Guest Speaker: Graham Evans

Graham’s presentation was probably my favorite so far. First, I like that he works with a non profit that is advocating for attention towards one of the biggest issues in the pacific northwest. From there, the group discussions that spurred from filling out his Business Model Canvas were beneficial to the group in a few ways. For a while, I have seen a non-profit as a way to get a job, but not a career. However, Graham showed us the impact a non-profit can have and if it was something I am passionate about, success would not be measured by a paycheck.

I have mostly considered success to be directly correlated with dollars and cents but this gave me a completely different perspective. However, Graham’s presentation did have a lot of benefits to every type of business. I have started using his Business Model Canvas to help flesh out my business ideas. As mentioned in other blog posts, I am not entirely confident in any of my ideas. The canvas is helping to drive these ideas forward as well as help me develop entirely new business ideas.

Guest Speaker: John Dimmer

John Dimmer was the first presentation where I got the “entrepreneur” vibe. Which I am not sure if that is a compliment or not, but for me it is simply an observation. My favorite part of the presentation was how he explained the “demographic” of the windstream customer, and how that was the driving force behind their business plan. I am in a Human Computer Interaction class that says product design is about the user, and no amount of mathematics can change that. It seemed he was getting at the same core rule, in that you can introduce the right product to the wrong customer base and be unsuccessful. In his case, the windstream was what the customers in the Northwest wanted, and it was wildly successful.

His presentation on funding was interesting. I never knew that businesses started on family and friends money, I thought that was just a rumor. But being able to see the life cycle of funding a business was a bit daunting. John had a lot of experience in this, and knew the process like the back of his hand. However, the idea of getting funding still is a bit intimidating. But, John made it seem like it was just part of the process, if you are willing to work for it.

Guest Speaker: Amy Sallin

I enjoyed Amy’s lecture. It was a sort of informal, which I thought was great and everyone was involved. The business plan competition was an interesting prospect and she acted as if we could all potentially win, which allowed me to daydream about all the “what-if” scenarios of joining the competition. However, I am not entirely passionate about any of my business ideas. Maybe at some point one of these ideas will be what I use to start my business, but for right now I am still trying to do the research and see where I stand.

I think the main benefit of her presentation was helping us visualize our business plans. Many students asked questions about the competition as if they were planning on joining. Also, I think she helped push a lot of us in the direction of starting our own business.

My goal is to have a business plan that I feel is a viable candidate for this competition next year.

Recruiting and Retention

Recruiting and retention.

A quick perusal of online career forums will show you there are a few rules to live by in today’s technology careers (my personal favorite is reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions).

1. Everyone has a degree, not everyone has relevant experience. Get relevant experience.
2. Network, network, network.
3. If you want a raise, you will have to switch companies.

Rule 3 is the most important aspect here. The general attitude is that a software engineer has a future vested in their skillset, not in their company. Since all of my business ideas are technology based and would require a solid group of software engineers, so I would like to create an environment where an engineer would see their future at my company, not elsewhere. I would do this by providing opportunities for promotion, so each employee would know that there is not a glass ceiling above their head. Second, I would offer stock options, so each employee would have a vested interest in the success of the company. The third, I would make sure we were always on the cutting edge of the tech world and would send as many employees as possible to tech conferences around the world. I want to inject ideas and knowledge into my company at every level and this would be a great way to accomplish this.

On the recruiting side, I think there are 2 elements: company image and benefits. I will of course offer competitive pay, as this is a basic need for any potential employee. Beyond this, employees generally want a job at a place they agree with on a moral level. An example of this is Google’s “don’t be evil” slogan as a slight against Microsoft in the late 90s and early 2000s. It helped drive employees to Google and many would say Google has surpassed Microsoft in terms of brand recognition and quality of product. Second, I would offer competitive benefits to all employees. I would follow the German model, where employees take more vacation and work less hours but have a higher output in terms of product. I think work/life balance is key to building a quality product, as it helps lower the stress of the day to day grind.

Guest Speaker: Erik Hanberg

Erik Hanberg’s presentation was really informative. Talking about entrepreneurship is always great, but seeing someone’s journey through starting a business and the ups and downs of trying to build wealth. The most interesting aspect was how he used writing novels as a form of passive income. I have always thought of passive income as interest and dividends but never writing a book and allowing it to bring in regular, somewhat unpredictable, income. It is definitely something I will keep in mind, as I work towards financial independence.

I wish Erik would have spoken more in depth about his work with Exit133, as I am a big fan of their website. I was born and raised in Tacoma, so I would like to one day be involved with a project that helps connect the area the way Exit133 does. Suite133 was a really cool idea, as we move towards more remote type work, I think that is a basis for a new type of office space. This was not exactly the goal of Suite133, but I think one day there could be a similar concept.

In conclusion, I found Erik's presentation to be really inspirational. Starting my own business seems like a daunting task and Erik humanized it. He showed us that you can go through ups and downs and still be successful through events such as the 2008 recession. He was a great speaker and I look forward to reading some of his books.