Governor Rick Snyder joins the 2011 speaker line-up! He will deliver a keynote presentation focusing on Michigan Entrepreneurialism. Look for more information coming soon. See all confirmed speakers. View preliminary agenda.

Recently I gave a talk at TEDxTraverseCity where I described why innovation services firms are important to our economic competitiveness, as well as how they create a more satisfying employment option for individuals. Creative consultancies, as I call them, offer innovation as an outsourced service.

In my talk I referenced Dan Pink’s book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. The book cites the three motivational factors of mastery, autonomy, and purpose, to explain why creative consultancies have the potential to be excellent places to work. In a recent blog post, Pink reports on research showing how people are more creative when working on behalf of others than they are when working on their own problems. This finding seems to very nicely support my assertion that the clients of innovation services firms, mostly startups and large companies, are well served by outsourcing their innovation. In fact, Pink points out one specific implication of the research which addresses the structure of these firms:

Perhaps loose alliances of distantly connected people – think Wikipedia or a Hollywood film – can produce more creative products and services than fixed rosters of employees in traditional arrangements. And maybe those consultancies, which all of us love to malign, are offering a valuable service after all by providing distance for hire.

Look for Carl Erickson’s up and coming “Soap Box” E-conversation coming soon!

To find out more about the Solar Car and the team please visit http://solarcar.engin.umich.edu/

Each November, Global Entrepreneurship Week connects people everywhere through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as self-starters and innovators. Students, educators, entrepreneurs, business leaders, employees, non-profit leaders, government officials and many others participated in a range of activities, from online to face-to-face, and from large-scale competitions and events to intimate networking gatherings.

Through this initiative, the next generation of entrepreneurs are inspired and can emerge. In doing so, they will begin to acquire the knowledge, skills and networks needed to grow innovative, sustainable enterprises that have a positive impact on their lives, their families and communities.

Mike Mossallam, Director of Film Initiatives for Wayne County, took a few moments out of his busy schedule to talk with Amanda Bate, ARZIKA’s PR and Communications Specialist about why he decided to get involved with Michigan Emerging, his move back to Michigan from California and the love he has for this great state.

BATE: Why is Michigan Emerging Important to you?

MOSSALLAM: Michigan Emerging promotes job and business creation for all of Michigan. It is in line with the goals of Wayne County Executive, Robert Ficano. Any entity that supports economic development from the film industry is important to the Wayne County Film Initiative.

BATE: What is happening in the film industry in Michigan at the moment?

MOSSALLAM: We are currently wrapping up our busiest summer ever with over 20 films produced in Wayne County. The ABC police drama, Detroit 1-8-7, has launched and is now being fully produced and filmed here in Detroit. We currently have seven projects in pre-production. Raleigh Michigan Studios is under construction and is set to open in the spring of 2011 and is creating a steady flow of new jobs. The Wayne County Film Initiative has developed a strong relationship with the Michigan Film Office and is helping to create a sustainable industry in the state.

BATE: What is your story?

MOSSALLAM: I am a native of Dearborn, MI and a graduate from the University of Michigan. I moved out to New York and L.A. where I was an actor and director working on mostly theatre and some film productions. In December of 2008 I was contacted to head up the Wayne County Film Initiative and jumped on the opportunity. I’m loving what’s happening in Wayne County and the state as a whole, the buzz from the film industry is so positive.

BATE: What is your favorite thing about Michigan?

MOSSALLAM: After living in New York and L.A., I find it amazing to witness the diversity Michigan has to offer. In Wayne County there are a multitude of ethnicities and cultures in one area. But Michigan has more to offer than just cultural diversity, it also has a diverse landscape from urban to rural to the lakes to the woods.

This week at Michigan Emerging, I am going to moderate a panel on tangible change, Change Up. The goal of the panel is to tell stories. Taken together, these stories create a template for change and a tool for change agents, driving community reawakening, reinvention, and growth.

The panel that will join me on Wednesday includes:

• Simon Perazza, Director of Constituent Relations for ArtServe Michigan. During a time of reduced funding for Arts and Culture and a shift away from Arts Education to an obsession with Math and Science, Simon has managed to advance an agenda of advocacy for arts, culture and arts education in the state.
• Chris Stark, Team Leader for Kelly Services in the Detroit area. Chris has had to succeed in a world of contract workers, flexible hours, road warriors, technology that lets you work from anywhere at any time.
• Brian Boyle, Founder of Issue Media Group. While publishing and revenue models for traditional media have collapsed, Brian has reinvented his business in an era of online, on-demand, social media, and compressed news cycles.
• Rebecca Salimen Witt, CEO of Greening of Detroit. The urban farming story in Detroit is truly transformational as it teaches us about the role of place in defining who we are. If place defines, then how does a change in place also change our perception of ourselves?

“Change” is a big idea that needs action. Here are the tangible next steps you to take:

• Send me a note about a person or group with a story that can teach us something: changeupmovement@gmail.com
• Like the movement on Facebook: www.facebook.com/changeup-movement
• Upload your change video, audio, pictures, graphics, or text-based story at www.changeupmovement.org.

I encourage you to add your voice to this effort.

Why Disaster Preparedness Can Save Your Business

By Jeff Freyer, Vice President of Comcast Business Services, Michigan Region

At some point, most businesses will face an emergency. The question is what type of disaster it is, how severe and when. According to the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), small and mid-sized businesses are uniquely vulnerable to disasters and 25 percent of small businesses will fail to
re-open following a major disaster.

If you’re a business owner, the best preparation for a disaster is to have a plan in place. Establishing a comprehensive disaster plan is the difference between closing your business for a few weeks and losing it entirely. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security provides some ideas to think about at: http://www.ready.gov/business/plan/planning.html.

One of the most common business disasters is data loss. With a proper disaster plan, data loss should be avoided if you have a secure backup solution. Select a backup service that is offsite, secure and able to be recovered at any time. There are online services that make it easy. Elect employees to be responsible for managing backups and regularly practice the recovery process. Recovery is just as important as having the backup system in place and a key element is frequently reviewing your data to be sure your data is backing up accurately. For example, Comcast Business Services offers Microsoft Communications Services with Windows SharePoint, so you won’t have to worry about losing your data because you’ll have remote sharing, backup and storage of all your files.

In the event of a disaster, where your office communications are out of service, your employees will need a way to get in touch with each other or external clients. Part of your emergency plan should include methods of communication such as e-mail, contact lists and voicemail that are available online so they’re accessible from anywhere. In addition, hard copies of contact lists should be distributed to employees and regularly updated. It’s crucial to arrange for incoming communications so your customers are still able to get in touch with your business. Many phone systems will enable you to forward your office lines to other numbers remotely. And if your phone service went out you could continue to receive voicemail messages and could check messages online or listen to it from any working phone.

At the core of any business is its staff. In order for a disaster plan to operate, employees must be prepared and informed of your emergency plan. Start by outlining which employee functions are most critical, such as communicating with clients and key vendors. Designate an alternative working location to use if necessary and once you have a plan completed, distribute it and review carefully with employees. Be sure to review your plan with your staff regularly and keep a copy on your SharePoint site so it can be accessed from anywhere. A resource that can save your business’ livelihood is Microsoft Exchange platform, which stores and synchronizes e-mail, calendars, contacts and tasks with Microsoft Outlook so you don’t have to worry about losing important information if your e-mail server is completely lost.

In addition, if a disaster causes you to relocate, having Web hosting and e-commerce capabilities are essential to ensure you can stay in business even if your office is closed down. That way you can continue to sell and provide service even if your computer or server is down.

These are just a few ideas for how you can ensure your business survives any disaster no matter how big or small. Comcast Business Services provides small and medium-sized businesses with a one-stop solution for their communications, information and entertainment needs, offering Business Class Voice, Business Class Internet and Business Class TV. Visit http://business.comcast.com/ or call 248.233-4537 for more information.