Waterfront Toronto CEO John Campbell. The co-founders of the Intelligent Community Forum – Lou A. Zacharilla, John G. Jung and Robert A. Bell – presented the award to Toronto, which succeeds Taichung City, Taiwan, the 2013 recipient. Toronto is the first Canadian city to capture the Intelligent Community Forum’s global award since 2007, when another Ontario community, Waterloo, was named.

The last three years have seen a significant expansion of the venture capital industry in India, as nearly a dozen funds raised billions of dollars to invest in local startups.

Even as several of these funds witness a steep rise in the valuations of portfolio companies, large global investment firms too are stepping in to bet on fast-growing companies in sectors ranging from consumer internet to online retail, enterprise software and healthcare.

Image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net

Tesla is about to get a head start in China, thanks to Uber.

Uber customers in Shanghai will get a 15-minute test drive in one of the luxury electric cars on June 18. Using Uber's app, customers with a valid driver's license can select a Tesla Model S to navigate around Shanghai with up to two other passengers.

Image: FLICKR, JEFF COOPER  

Want to be happier at work? You may want to move to San Jose, California.

According to Glassdoor’s second annual Employment Satisfaction Report Card, San Jose--home to Cisco, eBay, and Adobe, among other companies--topped the list of the 50 largest U.S. metros.

The survey looked at the top 50 metro areas across the U.S. (based on population) and rated them for employee satisfaction, number of employers hiring, business outlook, career opportunities, and compensation and benefits over the past 12 months, according to local employee feedback.

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A missed connection in the hotel lobby? With the new Six Degrees app, it could be easier to rendezvous with nearby strangers when you travel.

Business trips can be such lonely adventures. Away from family and friends, after the meetings die down, what’s left is often a solo jog, drink, or meal.

As it plans the future of its premium hotels to connect with a more mobile, younger workforce, Marriott has enlisted the help of MIT students to rethink what’s usually a hotel’s most memorable feature: its lobby.

Image: http://www.fastcoexist.com/ 

We have all heard the famous quote, or indeed misquote attributed to Mark Twain, “reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated!” Well if QR Codes could speak they would be pretty much feeling the same way at the moment. Whether you love ‘em or hate ‘em, the humble QR code simply refuses to drift into obscurity. Granted, they are quirky by design and oft times difficult to register; they have been used in some seriously innovative ways! I wrote about a few examples of this innovation back in 2011 that highlights how Southern Koreans are exposed to QR codes on a daily basis.

Image: http://memeburn.com/