|
|
|
| MATR Newsletter - Tue Mar 25, 2014 |
‘Companies are doing the same incremental thing that they did 50 years ago, 20 years ago. That’s not really what we need’—Larry Page http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
The Fire Within Reception To Honor All Woman Business Owners, 3/27, Great Falls, Montana http://www.matr.net/ev ... =4964 --- SBC Annual Lecture With Judy Wicks, 03/27, Missoula http://www.matr.net/ev ... =4946
Montana Data Focused Business Cluster
Montana Department of Commerce
- Data Breaches Put a Dent in Colleges' Finances as Well as Reputations
Cybersecurity insurance in higher education remains a rarity, despite a consensus among those working in the field that the likelihood of such a breach involves "when," not "if."
TEDx Events in Montana
- Made in Montana retailers get marketing lesson
"This is the hard stuff that people don't teach you."
- Local Butte, Montana businesses absorb student interns though the Montana Business Expansion and Retention, or BEAR, program
The networking may help keep young professionals in Butte and help expand the economy.
Northwestern Energy
- Five TED talks on leadership worth watching
While we mere mortals who couldn't attend (or don't have the $600 to spend on live access) wait for more of this year's talks to be shared online, here are a few TED talks from recent years on leadership that are most worth watching.
- Talking climate change at TEDxBozeman
"While the good news is more people are concerned about climate change, they're also at risk of getting depressed because there is a lot of bad news for things that people care about. I'll talk about how I stay energized for tackling a difficult problem."
- Today's TED Talk Ziauddin Yousafzai: My daughter, Malala
Pakistani educator Ziauddin Yousafzai reminds the world of a simple truth that many don't want to hear: Women and men deserve equal opportunities for education, autonomy, an independent identity.
TicketRiver.com
- PSC to Hold 19 Listening Sessions on NorthWestern's Proposed Dam Purchases
The PSC will hold 19 listening sessions throughout the state, beginning in Havre on April 8th and wrapping up with a final listening session at the PSC offices on May 20th in Helena.
Inteneo Systems
- TICKETPRINTING.COM Expands Operation in Harlowton, Montana - Event on 3/26
Loan funds allowed the company to purchase new equipment to improve efficiencies, expand business operations and add employees to meet growth demands.
Come Home Montana
- The Power of 'Thick' Data - Consider the story of Lego.
Successful companies and executives work to understand the emotional, even visceral context in which people encounter their product or service, and they are able to adapt when circumstances change. They are able to use what we like to call Thick Data.
- Algorithms Can Save Networking from Being Business Card Roulette
"It's all about innovation. By mixing things that are different, probably new things are going to come out."
- Meet Big Data's Little Brother
Instead of ignoring traditional performance metrics, it is important to put some real effort into developing good measures of business success. Only if we have well designed KPIs that measure the key aspects of a company's performance in a meaningful and reliable fashion, can we maximize the value of any big data initiatives.
- Idaho school data systems to get OPE review
Both systems have gotten off to an uneven rollout, as evidenced by the legislators' requests for a closer look.
- How Big Data Helped Cut Emergency Room Visits by 10 Percent
It took "a shared crisis" to get everyone on board--and by "crisis" he means the state's previous efforts to trim costs as Medicaid rolls expanded during the economic downturn.
Montana Business
- Montana Career Opportunities - Network Technician, Help Desk Support, Network and Server Support (Level II/III), Applications Developer/Programmer - Easter Seals-Goodwill
Our IT Department is expanding and we are currently seeking talented individuals to fill several roles to support the IT needs of our growing organization.
Careers
- Applied Communications - helping small and medium size towns respond to growth and changes in the 21st Century.
The firm has focused on helping small and medium size towns respond to growth and changes in the 21st Century.
- Time Limit for Consumers to Recoup Blue Cross of Montana Overcharges Running Out: Class Action Representative Sought.
The investigation revealed multiple violations of Montana insurance law to the detriment of Montana consumers. One of the most troubling findings is that Blue Cross overcharged consumers who were part of various association plans including:
- Community Medical Center narrows partnership options to 2 regional providers
A growing body of research argues hospital consolidations lead to higher prices for consumers, particularly in areas where there are already few competitors.
- "Made in Montana" Products Directory
Find some of the best products Montana has to offer through this easy to use, searchable directory.
- Montana Passage - Custom doors and cabinetry from the heart of Big Sky Country
Montana Passage ships all over the country and is featured in some of the finest homes in the United States and Canada.
- Montgomery Distillery Raises Spirits in Missoula, Montana
"We're in the business of taste."
- Snowy Mountain Rifles - custom long range hunting and tactical rifles you can depend on.
Whether your game is hunting elk in the high country or shooting steel at over 1,000 yards, Snowy Mountain has a rifle for you.
- Native American Made in Montana Products
In Montana we take the concept of "authenticity" seriously. The word authentic means of undisputed origin...and that is what the Native American Made in Montana logo signifies.
- Alter Enterprises of East Missoula takes wildlife education online
Inspired Classroom http://inspiredclassroom.com/ incorporates remote wildlife videos into interactive education programs. These programs are broadcast daily from a studio in Montana to classrooms and groups around the world.
Rural Communities
- Future economy: Many will lose jobs to computers
Workers wanting secure employment in coming decades will need skills that complement software applications, rather than compete with them.
- This Economist Foresees 15 Years of Labor Shortages
It's quite possible for labor market shortages to co-exist with high unemployment for those people who lack the skills that employers are seeking, Levanon says. In fact, that's what's happening.
- A question not to ask a great manager
"What do you want me to do?"
- CEO's Secret to Decision-Making: Total Silence
A friend bet Khajak Keledjian $15,000 six years ago that he wouldn't be able to sit still for 15 minutes in complete silence. After nearly five months of trying, the 41-year-old CEO of high-fashion retailer Intermix couldn't do it.
Government
- Finding Big Success in a Small Town
He was open to the idea of living in a small town as long as he could accomplish his professional goals and was drawn to the area with its farmland, rolling hills and lakes. He and his wife, Betty Joan, found a home where their children could walk to and from school. They later added a rustic lake cabin to pursue a wide range of outdoor activities.
Idaho Business
- Montana taxes are less than average
Montana ranked 18th in terms of annual taxes paid, with people in Wyoming taxed the least and New Yorkers the most.
- Top 10 states with the lowest taxes
Interestingly, taxpayers in the states with the highest taxes pay four times more than those in the states with the lowest taxes.
- Governor's Equal Pay Summit March 31-April 1 in Bozeman
Event to Encourage Women in Leadership and Promote Montana Pay Equity Initiatives
Incubators and R&D
- Job fairs for military personnel and veterans planned for six Idaho cities
The job fairs are organized by the Idaho and U.S. Departments of Labor. They are an effort to help veterans, active duty military and National Guard and Reserve members, as well as military spouses.
- Idaho colleges aim for higher tuition, again
Rising costs, pay raises and expanding programs contribute to requests from the state's institutions.
- What did the Idaho Legislature do for education?
What's the future for broadband in my local high school?
- 'Patent Troll' bill will protect Idaho businesses
The Boise region is among the top 20 U.S. metropolitan regions for patent origination and in 2012, CNNMoney.com recognized Idaho as the sixth most inventive state in the country.
Workforce Development
- MonTEC creates collaborative environment for Missoula startups
"The vision here was for us to create an internal community."
21st Century Education Initiative - "You Should Care..."
- The Great Skills Gap Myth
Is there a skill gap?
Education
- Can you really teach entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurship education must move beyond the classroom
MAPS : Media Arts in the Public Schools
- Everyone wants the formula for getting in. There is none. - Inside the admissions process at George Washington University
It showed how the quest for students with brains, guts and desire shapes both the destiny of the applicants and the selective, private university that hungers to raise its national profile.
- Can Entrepreneurship Be Taught? Or Only Lived?
Boston's Emerson College announced the launch of The Emerson Accelerator, a two-year, extracurricular program providing funding and space for students to launch businesses. Here's what you can learn from it.
- Can Entrepreneurship Be Taught? Or Only Lived?
Boston's Emerson College announced the launch of The Emerson Accelerator, a two-year, extracurricular program providing funding and space for students to launch businesses. Here's what you can learn from it.
- A Proposal to Radically Simplify Student Loan Payments
The plan would change the default payment option from the standard 10-year term to a repayment schedule that's tied to a percentage of the borrower's income and eventually forgives the remaining balance after a certain period of time.
Montana Education Excellence
- Video: Jeff Bridges & Steve Bullock - Happy 10th Anniversary MAPS
Childhood Hunger is Solvable
Montana Education/Business Partnerships
- Actor Jeff Bridges joins Montana Governor Bullock, school breakfast program founder on tour
In Montana, nearly 22 percent of children face food insecurity.
- University of Montana departments prepare for $9.5M in budget cuts
The latest numbers are based on projections made in January, and while they're subject to change, Reid said, they'll serve to bring the school's costs in line with current enrollment trends.
- Jack Wegner Praises Non-Traditional Student Experience at the University of Montana
I have found the MBA program to be fun and extremely rewarding. It has been an incredible experience and one I would recommend to anyone wanting to enhance their education at any age."
- University of Montana's Gilkey Center $9.3 million construction set for summer after 6-year delay
The project traces its roots to 2004 when UM alums Priscilla and Harold Gilkey gave the School of Business Administration $1.5 million to establish the center. At the time, the project's anticipated cost was $4.5 million.
- Public invited to discuss future of nursing education in Montana at series of open meetings
The meetings are designed to gather information about local needs related to nursing education, according to Kailyn Dorhauer, project coordinator in the Montana Office of Rural Health at MSU.
Community
- MSU business students meet with NYC marketers from R/GA
"It'll have the long-term benefit of inspiring some of our students, and some of our students will get jobs and all of that. But the main thing I think is the energy and enthusiasm that people like this bring."
- GoogleFest comes to Northwest Montana
Eureka Public Schools hosted GoogleFest, which teaches educators how to incorporate Google apps for Education into school curriculum's.
Funding and Building your Business
- Missoula, UM ripe for change beginning this spring
So what's on the radar worthy of watching this season?
- Bozeman Mayor Jeff Krauss encourages kindness, planned growth in State of City
"My number one priority is our people. They are always my number one priority," Krauss said.
Energy and Climate Change
- Quirky - Submit Your Idea
It doesn't matter if it's a little doodle, a crazy chemical formula, or a "wouldn't it be cool if...", sharing your idea is the first step toward bringing your idea to life.
- Tech firms overuse nondisclosure agreements
Before reading any further, I'll need you to promise you won't disclose, reproduce or distribute this confidential information to any party.
- Founder's Stock Is Gold, If You Know The Rules
Here are some typical special terms and considerations for Founder's stock:
Connectivity & Communications
- Being Water Wise: Embracing a low H20 lifestyle
"I don't even call it water anymore. It's a river. This is a river flowing out of your tap."
- This App-Controlled Air Conditioner Automatically Adjusts to Your Habits
The system also creates a cooling schedule for you based on your usage habits after a couple of weeks, and you can have the system regulate the AC unit's energy consumption based on the maximum amount you'd like to spend on your energy bills.
- Save money and energy by replacing, adjusting home appliances
Want to save some money and help the planet at the same time? Then take a look at some of the gadgets and appliances in your house.
- Wind farm set to rise: Fairfield, Montana's $19 million, six-turbine energy project challenging
When at full-operating capacity the Fairfield Wind project will generate enough energy to supply every home and business in Hill County.
- Renewables Aren't Enough. Clean Coal Is the Future
In its frantic quest to develop, China burns almost as much coal as the rest of the world put together--a fact that makes climatologists shudder.
Government Technology
- Qualcomm's geolocation technology a 'game changer'
A new Qualcomm technology used to create a series of reliable, on-the-fly wireless networks at the South By Southwest Interactive conference earlier this month may soon provide high-end mobile-device users across the U.S. with a new type of digital experience -- one that combines their live presence and digital identity.
- A report card on the nation's 4-year-old broadband plan -- from the man who wrote it
"This plan is in beta and always will be." Lots of things have changed, and I think the important thing is to understand where you want to go and then course-correct as you go.
Miscellaneous Ramblings
- Boston Mayor Plugs Into Big Data - Data dashboards give Mayor Walsh the latest news
"It's really a way to have the department heads push to deliver better services to the city of Boston." Mayor Walsh
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- If You Were Born In The 50's, 60s, 70s, or 80s, or you had kids born then, You Have to Watch This.
This video shows how far we've come...Where will we be in 20 years?
HACKING AND VIRUS ALERTS
- Hate Meetings? Let This Robot Avatar Take Your Spot
Robots have come a long way from their humble beginnings.
- Zuckerberg, Musk, and Kutcher Want to Build You a New Brain
The aim here is to vastly improve the ability of machines to recognize images or process natural language. In other words, they want to build things like Apple Siri that actually work like you expect them to.
Transportation
- Facing the Windows XP apocalypse? Here are some options
Are you ready for the "XP Apocalypse" on April 8?
- Transit + Technology: Revitalizing Public Transportation for Smarter Communities
By enabling customers to travel around the city quickly, safely and efficiently, we can build a more sustainable, better operating community.
To subscribe or unsubscribe from the free weekly MATR newsletter, please visit our list info page