Event Notices From January 12
Great Lakes Bay Regional Energy Efficiency, Conservation and Renewable Energy Strategy Public Input Meeting: Bay, Saginaw, and Midland Counties are collaborating on the development and implementation of a Great Lakes Bay Regional Energy Efficiency, Conservation and Renewable Energy Strategy to conserve and reduce overall energy use, improve the energy efficiency of our buildings and transportation infrastructure. The public input meeting will be held on Thursday, Jan. 20 at Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU), Curtis Hall, Emeriti Room from 6 to 8 p.m. For a draft copy of the Great Lakes Bay Regional Energy Efficiency, Conservation and Renewable Energy Strategy or the event flyer, please see the Environmental Affairs & Community Development Web page at http://www.baycounty-mi.gov/EACD/.
NEF To Talk Customer Info, sets anniversary celebration: Do you know what your customers really want? When was the last time you did any market research? Or sought out your customers' opinions on your product or service? The Jan. 20 meeting of the Ann Arbor New Enterprise Forum will feature Debra Power of the brand strategy support firm Power Marketing and Research, and Paula Sorrell Rhoades, marketing specialist for several Michigan tech startups and author of widely used market research tools. They will share their tips on getting valuable information from present and prospective customers to help you develop better products and increase market share. The meeting also features two showcase presentations -- Jim Eliason of MitoStem, a regenerative medicine technology startup developing proprietary techniques in stem cell research; and Ryan Dibble of Therapy Charts, which has developed a Web-based electronic health records system for clinical psychologists and other mental health professionals. Also on the agenda is Open Forum, in which attendees may introduce their business, marketing strategy, and present resource needs. The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn North Campus, 3600 Plymouth Road at US-23, Ann Arbor. Registration and networking begin at 5 p.m.; the program starts at 5:45 p.m. Free to NEF members, $20 for non-members, $5 for students. Also, on Thursday, February 17, Ann Arbor New Enterprise Forum celebrates 25 years helping entrepreneurs. Join us to celebrate the more than 300 entrepreneurs who have brought their fledgling ideas to NEF seeking counsel and connections for growing their businesses, the volunteer coaches who helped them improve their pitch power, service providers who assisted their business development skills, organization sponsors and others who worked behind the scenes to support NEF and the entrepreneurs in our community. The event will be held at Eastern Michigan University Student Activity Center, EMU Campus, Ypsilanti from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Cost is $35. For registration and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.newenterpriseforum.com after Jan. 12.
MMIC sponsors two talks on entrepreneurship: The Mid-Michigan Innovaton Center is sponsoring two upcoming talks. On Tuesday, Jan. 18, Ken Kousky will speak on "From Garage Startup To Public Ownership." The event will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the MMIC, 4520 Ashman Road in Midland. More at http://www.mmic.us/downloads/Files/Speaker%20Series%2001%2018%2011.pdf. Join MMIC to learn how one garage startup called Wave Technologies became a public offering. Gain insight from this journey, in particular how to work with investors, and why sales come first. The next installment of the Savvy Entrepreneur Series, Inside the Mind of an Angel Investor, is Feb. 8 from 5 to 8 p.m. Find out what they are looking for, how they differ from venture capitalists, and what they think about valuation. Register for either event online, www.mmic.us, or call (989) 839-2333.
