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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Aug 4, 2009 |
“How dare you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?” Seth Godin on "Entrepreneurs"
"MONTANA Business & Technology Magazine - Summer 2009 Issue - "Competing Through Innovation" http://matr.net/articl ... .html
TechRanch
Vision Net
- Entrepreneurship or Formal Education?
An MBA has a few uses but I strongly believe the value of such a degree is going down every year.
Come Home Montana
- Technology: Changing the Face of Healthcare Delivery in Montana
Several towns in the Northeastern part of the state—including Glasgow, Scobey, and Plentywood—are also connected to each other and to Billings Clinic via the FORTH network, a connection made possible by Vision Net http://matr.net/news.phtml?cat_id=98&catlabel=Vision+Net , a Montana-based telecommunications company that serves many rural communities.
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
- Montana Career Opportunity - Economic Analyst - Blackfoot Telecommunications Group
Blackfoot Telecommunications Group is seeking an Economic Analyst to conduct financial analysis in support of business decisions relating to the marketing, regulatory and operating efforts of the Company.
- Want to retire? USA Today says head to Butte, Montana
Butte, Montana is a top-five place to retire, according to USA Today Weekend.
- Montana Career Opportunity - Public Policy Director - Montana Nonprofit Association
The Public Policy Director of the Montana Nonprofit Association (MNA) develops and coordinates implementation of organizational strategies and activities to support MNA’s public policy goals.
- Helena, Montana: The town recession forgot
History has shown that government towns in particular weather economic storms better than most, and that is being validated now.
Montana Business
- Summer sessions get down to business Babson program aids student start-ups
The 42 Babson undergraduates, recent graduates, and graduate students participating in the Wellesley school’s program are running real companies.
- 8th Annual Montana State University College Of Business Classic Open Benefit Golf Tournament, 9/18, Bozeman, Montana
Profits from this event will be used to fund College of Business student enhancement programs and scholarships.
Montana Economic Development
- MSE lays off 15 people in Butte, Montana
The layoff is prompted by the delay in funding for a Department of Defense project, and a change in the federal appropriations process that resulted in the decision not to fund one of MSE's long-term projects for the Department of Energy for fiscal year 2010, he said.
- Dearth of psychiatrists limits spectrum of care in Montana
“We have to go 130 miles to go to Wal-Mart, and it’s even more difficult to see a psychiatrist than that.”
- Western Montana InBusiness August 2009 - Recession begs the need for expert business advice
Used to be, summertime in western Montana newsrooms was pretty doggone quiet, sometimes a little too quiet for us dedicated newshounds. Not so these days.
- Governor Schweitzer: With Good Fiscal Management Montana Continues to be Ahead of the Curve
“This is good news that Montana continues to be in good shape compared to the rest of the country,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer.
Regional Economic Development
- Private business dominates regional economic summit - Western Montana Economic Blueprint
The “Economic Blueprint for Western Montana” is the starting point of what MAEDC hopes will be a strategy to help western Montana become more economically competitive through collaboration among political and business leaders in 7 western Montana counties.
- Weak Economy Challenges Montana Legacy Project
The Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Lands need to find buyers for the portion of the lands that they bought on credit – and still need to raise the money to fund the final phase of the project.
- Registration Opens for Montana Department of Commerce 2009 Montana Main Street Conference, 9/28-29
"The 2009 conference is an opportunity to learn and network with others invested in downtown revitalization." Governor Brian Schweitzer.
- 'Studio 406' bringing movies to Montana
The "Studio 406" campaign, designed by Partners Creative in Missoula, highlights everything from the big stuff (Montana's refundable tax credits on labor and some expenses) to the seemingly mundane (free use of office furniture) and most everything you can think of in between (almost 16 hours of daylight to shoot in during the summer).
Careers
- Oregon Angel Fund closes largest round ever
“We’re in the midst of this great recession, but there are still investors interested in investing locally,” said Eric Rosenfeld, who co-manages the Oregon Angel Fund.
Funding and Building your Business
- Six interview questions you can ace
"The way that you sound spontaneous and conversational is to prepare and practice."
- Tapping your alma mater for career help
The university’s career center is not just for undergraduates but for older alumni, too.
- Agency uses Internet to attract future apprentices in Montana
The Department of Labor and Industry has launched a Web site aimed at drawing more high school students into the state’s various apprenticeship programs.
Incubators and R&D
- The Little Secret of Web Startups
Consumer startups are tough.
- CEO Eric Schmidt on Google, Apple and Microsoft
As Schmidt said in an exclusive interview with the Mercury News recently, he didn't even think Google would ever make a significant amount of money.
- 'Virtual assistants' help businesses cut costs
Independent contractors prepare documents, handle paperwork and assist with accounting
- Term Sheet – Board of Directors
There are lots of things to consider for a startup’s Board of Directors including its role, who should be on it, and how to best work with the board.
- Managing Talent in a Turbulent Economy: Clearing the hurdles to recovery
“Nearly two-thirds of executives (65%) are highly or very highly concerned about losing high-potential talent in the year after the recession ends.”
- Building Startup Sales Teams: Tips For Founders
1. Don’t hire sales people too early. In the early days, the founders should be able to sell (and should be selling).
Montana Education Excellence
- University of Washington Research: Nanoparticles cross blood-brain barrier to enable 'brain tumor painting'
Until now, no nanoparticle used for imaging has been able to cross the blood-brain barrier and specifically bind to brain-tumor cells. With current techniques doctors inject dyes into the body and use drugs to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier, risking infection of the brain.
University TechTransfer
- Montana Ranks Poorly in High School Dropout Rate
According to a recent study, Montana is among the worst states in the nation when it comes to teenagers who are not in school and jobless.
- Montana State University -Northern Offers New Leadership Degree that Focuses on NonProfit Sector
This broad-based program allows students to focus on the area of community leadership that best fits their interest and career. The program combines social science, communication and business skills and concepts in addressing leadership related development.
Idaho Business
- University of Utah research keeps spinning out the spin-offs - 23 new firms join dozens of others created in past three years.
"By creating companies and not just licensing technology, we got those companies to set down roots in Utah," he said. "Our objective: Get technology into use to make peoples' lives better and also create jobs in Utah."
- Top 10 Lessons in Starting Companies and Commercializing Technologies, from University of Washington Panel
Some of the stereotypes of scientists and business people have an unfortunate basis in truth. Ratner pointed out that many scientists can be tremendously naive, and often don’t realize that the technology they have is not a product—and that a lot has to be done to bridge that gap.
- Breeding Grounds: University research and support jump-start Montana companies.
In the last decade, 30 startups have spun off from technology patented by Montana State University (MSU) alone, which has a prestigious national reputation for tech transfer.
Washington State Business
- Dots connect on Idaho education corridor
A college foundation’s recent purchase of 17 acres of land in downtown Coeur d’Alene has accelerated a process to create an expanded higher education campus shared by multiple schools.
Wyoming Business
- A tale of Washington state's economic distress
When rumors of layoffs first hit Microsoft's campus in the fall of 2008, Rod Learmonth shrugged them off.
Education
- Wyoming supercomputer planning hits milestone
The Boulder, Colo.-based National Center for Atmospheric Research is leading the project and the National Science Foundation is covering most of the project's $80 million cost. Wyoming is contributing $20 million.
- Ten Sleep, Wyoming-based language company, Eleutian Technology, tries to manage growth
Eleutian is also doing a deal in Russia and has others in the works in the U.S. and Mexico. Whereas Korea accounts for 98 percent of the company's business today, founder Kent Holiday expects that will shrink to under 50 percent as other markets expand.
Community
- College students are flocking to sustainability degrees, careers
With an increased interest in the environment and growth in the "green collar" job sector, colleges and universities are beginning to incorporate sustainability into their programs.
- Study Shows Early Education Sets Kids Up for Success
The report found that children in the so-called "Abbott" district preschools performed at a higher level in the 1st and 2nd grades than students in the district that did not attend preschool. According to the study, the number of students forced to repeat a grade was cut in half.
Connectivity & Communications
- Much room for improving Montana kids’ well-being
Montana is doing an average job at keeping teens in school, but the national average is abysmal. We must do more to help young people complete high school because they are going to need postsecondary education to get good jobs.
Energy and Climate Change
- Twitter changing the way Seattle small businesses operate
"Our business is building relationships. We just happen to sell groceries."
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- Research paints bleak picture of climate change's effect on wildland fires, air quality
As the climate warms over the next four decades, portions of Wyoming and Montana are at ground zero for larger areas burned by wildland fires and an increase in air pollution from those fires.
- Wind energy could supply most of our needs
The overall potential for production of wind energy could supply our current electricity more than 40 times over.
Government Technology
- Robot Design Delivers Packages Through Sewers
The brainchild of designer Phillip Hermes, the Urban Mole is a capsule that travels through existing networks of underground pipes in order to transport packages as diverse as groceries, signed documents and any title that appears on Oprah’s Book Club.
Transportation
- Ravalli County to change software provider for emergency dispatch system and sheriff’s record keeping division
The county commission decided last week to put out a request for proposals for a new software provider by mid-August.
- Simple Solutions and Complex Technology at the World Parking Symposium
Researchers Itzhak Benenson and Karel Martens from the University of Tel Aviv presented a new agent-based modeling tool for cities to develop urban parking policy and measure the impacts of changes such as removal of parking lots.
- Rural air subsidy costs spiral
For Havre, Montana, each of its 359 passengers — 0.6 passengers per flight — received an almost $2,900 subsidy. Double it for a round trip ticket.
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