Aug. 15—ANDERSON — With inflation at a 40-year record high, the current economic environment may not seem particularly inviting to someone who aspires to start a business.
Will Hall doesn't necessarily see it that way.
"People are just trying to redevelop themselves and redevelop the way they think about earning money and earning a living," said Hall, an employment consultant in Ivy Tech Community College's Ivy Plus Career Link office. "With COVID, we've seen people going back to school at a higher rate, and I think this is just kind of an extension of that. I think you could argue that there is no better time than right now, when everything's being turned on its head and being rethought."
Over the past several months, Hall and his colleagues heard enough from students — both at Ivy Tech and elsewhere — and from area businesses to convince them to create a program that would help would-be entrepreneurs develop and fine-tune their ideas into detailed, ready-to-execute business plans. The result is the Anderson Entrepreneurship Discovery Program, a three-day series of seminars designed to expose ideas to a crucible of challenging questions, with a goal of refining them to pitch readiness.
"We see a lot of students come through here that have very creative and innovative ideas and they just don't necessarily know what to do with them," said Lindsey Madinger, director of development at Ivy Tech's Anderson campus. "It's important to us to provide a program where we can really foster their entrepreneurship spirit, but then also give them tangible action items to move forward with it."
Ivy Tech and the Madison County Chamber of Commerce, in partnering to plan and offer the program, are tapping NEXT Studios, an Indianapolis-based venture capital company, to provide curriculum from its Entrepreneur Discover services. The idea, Hall said, is to identify potential weak spots in students' business plans and shore them up to ease the process of securing capital investments.
"Within that curriculum, there are exercises and presentations that are designed to make sure these folks are asking the right questions of their startup process," Hall said. "Do I know who my target market is? Do I know how to source funding? Do I know how to navigate and network with other businesses and other founders to try to fine-tune my business?"
The seminars will also include several local entrepreneurs who have been invited to interact with students and share their experiences.
"Being an entrepreneur is not a career choice, it's a lifestyle," said Clayton Whitson, president and CEO of the Madison County Chamber of Commerce. "These folks need to understand that, and who better to talk them and coach them through that than folks that have lived it?"
Whitson and Madinger said the program will be capped at six participants, in part to ensure each person receives extensive one-on-one time with instructors and has ample opportunities to have questions answered. Plans to offer the program again in the future are uncertain, but will be discussed following the upcoming program.
"I think we do want to grow this program," Madinger said. "I think for us, this is just the start. We also want it to maybe be the start of an entrepreneurship program that they could go into with Ivy Tech on the curriculum side to offer some type of certificate or degree in that. We're trying to grow that program here as well."
Follow Andy Knight on Twitter @Andrew_J_Knight, or call 765-640-4809.
New York Times Correspondent Maggie Haberman said Trump may have deviated from the narrative that classified documents ended up at Mar-a-Lago accidentally.
After making several stunning appearances at New York Fashion Week, Amelia Gray Hamlin is now turning heads on the runways in Milan. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills daughter recently walked in Giuliano Calza’s GCDS show, where she bared her backside in an unexpected look. “My butt had her first cameo,” Amelia captioned a September 22 Instagram Story video of herself on the runway. While it initially appeared Amelia was modeling a white tank top and jeans, it turns out the pants only had fro
Vanity Fair's royal correspondent Katie Nicholl alleged that the Prince of Wales was hoping that his younger brother, the Duke of Sussex, would be "his wingman."
Denver Riggleman, a former adviser to the Jan. 6 committee told "60 Minutes" the White House switchboard called a rioter during breach.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers added quarterback Tom Brady to Friday's injury report for Week 3
Former NY AG prosecutors predict a slow-motion legal brawl where Trump will cry foul, claim ignorance, and delay, delay, delay.
Conservatives on social media are slamming President Biden's recent anti-MAGA speech in response to news of a teenager being killed in North Dakota in a political dispute.
"For our part," the panel wrote, "we cannot discern why Plaintiff would have an individual interest in or need for any of the one-hundred documents with classification markings."
Prince William had a strong bond with his grandmother, who died on 8 September, and now he's shared the sweet moment that happened after her passing.
Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, said that he counseled his daughter on being the steward of his and Kim Kardashian's businesses.
A caller reported seeing someone throw a plastic tote over a Central Florida bridge from a moving vehicle this week, according to a Thursday Facebook post from Orlando-based Orange County Animal Services,.
Royal expert Kristen Meinzer said Meghan Markle is the "villain of the moment" for British tabloids, but it won't last forever.
Smith noted there are "plenty of white folks" in sports, including those in leadership positions, who aren't receiving attention for similar behavior.
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a massive fraud lawsuit against Trump, his business, and his three eldest children.
Arizona Republican secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem revealed during Thursday's debate that he has been interviewed by both the Justice Department and Jan. 6 committee about his alleged involvement in the Capitol attack. This was the first time Finchem has publicly confirmed speaking on the matter with federal officials. The four-term, far-right Arizona lawmaker, who continues to espouse the "Big Lie" and is running to be the state's chief election officer, revealed the Jan. 6 interview and Justice Department involvement in a back-and-forth on the debate stage with his opponent, Democrat Adrian Fontes.
From rocker chic ensembles to delicate gowns on the red carpet, we’ve always loved Paris Jackson’s unique style. The Lighthouse singer knows how to be an edgy Queen one minute to a fairy princess in the next, showing she can really pull off any look. Her newest look at the Missoni fashion show proves that […]
The wife of a Donetsk puppet authority fighter told her husband that dissatisfaction with the actions of dictator Vladimir Putin is growing in Russia, according to an intercept of their conversation published on Facebook by Ukraine’s military intelligence agency HUR on Sept. 24.
ABC’s Shark Tank went live Friday night for its Season 14 premiere, culminating in an offer unlike any other. For the first time ever, Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John and Kevin O’Leary were joined by a studio audience as they were presented with unedited, unfiltered pitches from hopeful entrepreneurs — […]
OLHA HLUSHCHENKO – SATURDAY, 24 SEPTEMBER 2022, 07:25 The Armed Forces of Ukraine repelled Russian attacks near 10 towns and villages and struck around 40 areas where Russian military personnel and equipment were concentrated on Friday, 23 September.
Hamm recalled what happened behind the scenes following a 2010 Emmys sketch with the “Golden Girls” icon.
About Author
