MBIA Newsletter, Winter 2023

Verizon Small Business Digital Ready

Through Verizon Small Business Digital Ready, a free online curriculum focused on helping small businesses with digital transformation, Hispanic-owned small businesses will be able to access Spanish language course offerings, coaching from experts, community events and personalized mentorship, as well as apply to receive a $10,000 grant as part of a $250,000 fund to help further support minority small businesses. In partnership with Next Street and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Verizon Small Business Digital Ready was created with and for small businesses, with a specific focus on helping diverse and under-resourced business owners.

Learn More.

Board Updates

BOARD OF DIRECTORS NOMINATIONS
It is time to nominate individuals for the MBIA board of directors. Of the 7 seats on the board of directors, 4 are coming open in 2023. If you have a desire to serve and a few hours to spare each month, you could be just the person the board needs. The self-nomination process is easy--just complete the brief form attached to this email The MBIA nominating committee will select up to 4 candidates to run in the election in spring 2023. The 4 elected board members will be notified by late May and they will take office at the June board of directors meeting. If you want to become one of the 7 members of the MBIA board of directors, you can request a nomination form by emailing michigan.incubation@gmail.com. Return your completed self-nomination form via email by January 31, 2023. If you have any questions about the process or about the duties of a board member, contact any current board member.

Upcoming Events

 InBIA will hold the 37th International Conference on Business Incubation (ICBI37), in Detroit, Michigan, this spring. This event brings together entrepreneur support professionals from all over the globe to connect, explore new strategies, share best practices, learn about current trends and gather tools and resources. Peer-led sessions will focus on relevant topics, expert keynotes will share inspiring insights, and local ecosystem leaders will showcase their programs. Check out the agenda from last year to get a sense for topics and activities you can expect during an InBIA event. 

MBIA Virtual Member Meeting
Monday, February 6, 2:00-3:00 PM
"Entrepreneurs: When and How to Scale Operations"
This talk will guide entrepreneurs and their supporters through a 3-step process to:

  1. Clearly identify when space is preventing business growth
  2. Validate that more space will lead to positive business outcomes
  3. Start the process of determining the optimal size and arrangement of spaces for business growth, either alone or with support from an architecture and engineering firm
Register for this Zoom meeting at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEqduqrrD8sHdd6q6w9437a3fuIEW1BhPaK

Speaker Bio
Della Fetzer has worked in a variety of laboratory, production, and consulting roles, holds a black belt in lean six sigma process improvement, is a current entrepreneur, and the scientific operations specialist at Progressive AE, an architecture, design, and engineering firm in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

MBIA Member Meetings in 2023

The MBIA Events and Training Committee is gearing up for an exciting series of member meetings in 2023. They are looking for presentation topics and host members for August 7th and November 6th.

Hosting a virtual member meeting entails having a rep from your organization on the Zoom meeting to talk about your program for 5-10 minutes, perhaps even providing a recorded or walk-about tour. The training topics for each meeting are arranged ahead of time, so there is no expectation that the host locate a speaker.

The host for the annual meeting is asked to provide the physical venue for the meeting, ideally a room that can hold up to 50 people. During the annual meeting the host will be able to provide a more in-depth introduction of their building and programs. Again, all content is arranged by the Events and Training Committee, so there is no pressure to locate speakers (unless you want to).

Any MBIA member who wants to host a member meeting can send an email to the MBIA general email address, michigan.incubation@gmail.com. In the email indicate the date you prefer.

Similarly, if you'd like to suggest a topic and speaker for a member meeting, we'd love to hear about it. Simply send the topic, the name of the presenter, and contact information for the presenter to michigan.incubation@gmail.com.
 
MBIA Newsletter Template 2020 - MBIA Newsletter, Winter 2023