Seven Entrepreneurs and Small Business Supporters Honored at the Fuse Business Innovation Awards
inVenture, Bloomington's technology business incubator, and the South Central Indiana Small Business Development Center (SBDC) recently spotlighted innovation, creativity, energy, and growth at the second annual Fuse Business Innovation Awards Luncheon. Area leaders and small business owners gathered at Ivy Tech Community College, Bloomington, to recognize innovative entrepreneurs who are impacting the community.

Seven entrepreneurs and local small business supporters were honored at the luncheon:

• William West & Christy Page of Option Six, Inc. were named the 2006 Bill and Gayle Cook Entrepreneur of the Year.
• The Entrepreneurial Growth Award went to Big Time Trading, LLC.
• RightRez, Inc. received the Innovative Business of the Year award.
• Rock Paper Scissors was honored as the Microenterprise of the Year.
• Stone Belt Arc, Inc. accepted the Social Entrepreneur of the Year award in honor of the success of their entrepreneurial venture, Leather Works.
• Linda Williamson, formerly with the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation (BEDC), was named the Small Business Advocate of the Year for her 13 years of dedication and service as President of the BEDC.
• This year's recipient of the Community Service Award was Textillery Weavers for generously providing their time and resources to the local arts community.

In addition to these seven categories a special onetime Lifetime Entrepreneur Award was presented to Bill and Gayle Cook for their entrepreneurial and cultural contributions to the Bloomington community.

All award recipients received a distinctive award created by local limestone artist Robert Clending. In addition to these custom-designed awards, each winner received a one-year Business Affiliate Membership to inVenture, which allows them to utilize all of the incubator's resources at no cost. Learn more.

Again, many thanks for the generous support of the following organizations who helped make this event possible:

Bunger & Robertson
Charter One Bank
Duke Energy
Liell &McNeil Attorneys PC
Mallor Clending Grodner & Bohrer, LLP

Local Medical Device Company Receives $1.1 Million Grant from State
Morris Innovative Research was awarded a $1.1 million grant from the Indiana 21st Century Research and Technology Fund to continue clinical trials of a new life sciences venture.

The money will help MIR continue research and development of a medical device that provides safer access to the femoral artery for certain heart procedures.

The four-year-old company currently has eight employees. Morris said the device is currently assembled at its office on West Second Street. Morris hopes the product will enter the commercial market within six months following successful clinical trials. If demand for the product grows, the company would need to expand both its space and work force.

The 21st Century fund is administrated by the Indiana Economic Development Corp. Its focus is on assisting Indiana ventures with development, commercialization and production of innovations.

Entrepreneur Week Oct 30 - Nov 4
Join fellow Hoosiers as well as alumni, venture capitalists and angel investors from around the U.S. in celebrating Indiana entrepreneurs and creating new opportunities for growth and development. The annual Entrepreneur Week, sponsored by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, will feature numerous events at universities and corporations. For more information, please see the schedule of details.

South Central Indiana's economy is made up of many unique small businesses which often are overlooked. Each month learn about a local small business that you might not have known about!

Coffman Proactive CPA Services, LLC
Coffman Proactive CPA Services, LLC was recently formed by Craig Coffman, CPA, an IU alumnus with over 18 years experience working with individuals and businesses. Craig chose to incorporate “proactive” in his company’s name to communicate a more customized approach to servicing clients. Craig’s goal is to “anticipate your needs with personal attention.”

“Throughout my career, I have advanced from providing services on a grand perspective to more of an individualized approach.” Craig’s career path reflects this with a progression that took him from working as an auditor on large accounts at Ernst & Young, to working more extensively in the tax and business consulting service areas more recently at Olson & Company. “My experience has enabled me to gain a wealth of experience in providing tax, accounting, and business advisory services for clients of various sizes and backgrounds. I especially enjoy working with start-up businesses.”

Craig also enjoys working with civic organizations in Bloomington such as the FMCCS Board and the SEED Corp Board. He participates in collaborative high school teaching through the Franklin Initiative, and is involved in mentoring programs at the IU Kelly School of Business.

Bloomington's downtown Certified Technology Park is made up of many unique technology development businesses. Each month learn news about these innovative businesses and other initiatives taking place in the Park!

inVenture Welcomes New Tenant
Chicago-based 1.2.1 Access Automation, LLC, a biometrics technology company that develops fingerprint and access identification systems, recently moved to Bloomington to join the fast-growing core of technology businesses in inVenture.

1.2.1 develops fully-integrated, networked biometric fingerprint access and ID verification systems. 1.2.1 has provided solutions for several niche applications as well as commercial-ready solutions that fulfill the peak security requirements for any business or agency. It also provides robust security solutions for all industries and has the ability to transform virtually any physical locking device into a state-of-the-art, biometric security system.

Looking ahead, 1.2.1 desires to research and develop some exciting new biometric systems for logical security and has envisioned a number of devices that can further revolutionize the security industry. See 1.2.1’s website or a recent Herald Times article.

Designing an Award-Winning Website
How do you design a website that is attractive, easy to use, and provides value so customers will return again and again? Leave ample white space and pay close attention to navigation. Make sure the color of your text is easy to read, and never create an introductory “splash” page that delays users from getting to your main content. Such pages only drive traffic away. Read more about good website design.

November 1 : Entrepreneur Week
What: Entrepreneurship At Indiana University
Where: University Place Conference Center, Indianapolis, IUPUI
Time: 1:00 - 4:30 pm
Cost: None
Contact: Kyle Salyers, (317) 274-8018

November 1: Business Orientation Start-up Session (BOSS)
What: Learn what it takes to start your own business and become your own boss.
Where: SBDC, 501 N. Morton St., Suite 106
Time: 3:00 - 5:00 pm
Cost: $25
Contact: SBDC, 812-339-8937 (registration required)

November 2: Entrepreneur Week
What: Social Entrepreneur Program; lunch and panal discussion featuring CEOs of 2006 INC 500 Indiana companies.
Where: Columbia Club, Indianapolis
Time: 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Cost: $45
Contact: Joy Melnyk, (317) 684-5011

November 2: Entrepreneur Week
What: Developing a Culture of Entrepreneurship: Maximizing Your Mission Through Board Development; understand your role as a board memeber, how to maximize this experience, as well as how to develop innovative and forward-looking board-driven solutions.
Where: Damar Community Room, Indianapolis
Time: 8:00 - 9:00 am
Cost: None
Contact: Katie McCoy, (317) 856-5201

November 2: Entrepreneur Week
What: Is It Time for You to Start a Business; hear from expert entrepreneurs that will explain how to start, own and operate your own business in the technology field.
Where: Indianapolis Development Center, 2495 Directors Row Suites A &B, Indianapolis
Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm
Cost: None
Contact: Eric Wilkes, (317) 348-1135

November 2: Entrepreneur Week
What: Entrepreneurial Success in Indiana; presentation and discussion on high technology entrepreneurial success in Valparaiso.
Where: Christopher Center, 205 Valparaiso, Valparaiso University
Time: 3:00 - 5:00 pm
Cost: None
Contact: Paul Trapp, (219) 464-5085

November 3: New Economy, New Rules Seminar
What: Series of video conference presentations from industry leaders geared towards the information technology industry.
Where: inVenture, 501 N. Morton St., inVenture Conference Room
Time: 8:00 - 9:30 am
Contact: Marilyn Skirvin, Bloomington Economic Development Corporation, 812-335-7346

November 14, 15, 16, 28: Small Business Innovative Research Workshop
This seminar will bring you up to date on the latest SBIR/STTR program information and educate you on how to prepare a winning proposal. To register, call 812-384-3283.

November 15: Icebreakers :: GET CONNECTED
What: Bloomington's new after-hours networking event for entrepreneurs' tech-based businesses.
Topic: ProCure's story, John Cameron of ProCure Treatment Centers
Where: U-Club, 254 N. Walnut, Bloomington
Time: 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Cost: Free
Contact: inVenture, 812-335-7356

November 21: Tech Tuesday
What: A series of video conference presentations with a networking and educational component for Bloomington technology businesses.
Where: inVenture, 501 N. Morton St., inVenture Conference Room
Time: 7:30 - 9:00 am
Contact: Terri Brown, inVenture, 812-335-7356

November 21: Life Sciences Lunch Series
What: The Indiana Health Industry Forum and Barnes & Thornburg present a monthly seminar series on critical issues in life sciences.
Where: Ivy Tech Community College, Bloomington Campus
Time: 11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Contact: BEDC, 812-335-7346

November 28: Small Business Innovation Research Workshop
What: This seminar will bring you up to date on the latest SBIR/STTR program information and educate you on how to prepare a winning proposal.
Where: French Lick, French Lick Springs Resort
Time: 7:45 am - 4:30 pm
Cost: $25
Contact: IEDC SBIR Office, 812-384-3283

November 28: Artists After Hours
What: Bloomington Area Arts Council monthly Artists After Hours
Where: John Waldron Arts Center, 122 S. Walnut
Time: 5:30 pm

November 29: Business Orientation Start-up Session (BOSS)
What: Learn what it takes to start your own business and become your own boss.
Where: SBDC, 501 N. Morton St., Suite 106
Time: 3:00 - 5:00 pm
Cost: $25
Contact: SBDC, 812-339-8937 (registration required)

December 1: New Economy, New Rules Seminar
What: Series of video conference presentations from industry leaders geared towards the information technology industry.
Where: inVenture, 501 N. Morton St., inVenture Conference Room
Time: 8:00 - 9:30 am
Contact: Marilyn Skirvin, Bloomington Economic Development Corporation, 812-335-7346

Intellectual Property Workshop
The most important assets of organizations are often their unique ideas and knowledge. Protecting these assets requires an understanding of not only the relevant law, but also technical and business considerations.

Join the attorneys of Bose McKinney & Evans LLP as they explain the legal aspects of intellectual property and their application to real-life situations.

November 6, 2006
7:45 am - 12:15 pm
Indiana University, Kelley School of Business,
Godfrey Graduate & Education Center (CG 1034)
1275 East 10th Street
Bloomington

For more information, contact Kwin Raymer at 317-684-5293.

View More Small Business Solutions

• Demographic Research for Advertising

• Answers.com

• Tax Alert: Telephone Tax Refund