March, 2007

Spring News

 

Venture Capitalists, mark your calendars for the next Capital Access Network Breakfast, April 4.  Also, you won't want to miss the Human-Computer Interaction Lab's 24th Annual Symposium scheduled for May 31.

 

Entrepreneurs, don't miss the Dingman Day Dinner Idea Workshop featuring the Dingman Center's Managing Director, Asher Epstein. Also, don't forget to take advantage of our Mentor Program which is held regularly throughout the spring semester.

 

Alumni, do you have a business in need of $15,000? Or possibly more exposure and some expert mentoring? If you answered yes, then be sure to submit your entry into the Cupid's Cup Business Competition! Clicke here to find out more!  Also, be sure to read up about fellow alumni, Matt Fleischer, and his booming brewing company, Hook & Ladder!

 

Students, get your pitches ready for our weekly Pitch Dingman Review sessions and our next $500 monthly competition March 9 and April 13. Read all about February 2007's winners! If you have the entrepreneurial spirit but are lacking an idea, you will not want to miss the Dingman Day Dinner Idea Workshop, April 10.

 

Students, save the date! The 2nd Annual Cupid's Cup Business Competition is scheduled for May 4. Come see famous UMD alum, Kevin Plank award this year's Cupid's Cup! To find out more, read below or contact Andrea Galati. If you don't have a business but a great idea, check out some of the upcoming business plan competitions from universities all across the U.S.

 

 

Other interesting links:

 

Upcoming Events

Upcoming March Events

 

Pitch Dingman $500 Competition — 5 minutes is all it takes to win $500!

Come to the monthly competition, present your business idea in five minutes to a panel of judges from the Dingman Center, and you could win $500!  For information about the weekly Pitch Dingman sessions on Fridays or the monthly Pitch Dingman competitions, e-mail PitchDingman@rhsmith.umd.edu. Pre-registration is required for the Pitch Dingman Competition. To register, contact PitchDingman@rhsmith.umd.edu. 

Friday, March 9, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., 3570 Van Munching Hall

 

Capital Access Network Review Day

Students and faculty are invited to hear start-up companies present to our Entrepreneurs-in-Residence and Dingman staff as they prepare for Capital Access Network angel investor presentations. Listen to feedback by our experts, give some advice of your own, and learn about some of the new businesses being started today. It's a great experience for everyone!

To Register, click here!!  — Presentations begin at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Please arrive promptly for the time slots you wish to attend.

Friday, March 9, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., 1528 Van Munching Hall

 

 

Upcoming April Events

 

CAN Breakfast (invitation only)
The CAN Breakfasts are by invitation only to angel investors who are qualified investors in the CAN network. Investors will have an opportunity to hear a 10-minute presentation from approximately four start-up entrepreneurs who are seeking funding for their business.  For more information on the CAN Program and to participate, contact Jordan Lichman. The next CAN Breakfast will be held April 4.

 

Dingman Day Dinner — Idea Workshop!

Join the Dingman Center staff and the Maryland Undergraduate Society of Entrepreneurs as they learn how to come up with the next great entrepreneurial idea. Here from Managing Director Asher Epstein about how to see an opening in the market and build an entire business around that catalyst. This interactive workshop will help entrepreneurs think outside of the box to come up with a sustainable business idea. Dinner will be served.

Contact Andrea Galati for more details or REGISTER TODAY!

Tuesday, April 10, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., 2517 Van Munching Hall

 

Pitch Dingman $500 Competition — 5 minutes is all it takes to win $500!

Come to the monthly competition, present your business idea in five minutes to a panel of judges from the Dingman Center, and you could win $500!  For information about the weekly Pitch Dingman sessions on Fridays or the monthly Pitch Dingman competitions, e-mail PitchDingman@rhsmith.umd.edu. Pre-registration is required for the Pitch Dingman Competition. To register, contact PitchDingman@rhsmith.umd.edu. 

Friday, April 13, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., 3570 Van Munching Hall

 

Capital Access Network Review Day

Students and faculty are invited to hear start-up companies present to our Entrepreneurs-in-Residence and Dingman staff as they prepare for Capital Access Network angel investor presentations. Listen to feedback by our experts, give some advice of your own, and learn about some of the new businesses being started today. It's a great experience for everyone!

To Register, click here!!  — Presentations begin at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Please arrive promptly for the time slots you wish to attend.

Friday, April 27, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., 3570 Van Munching Hall

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2nd Annual Cupid's Cup Business Competition

Save the Date!    May 4, 2007

 

The 2nd Annual Cupid's Cup Business Competition is looking to give

$22,500 to entrepreneurs like you!

Entry Deadline - March 16th!!

 

The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship is now accepting entries for the 2007 competition.

Cupid's Cup is an annual business competition showcasing young entrepreneurs from the University of Maryland. This competition is made possible by one of UMD's most successful entrepreneurs, Kevin Plank, CEO of Under Armour, whose generous donation of $22,500 is awarded each year to the first and second place companies.

Eligible contestants must be enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program at the University of Maryland. Alumni of the University of Maryland who earned an undergraduate or graduate degree between May 2002 and December 2006 are also eligible for the competition. Contestants not only get the chance to compete for the prize money, but they also get the chance to showcase their unique business idea to the Maryland community. Finalists will also be profiled in future monthly newsletters and on the Cupid's Cup website. All entrants may receive free coaching and mentoring from the Dingman Center's knowledgeable staff and Entrepreneurs-In-Residence.

The 2nd annual competition will be held Friday, May 4, in Frank Auditorium Van Munching Hall. Visit our Cupid's Cup Website to learn more about the competition, or contact Andrea Galati for additional information. If you are interested in competing and learning more about the upcoming competition, please complete our Intent to Compete online registration!

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Smith CEO Conference : Turning Passion into Profit

 

The Smith CEO (Collegiate Entrepreneur’s Organization) in conjunction with the Robert H. Smith School of Business of the University of Maryland at College Park, The Universities at Shady Grove, The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, and the Hotel and Restaurant Management Department of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore are proud to present:

 

Turning your Passion into Profit: A Conference on the Entrepreneurial Spirit.


 This event will be held on April 14, 2007, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Universities at Shady Grove at 9630 Gudelsky Drive, Rockville, Md., 20850.


Topics covered by Turning your Passion into Profit will help the budding and the experienced entrepreneur with professional advice and networking opportunities. For a full list of speakers and additional information please visit the Conference website!

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HCIL/Dingman Center Seminar Series

 

The HCIL/Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship Seminar Series offers a common ground that can promote interdisciplinary discussion on a wide range of topics relating to Human-Computer Interaction.

 

These lectures are free and open to the public. We ask all attendees to RSVP by sending an email to:

hcil-info@cs.umd.edu  to ensure enough space is available.

 

For more information about the speaker series and to read bios on all guest speakers visit the Seminar Series website!

 

Speakers
April 2 Genevieve Bell
April 24 Stan Ruecker
May 1 Amy Bruckman

 
 Monday, April 2, 2007, 11:00 a.m., Room 2119, Hornbake Bldg, South Wing

Sponsored by the College of Information Studies

 

Genevieve Bell, Intel Corporation

Topic: From the Edges of the Network: Anthropological Musings on Wireless(ness)

 

Abstract: In 1840, Maori elders from New Zealand's north island agreed to the terms and conditions of a British treaty. Amongst its many provisions, the Treaty of Waitangi as it is commonly known, retained Maoris rights in land and taonga (treasures). In 2005, Nextscribe.org, a Catholic think-tank in New Mexico declared that the 'network is the church" and set out an ambitious agenda for research into the role that technology might play in the spiritual lives of America's (and the world's) Catholics. What do these events have in common, and why might they be relevant to our contemporary discussions about wireless technologies?

 

In this talk, I propose to re-examine the notion of 'wirelessness' from an anthropological perspective. This paper is informed by nearly a decade of ethnographic research, with a particular focus on the Asia region, and by ethnographic and feminist theory. I draw on historical and contemporary cultural practices, events and accounts to create 5 interpretative frames for wirelessness. Wireless as schematics; practice(s); politics; citizenship; and imagined. Using these frameworks I suggest a different way of thinking about one of the dominant technology infrastructures of this decade.

 

Biography: An internationally recognized ethnographer, Genevieve Bell has developed product shaping insights into consumers world-wide and is bringing a research driven, end-user focus to Intel. Her influence has been recognized with the award of Intel’s highest honor: an individual Intel Achievement Award. She is a Senior Principal Engineer and the Director of User Experience within Intel’s Digital Home Group and manages an inter-disciplinary team of social scientists, designers and human factors engineers. She and her team strive to stay ahead of Intel’s technology roadmap, using insights gained for in-depth ethnographic and design research to help drive innovations in and around Intel platforms, creating technology that responds to human needs, desires and aspirations.

 

Bell is particularly interested in issues of cultural difference as they are expressed around technology adoption and use; she has conducted fieldwork around the world and is currently working on a book based on her recent ethnographic research in Asia. Her work has been widely published and cited and she is active in the fields of anthropology, computer-human interaction and ubiquitous computing.

 

Raised in Australia, Bell received the bulk of her education in the United States. Prior to joining Intel in 1998, Bell taught anthropology and Native American Studies at Stanford University in California. Bell received her BA/MA in anthropology from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania in 1991. She earned a PhD in cultural anthropology from Stanford University in 1998.

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Event Summaries

 

 

Wharton Technology Conference 2007 — February 26
By Michael Weiss

 

The Wharton Tech Conference starred chief executives from Adobe Systems, FedEx, Computer Associates, Alcatel-Lucent, and IBM. The most important message from these leaders was the trend of increasing social connectivity. In fact, FedEx funded a Stanford study featuring an index which measures, by country, how well socially connected citizens are to one another. Hong Kong ranks #1; the U.S. ranks #12.


What does this rising connectivity mean for entrepreneurs? Despite the success of well-known social networking sites such as YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook, numerous companies are successfully launching in this arena, able to satisfy the unfilled market demand for new channels for social connectivity in various industries. These companies were well represented at the conference.


The panels of successful entrepreneurs included the executives from CURRENT Communications Group, Plentyoffish.com, Haystack.com, and Angelsoft. The company Plentyoffish.com, founded in 2003 by Markus Frind, is run by only one man with no other employees, but it is the number five dating site on the Web in terms of traffic. It receives over one million logins per day. The advertising for this dating site was purely word-of-mouth, with no supplemental traditional advertising. Haystack.com is a social networking site to connect music lovers and artists. Angelsoft offers an infrastructure-based collaborative platform for organized angel groups. CURRENT is a broadband internet provider which leverages power lines, bringing a new form of internet connectivity to households on an infrastructure level.


The key driver behind these new and successful start-up companies is the rising importance of connectivity. As an entrepreneur, do not underestimate its importance for creating new value. Be sure to consider the rising importance of consumer social connectivity as part of your business plan.

 

Michael Weiss is a class of 2007 MBA Candidate at the Robert H. Smith School of Business. For a more information on the Wharton Technology Conference 2007, visit www.whartontechconference.com

 

Entrepreneurship Start-Up Night and Networking Reception — February 27

By Lisa Rassenti

 

The Dingman Center hosted the Entrepreneurship Start-Up Night Networking Reception for Smith MBA students on Tuesday, February 27, bringing together Smith MBA students, local venture capitalist firms and entrepreneurial-minded CEOS in an effort to provide an alternative to traditional campus recruiting. It was designed to provide Smith students with a better understanding of job descriptions and career possibilities at early stage companies and to offer a unique opportunity to network with high-growth ventures in the area.


The reception featured a panel of two venture capitalists— Mark Levine from Core Capital Partners and Michael Avon from Columbia Capital— and two start-up company leaders— Shervin Pishevar of Freewebs and Daniel S. Simpkins of Hillcrest Laboratories. The panelists provided rare insight into their line of work, ideal characteristics of new-hires and the types of positions available at their portfolio companies through a Q&A session. Here is some of their expert advice:

On Getting Hired:
“Don’t look too far for a job. There are plenty of opportunities in the area, you just have to get out there.” –Mark Levine


“We are always looking for people who are passionate and are willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard.” –Michael Avon


“Here’s a checklist: be passionate, network, do research, know what excites you, do what you love, be persistent and look to what the company will do for your long term career.” –Daniel Simpkins


On Entrepreneurship:
“To be in this business you have to have an appetite for risk because you have to go through pain to get profit.” –Shervin Pishevar


“You have to have a bond with people in a start-up that’s similar to a family. There has to be inspiration and caring for each other.” –Shervin Pishevar


“People who have the most emotional equity ultimately get the most out of a company.” –Daniel Simpkins

 

On Venture Capitalist Partnerships:
“A VC has the potential to really accelerate a business but it also means that the outside investor or board can rubber stamp everything you do. The stakes are raised immediately and the objectives become much broader but ultimately they bring a wealth of relationships and know-how to the company.” –Daniel Simpkins


“With a start-up company and relatively new investors, there’s no where to hide if you aren’t working hard. You have to work hard.” –Shervin Pishevar

The discussion was followed by a networking session where students were encouraged to introduce themselves and their ideas to the panelists and other venture capitalist firms and start-up company representatives in attendance.

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Best-selling Author Seth Godin Encourages Students
to Unleash the Idea Virus

Associate Dean Scott Koerwer (left) with Seth Godin.

Legendary Internet pundit Seth Godin spoke to a packed auditorium of students and corporate partners on Friday, February 9, 2007 in Van Munching Hall. Known for his thought-provoking and sometimes controversial books, such as All Marketers Are Liars and Unleashing the Ideavirus, Godin believes that both students and companies should think big.

 

Godin was introduced by Jeremy Epstein of Microsoft, which was one of the sponsors of the event. Epstein, a self-professed Seth Godin fanatic, still possesses the purple-and-white milk carton in which he received Purple Cow. He emphasized to the audience how powerful Godin’s concepts were and indicated that, after having given his boss at Microsoft a copy of one of Godin’s books, the division of the software giant was beginning to implement some of Godin’s ideas,

                                                 albeit “slowly,” he joked.

Godin’s presentation centered around four key concepts:

  • The most exciting place to be in marketing is with the early adopters.
  • Innovation is key to attracting and keeping customers’ attention.
  • You need to get your customers to talk about your product to their friends and associates — this is the most effective form of marketing.
  • This type of viral marketing can best be facilitated online.

An energetic and humorous speaker, Godin held the audience’s attention for a solid hour.

Of the roughly 200 attendees, one-third were corporations with links to students and faculty at Smith. Many full-time students invited marketing representatives from the companies with which they interned this summer to the event. For instance, second-year Karl Olson drew two marketing executives from Millennium Chemicals, a Lyondell Chemicals Company, where he interned this summer.

Dan Phelps, president of the Smith GMA (left), with Seth Godin..

“Seth Godin provides a unique view of the business world that is applicable not only to marketers, but also to any business discipline,” says Dan Phelps, president of the Smith Graduate Marketing Association (GMA). “We are excited to have brought Seth to Smith, and hope that the attendees come away from the day with fresh ideas to use in both their businesses and in their daily lives.”

The event was preceded by a continental breakfast and followed by a book signing and networking reception in the atrium. All attendees received copies of Godin’s latest tome, Small Is the New Big.

The event was sponsored by the Smith School Graduate Marketing Association, the Smith School's Office of Professional Programs and Services, the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, Microsoft, and Polk Audio, many of which donated items for the event’s raffle, which included a 27” JVC Flat Screen HDTV, Polk I-Sonic Entertainment System, Starbucks gift cards, and Microsoft software packages.

◘ Susannah Campbell, MBA Candidate 2007, Smith Media Group

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MedForward Wins the February 2007 Round of the Pitch Dingman Competition
Michael Weiss and Byron Feustermaker win $500 for five-minute business pitch

The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business held its first “Pitch Dingman” competition of the semester on Friday, February 9, 2007. Pitch Dingman is a monthly contest open to all members of the University of Maryland community — including students, faculty and staff — that is designed to promote entrepreneurship and the launch of new businesses. The format allows for a five-minute presentation of a business idea followed by three minutes of questions and feedback. The contest judges include a combination of Dingman staff, MBA student scholars, and Entrepreneurs-in-Residence.

Michael Weiss, a Part-Time MBA Candidate at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, and his business partner, Byron Fenstermaker received the First Place prize of $500 at February’s Pitch Dingman competition for their business idea, MedForward. In their presentation, Weiss and Fenstermaker described MedForward as an online physician referral and information service with patient-driven reviews that provides patients interested in various medical treatments an online community of members who have been treated by our listed physicians. The service will be unique to the fast growing online medical referral services industry because it offers patients the most up-to-date and un-biased listing of physicians available. Also, MedForward will provide participating physicians with a novel patient feedback mechanism and a new opportunity to develop doctor-patient relationships. The team brings deep domain knowledge of website development and design and a top notch advisory board of doctors who will provide an ‘insider’s perspective’ on how this service can meet the rapidly changing needs of physicians. The MedForward team will use the $500 prize to launch a highly targeted marketing effort focused on assessing the specific needs of medical specialists.

The Pitch Dingman Competition is held monthly at the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. Competition dates from 2007 are: March 9, 2007; April 13, 2007; and May 11, 2007.  Working sessions (non-competitive sessions) are held at the Dingman Center each Friday from 11am to 12 pm to assist entrepreneurs in preparing their pitches and to offer feedback and advice once competitors’ businesses are up and running. For more information about the Pitch Dingman Competition, the Pitch Dingman work sessions, and to register as a participant, email PitchDingman@rhsmith.umd.edu.

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Dingman Portfolio Company,

Hook & Ladder Brewing Company, is on Fire!

Founder and CEO of Hook & Ladder Brewing Company, Matt Fleischer, has made the news twice in a one-month period. Read all about Hook & Ladder's continued success in the Baltimore Examiner and Washington Post articles below!

 

Hook & Ladder Brewing is on fire

 

February 20, 2007 - All it took was a second chance — and a degree from the University of Maryland.
 

Originally founded by brothers Rich and Matt Fleischer in 1999 in San Francisco, the Hook & Ladder Brewing Co. had its ups and downs until it reopened in Silver Spring about 20 months ago. ► Full Story

 

Finding a Hook in Silver Spring
Brothers to Open Restaurant and Pub in Old Firehouse

March 5, 2007 - Where coils of fire hoses once rested, pints of ale will soon be poured.

The historic Fire Station No. 1 on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring, which has been eyed by more than a dozen developers and hundreds of potential buyers since it went up for sale in July, will become a restaurant and brew pub with a firehouse theme. A firefighter and part owner of Hook & Ladder Brewing has a deal pending to purchase the property from the Silver Spring Volunteer Fire Department. ► Full Story

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HCIL & the Dingman Center Welcome

Visitors of Industry

 

The Human Computer Interface Lab at the University of Maryland, in partnership with the Dingman Center welcome visitors from industry to join the HCI lab for six months, one year or 1.5 years from around the world. Industrial visitors come to learn about HCI, American culture, technology, and specific projects. Recent visitors have come from Toyota, Toshiba and Hitachi. We work with visitors to create custom programs that are valuable to all parties. For more information visit the HCIL website http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/partnerships/industrial-visitors.shtml  or contact Asher Epstein.

The program typically can offers:

  • Office, computer, internet, printing, etc.
  • Active participation in a research project based on mutual interest and available opportunities.
  • Ability to participate as an HCIL lab member, joining for lunches, lab activities, social events, etc.
  • Ability to take UMD courses (upon permission of instructor).
  • Attend HCIL and UMD seminars and other events.
  • Ability to participate in UMD activities and use UMD resources such as the bus and gym.

Our standard fee for this is $25,000 for each six month period.

Please contact HCIL Director Allison Druin for further information.

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Smith Video Views:  

Entrepreneurship Checklist—

A Good Idea, Seed Money, Hard Work… and, Oh Yeah, China

 

When U.S. entrepreneurs show up at the Smith School’s Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship for advice, they better be prepared to think about a nation far from home. In this Smith Business Video View, the center’s managing director, Asher Epstein, explains why it’s risky business for today’s start-ups to ignore China no matter what industry they’re in.

 

AUDIO/VIDEO PODCAST 

 

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Dingman Center Position Opening

 

The Dingman Center is looking to hire a fulltime program coordinator to assist in administrating and coordinating all of the Dingman Center's programs and services. Applicants must possess a bachelor's degree in business, or related field and a minimum of three years of relevant experience. Excellent written and verbal communication skills are required as well as proficiency in Microsoft Office.

 

Screening of applicants will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Please send cover letter, resume, and three references to: Andrea Galati, Marketing and Operations Manager 3570 Van Munching Hall, College Park, MD 20742 or by email at agalati@rhsmith.umd.edu or by fax 301-314-7973.

 

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Buy Your Smith-Branded Merchandise for Departmental

Speakers and Conferences at the Smith Store

Your VIP visitors and departmental guest speakers should leave Smith with an elegant Smith-branded gift as a thank you for their visit, and The Smith Store is THE place to go for these items. The Smith Store has been working hard to develop a selection of high-quality merchandise that will be appreciated, displayed and used back in your visitor's home or office. A few of these items are shown below, and others are available as well. With two weeks notice, the "sky is the limit" in terms of item selection. If you are short on time and only have a few days, The Smith Store can help you out by providing one of their items that is in stock.

There are a few great products in stock this semester, ranging in price. For exasmple, The Smith Store has newly designed T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, coffee mugs, coffee thermoses, wine openers and many more items to come.

Always available from The Smith Store is the Smith polo shirt, available for $25.00, or brown leather money clip wallets for $15.00.

Questions? Contact Chris Wu at cwu38@rhsmith.umd.edu .The Smith Store is located in 3570-U, in the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship. The hours of the Smith Store vary and appointments are always available to meet your needs.

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Business Plan Competitions for Undergraduates and MBAs

 

The University of Texas at Tyler 2007 New Venture Business Plan Competition

Participants will compete for $235,000 in cash prizes. The $200,000 Grand Prize is designed to foster a drive for excellence in the competition. Students involved in the competition will gain access to networks of successful entrepreneurs, lenders and investors, and have the opportunity to learn greater team-building and business planning skills. The contest will also help student teams gain media exposure for their entrepreneurial goals.

 

The $200,000 Grand Prize is larger than that of most college business plan contests. To receive the $100,000 Cash Prize, student teams must be committed to launching their venture. In order to receive the $100,000 Relocation Prize, the winning team must relocate the proposed venture to Tyler, Texas. The judges in all rounds will be acting as venture capitalists and will analyze the ventures to determine those which represent the best investment opportunity. For more information and to fill out the intent to compete form visit the competition website!

Business Plan Submittal – Deadline Friday, March 23, 2007

 

Jungle Business Plan Competition 2007

The Jungle Business Plan Challenge (the "Challenge") is a competition to encourage graduate students in business management to pursue entrepreneurial ventures and develop high-growth businesses. The Challenge accomplishes this objective by providing a forum in which qualifying participants may present their ideas to the investment community to earn funding for their ventures. The Challenge is presented by Jungle Media Group, Inc., Jungle, and their subsidiaries and affiliates (collectively "Jungle"). The first and second rounds of the Challenge consists of judges assessing executive summaries of business plans submitted by registered entrants using the Judging Criteria set forth below in order to select teams for the semifinal and final rounds. The semi-final and final rounds will consist of 24 teams presenting their business plans to a panel of Challenge judges in April 19 and 20, 2007. Jungle will award thousands of dollars worth of prizes.

 

To register for the Challenge, a team representative must complete a team registration form at www.jungleonline.com/businessplan07 . A team may consist of any number of individuals seeking funding for an original business proposal. Only one entry per team will be accepted. To enter the challenge, a team must register, and submit an executive summary of no more than five pages, by the March 15, 2007 deadline. A team may choose to register for the challenge online, by mail or by fax. For more information about this competition visit the competition website!

 

MIT Enterprise Forum - Mid-Atlantic Business Plan Competition

The MIT Enterprise Forum of DC-Baltimore is pleased to announce a business plan competition for students of universities in the greater DC region. The MIT Enterprise Forum is a non-profit, affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and charted to promote entrepreneurship through education. It is global organization with 24 regional chapters.

 

The competition is based on the idea of intercollegiate over intramural competition for new business ideas, with significant technology involvement as an enabler for business growth. Entry deadline has been extended to April 2!

For more information visit the competition website.

 

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Upcoming Partnered Events

 

 

Human-Computer Interaction Lab's 24th Annual Symposium

May 31 – June 1, 2007 at the University of Maryland

 

Mark your calendars!

The Human-Computer Interaction Lab's 24th Annual Symposium will take place May 31 – June 1, 2007 at the University of Maryland.The Symposium will be held on May 31 followed by a day of tutorials and workshops on June 1. Registration begins in March.

 

For more information and to find out about our 2006 event, visit: http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/soh

 

 

2007 Diversity and Business Growth Summit

International Square • Washington D.C. • May 3, 2007
Attendee Registration Fee: $395

 

“A one-day intensive conference on the role and importanceof diversity for America’s growing companies.”

 

Learn from top experts in the field the importance of workplace, leadership and supplier and channel partner diversity in achieving competitive advantage and strategic business goals. Fortune 500 companies are already implementing a wide range of diversity initiatives to boost profits in the rapidly shifting global economy by hiring workforce talent that reflects the demographics of their customers. This strategic approach to diversity, beyond the hiring process and into core business functions, will fuel the success of government agencies and the growth companies of tomorrow. Join us in Washington, D.C. for the second annual Business Growth Summit, a one day, in-depth conference on the role and importance of diversity for America’s growing companies.

For more information and to register visit: http://www.growfastgrowright.com/diversity.htm

 

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THE DINGMAN CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP

 

Founded by Rudy Lamone in 1986, the Dingman Center was one of the first of its kind in the country and has emerged as a top-ranked entrepreneurship center. Thanks to initial funding with a generous grant from Michael D. Dingman, founder of the Signal Corporation (now part of Honeywell International), the Dingman Center continues to grow as a regional and national catalyst in the field of entrepreneurship. The Center is now aggressively evolving, and in some areas, is expanding its services to further its role as a leader in the student, regional, and academic entrepreneurial communities.

The Dingman Center is currently led by:
Asher Epstein, Managing Director

Melissa Carrier, Associate Director
 Mr. John LaPides, Chairman of the Board and Entrepreneur In Residence
Dr. Scott Koerwer, Associate Dean, Professional Programs and Services

Please visit our website at http://www.rhsmith.umd.edu/dingman.

 

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