March 2012

March Forum Facts:

Speaker: Kevin Clifford Whittington Managing Director Portfolio Partners LLC When: Friday, March 2, 2012 Time: 7:15 a.m. Registration & Networking 7:40 a.m. Breakfast & Program 9:00 a.m. Adjourn

Where: Greenbriar Country Club 12655 Big Bend Rd. St. Louis, MO 63122 Cost: Members — free Guests — $49.00 per person

Guests Must Prepay (Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express accepted) Register at: www.MissouriVentureForum.org Or call 314-241-2683

Deadline—Noon Wednesday,

February 29, 2012

(No refunds after the deadline)

www.MissouriVentureForum.org

At the March meeting, Kevin C. Whittington, Ph.D. will discuss the path that led him from academia to entrepreneurship. He will discuss his experience of how entrepreneurs can launch start-up enterprises by being mediators of technology transfer and working with both the faculty researchers and universities. Dr. Whittington is the Managing Partner of Portfolio Partners LLC, a St. Louis-Based Technology Transfer Firm™. The firm works with faculty researchers and the university's tech-nology transfer office to launch and grow new enterprises. Portfolio Part-ners represents the interests of the faculty researcher and the university outside the institution. His first brush with academia put him on a career path of translational research or biomedical research aimed at transforming scientific dis-coveries into clinical applications to reduce the incidence, morbidity, and mortality of disease. With a B.A. in Biomedical Engineer-ing and Physics from Johns Hopkins University, and a Ph.D. in Neurosci-ence from University of Maryland,

Whittington be-gan to investigate technology trans-fer, the process of taking an inven-tion from its in-ception in a labo-ratory to a com-mercialized prod-uct. His firm provides the new start-up enterprise with fundraising, senior management, business strategy, legal advising, sales and marketing, brand-ing, scientific consultation, intellec-tual property strategy, coordination of professional services (e.g., law, accounting, etc.), government and public relations, networking, and de-velopment of business culture and professionalism. Currently, Portfolio Partners LLC has partnered with a faculty researcher and the Office of Technol-ogy Management at Washington University School of Medicine to launch a drug discovery start-up company in St. Louis, Missouri. Whittington grew up in Creve Coeur and attended Ladue Horton Watkins High School.

From Translational Research to Technology Transfer

A presentation by Kevin Clifford Whittington, Managing Director, Portfolio Partners LLC

MVF Members! Attend the Friday, March 2 Breakfast Meeting, put your card in the basket and you could win a complimentary registration to Invest-Midwest in St. Louis on April 4-5! For details on InvestMidwest, see page 10 of this newsletter.

Members — A Chance to Win a Ticket to InvestMidwest

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Steve Thomas

Off to a Great Start

President’s Column

I couldn’t help but to be excited at our first 2012 Breakfast Meeting. It was great to see so many familiar faces after the January hiatus. There was a lot of buzz and excitement in the room from

the time networking began until the networking ended, well after the presentation. MVF is clearly a meeting place for those who wish to be part of the entrepreneurial marketplace in the region. I listened closely to our speaker, Chris Sommers from Pi Pizzeria as he described his path to suc-cess. I was impressed with his passion but also with how well Chris described some discoveries that could be lessons to live by for every entre-preneur. Whether he came to these thoughts by design, through education or happenstance, they rang very true. Chris mentioned that we live in a “thank you economy.” This phrase he credited to author Gary Vaynerchuck who published a book by that title (The Thank You Economy available on Amazon). I plan to read it. Businesses today must behave with the welfare of their customers in mind. The customers expect to be extremely pleased, even thrilled in their interactions with you and your products. People will stand for nothing less than that. Today's customers, happy or mad, have a voice and the social media tools to help or hurt you. Every successful entrepre-neur knows that in his/her heart. Getting victo-ries and creating goodwill is especially essential in a start-up. For example, having customers sell your products for you by telling others how great you are is part of the secret sauce behind local start-ups like Nawgan and Yurbuds.

Chris also stated that he had learned to “embrace his ignorance.” That is a great way to describe the dilemma most start-ups run into. In a new venture, what you don’t know can hurt you. As a matter of fact it can kill you. Impressive that the founder of a new venture knows that igno-rance is not bliss but a liability. Even more im-pressive is when the guy with the idea rounds out his team with people who possess the knowl-edge or skills he needs. Hearing about the recent Startup Weekend and the ongoing Third Thurs-days at ITEN are perfect examples of where en-trepreneurs with ideas can go to learn how to grow. There are many such venues for informa-tion in our community. Lastly, I was impressed by Chris' passion for his venture. That same passion was true from our Two-Minute Forum presenters about their new venture, Inclusion Sports. For Chris, this pas-sion created new ideas and new opportunities such his new social media tool, Squid. The February Breakfast Meeting really set the tone for what MVF promises for members and guests this year. Between the Membership Cof-fees, Breakfast Meetings, Educational Events and Invitation Events there will be something for everyone in our community. If you have an in-terest in a particular topic, please let us know in our survey following the meetings. I hope you all will continue to join us in sharing the pas-sion, excitement and information exchange that is MVF.

Steve Thomas, President

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Board of Directors

Officers President: Steve Thomas The Net Impact Vice-President: Bob Cockrell Montgomery Bank Secretary: Joe Soraghan Danna, McKitrick, P.C. Treasurer: Marie Carlie Stone Carlie Immediate Past President: Bob Calcaterra Start-Up Midwest

Directors Two Minute Chair: Bill Ellis Branding for Results Marketing/Communications Chair: David Meyer Spoke Marketing, LLC Membership Chair: Nicole Ursch Midwest BankCentre Outreach Chair: Vince Garozzo Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C.

Program Chair: Anna Doyle Centric Consulting Technology Chair & Newsletter Editor: Sorin Vaduva ImRel, LLC Directors At Large Nick Akers Innoventor, Inc. Ken Harrington Washington University Tim McFadden Armstrong Teasdale LLP Jim O’Donnell O’Donnell Capital Company, LLC Frank Stokes Innovate St. Louis Chris Walsh InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum Mark Witzling Citi

March Organization Spotlight

Arch Grants was established in March 2011 as a 501(c)(3) entity to create a more robust startup culture and infrastructure in St. Louis. "We recognize that a critical mass of entrepreneurs is forming within the city and we believe that St. Louis offers advantages and amenities that no other city can offer, particu-

larly affordable space, powerful broadband capacity, access to support ser-vices and professional firms and a developing group of entrepreneurial com-panies." On its first round of non-equity funding, the organization will award at least 10 grants of $50,000 each at the beginning of May 2012 following a competi-tion starting on March 9. The grant recipients will also receive additional support in the form of pro bono legal and accounting services, reduced rent on office and residential space, business mentoring, collaboration with local uni-versities, and access to the St. Louis investor community. The business plan competition is open to all for-profit entities, across all in-dustries. "If you’re committed to helping establish St. Louis as the place for entrepreneurs to be and if your venture aims to scale in terms of job creation and/or sales, we welcome you to apply." Information about the application process can be obtained by visiting archgrants.org.

Are You An Expert in Your Field? At MVF, we spend our time looking for that investor, supplier, account-ant, attorney, future employee or partner that can help our endeavors move forward. The conversations are colloquial and do not always give you the chance to tell how good you are in your own field. But I have a solution for you: write an article in our newsletter and share your exper-tise and knowledge. All our members are eager to learn something new, find out what is going on in other industries, and see who their MVF peers are. If you have something to say in your field of expertise, write an article and submit it for review to me at sorin@imrel.com or Judy Meador at Judy@missouriventureforum.org. Sorin Vaduva, Newsletter Editor

ARCH Grants

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Education Committee

The Education Committee has six events planned for 2012. By the time you read this, the first will have occurred and was sold out. We presented “Alternative Sources of Funding” on February 21st, with panelists Darcia Betts, Rick Palank and Joy Ann Venverloh. Our next Roundtable event, “Building A Profitable Business” is scheduled for March 22. The panelists will be Judy Meador, Mitch Smith and George Rosenthal. See below for location, time and other details. Go to www.missouriventureforum.org/ to register. Please Save The Date for our next Education event, “Where’s The Cash?” scheduled for 4:00 to 7:00 p.m., Thursday, May 17, 2012 at the Sheraton Clay-ton Plaza, site of several recent MVF education events. The subject of the presentation will be a summary of the many sources of funding for entre-preneurs. This event will be a panel discussion; three panelists will describe possible sources in sev-eral major categories: equity, such as micro-funding, crowd funding and angels; traditional bank financ-ing; alternative financing such as mezzanine funds, factoring and grants; and a variety of other possible sources. There will be a Q&A session, so if you have questions, come and find out if we have answers! Two more Roundtables are scheduled for July and August. The Education Committee will be finalizing

plans for these events over the next two months. Watch this space for more details. Our annual “Outlook for Capital 2013” event will also be at the Sheraton Clayton Plaza, on Thursday, November 15, 2012 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Panelists and other details will be decided over the summer. If you would like to help with these events, the committee is al-ways looking for people. This is a good opportunity to work closely with several tal-ented business people in a collaborative effort, to showcase your talents and skills, and to improve your reputation in the entrepreneurial commu-nity. You also would have the satisfaction of con-tributing to the continued success of the MVF Edu-cation program. The Missouri Venture Forum has been producing education events for 10 years, and we have achieved some significant accomplishments in that time. Our potential is even greater, and you could be a part of that success. Call me, Bob Cockrell, or contact any member of the committee for more information. Bob Cockrell is Chair of the Education Committee and can be reached at 314-579-4621.

Bob Cockrell

MVF Education Upcoming Events

When: Thursday, March 22, 4-6 p.m. What: Building A Profitable Business Panelists: Judy Meador, Former owner St. Louis Small Business Mitch Smith, Author & broker, Crane Insurance George Rosenthal, President, Throttle Net

Where: RubinBrown, One North Brentwood 11th floor, Clayton, MO Cost: $15 per session—MVF Members $20 for nonmembers Register: www.MissouriVentureForum.org or call 314-241-2683

Register Now for the March 22 Roundtable—Attendance Limited to 25

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Two-Minute Forum Committee

Your brand is your most valu-able asset and needs to be treated as such. If you don’t manage your own brand, some-one else will. Needless to say, not everyone has your best in-terests in mind and those that do may not have a truly accurate understanding of your brand

and your goals. This becomes increasingly impor-tant in situations which are time constrained, such as the MVF Two-Minute Forum presentations. Building a solid brand based on authenticity and clarity is the best way to maximize both the short term and long term results of your branding efforts. My advice to anyone interested in branding their business, or themselves, is to first make certain that they know what branding is (and isn’t), what it can (and cannot) do for you and your business. A logo is not a brand. A catchy saying is not a brand. Your brand is your value proposition, your promise to the public, your reputation…in short your brand is the intangible sum of your attributes. Your brand should result in an emotional connection with your customers. If you’re building a new brand (or re-branding an existing one) my very top line advice can be sum-marized in three words – Purpose, Perspective, and Patience. What is the purpose of your branding? Know your ‘why’ and know your objective(s). Who do you serve – and how? What is the emotional connec-tion you’re attempting to achieve to establish that all important connection to your target customer? If you are re-branding, focus on what is, as well as

what isn’t currently working for you? I recommend to my clients that they engage in what I call a Branding Breakout (Brand audit) as a first step. Think of this as a ‘balance sheet’ for your brand which begins to identify your assets and liabilities. Seek fresh perspective from people that you trust and that are knowledgeable about branding and marketing. I often use the phrase ‘Move the Flash-light” which means to look at what’s ‘there’ in a different light or perspective. When we are used to seeing something one way it is very beneficial to review it in a different light, especially from a qualified expert. This is especially true with a new venture which is driven by an idea or an ideal. Of-ten times new businesses fail to be open to adapting and adjusting to allow their idea, product or service to meet the needs of the market. If you’re attempt-ing to have the market fit your vision, you have a very low chance of success. Lastly, have patience. Branding is a process. Take the time to make certain that the brand you are building (or if re-branding that the changes you are looking to make) truly reflects what is best for your business. All too often businesses are reactive without taking a look at the long-term ramifications of what it is they are proposing to build or change. Branding is not a race. Rather it should be a me-thodical, intelligent approach to your business which will guarantee you more success as you move into the future.

Bill Ellis is Chair of the Two-Minute Forum Committee and can be reached at 314-966-8889.

Powerful Branding in Three Words

Bill Ellis

Learn more about how to apply to be a Two-Minute Forum presenter by going to www.MissouriVentureForum.org and

click on “Two-Minute Forum” on the menu on the left side of the home page.

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Sponsored by:

MVF Membership Committee and Frontenac Bank Invite you to a FREE Networking Coffee Wednesday, March 28

The first Networking Coffee for the New Year will be Wednesday, March 28 from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. The Coffee is sponsored and hosted by Frontenac Bank at its location at 801 South Lindbergh. The bank is located about 1/2 mile north of I-64 on the west side of Lindbergh at the Southwest corner of German Blvd. and Lindbergh. This is an opportunity to network with St. Louis area business leaders and learn more about Missouri Venture Forum. The event is free but reservations are requested. Register at www.MissouriVentureForum.org.

Two-Minute Forum Committee

INCLUSION SPORTS is a St. Louis based company that has patented an innovative sport game called BulletBall. For the first time, a non-adaptive 'all-inclusive' sport which allow persons with a disability to play competitively on a level playing field against anyone; disability or not! BulletBall is also extraordinary because of its thera-peutic benefits in providing a way for patients to have fun while improving their modality on the way to recovery. The more people with disabilities can be integrated into society and be part of the workforce, the better it is for them and for the American economy. Bullet-Ball is a great way to break down barriers and is a way to level the playing field not only in the confines of the game itself, but in the way people regard their own potential. The population of people with disabilities is increas-ing drastically and the challenge is, one, to integrate disabled people into mainstream society and two, to increase opportunities for this population to experi-ence real and meaningful success. This sport is a step toward both and the economic impact could be sig-nificant.

INCLUSION SPORTS has partnered with the Senior Olympics, YMCA, Rehabilitation Institute of Chi-cago, World Sports, and the Wounded Warriors Transition Unit. The company is seeking assistance with developing a marketing campaign, sponsorships for the Senior Olympics and other sport venue commitments, legal expertise on Intellectual Property and company struc-ture, and other resources. For additional information, contact Marc Griffin at mgriffin@inclusionsports.com or call 314-533-2731 or visit www.inclusionsports.com.

February Two-Minute Forum Presenter— INCLUSION SPORTS

(l-r) Charles and Marc Griffin, INCLUSION SPORTS

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Nicole Ursch

Membership Committee

Over the last six years, I thought I had been exposed to everything the Missouri Venture Forum was “like.” It is like an inspiration when we have entrepreneurs such as Chris Sommers from Pi Pizzeria come and tell us their stories. It is like an education when you attend the events such as Getting Money From Angel Investors. It is like a light bulb when you hear the Spotlight Organiza-tion speakers talk about the different ways they are sup-porting entrepreneurs. It is like a sigh of satisfaction when you hear Two-Minute presenters pitch their new idea. But I had no idea that the Missouri Venture Forum was anything like an associate’s degree. And yet in one very profound way, it is. Over the holidays, my family had dinner with some close friends. The children were sufficiently fed, had opened their presents, and quickly departed to the basement to play. In these brief moments when the holiday gathering isn’t consumed by the barrage of “I need a snack, he isn’t sharing, and can you get this Lego out of my nose,” the conversation is slightly more calm, light and mature. That is, until your friend throws a question at you that leaves you speechless. My friend, a nanny in her mid 40s, had enrolled in an accelerated medical assisting program. She accepted a part time nanny position with a schedule that would al-low her to attend classes, and they worked out her hus-band’s work hours to accommodate her changing sched-ule. She talked to her small children about what it would mean for them and felt sufficiently satisfied that she had tied it all up with a neat little bow and was ready to dive in. That is, until the school cancelled the classes. My friend begins to scramble. She is calling schools all over town to see if they have similar programs only to find one with comparable curriculum. The drawback for her is that it is a two year program resulting in an associate’s degree, meaning there will be core curriculum in addi-tion to the classes focused on her chosen field. So she asks me, “Nicole, do you think I should go to college?” I pause. I pause some more. I pause further, wishing my son would run up the stairs and tell me he wanted an-other cookie, so that I would have more time to think about my answer and wouldn’t be forced to just blurt out what I was truly thinking. But no such cookie request came. I could pause no longer and finally told her, “No, I don’t think you should go to college” which was fol-lowed by wide eyes and then an exchange of blank stares. And then right on cue, someone came upstairs with a Barbie shoe lodged in her ear.

A few days later, I called her to talk more about her question. I asked her why she was so surprised by my re-sponse and discovered that she asked the question because she was certain my answer would be yes, that she should enroll in the two year pro-gram. She further elaborated that since education is such a priority in my life and the life of my son, surely that would bleed over to the other people in my life as well. I explained (as I forfeit the chance of ever getting a job within the university system) that I don’t think traditional college is for everyone. In her instance, she has a career goal in mind that can be accomplished in less time and for less expense if she went through the accelerated program than if she went for her associate’s degree. I recommended she keep looking to find an accelerated program that meets her needs. And much to the delight of both of us, she did. So how is the Missouri Venture Forum like getting an associate’s degree? Simply put, it’s not for everyone. We are a networking organization whose focus is bring-ing together people who are genuinely interested in help-ing entrepreneurs. There is no prescribed way to do this, but it should be at the forefront of all members’ minds and their main reason for being part of the organization. All of us have a vested interest in the new businesses that find their home in the St. Louis area. These firms may provide our next job, or those for our children or grand-children. They may provide us with the inspiration to finally get out there and do our own thing. As members of the Missouri Venture Forum who don’t have the abil-ity to yet call ourselves entrepreneurs, we need to belong because we want to do what we can to help make those who have already taken the leap more successful. I hope those of you that are already MVF members have our primary goal in the forefront of your mind, and those of you thinking about becoming a member will do so be-cause you have a passion for helping entrepreneurs suc-ceed.

Nicole Ursch is Chair of the Membership Committee and can be reached at 314-544-8585.

MVF Like Getting An Associate’s Degree

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New Member

Have news about yourself? Received an award? Moved? Changed positions? Gotten a promotion, been a featured speaker? Send your information to: Judy@MissouriVentureForum.org

Lee Crockett, CEO, Venture Advisors Inc. Venture Advisors creates, implements, and manages business mentoring programs for municipalities, economic development agencies, and small business incubators. The programs provide tactical, business mentoring to start-up and small businesses to help them launch, grow, and achieve sustainability. Introduced by Sam Hopmeier, Innovate Venture Mentoring Service

Olin Cup Competition Winners Announced In a move reflecting the wave of entrepreneurial activity happening in the region, at the Olin Cup Awards Cere-mony on February 1, an unprecedented three teams were selected to receive up to $50,000 each. Sponsored by the Skandalaris Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, the annual Olin Cup typically awards $70,000 in seed investment money to fund start-up businesses, and a $5,000 student prize. This year, investments may total up to $150,000 for three teams: SoMoLend, a web-and mobile-based peer-to-peer lending company. Eyelten Therapeutics, a company designed to develop therapies to treat age-related macular degeneration Loadmaster ToolKit, a pocket computer with custom software to streamline loading and managing cargo

on military airlifters. The $5,000 student prize was awarded to Ryan Rakestraw, a first-year MBA student at Olin Business School and a member of Freiezo, LLC, a company developing high-efficiency distributed wind energy systems.

Thank you MVF Sponsors!

www.stlouisarchangels.com

www.stcpa.com

www.advantagecap.com

www.evans-dixon.com

www.stonecarlie.com www.carmodymacdonald.co

www.charterbusiness.com

www.stlrcga

CPAs, Business Consultants and Wealth Advisors

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Events of Interest Wednesday, February 29 Founder Institute’s "Ideation Bootcamp," designed to help you articulate your start-up business ideas, is from 6:00-9:00 .m. at T-Rex, 611 Olive St., 12th floor. The speaker is Peter Griess, Infrastructure Engineering with Facebook who previously worked at a start-up that was purchased by Yahoo. The event is free. There will be beer and pizza, and the best pitch will receive a $100 cash prize. Space is extremely limited, so register today at http://stl-startupideation.eventbrite.com/ Friday, March 2 Missouri Venture Forum Breakfast Meeting from 7:15-9:00 a.m. at Greenbriar Hills Country Club. $49 for nonmembers. See front page for details. Register at www.MissouriVentureForum.org or call 314-241-2683. Friday, March 2 The Skandalaris Seminar Series: Developing Skills, Perspectives, and Relationships, is a free opportunity for commercial and social entrepreneurs from the community and campuses of Washington University to explore possibilities, learn, and connect with each other. All events are free and open to the public. The event is from 1:00-4:00 p.m. The topic is “The Business Plan and Telling Your Story.” Please RSVP online at www.ideabounce.com Thursday, March 8 ITEN 2nd Thursday from 4:00-6:00 p.m. at Tavern of Fine Arts, 313 Belt Ave., 63112. Speaker: Sarah Spear, Executive Director, Arch Grants. All are welcome to come and network with mentors, entrepreneurs, investors and others. Thursday, March 22 MVF Entrepreneurial Roundtable from 4:00-6:00 p.m. at Rubin Brown, One North Brentwood. The topic is “Building A Profitable Business.” See page 4 for details. Wednesday, March 28 MVF Membership Networking Coffee from 7:30-9:30 a.m. at Frontenac Bank, 801 South. Lind-bergh. No charge but please RSVP at www.MissouriVentureForum.org. See page 6 for details. Thursday, March 29 IdeaBounce® at 5:30 p.m. on the Washington University Danforth Campus in Steinberg Auditorium. IdeaBounce® is an opportunity for any entrepreneur or innovator to post their idea to the www.ideabounce.com. From the Ide-aBounce® site, the Skandalaris Center chooses 15-20 “bouncers” to give their 2-minute elevator pitch to a panel of judges and audience of creators, inventors, investors, business people, service providers, customers, mentors, and others. Post your idea to www.ideabounce.com by Monday, March 26 at 9am to have your idea considered to be chosen to pitch. Or, attend the event to hear ideas, participate in the “open mic” portion, and meet others in our concluding networking reception. April 4-5 InvestMidwest provides an opportunity to hear high growth companies from throughout the Midwest to present and network with the audience of over 300 attendees including 60 -70 venture capital investors. See page 10 for details and visit www.investmidwestforum.com or call 314-503-1019. Wednesday, April 4 Coffee with the Experts from 8:00-9:30 a.m. provides opportunities for startup social and commercial entrepreneurs to have a 10-minute private conversation (and a free cup of coffee) with panelists with various areas of exper-tise, including experienced entrepreneurs, investors, and service providers. The only requirement to make an appointment is to have an idea posted on www.ideabounce.com. Contact the Skandalaris Center at sces@wustl.edu or call 314-935-9134 to schedule an appointment Wednesday, April 4 Save the Date for Capital Innovators Demo Day. For more information go to www.CapitalInnovators.com Friday, April 6 Missouri Venture Forum Breakfast Meeting from 7:15-9:00 a.m. at Greenbriar Hills Country Club. $49 for nonmembers. Register at www.MissouriVentureForum.org or call 314-241-2683. Wednesday, April 11 Awards for the YouthBridge Social Enterprise and Innovation Competition include a keynote recep-tion, poster board session, and cocktail reception. RSVP online at www.ideabounce.com Thursday, April 26 Gateway to Innovation Conference (G2I) will explore how IT drives growth in social media, mobility, the life sciences, manufacturing, finance, global commerce and industries yet to be discovered. Interactive break-out sessions with regional executives and industry leaders will address the convergence of IT with other business imperatives. An evening gala and awards program will recognize the efforts of local leaders and help foster the region’s most significant economic cluster. Apply now to have your early-stage venture featured in G2I's Entrepreneurial Showcase that gives a select number of innovative companies an opportunity to be seen by all of the conference attendees. Go to http://www.g2iconference.com/ for details.

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Information for Entrepreneurs

The i6 Project provides $25,000 - $100,000 of funding to support commercialization of bioscience technolo-gies or business concepts from universities or other research institutions, entrepreneurs, or individuals throughout the St. Louis region. It supports innovations in the broadly defined areas of bioscience including but not limited to: human health therapies, diagnostics, & devices; animal health; plant science; bio– and renewable energy; and health care/bioscience service companies. The i6 program is intended to provide the first significant financing of new companies and is designed to support activities that will increase the prob-ability of obtaining follow on funding. Primary uses of the funds might include market assessments, lab experiments, and/or prototype develop-ment. Funded projects also receive the opportunity for additional support from the BioGenerator beyond the i6 Project funding. Such support may include access to the BioGenerator Accelerator Labs facility, manage-ment support, and fundraising assistance.

The 13th annual InvestMidwest is scheduled for April 4-5 and will be held at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark. The early bird registration rate of $350 is available through March 16. Missouri Venture Forum is an organizational sponsor of the event. InvestMidwest provides investors the opportunity to see presentations from the best high-growth compa-nies throughout the Midwest—43 companies representing 11 states will present in the three industry tracks of life sciences, IT/general business and clean energy/sustainability. These companies were selected from over 100 applications by the 34 members of the InvestMidwest selection committee—the professionals that volunteered their time and expertise to this process are from 24 organizations representing five states. The event also provides the opportunity for entrepreneurs and investors to network—the event attracts over 300 attendees and includes 60-70 venture capital professionals and 25-30 angel investors. Recent research has confirmed the impact of the InvestMidwest program—companies that have presented at InvestMidwest have raised over $850 million in funding and through acquisitions since presenting at InvestMidwest. For more information regarding the 2012 InvestMidwest, please contact Christine Walsh at cwalsh@stlrcga.org or 314-444-1151.

Register Now for the 2012 InvestMidwest

Request for Applications St. Louis Regional i6 Project

Third Round Applications Due – April 2, 2012

Applications for this round will be due on April 2. More information can be found at http://www.biogenerator.org/i6 or by contacting Charlie Bolten of the BioGenerator at cbolten@biogenerator.org or (314) 615-6355.

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Happening in St. Louis

Startup Weekend January 27-29 Recap

by Jay DeLong St. Louis’ first Startup Weekend was an overwhelm-ing success. Held at downtown incubator, T-REx, the event was sold out with over 100 attendees from as far away as New Orleans, participating in a fast-paced business development competition. The first night kicked off with Square co-founder and local entrepreneur, Jim McKelvey, discussing the impor-tance of self-evaluation and objectivity when start-ing your own business. Mr. McKelvey was followed by Bob Lozano, founder of Appistry, who shared his thoughts on the importance of balance and ca-maraderie among teams in a startup. Following the speakers, over 40 attendees pitched their ideas for a concept they would like to develop over the weekend. Ideas ranged from a mobile app that would convert a smart phone into a strobe light or glow stick to a program that would chart a child’s chores or tasks and offer incentives via online retail-ers. Participants were given 30 minutes to seek out the ideas they would like to work on, and at the end of the night, 12 teams were formed and starting working. Saturday was a workday for the teams, with lunch from Pi Pizzeria owner, Chris Sommers, who par-ticipated in a Q&A session with the teams over lunch and spoke to his lessons learned while starting his own businesses, several of which are IT based. To lend their expertise, five local entrepreneurs, Dan Klotzer, Sultan Meghji, Gregg Smith, David Strom and Chuck Vallurupalli spent the afternoon mentoring each team, answering questions and help-ing teams refine their ideas.

With teams pitching their final products on Sunday night, teams worked feverishly through Sunday. Sunday night teams pitched to a packed audience, and four judges. The judges ranged from an entre-preneur, Mark Sawyier of Off Campus Media; to an investor, Brian Blanchard of Hypervize; to lawyers, Brian Salmo and Chris Swenson of Polsinelli Shughart. The decision of the judges to name the top three teams was difficult given the caliber and unique concepts of each team. However, at the end of a 54-hour work-a-thon, AnalyticsJust.Us took the top spot. Presenting their winning application that uses proprietary programming to mine specific legal data to predict outcomes, the AnalyticsJust.Us Team received:

$500 credit for office space at T-REx Business & Technology feasibility

analysis from Hypervize Pro-bono incorporation services from

Weiss & Associates, P.C. Lunch/Mentoring session with Hal Gentry, managing partner of Capital Innovators Microsoft BizSpark Program $100 Downtown Gift Card The Lean Startup by Eric Ries Startup Weekend T-Shirt

Second place went to Amppad, an immediate elec-tronic delivery service for political discourse, and third place went to Debt Dash, an online debt man-agement tool. Jay DeLong is Vice President, New Ventures & Capital Formation, St. Louis RCGA.

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Happening in St. Louis

Recap of StartUp Missouri Launch

by Jay DeLong

Startup Missouri launched with 90 individuals, more than two-thirds entrepreneurs, and included service providers, incubators, policy influencers, and members of local media. The attendees heard from eleven entrepreneur speakers from across the state.

Attendees developed mission and objectives of Startup Missouri, and a specific action items were identigfies that should be accomplished in Startup Missouri’s first year. Following lunch, the assembled crowd split into three discus-sion groups, whose outcomes are summarized below. The meeting concluded with identifying 4 central action items for Startup Missouri to accomplish in the next year:

1. Create a central portal for the entrepreneurial community in Missouri (web-based).

2. A Pro-“MO” Campaign, to promote Missouri as a thriving entrepreneurial hub

3. Educating entrepreneurs and investors about the process of capital formation to promote “deal flow” in Mis-souri

4. Promote passage of angel investor tax credits (AVIA) and MOSIRA in MO state legislature

Entrepreneur Presenters:

Ryan Bell, Gremln; Seth Burgett, Yurbuds; Beth Daniels, Around the Table Games; Justin Albright, NAB Automa-tion; Mike Brooks, Regional Economic Development, Inc. (REDI); Jamie Stephens, Book’d; Jim von der Heydt; Nawgan; Eric Gulve, BioGenerator; Marla Esser, HomeNav; Greg Kratofil, Google Fiber Project Kansas City; and Alex Eaton, MOBIO. The video address was by Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn.

Discussion 1 - Resource Connections: Moderated by Brian Matthews, of River City Internet Group.

The primary idea that emerged was the need to develop a centralized portal to connect the entrepreneurial

organizations in different regions of the state Need to leverage existing resources by appointing region heads responsible for understanding what is going on in each affiliated region. Discussion 2 - Capital Formation: Moderated by Kyle Welborne, FinServ Tech Angels.

Promote and/or provide education amongst both startups and potential investors about the process of

investing Promote Missouri as a good place to begin a business (Pro “MO”) Discussion 3- Statewide Policy: Moderated by Greg Kratofil, Posinelli Shughart

1. Explain the utility of legislation to increase capital availability through such policy as:

Missouri Angel Investor Tax Credit

Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act

SBIR provisions, with the state matching federal funding

2. The purpose of Startup Missouri

To educate and disperse information to entrepreneurs

To promote needs of entrepreneurs to legislators in Jefferson City through first person entrepreneur testimony

Become a PR firm for entrepreneurs around Missouri, promoting strengths, possibilities and job creation

Jay DeLong is Vice President, New Ventures & Capital Formation, St. Louis RCGA.

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(l-r) Gayle Jackson, Energy Global Inc.; Derek Weber, goBrandgo!; Darcella Craven, Veterans Business Resource Center

(l-r) Patti Harty, Sandler Training | Stark & Associ-ates; Laura Dierberg Ayers, Attorney at Law; Chuck McCloskey, Charles C. McCloskey, LLC

(l-r) Laurie Washington, Attorney at Law; Allison Krepel, Saint Louis University Law School; Michael Moberly, Knowledge Protection Strategies

(l-r) Lee Crockett, Venture Advisors Inc.; Mike Devereux, Emerging Business Resources Corp.

(l-r) Janet Katz, Katz and Associates, PC; February speaker, Chris Sommers, Pi Pizzeria; Jim Brasunas, IT Entrepreneur Network

(l-r) Mike Minkler, CMIT Solutions of Clayton; J.D. and Pierce Powers, Powers Insurance and Benefits

Scenes From The February MVF Breakfast Meeting

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From the Editor

by Susan Martin First days on the job sometimes are handled so poorly that they’re enough to make any new hire run home vowing never to return to their new digs. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, it shouldn’t be that way if companies want their new employees to quickly become contributing mem-bers of their team. Many companies are expanding or replacing tradi-tional employee orientation programs with “onboarding,” the HR buzzword of the millen-nium. The difference between employee orienta-tion and onboarding is the amount of time spent connecting the new employee to the job, to the team and to the company’s values. The payoff of the onboarding process is better retention and a more fully engaged, assimilated employee. Orientation is what happens the first day or the first week that a new hire is at the company. It usually consists of completing required forms, un-derstanding benefits and policies, etc. Orientation leads into the lengthier onboarding process, which should last at least six to 12 months. During this time, the employee’s manager has the opportunity to connect with the new hire—to get to know the new person and what they want from the job and what they can contribute. New employees usually start a job excited, like a charged battery. However, usually around the three-month mark, that excitement either continues or begins to wane. To keep a new hire charged up,

throughout the onboarding process the manager should engage in conversation about: Relationships—teach the new employee how to build relationships with co-workers. Passion—discover what the new hire is passionate about and help channel those passions at work. Challenge—learn what chal-lenges will keep the new person excited to grow and stay with the company. Focus—help the new employee understand the company’s vision and how they can contribute. Balance—understand what’s important in the new hire’s life outside of the workplace and sup-port a healthy work/life balance. Intention—both the manager and the new hire

should determine the lessons learned from these conversations.

Effective onboarding makes new employees feel connected to the company and its purpose. And the odds are that a new employee will stay with the company and will be more productive in a shorter amount of time if the company invests in a good job of onboarding. Susan Martin is with AAIM Employers’ Associa-tion and can be reached at 314-754-0203.

Onboarding a New Employee

Enterprise Newsletter Editor Sorin Vaduva can be reached at Sorin@imrel.com

Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/moventureforum and on Facebook by searching Missouri Venture Forum.

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Missouri Venture Forum Committees

Chair: Bob Cockrell — Montgomery Bank Ron Ameln — St. Louis Small Business Monthly Patrick Clarkin — Charles L. Crane Agency Cathy Davis — Davis Creative Bill Ellis — Branding for Results Jan Hendrickson — Senniger Powers LLP Margaret Kenyon — AAIM Employers’ Association

Pete Peters — InnovateVMS Bill Prenatt — Simply Successful LLC Chuck Reitter — CA Reitter Consulting, LLC Brian Rogers — Evans & Dixon, L.L.C. Joe Soraghan — Danna McKitrick, P.C. Joy Ann Venverloh — Lexx Funding, Inc.

Entrepreneur Education Purpose is to educate and guide entrepreneurs by developing and presenting educational programs.

Marketing/Communications Purpose is to promote the Missouri Venture Forum and partner organizations and

write and edit the Enterprise newsletter.

Chair: David Meyer — Spoke Marketing, LLC Newsletter Editor: Sorin Vaduva — ImRel, LLC Cathy Davis — Davis Creative

Barry Gleeson — The Alternative Board (TAB) Ann Marie Mayuga, AMM Communications

Membership Develop and implement programs, activities and events that will foster and support the

recruitment and retention of members and also provide a benefit to the members, as well as carry out the mission of the Forum.

Chair: Nicole Ursch — Midwest BankCentre Nick Akers — Innoventor, Inc.. Andy Bourey — Vistage (TEC) St. Louis Millie Cain — First State Bank Rochelle Freeman — New York Life Dale Furtwengler — Furtwengler & Associates, P.C. Barry Gleeson — The Alternative Board (TAB) Hal Hardin — Insperity

Margaret Kenyon — AAIM Employers’ Association Doug Kolker — Mueller Prost PC Tim McFadden — Armstrong Teasdale LLP Steve Thomas — The Net Impact Sorin Vaduva — ImRel, LLC Mark Witzling — Citi

Interested in joining a Committee? Call the Committee Chair:

Education Bob Cockrell 314-579-4621 Marketing David Meyer 314-517-8459 Membership Nicole Ursch 314-544-8585

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Two-Minute Forum Purpose of the program is to help entrepreneurs succeed in their entrepreneurial endeavors by providing exposure to the Forum’s

membership and the entrepreneurial community.

Chair: Bill Ellis — Branding for Results Jim Brasunas — IT Entrepreneur Network Jay Logsdon  — The Logsdon Group

Alan Ludmer  — The Voyager Group Brian Peterson — UHY Advisors

Outreach Purpose is to encourage collaboration between MVF and other organizations that support the region’s

entrepreneurial community.

Chair: Anna Doyle — Centric Consulting Bob Calcaterra — StartUp Midwest Jim von der Heydt — Nawgan

Two-Minute Forum Bill Ellis 314-966-8889 Outreach Vince Garozzo 314-516-2624 Program Anna Doyle 314-265-4233 Technology Sorin Vaduva 314-600-0709

Missouri Venture Forum Committees

Questions? Call the MVF Office at 314-241-2683 or visit www.MissouriVentureForum.org

Program Identify and arrange for topics and speakers for the monthly meetings and determine other events with

different meeting formats that would be of value to members.

Chair: Vince Garozzo — Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C. David Butler — Heartland Innovations, LLC Chris Walsh — InvestMidwest

Technology Purpose is to develop, enhance and maintain the Forum’s technology infrastructure.

Chair: Sorin Vaduva — ImRel, LLC Ken Bentlage — Bentlage Marketing Joe Furlong — Washington University

Interested in joining a Committee? Call the Committee Chair: