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The Story on Richmond’s Entrepreneurs

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Entrepreneurship is alive and well in Richmond, VA – you’d know that already if you were at the Venture Forum’s Entrepeneur Fair today @ Capital One Town Center. Rich Reinecke, President of the Forum and founder of Career Quest, led the charge on making the Fair a really stellar event.

Of course there were sponsors – we all owe a debt of deep thanks to the Better Business Bureau, The Greater Richmond Partnership, the VA Council of CEOs, RichmondBizSense.com, CBS6/WTVR Digital Media, BluTiger, Cherry Bekaert Holland, FranNet, LeClairRyan, Mitchell Wiggins & Co., Strategy by Design, and the VA Biosciences Development Center, because without their support, and that of Capital One, the event wouldn’t have been nearly as successful (and it was luxurious, too).

Where the action really was, though, was in the great speed networking session facilitated by Ignite Speed Networking‘s Mike Ogilvie, and the buffet of breakout sessions where budding, and established, business owners could learn from entrepreneurs who’ve been there, done that, and have the t-shirt (and hard lessons learned) to prove it.

Advice was available on:

  • buying a business
  • pitching your idea
  • how to transition from the corporate world to entrepreneurship
  • why entrepreneurship makes sense (you can control your destiny!)
  • what pitfalls to avoid

The Fair wrapped up with a panel of successful entrepreneurs, led by Steve Kimball of Tuscan Advisors. He made a very powerful statement that resonated with everyone in the room, and bears repeating here: Entrepreneurs are America’s competitive advantage.

How true – and cool – is that?

This is why I tell the  job-seekers I talk to that they want to consider realigning their thinking: don’t think J-O-B, think B-I-Z.

If you’ve got an idea, there’s no time like the present. A down economy can be a great time to bring that idea to market – just ask the folks who started Cisco back in ’87, on the heels of an epic market crash.

Think of your startup idea as a personal stimulus package.

That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it….

Get Yer Entrepreneur On

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If you’ve been, um, “evaluating your options” lately (translation: looking for a j-o-b after getting downsized to the curb), there’s an event coming up that could help you open up your entrepreneurial chakras.

I’ve been singing the Don’t Think J-O-B, Think B-I-Z song for over a year now, and it seems as if the rest of the world is starting to sing back-up – including RVA’s own Venture Forum, who has announced their Entrepreneur Fair on June 5 @ CapOne’s West Creek campus. Capital One is hosting the event, which has to be a good idea on their part. Earn loyalty from start-ups, get their business as they grow. Win/win (if everyone remembers to read the fine print).

The Entrepreneur Fair is slated to include sessions on a variety of topics of interest to anyone looking to start or grow a business:

  • What I Wish I’d Known When I Started My Business
  • Controlling Your Destiny: Why Pursuing Your Entrepreneurial Dream Makes Sense
  • Buying a Business
  • From Corporate Exec to Managing in an Entrepreneurial Organization
  • Entrepreneur Success Stories

The Fair’s also going to feature my buddy Mike Ogilvie’s IGNITE Speed Networking, a facilitated speed networking session that goes miles beyond traditional business networking, helping create contacts and connections that will help move entrepreneurs further, and faster, down their path to success.

Get yer entrepreneur on – if you’re anywhere near RVA on Friday, June 5, plan to come by the Fair, running from 8am to 1:30pm. Start writing your own success story.

That’s MY story, and I’m stickin’ to it…

Greater Richmond Companies to Watch + LinkedIn – Great Story!

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Mike Gamson, VP, Corporate Solutions for
online business networking leader LinkedIn,
will give a presentation, “How
Professional Online Networking Will Change the Business World” at The Venture Forum’s Greater Richmond Companies to Watch (GRCTW) on Wednesday, October 29, 2008 at Toad’s Place in Richmond. Joining the
Venture Forum to present GRCTW
2008 is lead sponsor Troutman
Sanders, and supporting sponsors LeClairRyan,
Williams Mullen, Career Quest, Cherry, Bekaert & Holland, First
Capital Bank, Gregory Kaplan PLC, Harris, Hardy & Johnstone, P.C., The
Help Desk Company, VACO, and Virginia
Commercial Finance. GRCTW
celebrates Greater Richmond companies with high growth potential

The rise of Web 2.0 – the “second
generation” of the Internet that provides tools for collaboration and information-sharing
online – has enabled business connections for companies large and small across
the globe. The
Venture Forum’s Greater
Richmond Companies To Watch (GRCTW) event will feature a presentation,
“How Professional Online Networking Will Change the Business World”, by Mike Gamson, VP, Corporate Solutions for
the online business networking site LinkedIn.

Built on trusted connections and
relationships, LinkedIn is the world’s
largest and most powerful professional network. The company recently raised
$53M, at a valuation of $1B, and formed a content partnership with the New York
Times. Currently, more than 20 million professionals are on LinkedIn, including executives from every
Fortune 500 company, as well as a wide range of household names from the
technology, financial services, media, entertainment, and consumer goods
industries. Mike Gamson is a passionate advocate for the role
technology can play in improving professional productivity – his presentation
will center on the business opportunities that can be created with digital
networks and user generated content.

The Venture Forum has launched a LinkedIn Group to promote the
success of entrepreneurial ventures and the growth of entrepreneurship in
central Virginia. Since the group’s launch, over 330
entrepreneurs have joined.

Anyone wishing to attend GRCTW can register for the
event on the event’s website – GRCTW will be held on Wednesday,
October 29, 2008, from 5:30pm to 7:00pm, at Toad’s
Place, 140 Virginia St. in Richmond.

ABOUT THE VENTURE FORUM

The Venture Forum – the intersection of
innovation and capitalization in central Virginia – is
dedicated to promoting the success of entrepreneurial ventures, and the growth
of entrepreneurship in central Virginia, through
programs like Greater Richmond
Companies to Watch and networking events. Founded in 1986 as the Richmond
Venture Capital Club, becoming The Venture Forum in 1998, the Forum is the Richmond area’s
premier business organization dedicated to the success of Greater Richmond’s
entrepreneurs and its entrepreneurial environment. The Venture Forum – growth
starts here.

What Recession?

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I found myself listening to a pretty powerful group of people talk yesterday about the economic trends in my hometown, Richmond VA.  Jim Bacon, Jeff Cooke, Michael Sesnowitz, and Greg Wingfield all sat around – well, on stage – and talked about whether or not events like the Wachovia Securities move from RVA to St. Louis would cause an economic tremor in River City.

When I heard about the WachSec/AG Edwards merger, my reaction was "Opportunity!" – for new businesses, for watching some real-time change management, and for writing a new chapter in the Story of River City.  Turns out I’m with the smart set on this one, since that was the consensus of the experts.

The presence ofVCU – and the engagement between VCU and the region’s business community – is a prime example of how the practical application of knowledge can be the storied tide that lifts all boats.  A university that’s plugged into business trends provides learning – and a workforce – that’s relevant to need AND that drives innovation.  The very model of win/win.

The interplay and collaboration between education and business would really make an impact in primary education, too – wouldn’t it be great if kids were taught early to find a need and fill it, rather than to get-good-grades-and-a-job?  The primary/secondary public education system seems stuck in a 19th century model.  Some concrete input from the business community on early education might address that – who’s up for pitching that to the Board of Ed…?