Category Archives: entrepreneurship

Lunch with an Entrepreneur featuring Steve Whitener

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Steve Whitener, University of Michigan-Flint Alumni and entrepreneur, spoke to students on Dec. 1 about the importance of entrepreneurship.

 

More about Steve Whitener 

Started Real Estate Company as a UM-Flint Student
In 1973, while attending UM-Flint, Mr. Whitener purchased an apartment building. Upon graduating in 1977, he went on to acquire several additional rental properties. While managing several real estate holdings, he led a highly successful career in sales. This led to Mr. Whitener founding National Systems Installers.

Became a Technology Entrepreneur
In 1993, he founded National Systems Installers (NSI), a company that provides infrastructure cabling services to corporations. Six years later, he formed Nuspire Networks, which designs and offers monitoring and security systems. His business works with Fortune 500 companies and has 300-plus retail operations. He is Chairman of the Board for NSI and is a former Chairman of Nuspire, a multimillion dollar company he recently sold.

Q & A: UM-Flint Hagerman Center Director Mark Simon

Mark Simon, PhD became director of the Hagerman Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation this fall. The University of Michigan-Flint School of Management center was created in 2015 thanks to a generous donation from Phil and Jocelyn Hagerman. Simon was recognized in his new role October 10 at an investiture ceremony. At the event, Simon said, “I can’t overstate how honored I feel.  I am truly humbled. But I know that with all the wonderful support I am receiving from so many, including the Hagerman’s, administration, faculty, staff, and students, I believe that together we can truly make a difference.”

Prior to Simon’s official investiture, he shared his thoughts about the center, its benefit for students, his impressions of the university community, and more in this Q&A with University Relations.

Read the full article HERE.

UM-Flint SEI Summer Camp Students Explore Entrepreneurship

The Hagerman Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation held its Summer Entrepreneurship Institute camp for the first time on July 12-14.

High school juniors and seniors spent three days learning about multiple aspects of entrepreneurship, business, and marketing. The camp aims to help high school students understand entrepreneurship and the excitement surrounding new ventures that can solve real problems.

Professor Amy Gresock, Assistant Professor of Management, said she hopes to challenge the students to think about entrepreneurship in a multi-faceted way.

“Opportunities are everywhere. It wasn’t just sitting in a classroom with the students. We were in the Flint community. We were on campus and we challenged them to look for opportunities,” said Gresock. “In some of the exercises we did, they came up with some really good ideas that played off of opportunities that they saw in the external environment. Their problems don’t have to be something really grandiose. It can just be solving a problem that they see in everyday life.”

 

 

Professor Greg Laurence teaches summer camp students about the basics of Entrepreneurship.

Professor Greg Laurence teaches summer camp students about the basics of Entrepreneurship.

 

 

Students spent time with School of Management Professors Amy Gresock and Greg Laurence inside the classroom and in the community working to develop their entrepreneurial venture. During day one, students toured the UM-Flint campus looking for opportunities and quickly found that Flint has a lot of prospects for entrepreneurs.

Sean Mason, a high school junior from Davison, said he appreciated the implementation of lessons learned during the Summer Entrepreneurship Institute.

“I liked that it was hands on. I didn’t know exactly what to expect coming into it but I liked that after we learned something, we got to try it out,” said Mason.

 

Sean Mason asks a question during a skype interview with Chris Trejbal.

Sean Mason asks a question during a Skype interview with Chris Trejbal.

 

The camp aimed to encourage entrepreneurial thinking by engaging students with course materials, community experiences, and a field trip to Skypoint Ventures in downtown Flint on the second day of the camp.

Interim Director of Hagerman Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation and camp organizer, Professor Brian Blume, said he believes the Summer Entrepreneurship Institute was an engaging experience for the high school students.

“The camp was effective in introducing students to entrepreneurship and helping to develop an entrepreneurial mindset,” said Blume. “We, also, were able to show students how downtown Flint is being transformed to support and encourage entrepreneurial ventures, as well as introduce the strong entrepreneurship program at the UM-Flint School of Management.”

 

Summer camp students tour Skypoint Ventures. Bryce Moe, Managing Director of Skypoint Ventures, shows students a portion of the Dryden building that is under renovations.

Summer camp students tour Skypoint Ventures. Bryce Moe, Managing Director of Skypoint Ventures, shows students a portion of the Dryden building that is under renovations.

 

On day three, the students wrapped up their work and learning by presenting their feasibility analysis projects to fellow students and their parents. Mason said he believes he gained a lot out of the camp experience.

“Before this camp I had a rudimentary understanding of business and certain opportunities. I learned about how to find your niche, how do you look at an opportunity and seize it and use the correct branding and marketing to really succeed and advance your cause,” said Mason.

The School of Management will be hosting another summer camp next year for high schoolers. Blume said he hopes to see more student participants in the future. He also has a piece of advice for other young entrepreneurs who want to get started.

“I suggest exploring these entrepreneurial interests early on. I encourage you to become involved with a business venture or to start a business, even if it’s a part-time business. Also, be sure to watch the TV show Shark Tank.”

UM-Flint and Ann Arbor Students Tour Detroit Businesses

By  On June 14, 2016 2:31 pm

UM-Flint senior Greg Hooper was energized throughout his recent trip to Detroit.

Hooper, and two others from the Flint campus, spent the day with peers from the Ann Arbor campus last month, visiting startups in Detroit, meeting with alumni, and networking. He was one of 49 University of Michigan students participating in DTrek, a program of The Center for Entrepreneurship, which is part of the university’s College of Engineering in Ann Arbor.

Hooper, who is studying entrepreneurial management, enjoyed representing UM-Flint during the trip, and sharing his experiences and expertise with those from the Ann Arbor campus. He also learned from them, along with from the entrepreneurs who relayed their stories of starting up ventures in Detroit.

DTrek-2016

Read the full article HERE.

 

Entertainment Entrepreneurs Win UM-Flint Business Plan Competition

Vino Raj wants to bring entertainment to “a new level” in downtown Flint.  And thanks to University of Michigan-Flint, his aspirations are closer to reality.

The UM-Flint graduate student is working with two business partners on a venture that would merge “different forms of entertainment, such as live action role-playing, puzzles, treasure hunts, and interactive team work.”

Read the full article HERE.

 

New Major in Entrepreneurship & Innovation Management

The University of Michigan-Flint School of Management (SOM) is unveiling a new major this fall as part of its burgeoning entrepreneurship and innovation offerings.

The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management major blends the expertise of the school’s marketing and management faculty, and covers an array of issues, such as product design, business start-ups, technological innovation, marketing research, project management, and negotiation skills.

Read full article HERE.

UM-Flint Student Writing His Future with Handcrafted Pens

By ROBERT GOLD On August 10, 2015 5:48 pm

It started off as a hobby.

Greg Hooper, who grew up learning how to woodwork from his dad, received a lathe late last year.

And shortly after getting this gift, a visitor stopped into his uncle’s lumber yard in Holly, where Hooper works.

“A gentleman came into the lumber yard with a wooden pen,” said Hooper,  who is studying entrepreneurial management through the School of Management (SOM). “I asked him how he made it, where he got the wood, and got the parts.”

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

Business Plan Competition Winner Moves into Innovation Incubator

By Robert Gold On June 9, 2015 6:07 pm

University of Michigan-Flint student Ashley Knific will move her venture, Jobs 4 Moms, into the university’s Innovation Incubator later this month.

At the core of her organization’s concept is finding balance between raising a family and succeeding professionally. Knific aims to connect employers and employees, which will allow people to work from home and help employers find qualified staff.

 

Read the full article HERE.

Dr. Michael Witt, Guides Innovation in Alberta

As a member of the expert panel on technology commercialization and innovation engaged by the government of Alberta, Canada in the fall of 2013, Dr. Michael Witt, Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Lecturer of the School of Management, took part in creating a report that will steer the province’s approach towards successfully competing in the global market.

The report, entitled Sustainable Prosperity Through Innovation, outlines six key recommendations that will form the foundation for innovation growth in the province, and played a major role in the government’s decision to launch the Alberta Innovation Council.

UM-Flint Entrepreneurs Society Wins National Awards

(Chicago, Ill) The Entrepreneurs Society of the University of Michigan-Flint received special recognition and honors in two categories last week at the National CEO Conference. This premier event, in Chicago, featured three days of meetings, workshops and competitions (www.c-e-o.org) where the best universities compete in a number of categories. Out of 130 universities and more than 1400 students, representatives from University of Michigan-Flint placed 2nd in two categories: Best Fundraising Event, and Best Chapter Leadership.

Gannon O’Reilly, Chapter President, was honored as one of the best CEO leaders in America. His efforts at leading the Entrepreneur’s Society for the 2011-2012 year featured such innovations as the Work/Live Space launch in June, in partnership with the Flint Habitat for Humanity. This new business initiative was the first of its kind and is leading the way in urban re-development initiatives.

Another Entrepreneurs Society Member, Brooke Dziurman, led UM-Flint to the second place prize for the best fundraiser. This monumental effort resulted in $32,000 being raised and donated to a severely ill person battling brain cancer, all done in a 5 week period.

The Entrepreneurs Society was formed in 2007 as an academic club at the School of Management, University of Michigan-Flint. It presently has 109 members and a number of involved alumni and supporters in the greater Flint community.