Management Professor Timothy Folta, the Thomas John and Bette Wolff Chair of Strategic Entrepreneurship at the School of Business, is serving as editor of a special issue of the Journal of Advances in Strategic Management. Papers may be submitted until May 15. Research finalists will be invited to attend a conference at the University of Strasbourg Institute for Advanced Study in Strasbourg, France in November. Folta, an award-winning researcher, is a Fellow of the Institute, which was created in 2012 as a place of intellectual innovation.
Entrepreneurship
The Final Applications Are In
The final applications are in. The iQ judges will be sifting through over 50 applications to find the top 16 innovations. Those winners will then be asked to give presentations on their ideas, and eight of them will be invited to iQ’s summer incubator. The top three get prizes of $15,000, $10,000, and $5,000.
In the past few workshops, iQ focused on understanding innovation and commercial potential of products. Innovation can be defined as an invention plus its distribution. The invention itself needs to bring something to the market that is different than what is already out there. As Professor Rich Dino would say, how is it cheaper, better, or faster? Continue Reading
The Parrot Is Guatemala Bound!
We’re only a few days away from being on the plane to Guatemala! Charles and I just finished assembling and packing up the Parrot devices that we will be bringing down to the clinic in San Antonio, Guatemala. Partners in Development (PID) has already spread the word throughout the community that we will be visiting, and a medical clinic will be set up between March 1st and the 8th, so everyone in need of general healthcare can come to the clinic.Continue Reading
Have a Million Dollar Idea?
Have a million dollar idea? You can now get an opportunity to turn that idea into a reality through UConn’s Innovation Quest (iQ) competition. On February 16th the first iQ seminar kicked off and the attendance was bigger than we’ve ever seen. Students interested in joining still can as there are two iQ workshop seminars left on March 9th and March 23rd before a final application is due on March 30th. In these workshops students are able to learn tips on starting a business. They focus on key entrepreneurial skills that allow students to develop their ideas and think about the future of their product. There are also a number of experienced entrepreneurs that act as personal mentors to students.Continue Reading
UConn’s New Parrot Device Start Up
How can you get illiterate people to follow written prescription directions? That’s the big question I tried answering after returning from Ghana in May 2013. After working in a medical clinic for a week, our team noticed that patients were not following their dosage instructions. The illiterate patients couldn’t read the medication labels we were giving them. Since they couldn’t understand these labels, the patients were Continue Reading
Second Thursday…A D.I.Y. Support Group
This is a guest post by Arthur (Art) Schwartz ’54 (CLAS). Art is a retired UConn alumnus, class of ’54, who built a small, successful business producing trade shows, consumer events, as well as managing trade associations and publishing a regional trade magazine.
“As the owner of a small business, do you sometimes feel alone and isolated? I certainly did. With another small business owner and friend, we did something about it. ‘Second Thursday’ became the name of a group we formed to act as each other’s consultants and our board of directors.
We each agreed to recruit two or three other Small Business Entrepreneurs (SBE’s) and meet once a month for two hours over bagels and coffee. The initial purpose we proposed would be to discuss the common and unique problems each member encountered. Continue Reading
Entrepreneurship Program for Disabled Veterans ‘One of Best in Country’
Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Honored as One of Best Military Programs
The School of Business’ Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities was recognized as one of the nation’s best and most innovative programs for improving the quality of life for U.S. military personnel.
General Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, provided remarks at the 15th Annual Newman’s Own Award Ceremony at the Pentagon on Sept. 24. In addition to the honor, the UConn program will receive a $37,500 award.
“I was really surprised and extremely flattered,” said Program Director Michael Zacchea, a retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and a Purple Heart and Bronze Star recipient. “There are 400,000 organizations in this country that work with veterans. To be one of five selected for this incredibly prestigious award was truly an honor.”
The UConn Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) is offered at no cost to participants, who typically come from across the Northeast. The program taps the talent of the UConn School of Business faculty to provide veterans, disabled due to their service, with cutting-edge training in entrepreneurship and small business management.
Zacchea hopes the award will bring greater recognition to the EBV program and further develop the network of services available to returning veterans. Despite its U.S. Navy sub base and the Coast Guard Academy, Connecticut isn’t known for embracing the military culture in the way that other states have, he noted.
“Historically the veteran population hasn’t had the attention here that it has in other states like Florida, Texas, California and the South,” he said. “We feel some of our award was due to our unsung work in an underserved area.”
Yet Connecticut offers many advantages to returning veterans, including educational and business opportunities, he said.
Unlike other entrepreneurship programs, the EBV addresses reintegration issues beyond just business. For instance, the veterans are offered a free business suit, courtesy of Brooks Brothers, to help ensure their business success. In addition, the program graduates have access to intense mentorship services for a year, so whether they want to start an IT business or a company that specializes in personal training, they have assistance identifying and overcoming business barriers.
UConn alumni Mitchell Strauss ’79 MBA, Ray Gustini ’65, ’65 JD, General Joseph Went ’53, Barbara Went and John Welch ’80 MBA, also attended the ceremony.
Newman’s Own, Fisher House Foundation, and Military Times sponsor the competition, which seeks to reward ingenuity for programs that benefit service men and women and their families.
“Improving lives for the military is the cornerstone of this program. Newman’s Own is proud to be part of an initiative that helps serve a crucial segment of Americans, those who serve our country,” according to Tom Indoe, president and chief operating officer of Newman’s Own.
Over 250 entries were submitted for the 2014 program. Seven judges evaluated each entry based on the organization’s impact to the respective communities, creativity and innovation.
View photos from the 2014 Newman’s Own Awards here.
Pictured: General Martin Dempsey, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff; Michael Zacchea, Lt. Col. U.S.M.C. Ret, Program Director, Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities; Tom Indoe, President & Chief Operating Officer, Newman’s Own, Inc.; Suzie Schwartz, Trustee, Fisher House Foundation; Peter Lundquist, Vice President & General Manager, Military Times. Photos by Ashley Estill.
UConn’s EBV Program to Benefit from $50K Bank of America Grant
The Bank of America Foundation has announced a $50K grant to support the continued development and expansion of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program at the University of Connecticut School of Business. The EBV program is an experiential business development initiative provided through a network of some of the best business schools in the United States, including UConn.
The EBV program was founded in 2007 to offer training in entrepreneurship and small business management to post-9/11 veterans with disabilities resulting from their military service. The aim of the program is to open the door to economic opportunity for veterans by developing competencies in the many steps and activities associated with creating and sustaining an entrepreneurial venture. More than 300 service-disabled veterans have graduated from the EBV program since its inception and graduates are responsible for the creation of more than 150 new, small businesses. The training is provided at no cost to eligible veterans and is currently offered at UConn, Syracuse, UCLA, Purdue, Florida State, Louisiana State University and Texas A&M University.
The University of Connecticut joined the EBV consortium in 2010 and conducted its first training program last fall. The EBV training consists of three stages: an online curriculum for 4 weeks; resident training on campus at an EBV university for 10 days; and mentoring and continued support for 12+ months. More than a dozen returning Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans attended UConn’s initial classes on the Storrs campus. Going into its second year, Mike Zacchea, a retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel and highly decorated combat veteran who directs the program for UConn, anticipates doubling the number of veterans attending in 2011. UConn School of Business alumnus William S. Simon, Walmart U.S. president and CEO, was the featured speaker at the graduation ceremony held in Hartford last fall. Mr Simon will be returning to speak to the 2011 class of UConn’s EBV program at their graduation ceremony this October.
“I cannot think of a single more important endeavor for us than helping support those individuals who have committed so much of themselves on behalf of their nation,” says Dean Chris Earley of UConn’s School of Business. “The EBV program is unique and compelling in that we not only reach out to these highly deserving individuals, but we also help foster the economy through their business successes at a time that the nation needs such ingenuity and impact. We are extremely proud to be one of the host schools for the EBV program.”
“Supporting the EBV program is one way to show appreciation for the sacrifices of our brave men and women in uniform, while at the same time helping to fuel local economies,” said Kevin Cunningham, Bank of America Connecticut president. “In just four years, these budding entrepreneurs have created more than 150 small businesses across the country. This is an exciting partnership, particularly for our Connecticut employees who have served in the military or count themselves among UConn School of Business alumni.”
More information about the EBV Program at UConn is available at http://www.business.uconn.edu/ebv.
Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans at UConn to Benefit from $1M Wal-Mart Foundation Gift
At a White House event today hosted by First Lady Michele Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, the Wal-Mart Foundation announced a two-year, $1M grant to support the continued development and expansion of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program, an experiential business development initiative provided through a network of some of the best business schools in the United States, including the University of Connecticut.
The EBV program was founded in 2007 to offer training in entrepreneurship and small business management to post-9/11 veterans with disabilities resulting from their military service. The aim of the program is to open the door to economic opportunity for veterans by developing competencies in the many steps and activities associated with creating and sustaining an entrepreneurial venture. More than 300 service-disabled veterans have graduated from the EBV program since its inception and graduates are responsible for the creation of more than 150 new, small businesses. The training is provided at no cost to eligible veterans and is currently offered at UConn, Syracuse, UCLA, Purdue, Florida State, Louisiana State University and Texas A&M University.
The University of Connecticut joined the EBV consortium in 2010 and conducted its first training program last fall. The EBV training consists of three stages: an online curriculum for 45 days; resident training on campus at an EBV university for 9 days; and mentoring and continued support for 12+ months. More than 20 returning Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans attended UConn’s initial classes on the Storrs campus. At the graduation ceremony held in Hartford, UConn School of Business alumnus Bill Simon ’81 , Walmart U.S. president and CEO, was the featured speaker.
“I cannot think of a single more important endeavor for us than helping support those individuals who have committed so much of themselves on behalf of their nation,” says Dean Chris Earley of UConn’s School of Business. “The EBV program is unique and compelling in that we not only reach out to these highly deserving individuals, but we also help foster the economy through their business successes at a time that the nation needs such ingenuity and impact. We are extremely proud to be one of the host schools for the EBV program.”
In all, the $1 million gift from the Walmart Foundation will help send 300 veterans with disabilities to entrepreneurship bootcamp at one of the university partners, as well as facilitate the expansion of the program to two additional schools. The funds will also support small business training for more than 100 military family members. UConn, as a member of the consortium will share equally in the proceeds from the gift.
More information about the EBV Program at UConn is available at http://ebv.business.uconn.edu.