Champions of Change Blog

Championing the Veterans' Plight for Entrepreneurship

Posted by Ted Lasser on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

It is truly an honor to be involved in this event and to be chosen as a Champion for Change. As we all work toward building a stronger country, the value of service and sacrifice cannot be overstated, and there are few who know more about service and sacrifice than our Nation’s Veterans. Putting their lives on the line, they protect the freedom that we enjoy, come to the aid of others, and build our Country’s reputation internationally.

In his State of the Union Address, President Obama highlighted the courage, selflessness, and dependability of our troops. With all that they have to offer, one would hope that Veterans would have access to the best opportunities after their service. Unfortunately, many return home from active duty to find another battle: one for employment, stability, and a sense of purpose. Rather than having the opportunity to use the skills learned through military training, Veterans are discovering that employers are hesitant to hire them. These employers may not understand the value of military training, or may view hiring Veterans as risky. Recent legislation providing incentives for companies hiring Veterans takes a step in the right direction, but by no means solves the problems facing these men and women.

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How Giving Back Moves the Economy Forward

Posted by Tom Lauria on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

I’ve had a long career in the manufacturing industry. In the late 1970s, I was transferred to a rural community, a new experience for me. I’d never given a lot of thought to rural economic development before, but suddenly I saw the dynamic that created pockets of poverty. There was a great need for educational opportunities and local jobs. I felt that people, particularly poor people without transportation, should not have to travel a great distance to find employment.

Attracting industry to an area is one way to impact small local economies, but there’s another answer as well. Small business development creates jobs in rural areas and anywhere else there is a need to eliminate pockets of poverty. Nearly 60 percent of people employed in the United States are employed by small businesses. Helping to grow this vast economic segment is going to play an enormous role in turning around, not only local economies, but the national economy, as well.

When I began to use my business experience to help people start small businesses, I felt an immense sense of gratification. Helping someone take an idea and turn it into a business venture is exciting and fulfilling work. My current role as area manager for the Charleston Area Small Business Development Center has allowed me to help thousands of entrepreneurs pursue their dreams of financial success. The SC SBDC’s statewide network supports economic development by helping to start and grow small businesses in rural and urban communities. Statewide, the SC Small Business Development Centers has helped create more than 1,114 jobs and start 116 businesses in 2011 alone.

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Taking Part in a "Yes We Can" America

Posted by Emily Niehaus on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

In 2008, Presidential candidate Barack Obama declared “Yes We Can.” I, along with millions of other Americans, was inspired by this approach to politics. I understood this message to be a partnership request. I had a role to play. And so I founded Community Rebuilds to address an affordable housing need in my rural community with the larger goal of shifting the existing construction paradigm to have a lighter impact. Community Rebuilds’ mission is to build energy-efficient housing, provide education on sustainability, and improve the housing conditions of the workforce through an affordable program.

It began as a simple idea to replace old, dilapidated housing (like singlewide trailers built prior to 1976) with homes that cost less to build and less to heat and cool for working families. The premise is to use volunteers to offset the cost of construction, utilize federal financing to offer participants a low interest rate and a reasonable payment plan, and build with sustainable materials that are dirt-cheap…literally build affordable, energy-efficient homes out of straw, sand, clay, and wood.

I was excited to get building, but I ran into an immediate problem. The green building industry was suffering from a lack of green builders. I stumbled onto a unique opportunity to stack functions and dovetail two needs with one program.

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For the Life of Your Business

Posted by Nancy Strojny on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

Throughout my career, I would like to think I have made a difference as both a mentor and an agent of change. When I began my journey, few women were stepping forward. It was a time to grow and expand the boundaries, personally and professionally. Our legacy was to shape the path for the next generation of successful business women. Early on, I cultivated my role as a mentor. Empowering others to achieve success was my intention. Building relationships meant seeing the world from another person’s perspective and figuring out how you can help that person thrive. Two years ago I relocated to the great State of Maine and joined the Portland Chapter of SCORE as a volunteer. On behalf of SCORE, I am honored to be named a White House “Champion of Change.”

SCORE volunteers are a network of more than 13,000 trusted, knowledgeable mentors who help emerging and existing small businesses solve problems and improve competency as they create companies, jobs and revenue in their communities. Small business is the growth engine of our economy. SCORE has a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs create small businesses and jobs for America.

In Portland SCORE impacts the community by providing services, programs, and resources to small business owners. SCORE is the starting point for new entrepreneurs, as well as existing business clients, seeking guidance. We meet with our clients face to face, online, or on the phone, to create actionable business plans. SCORE provides expertise on financials that matter: such as cash flow, achieving a healthy balance sheet, and improving the bottom line. Our services are free, and we are here “For the Life of Your Business.” Most of our mentoring relationships are measured in years, not months. Many clients have described us as, “a one person Board of Directors.” SCORE certified mentors have owned and operated their own small businesses, or served in management positions for both large and small companies. The key ingredient SCORE mentors bring is real-world business experience you can count on.

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Fulfilling Dual Agendas for Today's America

Posted by Lisa Walker on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

There is a long history in this country of innovation. Indeed, it is one of the great strengths of our country and our economy. Over and over we have been able to weather the storms of recession, and come out stronger on the other side, because of the impact that new ideas, new methods, new products and even new industries.

One of the fundamental challenges that we face as a country is energy. We need energy for everything we do. Energy powers our homes, our cars, our factories, our offices. And the geopolitical and environmental pressures on energy are enormous. That's why I was so excited to be able to work with the Clean Energy Trust as a mentor to start-up companies striving to help address our country's energy needs.

The Clean Energy Trust was created to speed the development of clean energy businesses "by connecting entrepreneurs, researchers and early stage companies with the expertise and capital needed to become sustainable. The Trust leverages the Midwest region’s "world-class research institutions, corporations and financial firms to cultivate a clean energy ecosystem, attracting top researchers and entrepreneurs to invigorate the region’s economy." What is so exciting about the Trust is that while it is fostering innovation in others, the Trust itself is an innovation, as it seeks to accelerate the impact of those working to solve the challenges of our ever increasing need for energy while at the same time limiting the environmental and geopolitical impact of that energy usage.

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Launching Students into Entrepreneurship

Posted by Susan Amat on March 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM EDT

Dr. William Scott Green and I co-founded The Launch Pad at the University of Miami with two clear goals: 1. To expose students to the option of entrepreneurship as a viable career path, and 2. If a student were to start businesses we want them to do it in our community. The Launch Pad is the first program in higher education to successfully replicate its program at other institutions, we are considered a pioneer and among the best-in-class for entrepreneurship education. We don’t offer classes or curriculum; we help start businesses.

University of Miami President Donna Shalala often says that The Launch Pad is the only place on campus where it is OK to fail. Our philosophy differs greatly from every other entrepreneurship center in that we focus on the development of the individual rather than the business. Based in the University’s Toppel Career Center, The Launch Pad believes in slow success rather than the typical fast failure model.

“Paying it forward” by mentoring others is natural to me because of the incredible support I have received since starting my first business at 15. But as I attained the personal goals I set for myself in my teens and 20s, newer and loftier goals emerged: a desire to impact the lives of many more people than I can through individual mentoring; a recognition that the lessons and advice I can offer others can help many more people if, by “training the trainers,” they are recorded systematically, freely shared, and updated as the environment changes to ensure that the best practices are STILL the best practices. We created that system within The Launch Pad, which made it possible to replicate our model as a plug and play solution for other colleges and universities.

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