Gwinnett Innovation Park Celebrates National Small Business Week

eHubConnections — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:33:34 +0000

The United States is celebrating National Small Business Week. Gwinnett Innovation Park is the home to many successful small to medium size businesses including ChemFree, Wi-Ex, Lanham Associates, ControlByNet, CoreCard Software, Data Profits and many more. Each of these businesses became successful by developing a solution to a problem in their area of expertise. We applaud each of these small to medium businesses and wish them continued success.

National Small Business Week runs from May 20-26 featuring a conference in Washington DC. To learn more go to National Small Business Week.

Bonnie Herron Honored with 2012 NBIA President’s Award

eHubConnections — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:12:28 +0000

Congratulations to our own, Bonnie Herron – Chief Financial Officer, Vice President and Corporate Secretary of Intelligent Systems Corporation. Bonnie is the winner of the 2012 NBIA President’s Award, which recognizes the contributions of long-time members who have made significant contributions to this association, as well as to the business incubation industry.

We are so pleased that Bonnie received this award and recognition for her efforts and hard work.

Gwinnett Innovation Park Welcomes NBIA members from Around the World

eHubConnections — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:34:15 +0000

Wednesday, May 9th, Gwinnett Innovation Park was pleased to welcome over 100 NBIA members, from 28 countries, in Atlanta attending the NBIA’s 26th International Conference on Business Incubation.

A Tour of Georgia Incubators was the finale of the three day event. Gwinnett Innovation Park was included on the tour with the following description:

The Gwinnett Innovation Park, located in a suburb of Atlanta, is the longest-running privately funded incubator program in the country. The program provides entrepreneurs with access to office and manufacturing space, telecommunication and network infrastructure, a community of entrepreneurs, business advice and planning, and financial capital. Since 1990, the program has been home to almost 85 companies. Its client, ChemFree Corp., received NBIA’s 1999 Client of the Year award, and in 2010, another client, Wi-Ex, received the award

The attendees were so impressed with the tour that during the presentation, one member said, “It appears you have an incubator heaven”.

As an additional surprise, Bonnie Herron was honored with the“2012 President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in support of the business incubation industry”.

Overall, a very exciting and rewarding day at Gwinnett Innovation Park.

eHub Nspire Company: 8 Bit’s Standard Theme Selected by WordPress

eHubConnections — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:47:02 +0000

8BIT (www.8BIT.io) is one of the eight Nspire companies in the eHub area of Gwinnett Innovation Park. Ask 8BIT what they do and they will say they craft fun but they’ve also created a great product called Standard Theme.

8BIT’s flagship product Standard Theme has been selected as WordPress.com’s 5th partner organization, releasing Standard Theme into the WordPress Premium Theme Marketplace. This is a major win for 8BIT and the product is so good and easy to use that another Gwinnett Innovation resident company, AquaPR, has purchased it and is using it for several of their client’s websites and blogs.

8BIT has four team members who like to craft fun, they are John, Chris, Tom and Jared. We have to agree since they have added a whole new level of excitement to the eHub office area including a complete overhaul of their office space. No more cubicle desks, they have a lounge with a sofa, table, guitars, and graffiti on the wall.

To see and hear more about 8BIT click here to listen to 8BIT’s John Saddington.

eHub Recognizes HostedSurveillance as Finalist for The Amazing Entrepreneur

eHubConnections — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:49:03 +0000

eHub is proud to announce that one of its Nspire companies, HostedSurveillance.com, was recognized as a finalist for The Amazing Entrepreneur. The competition is designed to foster innovation and small business growth in Gwinnett and metro-Atlanta and was presented by Partnership Gwinnett and Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development, in partnership with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), and Intelligent Systems.

HostedSurvelliance.com provides video survelliance services for small businesses and is scheduled to launch this summer.

Following is the complete press release.

SOFTWARE DEVELOPER WINS 2ND ANNUAL

GWINNETT ENTREPRENEUR CONTEST

CubeVibe receives over $10,000 in Cash and Prizes

(Gwinnett/Metro Atlanta News) April 27, 2012: Partnership Gwinnett and Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development, in partnership with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), and Intelligent Systems announced today the finalists and winner of the second annual small business plan contest – The Amazing Entrepreneur. The competition, designed to foster innovation and small business growth in Gwinnett and metro Atlanta, named human resource management software provider, CubeVibe, as the 2012 Amazing Entrepreneur.

“We are humbled and very excited to have been selected as the winner of the 2012 Amazing Entrepreneur Contest,” said Aaron Aycock, Owner of CubeVibe. “CubeVibe is very proud to be apart of a community that recognizes entrepreneurial efforts and building business.”

Other Contest Finalists included:

· Certification Consultants- a firm providing consultation to women and minority-owned businesses on certification for securing government contracts. · Hosted Surveillance- offering direct-to-end-user offsite video surveillance services designed particularly for small businesses.

“The Small Business Development Center works to help entrepreneurs and small business owners find the resources essential to successful development,” said Robert Andoh, Gwinnett Area Director at the Small Business Development Center (SBDC). “This Amazing Entrepreneur Business Plan Competition is a great way to encourage individuals with vision and drive to create a solid plan and turn their dream into a reality. The SBDC congratulates

The 2012 Amazing Entrepreneur Business Plan Contest Winner, Aaron Aycock of CubeVibe, as well as Certification Consultants and Hosted Surveillance on being finalists in this year’s competition.”

CubeVibe will receive a prize package that includes: $2,500 cash, a trip to Sage Software’s customer conference in Nashville, a one-year Chamber membership, a one-year participation in the Chamber’s Gwinnett Business Institute program ($180 value), and a consultation with an attorney from Arnall Golden Gregory ($2,500 value), among other prizes.

“Partnership Gwinnett has a solid focus on small business and entrepreneurial growth,” said Mark Farmer, Director, Entrepreneurship & Information Services, with Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development. “Our goal is to facilitate the success of start-ups and small business; we believe that this second annual contest supports our economic development efforts by providing grassroots support to local entrepreneurs.”

Sponsors for the contest are: · Intelligent Systems (Lead Sponsor) · Jackson EMC (Gold Sponsor) · Charter Business (Silver Sponsor)

“The Amazing Entrepreneur Contest is designed to provide support to start-ups and to promote entrepreneurship in Gwinnett,” said Leland Strange, President of Intelligent Systems. “Nurturing the development of these small businesses will directly impact the further economic growth of our community at large. The investment of time and resources into the efforts of this contest harness the power that lies right here within our community.”

The contest finalists and winner were announced today at the Gwinnett Chamber’s Pinnacle Awards, recognizing community small businesses and local entrepreneurs as a pivotal contributor to America’s economic growth and stability.

### About Partnership Gwinnett Partnership Gwinnett is Gwinnett’s economic and community development initiative. Led by the Gwinnett Chamber and a host of public and private partners, the initiative targets the retention and expansion of existing Gwinnett businesses in addition to the development of new business in five key market segments: Health Sciences & Services; Information Technology; Advanced Manufacturing/ Supply Chain Management; and Corporate Headquarters/Professional Services. The ultimate goal is to promote economic wealth & diversification, increase education and work force excellence, improve quality of life and heighten visibility through marketing and outreach programs for the entire Gwinnett community. For more information on Partnership Gwinnett, the internationally award-winning community and economic development initiative, please visitwww.partnershipgwinnett.com.

Technology Entrepreneur Wins $25,000 Grant

eHubConnections — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 12:59:50 +0000

Gwinnett Business Journal highlights Gwinnett Innovation Park – Founder’s Grant Winner – JBOD Storage Solutions and Gary Webb in its April issue. Gwinnett Innovation Park and the eHub Nspire Companies congratulate Gary Webb and JBOD on their success.

GBJ: Technology entrepreneur wins $25,000 grant

Gary Webb, JBOD Storage Solutions founder

Gwinnett Innovation Park (GIP) has named JBOD Storage Solutions the first recipient of its quarterly Founders Grant. Sponsored by GIP and Intelligent Systems, the grant is a $25,000 quarterly award to an eHub Nspire Program participant or a qualified company in the GIP.

“I am honored to receive the Founders Grant. The GIP Trustees have created a platform to help technology start-ups grow and succeed,” acknowledges Gary Webb, JBOD Storage Solutions founder whose company markets SSD-based data storage arrays. “I highly recommend any Atlanta-based technology entrepreneur to apply for this program and look forward to continue participating in the Nspire program.”

“The Founders Grant is designed to be a ‘propellant’ to help an early stage technology company achieve an important near-term milestone and accelerate its business,” explains Leland Strange, local serial entrepreneur, investor and supporter of hundreds of technology companies in the Atlanta area. “The Gwinnett Innovation Park Trustees were impressed with all of the Nspire companies, but believe that the $25,000 will help JBOD Storage Solutions the most at this point in their company’s development and can play a key role in helping them reach the next level.”

To read the full article go to: http://gbj.com/2012/04/10/technology-entrepreneur-wins-25000-grant/

For more information on the Nspire Program visit www.gwinnettinnovationpark.com.

Business Etiquette: 5 Rules That Matter Now

eHubConnections — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:55:17 +0000

How many times have you sat in a meeting and everyone is looking at their computer or phone instead of the speaker? Meetings would finish in half the time if everyone focused on the topic at hand during the meeting. Not only is it a waste of time but it’s rude to everyone else in the room.

The following excerpts from the Inc.com article, 5 Rules of Business Etiquette by Eliza Browning addresses this issue as well as several others.

The word “etiquette” gets a bad rap. For one thing, it sounds stodgy and pretentious. And rules that are socially or morally prescribed seem intrusive to our sense of individuality and freedom.

But the concept of etiquette is still essential, especially now—and particularly in business. New communication platforms, like Facebook and Linked In, have blurred the lines of appropriateness and we’re all left wondering how to navigate unchartered social territory.

Boil it down and etiquette is really all about making people feel good. It’s not about rules or telling people what to do, or not to do, it’s about ensuring some basic social comforts.

1. Send a Thank You Note

The art of the thank you note should never die. If you have a job interview, or if you’re visiting clients or meeting new business partners—especially if you want the job, or the contract or deal—take the time to write a note. You’ll differentiate yourself by doing so and it will reflect well on your company too.

2. Know the Names

It’s just as important to know your peers or employees as it is to develop relationships with clients, vendors or management. Reach out to people in your company, regardless of their roles, and acknowledge what they do.

3. Observe the ‘Elevator Rule’

When meeting with clients or potential business partners off-site, don’t discuss your impressions of the meeting with your colleagues until the elevator has reached the bottom floor and you’re walking out of the building. That’s true even if you’re the only ones in the elevator.

4. Focus on the Face, Not the Screen

It’s hard not to be distracted these days. We have a plethora of devices to keep us occupied; emails and phone calls come through at all hours; and we all think we have to multitask to feel efficient and productive.

But that’s not true: When you’re in a meeting or listening to someone speak, turn off the phone. Don’t check your email. Pay attention and be present.

5. Don’t Judge

We all have our vices—and we all have room for improvement. One of the most important parts of modern-day etiquette is not to criticize others.

To read the full article go to http://www.inc.com/eliza-browning/business-etiquette-rules-that-matter-now.html

Okay, I just reread my rant at the beginning of the post and realize I broke rule number 5, don’t be judgemental. Please forgive my rude behavior.

Do you have any business etiquette rules to add to these five?

Entrepreneurs Need Practice, Practice and More Practice

eHubConnections — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:42:04 +0000

Anytime you try to learn anything new it takes lots of practice. I’m trying to learn Spanish with Rosetta Stone and it is day after day of constant repetition. The same goes with learning a new golf or tennis stroke or mastering a musical instrument. The instructions are the same practice, practice, practice. Why should launching a new product or idea be any different? How many of us have learned more by our errors than by our successes?

The Gwinnett Innovation Park Nspire Companies are practicing everyday. Some days are more productive than others, but no matter if it’s a good day or bad they are learning valuable lessons in the process of their practice.

Excerpts from the following article by Marty Zwilling on StartupProfessional.com outlines the benefits of practice when launching a start-up.

Why Being a Successful Entrepreneur Takes Practice

Entrepreneurs seem more quickly frustrated these days when their “million-dollar idea” doesn’t turn into a sustainable business overnight. They don’t realize that it takes many skills to build a business under the best of circumstances, and today’s world of instant gratification doesn’t leave room for the patience and practice to develop these skills.

Building a business is a complex task, like building the product or service, and requires the same focus, discipline, and practice to get it right. Even the revered Steve Jobs of Apple didn’t get it all right the first time.

In his latest book, “The Practicing Mind,” Thomas M. Sterner outlines how people learn the necessary skills for any aspect of life, from golfing to business. He emphasizes the importance of a practicing mindset, and provides some clues on how to offset our modern culture of habitual multitasking, short attention spans, and giving up quickly in the face of any setback.

He believes that creating the practicing mind, and acquiring any skill, without stress and futility, comes down to following a few simple disciplines:

Keep yourself process-oriented.

Stay in the present.

Make the learning process your goal.

Be deliberate, and keep a clear picture of your destination.

Practice is required to replace bad and unproductive habits, like too much multitasking, with desirable habits, like solving important challenges more often than the crisis of the moment. Building new good habits is important, since they allow you to do required things effortlessly and without overt planning each time.

Practice is the required repetition on this action with patience, until it’s effective and automatic.

Successful professionals actually enjoy honing their skills through practice.

To read the complete article go to: http://blog.startupprofessionals.com/2012/04/why-being-successful-entrepreneur-takes.html

Is Your Product Ready for Market?

eHubConnections — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:22:20 +0000

Over the last month, the Gwinnett Innovation Park – Nspire companies have been giving updates on the status of their products. Some of the Nspire companies are in the beta stage while others have already launched. One of the major questions is determining when the product is ready to launch. The following article by Jason Fried on Inc.com offers some tips to help entrepreneurs determine when their product is market ready.

Is Your Product Ready for Its Close-up?

You’ve been working on something for months. You’ve gone through dozens of iterations, countless tweaks, tons of testing. You’re pleased with the results but can’t quite let go: Is it really ready for its debut?

Good question. In fact, this is one of the hardest questions an entrepreneur can face—because it is almost impossible to answer.

In general, here’s how software firms test for doneness. At the outset of a project, the company drafts something called a functional specifications document, or spec. The spec clearly documents what the product requires in order to be considered shippable. Once the items on the spec have been checked off, the product is ready to go.

This method works. But I’ve never much liked it, mostly because it requires you to define the finished product months or even years in advance. So we’ve always taken a different approach. We define, in general terms, the problems we’re trying to solve and begin by designing around those. We don’t try to predict the product’s final form, or even its full feature set. The only thing we know is where to begin.

And that means we never really know where to end. In fact, in theory, a software project could go on indefinitely.

To read their solution go to: http://www.inc.com/magazine/201204/jason-fried/get-real-product-ready-for-its-close-up.html

Best wishes to the Gwinnett Chamber Top 25 Pinnacle Award Winners!

eHubConnections — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 15:51:12 +0000

The Gwinnett Business Journal recently reported the Top 25 Pinnacle Small Business Award Winners. We look forward to the day when one or several of the Gwinnett Innovation Park Nspire Companies make this list.

GBJ: Gwinnett Chamber names top small businesses

An air of excitement starts to filter throughout Gwinnett just prior to the first day of Spring each year in anticipation of learning who is on the Gwinnett Chamber Pinnacle Awards list.

In an effort to recognize Gwinnett’s small businesses and entrepreneurs as pivotal to America’s economic growth and stability, the Gwinnett Chamber is pleased to announce the top 25 Pinnacle Small Business Award Winners that will be honored and celebrated at the 2012 Pinnacle Awards luncheon, April 27, at the Atlanta Marriott-Gwinnett Place. From these 25 businesses, Gwinnett’s Overall Small Business of the Year will be selected and named at the event.

At the annual Pinnacle Awards, the Gwinnett Chamber recognizes Gwinnett’s small business owners and entrepreneurs who persevere – often against all odds – to not only survive, but thrive. This vital segment of the economy is key to creating jobs, ensuring prosperity and spurring enterprise to keep the nation’s economy moving forward.

“We are honored to celebrate and recognize Gwinnett’s top small business owners whose entrepreneurial achievements are a driving force behind the U.S. economic recovery,” said Jim Maran, president and CEO, Gwinnett Chamber. “These small businesses create significant job opportunity and are essential to sustaining economic growth and prosperity.”

Also featured at the Pinnacle Awards is the prestigious Pacesetter Award that recognizes companies that have raced past the competition – displaying innovation and determination. This year’s Pacesetter Award will be given to Cynthia Kaye, president and CEO of Logical Choice Technologies, Inc.

In addition, Gwinnett’s top non-profit organizations, whose generous and inspiring efforts can be seen and felt throughout Gwinnett, will also be honored at the awards luncheon.

To see the full list of award winners go to: http://gbj.com/2012/03/19/gwinnett-chamber-names-top-small-businesses/