The California economy is still booming and could pass the UK this year for 5th place among the world's largest economies in 2017 according to the latest study from the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy (CCSCE). This is an amazing statistic when you think about it and says volumes about the economic power of the Golden State.

Image: http://www.mondaq.com

After my team made the decision to convert our legal status from a nonprofit to a for-profit, the next thing we needed to figure out was how. We navigated the internet for hours and realized there was a dearth of information out there on the subject.

More patience is needed with venture capital (VC) in Canada. Investments have grown steadily in the last few years; however, the rewards for investors are fleeting while more work is required to support the nation’s entrepreneurs and keep them from setting up shop abroad.

VC is critical financing for startups and small businesses thought to have long-term growth potential. Venture capitalists not only supply funding but also advise small enterprises. VC can be needed at several stages of a company’s development until “exit,” when the firm goes public or is acquired by a larger company and the venture capitalist realizes the return on investment.

Image: http://www.theepochtimes.com

Entrepreneurship is a field unlike any other. One of the things that I learned early in my career as a self-employed business person is that, while every day presents new opportunities, there are new challenges to contend with as well.

It wasn’t until I really had a chance to put things into perspective that I realized that all (or most) of these challenges could be broken down into one of two categories: temporary or recurring. Let’s look at six recurring challenges that you’ll likely face as a business person and how you can overcome them.

Henry Ford, the founder of the American automaker Ford Motor Company, is widely recognized not only for his accomplishments, but for his way of thinking and leading. His legacy is filled with terrific quotes and memories which collectively point toward a powerful philosophy of entrepreneurship. I can think of few other figures to turn to for inspiration as I navigate the entrepreneurial landscape each and every day. With this in mind, let's take a look at five entrepreneurship lessons from Henry Ford.

Image: American industrialist Henry Ford and inventor Thomas Edison, seated in the back, are seen on one of Ford's automobiles at an unknown location in Florida in this 1914 photo. The man on the left is unidentified. The legacies of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison are once again intersecting, 115 years after the legendary American innovators struck up what would become a lifelong friendship. Alan Mulally, president and CEO of the company Ford founded, the Ford Motor Co., is to receive the Edison Achievement Award at a ceremony in New York on Tuesday, April 5, 2011. (AP Photo)

The late Alan Rickman’s first appearance as Professor Snape in the inaugural Harry Potter movie finds him storming into Potions class. He strides up to the front of the room and glowers at the students, then launches into a no-nonsense monologue that quickly establishes Snape’s intimidating persona. He ends by targeting Harry personally, deriding him as “our new celebrity.”

Image: https://www.fastcompany.com

The Internet of Things (IoT) is disrupting businesses, governments, and consumers and transforming how they interact with the world. Companies are going to spend almost $5 trillion on the IoT in the next five years — and the proliferation of connected devices and massive increase in data has started an analytical revolution.

Image: http://www.businessinsider.com

I’ve been asked to discuss where we are today concerning the intertwined topics of innovation and patent policy. I do so as a long time observer, not as a patent lawyer for which, due to my undergraduate specialties, I am totally unqualified. Rather, I approach the topics from the perspective of someone who has run perhaps the two largest IP operations in the U.S. if not the world.

Militaries around the world have eyed 3D printing as a cost and time-effective resource for future missions, whether it’s printing up replacement parts for warplanes, grenade launchers, or meals for soldiers. Recently, the US Navy has partnered with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to develop a proof-of-concept submersible that was printed in under four weeks.

The idea of printing up weapons or vehicles is something out of science fiction, but this is something that the military could begin using in the next couple of years, if everything goes well.

Image: https://www.theverge.com

Located in Paris, the French startup incubator and accelerator, Station F, is as long as the Eiffel Tower! It is based out of an abandoned railway depot and can host up to 1000 startups!

Station F opened its doors to the public on June 29th, 2017 with a launch party attended by French President Emmanuel Macron, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, and 2000 international entrepreneurs.

Image: https://boston.consulfrance.org

Many executives expect IT will play a growing role in driving business results, according to a new survey. For that to happen, CIOs must broaden their profiles and prove IT’s effectiveness in areas such as digital and innovation.

IT is poised to play a new, more strategic role in companies, one that moves beyond support to create business value through technology-based business innovation and digital initiatives. But according to the newest McKinsey Global Survey on business technology,1 1. The online survey was in the field from October 11 to October 21, 2016, and garnered responses from 709 participants. Of these, 395 have a technology focus, and the remaining 314 are C-level executives representing other functions. The participants represent the full range of regions, industries, company sizes, and tenures. To adjust for differences in response rates, the data are weighted by the contribution of each respondent’s nation to global GDP.

A global electronics manufacturer seemed to live in a perpetual state of re-organization. Introducing a new line of communication devices for the Asian market required reorienting its sales, marketing, and support functions. Migrating to cloud-based business applications called for changes to the IT organization. Altogether, it had reorganized six times in 10 years.

Image: https://www.strategy-business.com - Illustration by Lars Leetaru

The British/Canadian organizational theorist Gareth Morgan once quoted “Organizations are living systems, depending on their wider environment to meet their needs.” Does that sound right? This quote by Morgan gives a clear picture of an otherwise complex entity, an organization. Read below to solve many of such mysteries, deciphered into many simple words by the entrepreneurs of all time.

Image: http://www.mensxp.com 

In the last decade, companies have had to adapt to millennials as consumers and workers. Now, a new kind of millennial is emerging: the investor.

With their habit of viewing life through a smartphone, millennials have already disrupted industries like retail, the media and transportation. Now they’re driving shifts in investment markets with a wave of new technologies and products that cater to their demands. This next generation of investors wants sophisticated platforms that are powerful and convenient -- and make the world a better place.

TORONTO—Canada’s technology sector, which has long struggled to compete with sunny Silicon Valley, is seizing on the U.S.’s hardening stance on immigration in a bid to lure top talent.

The pitch: Come to Canada, where there are cosmopolitan cities, affordable health care and, most important, more certainty around work permits and entrance requirements that many executives feel is lacking under the Trump administration.

Image: Canada is courting tech workers amid deepening worries about U.S. immigration policies. Above, celebrations in honor of Canada Day in early July. PHOTO: ZUMA PRESS 

Another day, another boring brainstorming session. You know the drill:

Someone dusts off the flip chart easel or cleans the dry erase board. The facilitator introduces the challenge and, standing at the board with marker in hand, asks team members what ideas they have. One person offers an idea, then another person chimes in, and eventually you have a whole sheet full of concepts. Everyone feels like something was accomplished, but later when you analyze the ideas, they're mostly incremental and predictable. So you realize that you've spent an hour of people's time, but haven't really solved the problem.

A number of readers reached out after thinking about my last missive, So You Want To Be An Entrepreneur. They shared their stories and thoughts and asked me for a few more of my ideas on this subject. And so…

Something I heard Steve Jobs say in an interview I saw years ago has stayed with me as a guiding principle of entrepreneurial success. Jobs was asked about the market research he did before developing the iPhone. His response was an incredulous look accompanied by his declaration that he didn’t do any market research at all.  So how would people know if they wanted something they couldn’t conceive of?

A recent New York Times story chronicled the experiences of “extreme commuters,” those who travel two hours or more each way to work. The article focuses on people who commute to New York and notes that there is little or no data on extreme commutes. The Census Bureau, through the American Community Survey (ACS) does not survey two hour commutes. Its maximum classification is 90 minutes or more, though The Times focuses on the 60 minutes and over data, 2013 ACS.

Image: http://www.newgeography.com 

Scientists for the first time have successfully edited genes in human embryos to repair a common and serious disease-causing mutation, producing apparently healthy embryos, according to a study published on Wednesday.

The research marks a major milestone and, while a long way from clinical use, it raises the prospect that gene editing may one day protect babies from a variety of hereditary conditions.

Image: Newly fertilized eggs before gene editing, left, and embryos after gene editing and a few rounds of cell division. A study published on Wednesday announced that edited human embryos can repair common and serious disease-causing gene mutations. Credit Shoukhrat Mitalipov 

As summer vacation winds down, the newest crop of college freshman are preparing for their first year in a new place.

If they — or their parents — are wondering what to expect, they can look to a ranking of college towns in Americas from the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER).

AIER compiled its list using nine economic, demographic, and quality-of-life factors. It defines college towns as those which are home to a college or university and have fewer than 250,000 residents.