Under Bryon Killin:
Strategic Plan: One and Five Year Goals
Entrepreneur Officers: Bryon Killin, Sean Tabor, and Jennifer Wenzlick have worked continuously on drafting a strategic plan for the ES over the Fall 2014 term. The group has presented the plan to various community members, including SOM Dean, Scott Johnson and business owner and local entrepreneur, Phil Shaltz. The group plans to continue to present the plan to additional community leaders, utilizing the feedback to continuously improve the plan. The focus of the strategic plan is to provide direction for the ES in present, near future, and provide long term goals for future members to achieve.
2014 CEO National Convention, Orlando, Florida (October 30th – November 2nd)
10 members of the Entrepreneurs Society traveled to Orlando, Florida over the weekend of October 30 thru November 2. The group was able to secure funding from various sources to lower the out of pocket cost to roughly $100.00 per student. This fundraising effort was necessary to cover the cost of approximately $12,000.00. While in attendance of the conference, members were afforded the opportunity to network with the other 1200 students from across the country. ES members attended a multitude of lectures, ranging in topics from crowd funding and bootstrapping a start-up, licensing negotiations, to selling your product and yourself. The knowledge that was gained by each member will be valuable in and out of the classroom. The majority of the ES members that attending will be returning next year in St. Louis, with plans to participate in the array of competitions available, including Best Project (Business Advisory Clinic), Best Fundraiser (Endowment Fund), Best Chapter, and individual competitions for interested members.
Meet the Candidate, University of Michigan-Flint (October 15th)
Dr. Steele visited UM-Flint Riverfront for an informal meet and greet session with students and staff. The Entrepreneurs Society hosted the event, and provided fresh hot coffee from member favored, Café Rhema, and delectable donuts supplied by member Kate Mancini. Dr. Steele spoke of his aspirations to sit on the Board as a Trustee for the University of Michigan, and expanded upon his plans if elected. Dr. Steele was very appreciative of the effort by the ES.
Business Plan Competition: Elevator Pitch Clinic, University of Michigan-Flint (November 20th)
On November 20th, the Entrepreneurs Society, in conjunction with the Office of University Outreach Incubator Staff, conducted a trial run clinic for participants in the Greentree Elevator Pitch Competition and the Diplomat Pharmacy UM-Flint Business Plan Competition. Faculty Advisor, Dr. M.D. Witt, and President Bryon Killin acted as judges and evaluated the participants on various criteria relating to the elevator pitch process. Nic Custer, of the Innovation Incubator acted as emcee of the event, along with presenting an array of “how-to videos” and displaying both good and bad representations of previous pitch competition participants. Turn out for the event was higher than expected, considering the weather on the day of the event. Over 30 potential participants pre-registered, with approximately 20 people battling the ice and snow to attend. Representatives from MEDC, Kettering, and Mott were also in attendance to offer advice and potential services to the attendees.