March 2012

 WIN is a grass roots organization partnering with the West Shore Community College Business
Opportunity Center to help prospective entrepreneurs in the region of Lake, Manistee, Mason
and Oceana Counties launch new ventures. Or, if you are an entrepreneur who already has your
business established, you can strengthen your innovation, managerial and business skills to grow
your business.

The primary goals of WIN are:

• Peer support
• Confidential idea review
• Help with the inventing process
• Assist in the process of promoting your product/service
• Patent process
• Team up with local, regional and statewide business development organizations to refer
members for help with writing a business plan, marketing research and access to capital

read more...

 - Early Stage Incubator Launches at Harvard  CNET.com

- Macomb OU-Incubator Welcomes Alternative Energy Company  CBS Detroit

- What Makes a Successful Incubator TechCrunch.com

- Microsoft to Launch Incubator in Israel WSJ

 Register for the 2012 MBIA Annual Conference! April 17th and 18th

Features of this year's conference include:

• A Networking Event on Tuesday, April 17 that will bring together the MBIA Board of Directors and interested members for an evening of discussion and networking.
• High-profile Keynote Speakers from various industries across Michigan
• Round Table Discussions exploring the creation of capital, incubators, and entrepreneurial culture for communities.
• An awards ceremony celebrating the note-worthy incubators and incubator clients
• Training Sessions focused on innovation

Keynote Speakers:
Dinah Adkins, Former President and CEO of the National Business Incubator Association
Rick DeVos, Social Entrepreneur, Founder of Art Prize
Kalyan Handique, CEO of DeNovo Sciences, Co-Founder of Handylab, VP of R&D Systems Development at Becton Dickinson

 Register now! 

The Michigan Corporate Relations Network (MCRN) is soliciting proposals for its Small Company Innovation Program (SCIP). The SCIP will provide cost-sharing grants to foster collaboration between MCRN universities and small- to medium-size companies on research projects for new commercial products or services.

The six universities that make up MCRN are Wayne State University, the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, University of Michigan-Dearborn, and Western Michigan University. Each member university maintains an office that connects businesses to university resources and
faculty that can assist research needs. Companies interested in applying for the SCIP will be paired with the appropriate faculty principal investigator (PI) to outline a project and submit a proposal.

 

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The Can-Do Kitchen Expo will be held on Friday, April 20th from 4:30-6:30 at 511 Harrison St in Kalamazoo. The Expo is for buyers, brokers, distributors, managers, merchandisers, design and marketing firms etc. in the food industry. Please come ready to taste delicious locally-made foods and sip some wine, if you choose. Be prepared to promote your company; who knows, maybe you'll leave with a new Michigan-made product or other business connection. For more information, please visit: http://www.fairfoodmatters.org/