Blog Posts in Your Business

Company Growth Potential

May 02

By Charles Wu

On reading a recent article online, I couldn’t help but fixate on the following…

Would you rather have 100% ownership of a company that has not been through the program or 94% ownership of one that has been through XYZ Incubation Program? I can tell you what the professional investors prefer…

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Entrepreneurs in the Food Industry

Apr 25

EFactor would like to invite you, any "foodie" or the "Next Top Chef" to an evening of devouring food that will invigorate and inspire. Come support and see various entrepreneurs from the sustainable food industry that are making a name for themselves

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10X Accelerator- Applications Due April 24!

Apr 21

The Ohio State University’s Fisher College Center for Entrepreneurship announces the launch of 10x, Ohio’s newest technology accelerator focused on the professional development of young technology entrepreneurs and their innovative ideas for new businesses.

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Entrepreneurs Unpluggd

Apr 19

Entrepreneurs Unpluggd is a new event in Chicago that brings together successful entrepreneurs to share their lessons from actual experiences in an intimate, “unpluggd” format.

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Continuous Change

Apr 18

John Allegretti of CMZ Properties LLC discusses the importance of continuous change in a business. In addition, he emphasized providing quality customer service by figuring out how to do anything that a customer needs, essentially constantly adapting to accomplish the present request.  

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Leadership Barriers

Apr 18

By John Fairclough

John Fairclough of Resicom explains how he became a leader through asking the right questions and listening for answers that would lead him in the right direction to handle the situation. 

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Lead or Get Left Behind

Mar 07

By Steve Gumm

If your doorbell rang today and you opened it up to find a gentleman trying to sell you a set of encyclopedias you’d probably wonder what planet he was from.

There comes a time when a new innovation makes a current process obsolete.  Take for example the milk man, a switch board for phones, the black and white television and so on. 

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The Buick Achievers Scholarship

Feb 23

The Buick Achievers Scholarship, funded by the GM Foundation, is designed to help students who are leaders in both the classroom and their communities, but who may not have the financial means to attend college.

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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Jan 24

By John Wonak

One of the most important keys to success is having a highly functioning, cohesive and productive executive management team.  Most organizations, however, plow forward with their underperforming, ineffective leadership teams, and consistently underachieve their expectations.

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Ideas for Impact Challenge

Jan 13

This winter, Spring into Action is sponsoring the $25,000 Ideas for Impact Challenge, in order to generate ideas for a business that can be consistently profitable in the New York City area, while employing people who need a second chance in life.

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DePaul University Innovation Awards

Jan 10

The DePaul Center for Creativity and Innovation is calling for nominations for the inaugural DePaul Student Innovation Awards, which recognizes the innovation and ideas of DePaul undergraduate and graduate students. Submission deadline is February 4, 2011

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Entrepreneurs Unpluggd

Jan 06

Entrepreneurs Unpluggd is a new event that brings together successful entrepreneurs to share their lessons from actual experiences in an intimate, “unpluggd” format. This event will take place at the Greenhouse Theater in Chicago on February 8, 2011 at 6:00pm.

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Global Social Venture Competition

Dec 16

Calling all Entrepreneurs! The Global Social Venture Competition is the world’s preeminent social business plan competition providing aspiring entrepreneurs with mentoring, exposure, and prize money to transform their business ideas into positive real-world impact.

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Customer Service Stars 2010

Dec 07

By John Fairclough

A recent online article outed certain big box retailers for their elusive adherence to price match policies. A Gallup poll cites only 19% of Americans have “confidence in big business”.

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MidVentures DESIGN+DEVELOP Series

Nov 29

MidVentures is launching a new event, the midVentures Design + Develop Series, which will help you learn from and network with the best web designers & developers and find the talent you need to grow your business or startup.

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Funding Feeding Frenzy

Nov 27

The Funding Feeding Frenzy is an exceptional event launching this December 8th 2010 in Chicago at the Sync Technology Center. They are assembling some of the most interesting and exciting entrepreneurial companies around to showcase their businesses in an attempt to take their companies to the highest levels of success.

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Disciplining Small Business Employees

Nov 02

By John Fairclough

No one looks forward to confrontation.  But holding employees accountable is what holds a business to its goals and purpose.  In a small business environment, having a systematic process for disciplining and even releasing employees is critical. 

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Blueprint Event- Licensing Workshop

Nov 01

On October 26, 2010, a representative from the Chicago Department of Business Affairs & Consumer Protection spoke with Blueprint students about the city's requirements, available business licenses, and answered any questions they had about licensing their businesses.

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2010 National CEO Annual Conference

Nov 01

The 2010 National CEO Conference will be held November 4 –6 at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. This year's event is full of amazing speakers, workshops, and competitions for student entrepreneurs!

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Engaging Introverts

Oct 19

By Paul Caswell

On more than one occasion I have been part of meetings where I had something of value to add and the design of the meeting, or lack thereof, missed the opportunity to engage this introvert!

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New SEO Starter Guide from Google

Oct 06

Just days ago, Google published a new version of the SEO Starter Guide. The guide is outstanding. It contains, among other things, SEO basics, tips for improving the overall structure of your site, suggestions to optimize content, insights to help you optimize your site for mobile devices, and tips to help you promote your site.

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On a Mission

Oct 05

By Christen Carter

I always thought Mission Statements and Core Values were something that bigger, more corporate style businesses did. After all, I run a business that comes from the punk rock community. Why would I need those kinda things, we're all on the same page here, right?!

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Daryl Erdman Book Signing

Oct 04

Author Daryl Erdman will be at Barnes and Noble in the DePaul loop campus on October 18 from 4:45-5:45pm, where he will be signing copies of his book, “Scar Tissue: Lessons from the World of Entrepreneurship”.

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Free Resources for Small Businesses from Google

Sep 28

Ross from CrowdSpring.com summarizes his six favorite free resources for small businesses from Google. In each case, he describes the resource, helps you understand why you should consider using it, and offers tips on using with links to additional information if you’d like to read more about that resource.

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Micromanagement - Why the Negative Stereotype?

Sep 16

By Tom Gimbel

Somewhere along the way micromanagement became known as a poor management trait. But, until employees prove they understand what is expected of them and are executing their duties effectively, micromanagement is the only way to ensure success.

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The Long Haul

Sep 16

By Seth Kravitz

Every business owner will face this question at one point. The decision is different for everyone, but generally it boils down to: “Do I continue managing the company and own my business for the long haul, do I consider selling, or do I close up shop?”

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A Primer on Second-Stage Companies: The Who, What, Why, When and How

Sep 13

By Raman Chadha
Executive Director & Clinical Professor, Coleman Entrepreneurship Center

Welcome to the new Coleman Entrepreneurship Center. From DePaul University, known for its street-smart, "roll up your sleeves", Midwestern work ethic, comes a program that targets some of the hardest working people in America - the owners of second-stage companies.

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Barry Moltz: The Hierarchy of Business Needs

Aug 31

Abraham Maslow is known for introducing the "hierarchy of needs" that concludes people must satisfy their physical needs (i.e. food) before they think about security (such as safety).  They also need to satisfy their security needs before they think of social needs (love or belonging).

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Educating Customers

Aug 16

A recent BusinessWeek blog says, "Marketing is creating awareness about a product or positioning a brand, but education is about teaching people something that benefits them — and also turns them into potential customers."

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Should I Rent or Buy?

Aug 16

In one of his latest New York Times Small Business blog posts, Chicago business owner and Coleman Center friend Jay Goltz discusses the benefits and drawbacks of buying and renting business office space.

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