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Entrepreneurship and Innovation

I just finished a great business course called Rapid Start up School 101 offered by The Arizona State University Entrepreneurship and Innovation Group in conjunction with the city of Mesa's Launch point Accelerator program.

I recommend any future offerings of this course to fellow entrepreneurs looking to start up or expand their business. The coursework covered everything from basic resources for small business, how to legally setup your business, sales and marketing tools as well as business funding options.

These classes also offer an opportunity to network with other small businesses. I got some good insight from fellow business owners in regards to how well certain products are working for them like feedback about using Google Ad words or utilizing business networks like Linked In or Alignable.

One observation I have to make here however is that the attendees of these classes were all part of the technology economy. Everyone seems to be making an app or a website, or an App that makes websites better, or a website that makes apps. As far as I could tell I was the only business that actually offered a product or a service that wasn't purely an offering to improve the information concerning products or services.

The most bothersome thing is that offering logistics services, and actually doing something, like packing, crating and shipping apparently is not the "in" thing to do. In other words to most attendees my business is boring. People are interested in talking about apps that make business run more efficiently, or apps where you can find a service provider quicker, but not very interested in talking about delivering actual products or services.

Even outside this small group, it seems that society at large is more rewarding of those start ups that are purely, technology based offerings. Uber is a company that developed an app that allows you to find and pay for a cab, but they are not a cab company. AirBnB allows you to reserve a hotel room or a stay at a bed and breakfast, yet they don't own any hotels or Bed and Breakfast locations.

Gateway Optimum Transportation is pretty reliant on technology and we understand the need for fast, efficient technology systems for our business to continue to grow, but the technology is developed and utilized to support the primary business of packing, crating, pickup and delivery, not to sell.

It certainly seems that in the last few years most of the entrepreneurship and innovation is just technology businesses created to support existing business.

I am not saying there is anything wrong with this, in fact many jobs have been created and wealth generated for those who have started these businesses. What does bother me is that most start ups and entrepreneurs are thinking only in terms of these types of technology companies rather than being more innovative and coming out with a "new" product or service.

If you have a chance to attend another offering of the Rapid Start up School I highly recommend it, and if you happen to be a business that has the next great app or technology offering you will fit right in.

For Info regarding Mesa Launch point visit

http://www.mesaaz.gov/economic/mesaaccelerator/

For Info regarding the ASU Entrepreneurship and Innovation program visit

http://entrepreneurship.asu.edu/



  







 

 










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