|
|
|
| MATR Newsletter - Tue Nov 10, 2009 |
"In a world in which more and more average work can be done by a computer, robot or talented foreigner faster, cheaper “and just as well,” vanilla doesn’t cut it anymore. It’s all about what chocolate sauce, whipped cream and cherry you can put on top. So our schools have a doubly hard task now — not just improving reading, writing and arithmetic but entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity." Daniel Pink, the author of “A Whole New Mind” http://matr.net/articl ... .html
Great opportunity for your business: " Businesses Needed for Participation in MSU Management Consulting Courses " http://matr.net/articl ... .html --- "Leaders and Laggards A State-by-State Report Card on Educational Innovation" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Montana Matters - What you can do to help guide the future of Montana
Montana SBA
- MSU alum and country music star, Shane Clouse, writes song about Montana - "Montana Matters"
The Montana Matters campaign "aims to preserve Montana's rich and storied past and its vibrant history as the embodiment of the Wild West, while at the same time ensuring the state's abundant wildlife and magnificent forests, fields, lakes and streams are preserved for generations to come."
PrintingForLess
- Information for Small Businesses from Secretary of State Linda McCulloch
As Secretary of State, I encourage each of you to take the initiative to recognize and support a small business owner or small business champion by nominating them for one of the awards.
Highway 12 Ventures
- PrintingForLess Founder And President Andrew Field, "Doing It In Montana: Building 'America's Print Shop", 11/17, MSU
Field's original business idea was to make it easy and affordable to buy four-color printing anywhere, anytime. Paired with the power of the Internet, the idea morphed into an early online commercial printing company, PrintingForLess.com, which now serves more than 80,000 small business customers nationwide from its base in Livingston.
Come Home Montana
- 5 Minutes with Eric Hansen of August Ventures. New Venture Firm in Boise, Idaho
August Ventures is focused on renewable energy and sustainable approaches to reducing energy consumption. The fund is also focused on companies in the western U.S.
Montana Business
- Montana Career Opportunity - Program Directors and Promotions Professionals - Benedetti Media Group
We want to add creative, competitive people who "get it" and who want to play on a winning team. Prima donnas need not apply.
Montana Economic Development
- PPL Montana Community Fund: $1 million and counting
“As a major company that employs more than 500 Montanans, we know that our Community Fund grants make our state a better place to live and work,” said Pete Simonich, vice president and chief operating officer of PPL Montana. “When we give money to community groups, we know we’re touching people — people we know — in towns across Montana.”
Funding and Building your Business
- Moving on up - The Bitterroot Job Service Workforce Center
“It kind of co-locates us which is something that really makes sense ... because we’ll be housed in the same building as [the Ravalli County Economic Development Authority] and the Bitterroot College Program of the University of Montana,” Furniss said. “So, we’ll be with education and employment, and I just think that’s a great partnership.”
Montana Education Excellence
- The Rise of Agile Organizational Development
My bet is that the companies that embrace it are much more likely to succeed than those that don’t.
- What Startups Are Really Like
This was the surprise mentioned by the most founders.
- Stock Option Vesting Calculator
Options and restricted stock in a startup are subject to vesting. This is done to associate the rewards of equity ownership with the time and effort put into creating value for the company.
Montana Education/Business Partnerships
- Montana middle-school students build wheelchairs to help kids with disabilities. ROC Wheels
“I feel like we don’t empower youth to do what they’re capable of doing—they’re capable of doing so much more than we ever give them credit for,” Hanson said. “Even as kids, they can change the world.”
- Funding Available for Montana Student Internships, Research
Grant amounts range from $500 to $2,500 and will be awarded for use by UM students during 2010 Wintersession and spring and summer semesters.
Idaho Business
- Businesses Needed for Participation in MSU Management Consulting Courses
The CoB is accepting applications from companies that may want to participate in either of these courses during the spring 2010 semester, at no cost to the company or organization; which begins January 13 and ends May 7. All types of businesses are encouraged to apply.
Education
- Idaho broadband tracking gets grants
Idaho was among seven states to be included in a grant to fund broadband mapping and planning activities.
- Idaho Power launches A/C Cool Credit; helps food banks
Customers participating in A/C Cool Credit help shift the demand for energy during the highest-use summer days, which bodes well for system reliability, Idaho Power said in a weekly newsletter.
Other Economies
- Oregon gets mediocre grades for innovation in schools
"We believe our education system needs to be reinvented," the report says. "Our schools consistently produce students unready for the rigors of the modern workplace."
- Leaders and Laggards A State-by-State Report Card on Educational Innovation
Change is essential.
Community
- 'Maine Miracle' faces challenge
While Hawaii, Oregon, New Jersey and other hard-hit states hiked personal income taxes this year to generate revenue, Maine drew national attention for doing the opposite.
- State exploring detailed strategy for growth
"When you're building infrastructure, you have to take into account all the different statewide goals," said Cynthia Bryant, director of the Governor's Office of Planning and Research. "We haven't done scenario planning at a statewide level, and it's something we need."
Connectivity & Communications
- FOUR New Grant Opportunities
- The Art of Civic Engagement
"Many familiar issues grew out of the town's artistic approach to planning for its future, Rosenbluth said. Residents want to preserve the town's rural heritage and landscape while also expanding opportunities for small, home-based businesses, she said.
Energy and Climate Change
- Montana Governor Schweitzer mandates 35% cut in travel expenses
Much of the training once offered to employees primarily at out-of-state conferences is available via Internet "webinars" or through telephone conference calls, officials said. Instead of flying to Denver, for example, state workers now can sit at their computer terminals and take in the presentations.
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- Paul Ehrlich: Change human behavior or global civilization is doomed
In his address, he will point out specific measures that countries can take to cope with climate change.
- Expanding cities contribute to global warming
“Continued temperature changes will occur as long as the landscape continues to be altered,” added Pielke. “The subject of the effect of future land use change on local and regional climate should be a major focus of upcoming climate assessments.”
- 'Smart grid' technology gives you power over your power costs
Imagine you could log on to the Internet to find out how much power you used this week.
Government Technology
- Google making Waves across all its Apps?
We just received a set of screengrabs from an anonymous source giving us a glimpse at what appears to be Google's (and thus, the world's) future interface to its web applications, Gmail in particular.
- Intel introduces a digital book reader that reads aloud to the blind
The Intel Reader is based on a lot of research and is designed for the visually impaired, first and foremost.
- Painting your House So It Becomes a Solar Panel
Spray-on solar ink could draw consumers by being simpler and less expensive than the conventional silicon panels we use today.
- Montana back to square one creating $140 million software for Medicaid system
This week, Brad Sanders, the head of the state's Procurement Bureau, sent a letter to ACS saying Montana wanted a different kind of system than the one for which the state first advertised. Consequently, he wrote, Montana is canceling this bid-seeking process and will roll out another one when the state knows more about what kind of computer system it seeks.
To subscribe or unsubscribe from the free weekly MATR newsletter, please visit our list info page
