If you enjoy TED Talks, here are five that are specifically about entrepreneurship and innovation that you may enjoy: http://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/5-inspiring-ted-talks-for-entrepreneurs.html. I think the first video is particularly interesting, as it emphasizes the “why” of entrepreneurship as opposed to the “what” of entrepreneurship, a message that has appeared in several blogs and in class discussion. While a clear “why” may be most visible for social entrepreneurs, it is also crucial for traditional entrepreneurs.

Here is a very interesting article about 23-year-old Lauren Welch, whose entrepreneurship hopes to change the way that patients in developing nations can access their medical records. Dr. Carlos Atore, Welch’s mentor at University and business partner, informed Welch about the problems with Kenya’s healthcare system. Welch learned that there were “only 2 doctors per 10,000 Kenyans.” “To remedy the problem, she designed a mobile application,” and, through the guidance of Dr. Atore, succeeded in implementing their mobile application in five clinics and a hospital.

States Welch: “This will be the first time a patient in these developing countries will be able to access their medical records in an instant. If it’s a war-torn country and they have to go somewhere else, they’ll have that digital health record in hand to show that provider. At that point, it gives them power of their health care for once.” Her idea caught the attention of MIT, and she hopes the service will only continue to grow.

It is interesting to see how her idea progressed with the help of her business partner. It’s also interesting to consider that her ideas as an undergraduate are entirely her own to grow and implement, yet, if she had been in graduate school receiving a stipend from her research facility, she may not own the rights to her own idea, particularly if it was developed through a program’s mentors. Regardless, this is another example of how a simple solution can help solve a complex problem.

As the image of the “entrepreneur” continues to change, here is an interesting article on the evolution of the “celebrity entrepreneur”: http://tech.co/gina-rodriguez-celebrity-entrepreneur-2017-03. The article nicely outlines the benefits available to celebrities that ease the transition from “celebrity” to “entrepreneur” – such as, for example, their “influence and capital to get the startup ball rolling.” While I think the article is wrong in its conclusion that “celebrities make the best entrepreneurs,” it nonetheless ties into our discussion of the malleability of entrepreneurship and evolving trend of what constitutes entrepreneurship.

In one of our earliest classes, Professor Hollis discussed the student who won an entrepreneurial competition with his simple take on solar powered light. Similarly, this compilation of “Shark Tank” highlights demonstrates that the most successful companies are often an innovative spin on a simple product or service. The “Tipsy Elves” company, for example, has capitalized on the “ugly Christmas sweater” market, and has made a reported $40 million dollars in sales of eccentric clothing items. “Tom & Chee,” a grilled cheese restaurant, has expanded to 14 states, raking in $47 million in sales. Having a new idea on a traditional product or service is still an “entrepreneurial” endeavor, and it’s interesting to see why these Sharks thought it was smart to invest in these particular companies.

Here is an article discussing many of the concepts we have talked about in class. The article starts with a proposition: that “many new competitors in our market are not beating us on quality. They’re beating us first on service and convenience, and then on price. We’re not being out-lawyered in this market. We’re being out-customered.”

This is an interesting concept, and one that clearly parallels what Uber did to the taxi industry. The author first notes that the billable hour is on the decline, with flat rate pricing on the incline. This is where traditional law firms are being beaten on price. The author then notes that online services such as LegalZoom beat typical lawyers on convenience, as they are available 24/7.

Essentially, the author reminds us to focus on the new value propositions of the day: affordability and convenience. I think these two attributes are often lost on lawyers, but should be in the forefront of their mind, considering what the typical consumer values today.

In light of next class’s focus on patents, here is an article guiding entrepreneurs through a three-step process regarding patenting an invention or idea. Although the entire article is helpful, I found the most interesting part to be step 1: “determine if your idea is marketable.” The author asserts that “[a]bout 97 percent of all patents never generate enough revenue to pay for themselves.” This statistic surprised me, and made me think about the issue in a way that I never had before. First, entrepreneurs must engage in a cost-benefit analysis as to whether or not to even file the patent in the first place.

The author also includes several practical tips as to timing. For example, he suggests that entrepreneurs take their time to file their first non-provisional patent, lest they miss something important in their rush to file. I found this to be an interesting perspective, especially considering that the U.S. has switched to first-to-file per the America Invents Act.

Overall, I found this to be a helpful read, bringing an entrepreneurial perspective to the patent application process.

Airbnb is creating opportunities for women in Kenya! What would be interesting if a similar company could be formed there for Kenyans by Kenyans. This news is exciting as to its potential for Kenyans.

http://www.voanews.com/a/kenyan-women-airbnb-entrepreneurs/3755132.html

Kenyan Women Lead Rise of Airbnb Female Entrepreneurs

Puerto Rico is in a peculiar position since the exit of companies and jobs. Much like other countries that have experienced such loss, entrepreneurship is a path that is encouraged to build the economy.

Puerto Rico turns to tech and entrepreneurialism to revitalize the economy

Puerto Rico turns to tech and entrepreneurialism to revitalize the economy
Posted Jan 15, 2017 by Jim Glade

Innovation under the hood will rev the engines of a fintech revolution

Jim Glade, Contributor
Jim Glade is the marketing director at Publicize and a freelance reporter based in Medellín, Colombia. Jim is also a visiting mentor at Parallel18.

The commonwealth of Puerto Rico is steeped in more than $70 billion of debt that has been accruing for the better part of a decade. The local government’s irresponsible issuance of bonds and the decision by the U.S. Congress to cut corporate tax breaks have contributed to the current fiscal crisis and subsequent exodus of U.S. companies and Puerto Rican citizens from the island.

To make matters worse, the island’s agricultural industry is at a standstill, importing more than 85 percent of its produce. Puerto Ricans also pay two to three times more for electricity than average Americans, due in part to their dependence on oil imports and because the government-owned utility company is plagued with billions in debt.

On June 30, President Barack Obama signed the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), which creates a committee (consisting of no elected Puerto Rican officials) to oversee the island’s finances. Some have criticized the law as a devolution to America’s colonial past.

Former Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla lobbied heavily for the bill’s passage and he acknowledged that the commonwealth has a long way to go to recover financially.

As part of its new economic development plan, Puerto Rican officials are looking to technology and entrepreneurship to revitalize the economy, attract its bright minds back to the island and solve the sustainability problems bedeviling the commonwealth.

Attracting businesses back to the island

In 1976, Congress passed Section 936 of the federal tax code, granting U.S. corporations a tax exemption from income originating from U.S. territories. Manufacturers, largely from the pharmaceutical industry, flocked to Puerto Rico to take advantage of these tax breaks.

It was boom time on the island; until the tax incentives phased out in 2006 (Congress voted in 1996 to rescind them), the island enjoyed 28 out of 29 years of economic growth. Since 2005, Puerto Rico has seen negative growth eight out of 10 years and, just as the automotive industry left Michigan, so too fled Puerto Rico’s most prevalent manufacturers — pharmaceutical companies — in droves.

With the exodus of the big corporations, the workers soon followed. Puerto Rico has been experiencing a net population loss since 2005 that accelerated in 2010 as the mainland began to recover from the 2008 recession. According to the Pew Research Center, Puerto Rico had a net population loss to the mainland of 64,000 in 2014, more than double the net loss of 26,000 in 2010. Vice’s Samuel Oakford reported in April of 2015 that “for the first time in history, stateside Puerto Ricans — 4.9 million — outnumber the 3.5 million who remain on the island.”

Technology is certainly one of the pillars of our economic development program.
— Puerto Rico Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, Alberto Bacó Bagué
Puerto Rico is trying to bring back corporations through a series of tax incentives, which have been signed into law since 2008. Two laws in particular, Act 73 (2008) and Act 20 (2012), set a fixed income tax rate of 4 percent for commercial manufacturers and companies exporting services from the island, respectively. A 50 percent tax credit for research and development activity costs has also been instituted under Act 73. According to Puerto Rico Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, Alberto Bacó Bagué, “20% of the companies that operate under [Act 20] are tech oriented … and the rest have a tech-related component.”

“Technology is certainly one of the pillars of our economic development program,” wrote Bacó in an email to me. “As of today, we have a strong tech cluster with examples like Infosys, a global leader in creating breakthrough solutions that address mobility, sustainability, big data, and cloud computing and Honeywell, with a new EMI (electronic magnetic [sic] interference) research lab that alone will create 300 jobs.”

Bacó also mentioned Truenorth, Rock Solid and Fusionworks as examples of a burgeoning corporate IT sector.

Fostering entrepreneurship

To buoy the tech sector, Puerto Rico is trying to reinvent itself as a knowledge-based economy that will compete globally in part by creating a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The 2012-2013 Global Competitiveness Report from the World Economic Forum ranked Puerto Rico third in the availability of scientists and engineers. According to Lucy Crespo, the CEO of the Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust, a public-private trust aiming to turn the island into a tech hub by 2020, Puerto Rico graduates 22,000 STEM students and 60 to 70 percent leave the island.

“For many years, our schools and universities prepared our professionals to work for someone else,” said Crespo during an interview in the capital, San Juan. “So we didn’t develop a full ecosystem, we didn’t create a culture in which students from the universities thought, you know, gee, how can I become an entrepreneur?”

The trust recently established the Technology Transfer and Commercialization Office to help develop and commercialize intellectual property from the island’s universities and provide income tax breaks for researchers working in their grant program.

Bacó tells me, “While big hitters are important, a new breed of entrepreneurs has flourished, and we have joined forces with our diaspora using their knowledge and network reach to further propel economic growth.”

Parallel18, a startup accelerator in San Juan backed by the trust and the government, has reached out beyond the Puerto Rican diaspora, soliciting help from Start-Up Chile founder Sebastian Vidal.

Ducking in and out of a corner office at Parallel18 to check on a presentation from a local P&G executive, Vidal told me that he didn’t come here to copy what he did in Chile. “Start-Up Chile was more about building a startup community and the entrepreneurs were tasked with going to universities and being like mentors,” said Vidal. “Parallel18 has those aspects but the focus is more on making an impact with the economy as fast as possible.” He acknowledged that the political and economic system is much different from his homeland and there is a short timeline to create a significant, economic impact.

Also staffed by Puerto Rican entrepreneurs returning from abroad, Parallel18 is a five-month accelerator program for companies from around the world and from the island that offers $40,000 equity-free funding with a chance for follow-on funding if qualified alumni decide to establish their company in Puerto Rico. In exchange, entrepreneurs engage with local university students to help foster a culture of entrepreneurialism.

We are creative, hard-working, have great mobility to the U.S. and the world, and are ready to tackle problems and scale outside of the traditional corporate career path.
— 16-year-old entrepreneur José Nolla-Marrero
The program is already starting to bear fruit. Of its first cohort of 36 startups, seven international startups have stayed to continue their businesses from Puerto Rico and 12 local startups are up and running, according to Marie Custodio, spokesperson for Parallel18.

Other startup initiatives include Piloto 151, a co-working space in the colorful Old San Juan district that has partnered with the Founder Institute; ConPRometidos, a social impact incubator and consulting firm; Grupo Guayacan, which since 1996 has been working to develop a private equity and entrepreneurial ecosystem on the island; and PRANS, a community of business leaders from different sectors that donate time to help potential investors evaluate and set up investment projects.

Parallel18 is being used as a vetting source to help bring quality companies to the attention of local and international VCs to create a deal flow — a main challenge for the ecosystem.

“In general, capital is frozen because of the uncertainty surrounding the [island’s] fiscal issues,” says Kenneth Kay, an angel investor and founder of the Puerto Rico Capital Network. “Despite the challenging environment, I am optimistic that a vibrant startup scene is possible in Puerto Rico.”

Kay points to recent tax legislation favorable to venture capitalists, particularly an amendment to allow software as a service (SaaS) companies the fixed income tax rate of 4 percent under Act 73 and Act 185, which provides tax incentives for private equity funds, as moves to help attract investors to the ecosystem.

The government estimates that 790 Act 20 decrees will have been granted by the end of 2016, with 423 projected to have been granted in 2016 alone — a sign that this program could be gaining steam among investors.

Sustainability and the future

In August, several Puerto Rican business associations sued the public utility PREPA for proposed electricity rate hikes on an island where its citizens are already paying two to three times more for electricity than average Americans. The strongest factor for the island’s high energy costs is that four-fifths of energy used in Puerto Rico comes from petroleum and the island neither produces nor refines crude oil — it imports all of it, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

“Sustainable energy is key to Puerto Rico’s future,” Puerto Rico expert and journalist Juan González told a crowd at New York University in 2015, the same year the island began to comply with a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard that forces PREPA “to supply 20% of retail electricity sales from eligible ‘green energy’ resources by 2035.”

In September, energization began at the largest solar farm in the Caribbean located on Puerto Rico’s northwest coast, and local startups are also taking on the toughest energy issues.

Energy rates aren’t the only sustainability woes on the island.

For example, San Juan-based TEBS (short for Traffic Energy Bar System) has patented a system that captures kinetic energy from cars passing over a mechanism implanted in roadways and converts it into electrical energy to power nearby street lamps. And Sunne Cleantech Labs, a company that creates solar energy products, recently announced pre-sales of its Sunne Heater, a patent-pending solar water heater.

Energy rates aren’t the only sustainability woes on the island. In 2015, Puerto Rico imported more than 85 percent of its produce and Puerto Rican-grown rice went on sale in August for the first time since 1989.

The government has taken steps to boost agriculture, including a $4 million investment to help a local university improve soil conditions. But perhaps more promising is that local entrepreneurs are stepping up to tackle the issue.

UAV-IQ uses drones to scout acres and acres of growing area, using multispectral sensors so farmers have better insights into their crops, and eFARM, a social media-inspired e-commerce platform, connects Puerto Rico’s organic farmers directly to consumers on the island and around the world.

In an email interview, 16-year old eFARM founder José Nolla-Marrero told me he “noticed that finding organic and sustainable foods was very difficult and expensive in Puerto Rico and [I] envisioned an app to help find the farms, their products and plan a route to them.”

Nolla-Marrero embodies the next-generation Puerto Rican professional that the government is trying to cultivate: The entrepreneur.

“I believe we are adopting an entrepreneurial mindset already,” wrote Nolla-Marrero. “We are creative, hard-working, have great mobility to the US and the world, and are ready to tackle problems and scale outside of the traditional corporate career path.”

“The enthusiasm in our generation is palpable and contagious. I feel strides have been made and it’s a path many want to take but may not have had the level of support seen these days.”

https://www.wired.com/2017/02/netflixs-abstract-peers-lives-rockstar-designers/

Netflix has entered the design world for its new documentary series – “Abstract: The Art of Design.” The show profiles experts of design in each of their respective fields from illustration to automotive design.

“Design thinking”, as defined by Tim Brown, is a methodology that imbues the full spectrum of innovation activities with a human-centered design ethos. Innovation is powered by a thorough understanding, through direct observation, of what people want and need in their lives and what they like or dis-like about the way particular products are made, packaged, marketed, sold, and supported. This methodology is evidently at play in this documentary series.

I watched episode 2 over the weekend and would strongly recommend to a friend. The episode dives into how Tinker Hatfield got his start at Nike, Inc. along with many of the products that have had his mark over the years. What Tinker created was not something people needed, but like all good entrepreneurs he created something and then people wanted it. Tinker found inspiration from his football coach who also had an interest in designing shoes. Apparently, the coach would randomly give students a pair of newly designed shoes and ask them to run around the track – sometimes the shoes would work well, other times your feet would bleed. Prototypes are essential to design thinking. The goal is to learn about the strengths and weaknesses of the idea and to identify new directions that future prototypes might take.

Great design satisfies both our needs and our desires – Tinker accomplishes this with his shoes, especially the Air Jordan XI. Tinker made sure the shoe was performance oriented first, and then made it aesthetically pleasing – it has patent leather, nylon and carbon fiber shank. When Tinker first presented the shoe to Michael Jordan his response was “People are going to be wearing these with tuxedos.” Sure enough a few months later, Boyz II Men showed up at the American Music Awards, all wearing Air Jordan XIs with tuxedos.

I love how this article and organization addresses some of the problems that Africa is facing. Necessity entrepreneurship is playing a role in producing income for people, and knowledge is important to ensuring a sustainable business.

http://makambaonline.com/index.php/2017/01/27/21053/#.WMF3m00zWUk

KBA Africa changing the trends of entrepreneurship in Africa
Growing sustainable business models in Africa

January 27, 2017 1:59 pm

High unemployment is a challenge in most African countries, and the universities continue to produce a large number graduates who need a source of income to support themselves and their families.

With a majority of African nations diversifying from traditional sources of income, entrepreneurship is increasingly seen as a key to income generation and economic growth. Despite the growth in the need for entrepreneurs, starting and running businesses is a challenge! Entrepreneurs find it difficult to access funding, structure their businesses and accessing investors to invest into their businesses.

In order to understand how entrepreneurs can be equipped with the knowledge and tools for sustainable growth, Makamba Online had a sit-down chat with Ms Agnes Chikukwa Hove, the founder of KBA Africa (Knowledge Based Action), and African entrepreneurship development organisation.

She said: “Youth unemployment is a growing African problem and the youth need to be given the necessary support and knowledge required to start and grow businesses.”

How does KBA Africa help entrepreneurs?

“KBA Africa was started with a vision to capacitate young African entrepreneurs with the skills and tools they need to allow them to build viable and sustainable businesses,” the founder of KBA Africa told Makamba Online.

KBA Africa gather information about entrepreneurs in Africa from the entrepreneurs themselves and they also scan the entrepreneurial ecosystem. With this gathered data, they develop programmes that help address deficiencies and shortcomings of African entrepreneurs. KBA Africa organizes capacity building through boot camps, invite celebrated entrepreneurs to motivate budding entrepreneurs and small businesses, present business opportunities and trends to entrepreneurs through research and help them in accessing funding.

Why you should attend KBA Africa’s programmes?

Ms Chikukwa Hove clarified on the benefits of being involved in the organisation’s programmes.

She said: “The benefits of entrepreneurial empowerment are far reaching. The individuals benefit by creating an enterprise that can support their financial needs and those of their families. They create jobs, which benefits the economy, they trade with other organisations, thus creating an ecosystem. They start to pay taxes, and so on.”

Entrepreneurial boot camps

Given the good work going on, we asked KBA Africa about the next boot camp.

“Everyone is invited for the next Bootcamp at the end of February, 2017. This one is specifically designed to cater for school leavers and university graduates who have not figured out what to do.

“Entrepreneurs get to network with industry experts, representatives from leading financial institution, and the relevant government departments. They take home a toolkit from the Bootcamp, but they also become part of the KBA Africa Business Circle, which is a networking forum. They also have access to our online trading platform TradEX. And they get mentored by our industry specific Advisory Panel,” Agnes said.

On all Bootcamps, there is a nominal fee that is charged for all business people who attend the event(s). The KBA Africa founder said: “We charge a nominal fee to the entrepreneurs, for them to invest in themselves. However, we are looking for sponsors for our subsequent Bootcamp which will allow our programmes to be sustainable.”

Challenges

“Access to funding has been our biggest challenge. To date, we have funded our own projects and programs, but in order for us to have a greater impact, we need funding partners,” says the founder of KBA Africa.

Sustainable business in Africa

She added that KBA Africa will continue to work with young African entrepreneurs, and its influence will grow with every entrepreneur it capacitates.

The general goal of KBA Africa is to see Africa flourishing with sustainable business and self-reliance. Kindly visit their website, KBA Africa.

Author: Gesture Chidhanguro