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Week of October 30- November 5, 2006

Navigating Red Tape

It’s rarely a pleasant experience when an entrepreneur has to deal with Federal agencies for licenses, permits, or when dealing with tax questions. But, at least Washington is trying to make the process a little smoother. A new Small Business Administration sponsored website, www.business.gov, is designed to help. It serves as a one-stop shop for information about compliance with Federal rules and regulations. It’s organized in a sensible manner and allows for searches by topic (e.g. environmental compliance) or by industry sector. While the site won’t eliminate Federal rules and regulations, it should help make the compliance process a little smoother.

To learn more, visit www.business.gov.

Angel Investing, Canadian-Style

The US isn’t the only place making a big push to expand angel investing. The Canadian government, and its provincial governments, are making a similar push. Earlier this month, Canada’s National Angel Organization (NAO) held its sixth annual summit in Toronto. One summit highlight came from Ontario’s Premier Dalton McGuinty who announced a $2.5 million investment to help spur the creation of new angel groups in the province. This effort builds on a larger $46 million technology commercialization program, known as the Market Readiness Program, first announced in July. This broader effort includes an entrepreneurial mentorship program, a new seed investment program to support technology commercialization (via investments of anywhere from $250,000-$500,000), and a $90 million early stage venture fund for Ontario-based firms. (NOTE: All dollar figures listed above are in Canadian dollars.)

To learn more about angel investing in Canada, visit the website of the National Angel Organization at www.angelinvestor.ca. To learn more about Ontario’s Market Readiness and angel investment programs, visit http://www.mri.gov.on.ca/english/news/Nao100406.asp.

Health Care, Tax Relief and Energy Policy

The latest OPEN from American Express Small Business Monitor poll contains some useful nuggets of information about what’s on the minds of America’s small business owners as we head toward mid-term elections. The top issues - health care, tax relief, and energy policy - probably aren’t a whole lot different from the most pressing issues of the average voter. Small business owners report that they are starting to feel the pinch from a combination of higher energy costs and economic slowing in some parts of the country. As a result, business optimism is down slightly. How do they plan to respond? Owners report that they plan to focus more heavily on customer service in the coming year, and also work to keep a lid on expenses. When asked what is the most important thing they need to be successful, a third of business owners (34%) gave the simplest answer: more money. While they face many challenges, business owners still seem to like the entrepreneurial lifestyle. Sixty-nine percent would recommend to others that they consider starting their own business.

To view the results of the September 2006 OPEN from American Express Small Business Monitor poll, visit http://home3.americanexpress.com/corp//pc/2006/fallmonitor.asp.

Doing Well? Doing Good? Or Both?

The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank has certainly raised the profile of the field of microfinance. But, there is hot and ongoing debate about the field’s future. Should microfinance organizations make a profit and operate like a business? Or should they operate in manner that focuses more on helping the poor and less on the bottom line? While these questions oversimplify the discussions, they do capture the basic opinions in the current debate. On one side are Yunus and others who continue to focus on poverty eradication as the primary goal. The opposing view comes from a host of cashed-out entrepreneurs, led by eBay’s Pierre Omidyar, who believe that microenterprise organizations can both ‘do well’ and ‘do good.’ In other words, effective microenterprise groups should operate like private businesses. It’s a fascinating discussion that is addressed in the cover story of this week’s New Yorker magazine.

”Millions for Millions,” by Connie Bruck appears in the October 30, 2006 issue of the New Yorker. It is available on-line at: http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/061030fa_fact1.

Information Technology in the Heartland

As public attention remains focused on global offshoring, we sometimes forget that many of America’s smaller communities are becoming quite competitive in the quest to attract information technology (IT) businesses and resources. A new study from Information Week examines this phenomenon. When it comes to locating a data center, America’s heartland is an attractive place to be. It’s cheaper, and it’s less risky in terms of the potential for terrorist attacks or natural disasters. In its ranking of the best locations for IT data centers, all of the top 10 sites are located in the middle parts of the US. The top three sites are (in rank order): Sioux Falls, SD, San Antonio, TX, and Ames, IA. These sites all rank highly on the key criteria of a skilled workforce, relatively low labor and utility costs, and telecom infrastructure. IT industry analysts expect that data center operations will be a major source of new jobs in many regions of America’s Midwest.

“The Best and Worst Cities for Data Centers,” by Darrell Dunn, appears in the October 23, 2006 issue of Information Week. It is also available on-line at:
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193401105.

The National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship, an initiative of the Public Forum Institute made possible by a grant from the Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City. Through NDE-news, we bring you short summaries and analyses of various trends driving the innovation economy. Subscribe now to receive your weekly copy. Archived issues are available online. Links to the day's entrepreneurship stories from across the nation and around the world are posted each weekday on the NDE main page - bookmark it and stay informed about the latest entrepreneurship news.

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All stories © 2006 The Public Forum Institute
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