wmu alumni leadership dinner
TRANSCRIPT
ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP
WMU ALUMNI DINNER
Matthew D. Mace
President/CEO
BlueGranite, Inc.
April 14, 2010 – Kalamazoo, Michigan
• Represent more than 99.7% of all employers
• Provide 60% to 80% of the net new jobs
• Pay 44.3% of total U.S. private payroll
• Produce more than 50% of non-farm GDP
• Are 3% franchises
Small BusinessImpact on our Economy
Large Firms (1000+ employees)
8,000
Midsize Firms (100-999 employees)
93,000
Small Businesses (<100 employees)
8.1 million
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Retirement plan
Health insurance
Money earned
Amount of stress
Your job
Chances for promotion
Job security
Relations to co-workers
Proximity to home
Flexibility of hours
Percent Satisfaction with your Job
Self-employed Not self-employed
Source: Pew Research Center
history of BlueGranite (abridged version)
website
development
(1996-1999)
e-commerce
(1999-2001)
custom application
development
(2001-2004)
information
worker solutions
(2004-2006)
business
intelligence
(2006-today)
then now
We partner with Microsoft to create I.T.-based
solutions that help organizations make better use of
the information they collect about their business, in
order to make better, faster decisions – “Business
Intelligence”
We partner with AT&T to create website
solutions that help organizations
market, communicate, and sell their
products & services to a global
community using Internet-based
technologies
it’s decision time
1. Make your own decisions
2. Use your talents & skills
3. Eat what you kill
Why be an
entrepreneur?
being an entrepreneur
As the entrepreneur….
• Seek feedback from team & advisors
• Be creative to find new opportunities
• Believe the customer is always right
• Take risks and learn from failures
• Trust your team, but verify
The Entrepreneur(you)
Partners
Clients
Team Members
AdvisorsVendors
Community
Family
How to balance?
5 Easy Steps to Getting Started
• Pick your idea, something you know and love, and write or draw a one page plan
• Understand the target market & prospects, competitors and partners
• Start selling, spend most of your time here until you have customers ready to go
• Line up any necessary team members, or co-owners if you need to share risk
• Satisfy the customers – will help you overcome all obstacles!
Thank you!