Business Plan Boot Camp, Day 2 (and more Birthday fun!)

Okay, I know I disappeared for like a week, but I did promise a Boot Camp update, so here you go. We had our second class last Saturday. The focus of this session was mostly plan analysis. We went through a copy of Biologics’ plan and “graded” it according to the Governor’s Cup rubric. Going about it that way allowed us to see what exactly was expected out of these plans – type of background info, research, planning and foresight, etc. This way, once we start the semester, we aren’t writing blind – we have some solid plans to look to for reference.

After lunch we discussed our assignment for the week. Dr. Reeves had charged us with identifying a “pain” in someone’s life – big or small, personal or public, solvable or not. We then had to explain whether we thought that our “pain” presented a viable business opportunity. The point of the assignment was to get us thinking like entrepreneurs – since that’s kinda the point of the class and all. The responses were all so varied – it was interesting to hear what some of our classmates came up with. It shed a little more light onto how everyone thought (which will be helpful for forming groups).

We also listened to a presentation from the on-campus patent office – he shared several technologies and ideas that the U of A has patented (or is working to patent) that could be turned into businesses. THIS was what we were all waiting for – the IDEAS! The atmosphere in the room changed after that presentation. You could feel people tense up – in that excited, semi-competitive, itching-to-get-going way. All of a sudden the class felt more real.

That night I went out with several people from class and a bunch of my other friends from Fayetteville to celebrate my birthday. We had dinner at Hammontree’s (complete with cake from Rick’s Bakery and fantastic brownie cupcakes with fudge icing), then spent some time at the Wine Cellar (one of my favorite places in Fayetteville).

Oh, but that wasn’t my only birthday celebration. At work on Monday, the office surprised me with a cake (and, of course, that embarrassing singing thing…is there anyone out there who doesn’t feel uncomfortable when an entire room of people sings to them? At least it’s embarrassing in a good way.) My office is so sweet – they really make me feel like part of the team.

Honestly, the rest of the week kinda drug by – full of excel crashes, heatstroke, and packing. Thursday was especially full – I had three meetings to attend, the CEO and SVP of Sales were in the office all day, AND we moved out of the apartment. Moving went smoothly, though, thanks to all the help – several guys from the program came over to help my roommate and me move the “big stuff.” Another perk of Walton’s smaller program – you make good enough friends that they’re willing to help you move your couches across town in 95 degree heat. Thanks, guys!

On a side note, Gigi did NOT help - she made messes all week. This was my favorite. I left her for five minutes and she killed an elephant...and strew it's fuzzy insides ALL over the living room...thanks, Gigi...that was lovely...

After that, the weekend was a welcome treat. It started off (early) Friday afternoon with an office pool party and BBQ (our boss scooted everyone out the door at 3pm – no one complained). One of the guys in the office has just moved into a new house, and he and his wife were gracious enough to have us all over for dinner. Most people even brought their families over, so I got to meet all the wives and kids (who spent the whole night in the pool). I’m starting to feel like a “real” employee at Dannon, not just an intern or a temp – it’s nice. I’m happy here.

The rest of the weekend flew by – unpacking, ice cream socials, laundry, surprise dinners with old friends, etc. Now the week has started up again, and it’s back to work. Nothing too exciting planned for this week – mostly trying to get the new place all set up (I’ll post pics when it’s done). Oh, and I’m going BACK to St. Louis this weekend (we’ve got family coming into town). Should be a fun time, I’ll keep you updated. ‘Til then, dear readers! Happy Tuesday!

Business Plan Boot Camp, Day 1

We had our first New Venture Development “Boot Camp” class yesterday – normally I would be very against the concept of a class at 10 am on Sunday, but, given that the idea was to be sure we got out in time to see the World Cup Final, I was okay with it…just this once.

First, let me give you a basic run-down of how this class is going to work. The purpose of the class is to learn how to start a new business. We start out by forming groups and picking an “idea.”  Then, we learn how to write a business plan and develop presentations meant to persuade venture capitalists to entrust a group of four “kids” with their hard earned cash. Once we finish the plan and presentation, we submit our stuff to competitions around the country and travel to compete against other schools. The neat part? A lot of investors actually come to these competitions and really are willing to hand over funds! Several of the teams every year actually end up starting the business after the class is over. Also, Arkansas is a known powerhouse for these competitions. We consistently sweep the competitions and beat teams like Texas, Harvard, Berkley, Oxford, London School of Economics, etc. It’s rumored to be a very intense, stressful class, but I’m actually really excited about it.

Since the class is so intense, we have several summer “boot camp” sessions to give us a head start before we jump into our other semester classes. This was our first meeting, and honestly, I expected to see more full-time MBA students there, but there were only about nine of us. The rest of the class is made up of MMBA students (the part-time program), a few MAcc (Masters of Accounting) students and the random smattering of engineers and biological science-y people (usually, THEY’RE the ones we the ideas – we just come up with a way to sell it). Oh, and you wanna guess how many girls there were? Really, take a shot…no clue? Answer: Three…out of thirty…*sigh*

Anyway, the meeting was fairly laid back – we went through the class expectations, looked over the syllabus, talked about grading, etc (you know, typical first day of class stuff). We also took turns introducing ourselves. We had ninety seconds to tell the class about our backgrounds, interests, time commitments, and work styles. The point was to give everyone just enough information so that they kinda knew who they wanted to talk to further (kinda like speed dating…just in a group format).

The groups, in my opinion, are going to be the most important part of all of this. Admittedly, if I hate the idea that my group is trying to promote it will be hard to get behind it and be enthusiastic, but if I hate my group, I know I’ll be miserable, no matter how good the idea is. After the presentations, there were several people that I’d like to talk to (and several I don’t). We’ll have more time next week to discuss things further. Dr. Reeves (the professor) would like for us to have our groups formed by August 23 (which is coming up a lot faster than I expected it to…). The ideas can come later, but she’d also like us to at least have things narrowed down by then. So, if any of you out there have a brilliant idea that you’d love to see someone turn into a business, let me know!

After class, we all headed out to our respective soccer-game-watching locales. I ended up at a friend’s apartment (‘cause they have a great TV), but didn’t realize before deciding to join them that they were going to be cheering for the Netherlands. As much crap as they gave me for standing behind my team, I really didn’t mind. I mean, you gotta put the other team down BEFORE they beat you, right? So I let them have their fun.

Did you see the game? Talk about intense. If they “almost scored” once they did it like a thousand times. Finally, in something like the 118^th minute of a 120 minute game, Iniesta got one in! The team celebrated so much over that goal you’d have thought the game was over. They did finish up the game, tho, and ended up winning! Oh, I was sooo excited. Spain has never even made it to the final game, much less WON the World Cup. I’ve been following the team for years now, so it was so much fun to watch them win. They were all so happy! I wish I could have been in Spain for the win. There, ANY victory is reason enough for an all-night, flag-waving, fountain-dancing, car-flipping, running-up-and-down-the-streets-chanting-songs-at-the-top-of-your-lungs party, so I can’t even imagine what happened over there when they won the whole thing! One disappointment: at the medal ceremony, all the players from each team march across the stage and receive their medals (gold or silver). All of the players wore theirs proudly, but the Dutch coach immediately took his off – wouldn’t even wear it to walk off the stage. Classy, Holland. Way to be good sports…lame.

After the game, I returned to my apartment-o-boxes. My roommate and I are moving next week, so we’re trapped in the midst of half-packed stuff. FYI, moving is icky. Don’t do it if you don’t have to (but we HAVE to…really). While I pack, I’ve started a Friends marathon – I’d forgotten how much I loved that show (and it’s still funny, even if I’ve seen the episodes eight times). It’s going…okay…I’m just ready to be done with the process.

And Gigi does NOT help – she whines and walks around barking at the boxes. I think they scare her or something, like she’s worried I’ll leave her there. An example of her current shenanigans: I started packing a box with dishtowels yesterday. Each time I would put a stack in and go to back to the kitchen for more stuff, I’d return to find the towels unfolded, in a pile, in her bed…with her on top of them. She was taking them OUT of the box and transporting them across the living room. I wonder if she’s thinks she can keep me from “leaving” by kidnapping my dishtowels…

This is "helping"...she's buried herself in a pile of blankets

I did get a little bit of a break, though. One of my girlfriends called and wanted to go to a movie, so we decided to check out Despicable Me. It’s ADORABLE. Go see it, really, and see it in 3D – the minions are so much funnier in 3D. So yeah, do that. Maybe by the time you get back I’ll have another post for you to read. Happy Monday!