David LaPlante

EntrepreneurshipWeek USA Kickoff Event tonight at Desert Research Institute

UPDATE: Just received word that the event is CANCELED tonite due to SNOW (and a disproportionate number of 2WD minivans and Chrysler Sebrings setting a precedent of creating chaos on Reno's streets).

I'm headed up to DRI tonight at 5:30 pm for the kick off of EntrepreneurshipWeek USA, a nationwide event to celebrate and encourage entrepreneurs. Taking Logan to hopefully get a tour of the DRI Virtual Reality CAVE. The evening's highlights include:

• Lt. Governor Brian Krolicki
• Dr. Steve Wells, President, Desert Research Institute
• Fred Hamilton, Publisher, Reno-Gazette-Journal
• Meet the Business Report of Northern Nevada's "Entrepreneurs of the Year"
• Tour of DRI's CAVE and Ice Core Labs

EntrepreneurshipWeek is sponsored by the Nevada Commission on Economic Development (NCED), Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (NCET).

Some of The Week's events include:

• Monday, Feb 26 - Annual Engineer's Day (UNR) All day - College of Engineering (CoEN) Open House - Free
• Wed, Feb 28 - "POP is YOUR Connection - Connect with the Resources for Starting or Expanding Your Business" 10 am - Plaza Hotel and Conference Center - Carson City
• Fri, Mar 2 - Entrepreneur Expo - Reno-Sparks Convention Center- 9 am - 5 pm - Sponsored by: - NCET - Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology - Nevada Commission on Economic Development

Here's a Q&A from NCET talking about about why this event is cool:

EntrepreneurshipWeek USA Q&A:

1) Who should attend Entrepreneurship Week and why?Anyone who is an entrepreneur, or anyone who had ever considered becoming an entrepreneur, should attend the EntrepreneurshipWeek USA events, especially the Entrepreneur Expo on Friday, March 2 at the Reno Convention Center.

2) What can attendees hope to get out of the event? Each of our events focus on one or more issues important to entrepreneurs. The Entrepreneur Expo, for example, will feature exhibitions by 30 to 40 organizations that provide services for entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs. We'll also have 10 to 15 speakers and panelists addressing topics such as "How to Write a Business Plan," "Strategic Planning," "Technology for Your Business," "Electronic Marketing for Small Businesses," "How to Go Public," and many, many more.

3) What is the significance in having an event like this in northern Nevada? EntrepreneurshipWeek USA is a new nation-wide event created to celebrate the importance of entrepreneurs. Given their role in Nevada's past, present and future, it's fitting that Nevada is doing more to recognize EntrepreneurshipWeek USA than any other state in the union. Our events have two very important elements. First, celebrating Northern Nevada's successful entrepreneurs, who can serve as an example to aspiring entrepreneurs. Their stories demonstrate that entrepreneurs come in a wide range of backgrounds and skill sets. Second, showcasing the numerous local, state and federal programs and non-profit organizations that exist to encourage and help entrepreneurs. Few Nevadans are fully aware of the vast resources available to entrepreneurs, and we hope that EntrepreneurshipWeek USA will help connect the resources and the entrepreneurs.

4) Describe some of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face in northern Nevada. The biggest challenges facing Northern Nevada's entrepreneurs are access to investment capital and access to qualified Board members and experienced advisors. EDAWN and NCET are working closely together to identify - and in some case spur the formation of - additional sources of investment capital. At the same time, NCET is identifying a pool of experienced and qualified individuals who can serve on Boards of Directors and Boards of Advisors to new and growing companies. These companies can then draw on the wealth of knowledge and experience embodied in these people.

5) Why is entrepreneurship such a hot topic? Nevada is a state built by entrepreneurs. Currently, 85% of Nevada's companies employ 20 or fewer employees, proving that Nevada's economy is truly fueled by small businesses. Studies by EDAWN and NNDA show that Nevada's future growth will be driven by businesses started within Nevada, rather that by companies relocating to Nevada. For these reasons, we clearly need to focus on encouraging, helping and celebrating Nevada's entrepreneurs.

Technorati : CAVCaM, DRI, EDAWN, Entrepreneur, EntrepreneurshipWeek, Foundation, Kaufman, NCED, NCET, Nevada, Reno, development, econmic

Del.icio.us : CAVCaM, DRI, EDAWN, Entrepreneur, EntrepreneurshipWeek, Foundation, Kaufman, NCED, NCET, Nevada, Reno, development, econmic

"Perception Is a Critical Factor in Attracting Expanding Companies" - Expansion Management Magazine; Reno, Nevada Named in Top 50 Hottest Cities

Expansion Management Magazine just named Reno of of the "2007 AMERICA'S 50 HOTTEST CITIES"! In it, they call out that "Perception Is a Critical Factor in Attracting Expanding Companies." Yep. Perception is reality. Sometimes we call that branding ;-)

In their annual poll of 80 prominent corporate site location experts, Reno, Nevada ranked in the top 50 out of 360+ metros to arrive at their list of the best places to expand or relocate a business.

Congratulations to EDAWN for their continued success in managing the perception of the Reno. Perhaps the unsung hero here is the RSCVA. If it weren't for their relentlessly drumbeating our outdoor adventure and diverse gaming+ activities, Reno's profile would be much less. Furthermore, their open dialog with EDAWN about leveraging tourism and economic development messages together has really given this region legs to stand on.

My prediction: Northern Nevada will start to emerge over the next 10 years as one of the more "green" economies to live/operate in as the University of Nevada, Desert Research Institute, the State and the numerous homebuilders and commercial developers create a catalyst of profitable and attractive opportunities for living and business expansion. I've been privy to a lot of the discussions going on and it's really exciting.

In ten years we could be recognized as the #1 "green" city for business and living. Easy? No. Doable? Yes.

  Technorati : branding, development, economic, edawn, expansion, growth, management, ncet, nevada, perception, quality, relocation, reno, reputation

Steve & Drew's Reno Adventure

                 

A great example of consumer-generated media consistent with Reno-Tahoe brand (sans the bathrobes).

LOST in Nevada: Bye Bye TDMA..you kept me married. Bye Bye Cingular.

So 2007 is going to be interesting in the mobile and wireless for a few things:

First up: ATT/Cingular to shutter TDMA by 2008! This is very relevant to Nevada and to those of us who spend considerable amount of our time out in wild wide open that is Nevada. Many of us have been lulled in to being tremendously dependent upon what used to be AT&T wireless' backbone and is currently Cingular's (and soon to be again AT&T wireless' again). In August, Cingular began enforcing a surcharge on customers who remained on its TDMA network. At the time of the announcement, the carrier said the $4.99 a month charge would only affect a small number of its customers since the majority (more than 90%) were already on its GSM network.

Cingular is soon to become AT&T again has announced that they intend to shutter all of their TDMA networks by 2008. So the question remains for all the hunters and fishermen and the bike riders and the people who motor around in the greater reaches of Nevada, what now? It seems that a lot of places that used to have cell phone access...may not. This may cause some trouble in calling the honey and letting her know you're coming home a "little bit late" while you stop off at Brunos...So I would like to see if anyone has any information that they can post or share on what we can do with regards to cell phone access out in the greater hinterlands of Nevada.

Second up: Here's a funny video from YouTube talking about the ATT/Cingular thing....oh wait:

"This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Viacom International, Inc."

This will be an interesting re-re-re-rebranding challenge that unfolds before us.

A Conversation on Energy...a Town Hall Meeting January 17, 2007

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 there will be a Town Hall meeting: “... A Conversation on Energy”. Hosted by ConocoPhillips and Desert Research Institute (DRI), and moderated by Dr. Roger Jacobson, DRI Vice President of Academic Affairs & Chief Officer for Faculty Relations. 

Panelists and speakers include:

• Dr. Jason Geddes — Manager of Government Affairs at the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN) and the Chair of Governor Gibbons’ Energy Taskforce
• Katheryn Landreth — Nevada State Director for the Nature Conservancy of Nevada
• Paul Enos — Executive Vice President of the Nevada Motor Transportation Association
• John Lowe, executive vice president, commercial, ConocoPhillips
• Joe Leone, vice president, drilling and production, ConocoPhillips

The skinny: Wednesday, January 17, 2007 6:30pm PST Registration 7:00pm - 8:30pm PST Town Hall Meeting Holiday Inn Downtown Reno 1000 East Sixth Street Refreshments will be served. Seating is limited so register to secure your seat by calling toll free to 1-800-877-5917 or logging on to www.conocophillips.com/energy/RSVP. Registration closes Tuesday, January 16 at 7:00pm PST.

tags: dri, ConocoPhillips, conservation, energy, green, alternative, EDAWN, NCET, nevada, reno

Entrepreneurship Week USA February 24 thru March 3, 2007

Entrepreneurship Week USA -- a nationwide celebration of entrepreneurship -- is February 24 to March 3, 2007. It’s a great opportunity for Nevada to showcase and encourage the entrepreneurs upon which Nevada's economic future depends. Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology has partnered with Entrepreneurship Week to promote within Nevada.

“Entrepreneurs, educators, community leaders and young people across the US will celebrate the power of entrepreneurship and ignite the nation’s consciousness about the importance of being entrepreneurial.” 

Ideas for the week include open houses, workshops and an “Entrepreneur Expo.” The Expo includes workshops targeted towards entrepreneurs, including: Bootstrapping your Business | Incubators | How to Write a Business Plan | Financing Primer | Marketing | Technology for your Business.

The Entrepreneur's Expo would be free to attendees. Please visit www.entrepreneurship.com for more ideas and for general “eWeek” information.

tags: NCET, entrepreneurship, technology, Nevada, entrepreneurship week

First NCET Tech Thursday of the new year January 18th at the Redfield Campus

Please join us on January 18th for 2007's first Tech Thursday, Northern Nevada's premier technology and entrepreneurial networking event! EDAWN's Chuck Alvey will give a brief update on the Target2010 study and their action plan to make the Target2010 study a reality.  DRI Research Park's Jeff Pickett will provide an overview of DRI's incubator project and related feasibility study.

Facts and Figures   
Thursday, January 18, 5:30 – 7:30 pm, $10 donation at door. RSVP by Tuesday, January 16th to
Emily Lowe at RSVP at NCET dot org. 

Redfield Campus - Nell J. Redfield Building
18600 Wedge Parkway
Reno, NV 89511
(775) 850-2710

tags: NCET, nevada, entrepreneurship, technology, UNR, redfield, campus, EDAWN, Target 2010, DRI, Jeff Pickett, Chuck Alvey

Reno-Tahoe Chapter of Entrepreneurs' Organization holding event open to local business community...a must see speaker: Joe Calhoon

Joe Calhoon, CSP, is recognized as one of the nation's leading authorities on leadership development and organizational performance. In the past 20 years, Joe has given over 2,000 presentations to more than 400 organizations on four continents. His clients include Ritz Carlton Hotels, 3M, Best Buy, and General Electric. 

Before writing PRIORITIZE! - A System for Leading Your Business and Life on Purpose, Joe served for more than 10 years as a Senior Presenter for Stephen Covey teaching The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People® and Principle-Centered Leadership®. 

On Wednesday, January 17th, Joe Calhoon will be in Reno, at the Nevada Museum of Art to lead an informative, inspiring, and entertaining session where you will discover a revolutionary approach to business growth that can transform your business. PriorityAdvantage™ works with leaders and business owners who want to develop high-performing organizations. For more information visit http://www.prioritize.com/. 

Don't miss this opportunity to learn the three keys that unlock higher performance. Take your business (and your life) to the next level. RSVP Online. Please note that you must cancel your reservation at least 48 hours before the event or be billed for the event. Walk-ins accepted as long as space is available. Cash or check only. 

Brought to you by:

tags: reno, tahoe, entrepreneurs' organization, eo, eort, calhoon, edawn

Happy Nevada Day! Why we love Nevada...

My boys woke up excited as this makes their 3rd (of 10 I believe) sanctioned events in which they can wear their Halloween costumes all day in public. Both boys began their Tigger-like bouncing at 6am this morning excited for Nevada Day.

Logan said, "Dad, we LOVE Nevada!!!" Then the boys proceeded to rattle off what they perceived to be their best reasons to love Nevada. I thought I'd share with you what 4 and 7 year old boys believe to be our State's best selling points: 

• Logan: "No school today!"
• Cody: "There's lot's of Eye-candy!" (He was referring to candy-eyeballs, however, he's not entirely incorrect <grin>.)
• Logan: "We get to go camping!" (Yep..we're headed out...)
• Cody: "Fireworks, marshmallows, and campfires!" (All true. Campfires are illegal in California, as are fireworks. I'm pretty sure they have marshmallows though.)
• Logan: "Clean air and water." (He's learning about ecosystems at school right now.)
• Logan: "Skiing!!!" (Except for Heavenly, Mt. Rose and Diamond Peak., all of Tahoe's resorts are in California. Logan hasn't figured this one out. But you can live in Nevada and enjoy them all within 20 to 45 minutes.)
• Cody: "Lots of chukar." (Yep, we're the chukar state.)

Of course things like no taxes and lack of traffic didn't make their list, but I was impressed!

Yes, it's Nevada Day. Actually, Nevada Day is October 31st. That's when Nevada became a state -- er, admitted to the Union -- October 31, 1864 to be exact. That was during the Civil War -- hence we're the "Battle Born" state. We celebrate Halloween and Nevada's statehood on the same day. Sweet.

Of course, with the passage of AB396 by the 1997 Nevada State Legislature we celebrate Nevada Day on the "last" Friday in October beginning in 2000. In other words, whatever it takes for a three-day weekend. That's today. Pretty much the whole State takes the day off -- unless you're a service-based business or the majority of your customers are outside the State.

So, unfortunately, most of the Nevada-based Twelve Horses team is working today. Contrary to popular belief, most marketers in New York and Boston are not as enthused about Nevada Day as we are.

I must note, however, that over the years, most of the Twelve Horses team located in other states and countries have kindly offered to take this day off too and celebrate Nevada Day with us -- how kind of them! ;-)

tags: Nevada, Nevada day, Halloween, holiday, Reno, camping, hunting, fishing, skiing, business

Nominations open for the Business Report's Entrepreneur of the Year

The Business Report of Northern Nevada in partnership with Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology are calling for nominations for Entrepreneur of the Year. Nomination deadline is November 17, 2006.

Click the image for details.

Technorati : entrepreneur, reno, nevada, ncet, cet, award, business

Oracle's Safra Catz, Senator Ensign and Nevada's Workforce Future

Quick event summary:

• The time, money and energy we --America-- waste on the IRS and our ridiculous tax-code evasion game if invested in R&D and education would ensure our global dominating class-barrier-breaking affluent economy. We piss our advantage away on lawyers and accountants playing a stupid cat-and-mouse game with the IRS. Stupid we collectively are.
  
• Most of the most common practices of successful, profitable and consistently performing businesses-- accountability, terminating weak performers, employee and management incentives, innovation culture, free markets, access to union-free labor -- is absent in our public schools.
  
• Our H1B Visa policy is insanely bass-ackwards. "Let's educate our global competitors here in the US and then kick them out so we can outsource our jobs back to them." Sweet.
  
• Sarbanes-Oxley ('Sox') has exported our best small and mid-sized public capital offerings to foreign countries. While well intentioned, the lawyers and accountants again are making all the money while small businesses that used to be able to raise public financing in the US are headed to Canada, Europe and anywhere they can but the US.
  
• Safra Catz for President in 2012. What kind of person can put up with Larry "the Largest Ego in the World" Ellison? Safra Catz. Cool. Level headed. Smart. Witty. Plays the game to win. Humble. Self-depreciating. All the skills to lead one of the largest and most relevant businesses in the world...Oracle. Safra, please come back!
  

---

Like most businesses that depend on technology workers, we're constantly hurting for talent. Human capital is as important -- if not more -- than financial capital. Most sage entrepreneurs will tell you...and I'm one of them...human capital -- your workforce -- is what makes or breaks you. (By the way, we're looking for super cool talented kick-ass developers and creative's!)

First-off, what a great event. Awesome. I jotted down notes for about about 15 blog posts. It really got me thinking...

About the the only thing that sucked is that because it was organized by Senator Ensign & Crew a lot of "binary" people of the "D" flavor will immediately discount it and get crimped in their R v. D Kos-style black-and-white politics that dominates most dialog in an October predating an November election. If Reid had organized the event, the 98% of the same things would have been discussed.

So, kudos to Ensign & Crew! He did this event in Las Vegas yesterday as well. Yeah, he's trying to get re-elected. Duh. If you're not a fan of R's -- then at least respect the marketing. Splendid marketing. But at least my 'BS' detector didn't go off to many times today as I thought it would. The dialog was real and genuine. Education and workforce development is CRITICAL to Nevada. No matter what the attendees political flavor, everyone left with their thinking caps on.

The event stimulated great thought and dialog on education and workforce development to make help ensure that businesses (like mine) in Nevada can meet our human capital requirements. The silly thing right now is there's no shortage of "capital capital". We're consistently challenged (like most growing western cities) with attracting and/or retaining enough "human capital".

Again...kudos to Ensign. He's the MAN on the High Tech Task Force. That's a very good thing for Nevada.

While today's event was very science-math-education oriented, I think that there were a few facets of this problem that were not discussed and I'll pick those up in some future posts. Here's the teasers:

1. The Internet is not through trashing the paradigms of society and social institutions as we know it. Mainstream media is under the gun today. Education -- and our traditions built around education -- are about to be blown apart as well. Homeschooling and socialschooling(C) (I made that term up) is going to reshape how we educate.
   
2. I bet you can name 10 people most likely featured in any given issue of People magazine, can you name the top 10 scientists and mathematicians? Why Paris Hilton, Bono and Angelina Jolie will have more influence in solving our dilemma than the gray-haired PHD wielding education majors or the unions.
   
3. My experiences with public schools and parenting. New thoughts on what matters...can you say THESPIAN?
   
4. If access to knowledge, education and information is ubiquitous and a commodity, what separates a Stanford from a UNR? And why "who" you know still matters more than calculating the area of a dodecahedron...
   

tags: ensign, senator, senatorensign, Nevada, Reno, Las Vegas, education, workforce, schools, hightech, high-tech, oracle, Safra, Catz, TMCC, UNR

  Technorati : Catz, Las Vegas, Nevada, Reno, Safra, TMCC, UNR, education, ensign, high-tech, hightech, oracle, schools, senator, senatorensign, workforce
Del.icio.us : Catz, Las Vegas, Nevada, Reno, Safra, TMCC, UNR, education, ensign, high-tech, hightech, oracle, schools, senator, senatorensign, workforce

Wi-the-Fi Can't You Get WiFi at a Convention Center Here?

I write this sitting from a local casino convention center floor with the thumping beats of Huey Lewis & the News in the background...groovy.

While I've written many times how wonderful our EV-DO and EDGE connectivity is in the Reno and Tahoe destination, it's only been in the last year that WiFi connectivity has been lit up aggressively. Visit even the smallest privately owned coffee shop/bar and you're likely to find free WiFi. Places like Java Jungle, the Chocolate Bar, Deux Gros Nez, the Record Street Cafe, Walden's, and of course every Starbucks on "Every Corner" offers T-Mobile HotSpots. Even Anchors Bar & Grill in Sparks has better WiFi than most.

So Wi-the-Fi can't most of the convention centers at the casino gaming properties get it dialed in!? (Insert image of me throwing my cell phone  against a wall and it bursting in to a 1,000 pieces to highlight the emotions that well up while contemplating that last statement.)

For the record, my best experiences have been at the Siena and Harrah's. While pretty much every property touts WiFi of some sort, it's pretty hard to find and reliably connect.

At right is a picture of my desktop as I sit and write this on the floor of one of our largest local hotel convention centers. Bleak. Barren. Devoid. Zip. Zero. Nada. Crazy.

Thanks Sprint for the EV-DO. You should sponsor me. I'm your biggest fan!

While I respect that our visitor demographic on the whole is not part of the "Always On" generation, northern California is our market and that place is lit up.

Perhaps it has in large part to do with local casino executive leadership? When's the last time you saw a local gaming executive hanging out in Java Jungle or Starbucks for that matter banging away on a laptop?

Most casino executives in this region are self -admittedly "unconnected". This doesn't mean they're "bad people", it simply means their priorities are perhaps out-of-sync with the 20/30/40 something's that are living out their business careers in Marriott, Hyatt and Hilton properties. The "unconnected" will never never prioritize WiFi until they get plugged in themselves.

So as we businesses leaders continue to move our office infrastructure to VOIP soft-phones and access to our business intelligence systems and functional processes management to online web applications, I can assure you I will not be the only frustrated business professional "stranded in the desert". Help. Please. 

This just in: Snowing @ Heavenly Lake Tahoe

Let me just start by saying I'M DONE. DONE WITH SUMMER. DONE.

Heavenly has seen its first snowfall of the season!!!! It snowed for much of the day today, Thursday, October 5th.

Just showed the boys this photo that Heavenly emailed to me. They're in their room now finding their ski gear. (I wish I had their concept of time!)

More snow in the forecast for the days to come. 43 days to go!

If you haven't got your season pass yet, what are you waiting for!?

  Technorati : Heavenly, heavenly lake tahoe, lake tahoe, powder, skiing, snow, snowboarding, tahoe

Congratulations to local entrepreneur Darik Volpa, "Best of Show for Nevada"

Fellow Reno-Tahoe Entrepreneur's Organization member Darik Volpa, CEO of UnderstandSurgery.com won "Best of Show" for Nevada at the 6th Annual Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference at the Peppermill in Reno, Nevada. Congratulations Darik!

If you want a full run-down of yesterday's events, you can read a great summary by Reno-Gazette reporter Zack Hall.

All-in-all this was perhaps the best Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference I've been too, and it is on par or better than many I've attended in California, Utah and New York. Golden Capital Network put on a great show. The energy level was high, the investors eager and plenty of entrepreneur's with great ideas and business plans.

A 'couple of my favorites:

• Obviously I love Reno, Nevada entrepreneur Darik Volpa's company UnderstandSurgery.com. He has developed has a unique product for the medical industry that has a tremendous market upside and can help people all over the world.
• While I didn't see the whole presentation, I did catch the 2-minute elevator pitch' by CEO Matthew Glenn of Plantsense. They make a sensor that you can place in a part of your home and it will take all kinds of readings and then you USB it in to your computer and it will make plant recommendations. (I should have started this company "LaPlante, CEO "Plansense" hahaha)
  
• Reno-based E-FanMail.com's CEO John Johnson has developed a wonderful way of showing support for sports teams through your email and allowing sports teams to raise additional awareness and sponsor dollars. I know a thing or two about email...and this has some promise to it.
  
• As I mentioned in my previous post, Rudi Wiedemann's Biodiesel Solutions and Arthur Neumann's Free Water are amazing ideas and will really change the world.

Thanks again to John Gregory for putting on such a wonderful show and, of course, Bob Goff of the Sierra Angels for tirelessly beating the "angel investing" drum for Reno-Tahoe.

 
  Technorati : biodiesel, bob goff, ceo, darik volpa, david archer, david laplante, entrepreneur, eort, eort.org, john gregory, nevada, peppermill, reno, sierra angels, tahoe, technology, understandsurgery.com, venture capital

Notes from Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference and Investor Dinner...Investors Hungry for Deals

Last night was the welcoming reception for the Silver Gold Venture Capital Conference. My oh my! What a difference two years makes in investor confidence! The conference is packed and full of energy. It's BACK ON BABY!

Right up front here's the statistic that matters: Northern Nevada has 13 companies on the roster of 30 presenting companies.

That's up from 5 last year and almost 50% of the field. This is very very good news.

Presenting companies like Rudi Wiedemann's Biodiesel Solutions and Arthur Neumann's Free Water are not only killer concepts, but up-and-operating, clean, renewable energy-oriented businesses that will have global impact. I wish I was on the Board for these businesses!

Chuck Alvey of EDAWN did a wonderful job of kicking off the event by highlighting how well northern Nevada is performing in diversifying our economy...and yet not glossing over the challenges we face to continue that growth. The Target 2010 study they've released with Angelou Economics DEAD ON.(Of special note: Susan Voyles' article in today's RGJ on median-income buyers in the Reno area being priced out of the market is one of the better articles to grace the front page in weeks.)

Bob Goff of the Sierra Angels and the founder/former Chairman of Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology kicked off a private investor dinner later on in the evening in which I was lucky to attend.

The "keynote" presentation was from Susan Preston of Seraph Capital Forum, and Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Kauffman Foundation for Entrepreneurial Leadership on new proposed Federal tax legislation for private equity investing.

Susan talked about her work on the The Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs (ACE) Act of 2006 (HR 5198) which she was the main architect. The ACE Act fills a TREMENDOUS gap in current equity funding between venture capitalists and angel investors. This bill addresses that gap by encouraging accredited investors to increase equity investments in certain qualified small businesses through the creation of a 25% tax credit for accredited investors and certain partnerships (including angel investment pools if all are accredited investors) that invest cash or cash equivalents at an arm's length in a qualified small business (as defined by the Small Business Act).

Please write to our Senators (particularly Harry Reid and John Ensign) and support this Act.

What does it mean to local entrepreneurs? It means that all these wealthy Californians that relocate to Nevada for our tax benefits are incentives to take a chance on us entrepreneurs instead of sticking it in stocks and mutual funds. (Sorry to be blunt, but that's what counts.)

That means more small businesses get funded in this state through experienced private equity, and that's a VERY GOOD THING. Banks, despite their prolific full-page ads of their CEOs smiling and touting how "small business friendly" they are actually SUCK when it comes to start-up capital. Credit cards are better sources of start-up capital than you local bank. Angels are better, but they need an incentive like this.

The Dinner Panel topic was Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds: Insights for Emerging Fund Managers.

While I thought I was in for a real snoozer, it was actually a fairly insightful discussion of how well California's pension fund managers are performing and their secrets to success. (Note: CalPERS and CalSTRS are in good hands.) Panelists included Jesus Arguelles, Investment Officer II, CalPERS Solange Brooks, Investment Officer, CalSTRS Guillermo Borda, Managing Director, Banc of America Capital Access Funds Charles Merritt, Parish Capital Jeff Mills, Probitas Partners Amit Tiwari, INVESCO.

Perhaps the strongest message I heard repeated was that "fund managers invest in people". While everyone wants to methodologize the formula of success in to track records, years of experience, business plans, etc., PEOPLE trusting and investing in PEOPLE was the consensus. So what does that mean for any entrepreneur out there: focus on your poeple skills.

You can have a better technology, a better education, a better business plan, a better business plan and still lose to the guy who can work a room.

  Technorati : ACE, ACE Act of 2006, Biodiesel, Bob Goff, EDAWN, HR 5198, Target 2010, angel, angel investing, entrepreneurs, investors, nevada, reno, vc, venture capital

Smart Living Expo Saturday, October 7 @ TMCC

 

There's what appears to be a very cool expo this Saturday focused on "Smart Living". Smart Living is a non-patchouli scented way of marketing green living and the use of alternative energy sources.

According to their web site,, the goal is to

"create an interesting and stimulating venue that provides a comprehensive, educational and networking program for sustainable business and community practices such as green building, energy efficiency, renewable energy, resource conservation and stewardship, and responsible consumption."

Ummm...I think that means:

• be a good green
• reduce your dependency on non-renewable resources
• use alternative energy
• save money

The Skinny:

Saturday, October 7, 2006, 9:00am-4:00pm
Truckee Meadows Community College
7000 Dandini Boulevard
Reno, NV 89512

www.smartlivingexpo.com
call 775-746-9310
fax775-746-5604 fax or email
ellenjacobson "...at..." sbcglobal.net
for more information.

tags: smart living, green living, alternative energy, green, renewable energy, recycle, energy efficiency

 
  Technorati : alternative energy, energy efficiency, green, green living, nevada, recycle, renewable energy, reno, smart living, tmcc

Mobile ESPN Fumbles...Is Disney Next? Or will Apple's MVNO Get the Content? Plus: Why Cabela's Should Acquire the ESPN MVNO Assets.

 

The news of today in mobile is that ESPN is cutting it's Mobile ESPN MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) service. I'm sure this was a supervise to many, however, a long list of industry pundits have been on the Mobile ESPN deathwatch almost since its birth.

Many will drumbeat this as a "lost game", however, I think that this was a merely a First Quarter fumble and ESPN is still poised to win the mobile and wireless sports content game.

(What I do know is that a lot of bloggers -- including myself -- will use this as an opportunity to write some really bad sports cliches in their posts <grin>!)

A notice to the Mobile ESPN Web site today states:

"Thank you for your support of Mobile ESPN. We have been proud to provide fans like you the best wireless sports content experience.

We have, however, decided to change the direction of Mobile ESPN. As of December 31, 2006, Mobile ESPN will cease its wireless service...

...good news is the Mobile ESPN content you have come to enjoy and expect will soon be available through the service of another nationwide wireless provider."

Hmmm. So let's look at some scenarios moving forward that explain today's actions. Comment back what scenario you think is most likely, or add your own:

1. Disney/ESPN thinking: Let's cut all the branding, billing and MVNO overhead and pitch it back upstream to Sprint for an exclusive carrier-on-deck content deal.
2. Disney/ESPN thinking: Let's cut all the branding, billing and MVNO overhead and pitch it out to all the carriers for a long-term non-exclusive carrier-off-deck subscription fees and/or consumption "taxes".
3. Disney/ESPN/Apple thinking: Apple will have their "MVNO/i-phone" out in the next year...we'll scuttle Disney's MVNO and roll ESPN/Disney content in to an Apple MVNO exclusive. An iTunes/Disney/ESPN content conglomerate that only Elliot Spitzer could stop. After all, the only reason Dad will move the whole famdamily over to an Apple MVNO for the Disney iTunes is if there's "something in it for me". (Not that I would know <grin>!)

Anyway, one could easily get carried away with trying to "over-guess" this.

Bottom line is really simple: not enough subscribers. For this, however, there will be no simple answer. (Yes, one will be given, however, we know it ain't always simple to explain away these things.)

Was Sprint the wrong partner? This is doubtful, they were clearly the best network for pushing the 3G video content.

Was the phone selection too expensive or not age-demographic appropriate? Again, not clear. The phones were great, however, amid the Motorola Razr tsunami and a Windows Mobile 5.0 launch, the initially expensive Sanyo was a brand and a price that sports fans may have found too much to digest to switch carriers for.

My guess is it simply came down to the paradigm shift and timing of the content distribution. Should ESPN be available for fees and subscriptions to all major US carriers? Hell yes. Just as ESPN content is not exclusively restricted to just cable operators and not available to DirectTV satellite providers. And from a paradigm shift, we're still trying to piece together the social aspects of why MySpace -- with a clearly inferior user-interface and kludgy functionality -- blew the pants off of Friendster, Ryze, Tribe, Facebook, Xanga etc.

So does this spell disaster for the myriad of MVNO's out there today? Yes and no. Disney may be up the same creek. They're probably better off long-term focusing on making their content as "widely" distributed over as many carriers as possible than "exclusive" deals.

Cabela's MVNO Would Work

I've been joking around for at least three years now that Cabela's should startup an MVNO. My partners would be stoked just so I'd quit yammering about it. The social demographics of Cabela's customers are compelling and they have the distribution channels nailed. I would soooo love to be sitting in a London coffee shop at some trade show talking on an Advantage Camo cell phone. The stares from the London business elite alone would be worth a 30% premium price for the phone.

The Salt Lake City Cabela's store pulled in more visitors than the Mormon Temple in its first year. Cabela's is an Internet commerce, direct-mail catalogue, retail success story like no other right now:

• Cabela's is the nation's largest direct marketer
• Cabela's is the leading specialty retailer for
• hunting, fishing and camping (the nation's pastime)
• (more folks do these activities than get ESPN on cable, that's for sure)

Hunting, fishing and camping are social-oriented lifestyle brands that Cabela's can easily capitalize on, more than content like Disney, ESPN, or the Outdoor Channel for that matter.

Reno has promised our collective first-born sons (well at least their college education funds in my case <grin>) to get Cabela's to open a retail location here.

I can hope by the time it's open here they've acquired the ESPN MVNO assets and are offering cell phones in Wetland, Advatage and Scent-Lok! If you're from Cabela's and are reading this...give me a call. I've got three years of thought in to this one!

 
  Technorati : Apple, Cabela's, Disney, ESPN, ESPNMVNO, MVNO, Nevada, Reno, SLC, Salt Lake City, Sprint, carriers, marketing, mobile, mobileESPN, subscribers, wireless
Del.icio.us : Apple, Cabela's, Disney, ESPN, ESPNMVNO, MVNO, Nevada, Reno, SLC, Salt Lake City, Sprint, carriers, marketing, mobile, mobileESPN, subscribers, wireless

Record Number of Nevada Companies Presenting at 6th Annual Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference

From an email from Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology:

A record number of Nevada companies are scheduled to present at the 6th Annual Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference. At least eleven of this year's presenting companies are from Nevada, in contrast to last year when just three companies were from Nevada.

Co-sponsored by the Sierra Angels, the Silver and Gold Venture Capital Conference will be held October 3 and 4 at the Peppermill Hotel in Reno, NV. The conference will feature over 50 venture capital funds and angel investors - and 30 presenting companies - in four broadly-defined technology sectors: Life Sciences, Communications Technologies / Wireless / Semiconductor, Software and Internet Services, and Emerging Technologies.

The record number of Nevada companies reflects both the growing number and sophistication of Nevada's entrepreneurs, as well as the increasing influence within Nevada of this important Venture Capital conference.

This year's Nevada companies include clean energy, software, camping equipment, and specialty marketing services. (Complete list of Nevada presenting companies)

The Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference begins at 4:30 pm on Tues, Oct 3 and wraps up at 5:30 pm on Wed, Oct 4. (View complete agenda here) Tickets are $395 per person. Seating is limited at this event, so please register now.

Technorati : Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Reno, entrepreneurship, event marketing, vc, venture capital

Backseat Blogger: Staying Connected from Reno to Heavenly, Lake Tahoe in a Car

I hope that the collective marketers responsible for the Reno/Lake Tahoe destination become more aggressive in trumpeting its connectivity and ability to serve the 'Always On' crowd. While we're a far cry from Philly or the SF Goofleplex and our RNO airport wifi isn't free...from a cell service perspective we're blanketed. It's pretty hard to play in the Tahoe basin and not have great cell service.

The conventional thought is that "staying connected" is not appealing to people who are trying to play in Reno-Tahoe. This is misguided. The Travel Industry Association recently released results that concluded:

• "While the point of a vacation may be to “get away from it all,” travelers bring a surprising amount of technology with them in order to stay connected during their leisure trips, according to the latest Voice of the Traveler survey by the Travel Industry Association (TIA) and Synovate."
• "Thanks to technology, travelers no longer have to wait until they return from vacation to share their stories – 18 percent use the Internet to stay connected with family and friends while traveling. Nearly as many use the Internet while traveling to find places to visit or things to do (16%), or choose accommodations based on availability of a high-speed Internet connection or Wi-Fi access (15%)."

Clearly we wired business folk like to have our connectivity. Nothing STRESSES out an 'Always On' executive more than being 'OFF'. (If you happen to be the proprietor of an establishment in Reno-Tahoe, I politely remind you that it is 2006 and it's about time to get that wifi thing licked.)

So, I recently had a meeting up at Heavenly in South Lake Tahoe. So.Lake is about 50-60 a minute drive from my office in south Reno. (From 1996 thru 2000 Martin, Matt, Johnny and I raced the R.A.T.S. town league ski races and routinely made it from Reno to the base of Heavenly in under 50 minutes twice a week leaving at 4pm for a 5pm race-start.)

Carson City is much larger now and that's no longer possible to do it under 50 minutes without serious risk to yourself and others.

Now, it's no secret that I suck at driving. I really do. I just don't care. Hey - I grew up in Crested Butte. The only need for a car was to drive after the bus closed, to get 4wd somewhere to ride your bike, or to drive to Gunnison to go to school. Parallel parking is still one of my greatest fears. Before I graduated high school I'd totaled two of my Dad's cars...yeah. Best to let me ride in the back seat...

Which is why I was STOKED to note that I was able to sustain a permanent VPN connection over Sprint's 3g EVDO cellular network from Reno to So. Lake without so much as a hiccup in service. I was able to instant message over Yahoo and Skype the whole time and iTunes was downloading the Brian Krolicki podcast Robert and Josh had just laid down. Pretty cool.

 

tags: Reno, Nevada, Heavenly, Lake Tahoe, tahoe, Sprint, cell, 3g, wireless, wifi, alwayson, connected, vacation, travel, skiing, snowboarding

Time-lapse video of Reno Balloon Races on Front Page of You Tube

renobaloonraces
Originally uploaded by dave_laplante.

There's a very cool video time lapse video of the Reno Balloon Races on the front page of You Tube this morning. Put up by a user called tlapse, the video is time-lapse photography of what appears to be Sunday's race. With over 110,000 views, ~700 comments and a 4.5 star rating, this is a Reno marketer's dream come true. Somebody give this man a free weekend at the Siena!

The Reno Balloon Races is one of Reno's best events...not that we have a shortage of them. You simply can't go wrong with hundreds of brightly colored balloons and kids. (Side note: the front cover of this week's Business Week Magazine is hot air balloons. Josh & Robert blog about it here.)

While we as a family didn't make it to dawn patrol this year (getting up at 5am on a Sunday is hard!!!), we made it there in time to watch the whole gaggle go off while we kicked back and drank hot chocolate and coffee.

renoballoonraces_family
Originally uploaded by dave_laplante.

The boys and I enjoying some hot chocolate at the Reno Balloon Races.

Technorati : balloon, cgm, marketing, races, reno, rscva, screenshot, social, youtube
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Flickr : balloon, cgm, marketing, races, reno, rscva, screenshot, social, youtube

"Raising capital for your high-growth company" September 15 in Las Vegas

TBAN, Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, Vegas Valley Angels and the Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology present: Raising capital for your high-growth company: Keys and Tools for Growing and Financing a High-Growth Company in Las Vegas. __________________________________ When: Friday, September 15, 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. (7:30 Registration and Continental Breakfast) Where: Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino 129 E. Fremont Street Las Vegas, NV 89101 Registration: $35 for TBAN and LVCC members; $45 for non-members with a reservation; $50 for at-the-door registration RSVP: Call Dida at (702) 649-3495, email info@didava.com or fax registration form to (702) 435-3432. __________________________________ This informative workshop will give you first-hand, real-life accounts of what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur. Three highly successful business owners who created and developed their companies until each sold for $50 million will share their stories and offer advice. The program will also discuss entrepreneurial networking opportunities and education in Southern Nevada, and representatives from numerous professional organizations will discuss mentoring options for the entrepreneur. TOPICS: Overview of term sheets and supporting security documents What to achieve before soliciting funds Key elements of a business plan that investors require Building the right management team How to value your company or opportunity How to structure your capitalization table Common mistakes to avoid when raising capital Resources available to better develop your fundraising plan Local funding options The value of outside directors and what to offer them * This program conforms to guidelines for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credit for CPAs. Recommended credits are four (4). SPEAKERS: Mike Ballard Chairman, Vegas Valley Angels Fritz Ba