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The Resource Center has all the info you'll need From content to user feedback, the resource center has the information you need for every level of the entrepreneurial process.
How do you survive personally when your business goes bust? In an article that is both realistic and compassionate, the author lays out a financial plan for the seven lean years. Stash away cash during the fat years, downsize quickly once the handwriting is on the wall, and consider moving to a lower-cost geographic area are among his suggestions.
How do you deal with things when your business is on the verge of going bust? This author lays out a financial plan for working through lean years to sustain a business. Key tips: stash away cash during good times, downsize quickly if need be, and consider relocating to a lower-cost area of the country.
Jeff Hawkins is the Founder of Numenta, but he is also well known as the co-founder of two companies, Palm and Handspring, and as the architect of many computing products, such as the PalmPilot and the Treo smartphone. Throughout his life Hawkins has also had a deep interest in neuroscience and theories of the neocortex. His interest in the brain led him to create the non-profit Redwood Neuroscience Institute (RNI), a scientific organization focused on understanding how the human neocortex processes information. While at RNI, Hawkins developed a theory of neocortex which appeared in his 2004 book, On Intelligence. Along with Dileep George and Donna Dubinsky, Hawkins founded Numenta in 2005 to develop a technology platform derived from his theory. It is his hope that Numenta will play a catalytic role in creating an industry based on this theory and technology. Jeff Hawkins earned his B.S. in electrical engineering from Cornell University in 1979. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2003.
The author asserts there are three tasks entrepreneurs need to do to attract the attention of angel investors. They are "the three shows": show up, show enthusiasm, and show humility.
Danish-born David Heinemeier Hansson is the programmer and creator of the popular Ruby on Rails web development framework and the Instiki wiki. He is also a partner at the Web-based software development firm 37signals, based in Chicago. Ruby on Rails provides a "basic development environment" for programmers, according to Wikipedia.org. Based on the programming language Ruby (developed by Japanese programmer Yukihiro Matsumoto in 1995), Ruby on Rails focuses on user interface and "convention over configuration"; meaning, developers can focus on the unique qualities of their Web site or program rather than the building blocks that every application may require. Released in 2004, Ruby on Rails has been incorporated into many applications used by some of the biggest companies, from Twitter to Apple's 2007 release of Mac OS X v.10.5 "Leopard." Aside from his development of Ruby on Rails, Heinemeier Hansson also works as a partner for Web-based software development firm 37signals. Joining the company in 2003, he has helped develop Basecamp, Campfire, Backpack and other Web-based applications. Working in similar ways like Web-based e-mail services like Yahoo! e-mail and Google's Gmail, 37signals hosts a broad range of IT services for companies, including project management to information-sharing. The firm's software has been used by Kellogg's, Sun Microsystems and even Obama '08. Hansson received his bachelor's degree from the Copenhagen Business School in 2005. In that same year, he moved to Chicago and received Hacker of the Year honors for his work on Ruby on Rails from Google and O'Reilly Media. He runs a blog called LoudThinking.com.
Venture capitalists play a critical funding role, as entrepreneurial ventures move into the big leagues, but the price these investors extract is often too high. Entrepreneurs should consider the relationship analogous to marrying a mail-order bride and proceed accordingly, according to this comprehensive and entertaining article by two women who co-founded a software company. Tips include advising company owners to build trust with VCs and, until that is established, dealing with them in a way that allows for "a reasonable balance of power."
Entrepreneurs are apt to happen upon found money by more skillfully
J. Michael Cline is the founding Partner of Accretive LLC. Michael and other Accretive principals founded Exult, Xchanging, Fandango and Accretive Health. Before founding Accretive Michael spent 10 years as General Partner at General Atlantic Partners helping build General Atlantic into the world's largest private investment firm focused on software and related investments. Prior to General Atlantic, Michael was an associate at McKinsey & Company. Michael received his MBA from Harvard Business School where he was a Baker Scholar and he received a BS from Cornell University. He serves on the boards of Accretive Commerce, Fandango, Accretive Health and Willow. He is a Trustee of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) where he chairs the Tigers Forever initiative - the world's largest effort in global tiger conservation and is a Trustee of the Brunswick School. He also serves on the board of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Endeavor Global and the Harvard Business School Rock Center for Entrepreneurship.
Knowing how to work the system gives you control over one of the most important issues concerning your business: the ability to handle your cash. Whether you're black or white, whether you're running a freshly funded business or a proven establishment, cash flow matters. The publisher of Black Enterprise shares what he's learned about diligent cash-flow management during three decades in the magazine business.
Managing cash flow can be tricky, but building strong relationships with everyone involved in your business can make that task easier. The Founder of the Louis J. Grasmick Lumber Co. has discovered that managing revenue becomes easier when you have a loyal customer base and carefully selected accounts. He shares his view on creating revenue through emphasizing the importantce of strong relationships.
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