Posts
CCG Int'l and PARIS Technologies Presents
Date: April 28, 2009
Time: 9:00 am
What would Leonardo da Vinci and Darwin say
in relation to today's economy??
"In the struggle for survival, the fittest win out at the expense of their rivals because they succeed in adapting themselves best to their environment." -Charles Darwin
"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." -Leonardo Da Vinci
Do you have the tools you need to "Happen To Things"? (SPECIAL OFFER-we will provide a FREE* tool if you attend )
What: Surviving and Thriving in Today's Business Environment:
An exploration into the tools you need to adapt and succeed!
Including how to: Create thousands of Reports (Financials,
Sales, HR, etc.) using a single data-dynamic spreadsheet;
Analyze your data to understand the drivers of your business;
Plan and perform "what if" for future-directed success.
In sum, learn ways to Survive and Thrive!
When: April 28, 2009, Tuesday at 9am Sharp!
Where: Online...Click Here to Register Who: CCG Int'l and PARIS Technologies and You
The Synergy of SAP & "Excel-Friendly" Business Intelligence
"There are three classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, those who do not see." - -Leonardo da Vinci
Register Now! And be one of those rare people that see!
(*and we will provide 1 free seat of tool that will help you succeed)
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Terremark Named as One of the Top Green-IT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Terremark Named as One of the Top Green-IT
Organizations by IDG’s Computerworld
MIAMI – April 20, 2009 — Terremark Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:TMRK), a leading
global provider of managed IT infrastructure services, today announced IDG’s
Computerworld, the “Voice of IT Management,” has selected it as one of the top Green-IT
Organizations for 2009. This honor is part of the IT media outlet’s annual Top Green-IT
Organizations feature, which was published in the April 20 issue of Computerworld and
online at Computerworld.com.
For the second year in a row, Computerworld set out to identify organizations that are
implementing smart, efficient strategies to achieve “green IT.” Computerworld then
applied a set of criteria, developed with the help of green-IT industry experts, to identify
the organizations that are working to reduce energy consumption in IT equipment and are
using technology to conserve energy and lower carbon emissions. Based on the weighting
scheme developed, the top 12 Green-IT Users and top 12 Green-IT Vendors lists were
chosen from the 94 participating organizations.
“Maximizing the energy efficiency across our data centers has the dual effect of reducing
our operational costs and limiting our overall impact on the environment,” said Manuel D.
Medina, Chairman and CEO of Terremark. “Our commitment to energy efficiency extends
across our company from the innovative products and services we provide government
and enterprise customers to the methods we use to cool our facilities.”
Terremark utilizes various energy-efficient methods across its global data center footprint
to reduce its power consumption, including hot-aisle/cold-aisle air segregation,
computational fluid dynamics modeling (CFD) and employing rotary uninterruptible power
supply systems (UPS). Along with implementing innovative power conservation strategies
in its world-class data centers, Terremark’s suite of industry-leading virtualized products
provides customers with reliable, enterprise-ready solutions for their IT infrastructure
needs while minimizing their environmental impact.
"Smart organizations know that there are energy and money savings beyond data center
walls, and even beyond the IT department. Green-IT efforts are found up and down the
supply chain, from the data center to the desktop, from the mainframe to the end user,”
said Scot Finnie, editor in chief, Computerworld. “The organizations recognized in our
second annual Top Green-IT issue have explored new ways to apply technology to reduce
energy consumption and carbon emissions in every part of their operations."
About Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Terremark Worldwide (NASDAQ:TMRK) is a leading global provider of IT infrastructure services delivered on the
industry’s most robust and advanced technology platform. Leveraging data centers in the United States, Europe
and Latin America with access to massive and diverse network connectivity, Terremark delivers government and
enterprise customers a comprehensive suite of managed solutions including managed hosting, colocation,
disaster recovery, security and cloud computing services. Terremark’s Enterprise Cloud computing architecture
delivers the agility, scale and economic benefits of cloud computing to mission-critical enterprise and Web 2.0
applications and its DigitalOps® service platform combines end-to-end systems management workflow with a
comprehensive customer portal. More information about Terremark Worldwide can be found at
http://www.terremark.com.
About Computerworld
Computerworld’s award-winning Web site (Computerworld.com), weekly publication and focused conference series form the hub of the world’s largest global IT media network. In the past five years alone, Computerworld has won more than 100 awards including the Magazine of the Year Award from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) in both 2004 and 2006, and the American Business Media’s Neal Award for Best Web Site, Best Blogs and Best Article or Series in 2008. Computerworld leads the industry with an online audience of over 2.5 million unique monthly visitors and a print audience of more than 1 million readers each week (IntelliQuest CIMS, Fall 2008). Computerworld also reaches over 10,000 IT
executives every year through its high-touch conferences and custom summits.
About International Data Group (IDG)
International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, events and research company.
IDG’s online network includes more than 450 web sites spanning business technology, consumer technology, digital entertainment and video games worldwide. IDG also publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers. Media brands are in more than 90 countries and include CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro,
InfoWorld/TechWorld/TecChannel, Macworld, Network World and PC World. The company’s lead-generation service, IDG Connect, matches technology companies with an audience of engaged, high-quality IT professionals, influencers, and decision makers.
IDG is a leading producer of more than 750 technology-related events including Macworld Conference & Expo, OpenSource World, E3, DEMO, Storage Networking World, and IDC Directions. IDC, a subsidiary of IDG, is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events. Over 1,000 IDC analysts in more than 100 countries provide global, regional and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends.
Additional information about IDG, a privately held company, is available at http://www.idg.com.
Note: All product and company names are trademarks of their respective organizations.
Statements contained in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Terremark's actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements due to a number of risks, ability to cross-sell across an acquired customer base, ability to increase revenue yields within facilities, ability to refinance existing debt, uncertainties and other factors, as discussed in Terremark's filings with the SEC. These factors include, without limitation, Terremark's ability to obtain funding for its business plans, uncertainty in the demand for Terremark's services or products and Terremark's ability to manage its growth, the successful integration of
operations of acquired companies. Terremark does not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
# # #
CONTACT:
Media Relations
Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Xavier Gonzalez
305-961-3134
xgonzalez@terremark.com
Investor Relations
Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Hunter Blankenbaker
305-961-3109
hblankenbaker@terremark.com
Terremark is a member of the South Florida Technology Alliance.
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Terremark Named as One of the Top Green-IT
Organizations by IDG’s Computerworld
MIAMI – April 20, 2009 — Terremark Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:TMRK), a leading
global provider of managed IT infrastructure services, today announced IDG’s
Computerworld, the “Voice of IT Management,” has selected it as one of the top Green-IT
Organizations for 2009. This honor is part of the IT media outlet’s annual Top Green-IT
Organizations feature, which was published in the April 20 issue of Computerworld and
online at Computerworld.com.
For the second year in a row, Computerworld set out to identify organizations that are
implementing smart, efficient strategies to achieve “green IT.” Computerworld then
applied a set of criteria, developed with the help of green-IT industry experts, to identify
the organizations that are working to reduce energy consumption in IT equipment and are
using technology to conserve energy and lower carbon emissions. Based on the weighting
scheme developed, the top 12 Green-IT Users and top 12 Green-IT Vendors lists were
chosen from the 94 participating organizations.
“Maximizing the energy efficiency across our data centers has the dual effect of reducing
our operational costs and limiting our overall impact on the environment,” said Manuel D.
Medina, Chairman and CEO of Terremark. “Our commitment to energy efficiency extends
across our company from the innovative products and services we provide government
and enterprise customers to the methods we use to cool our facilities.”
Terremark utilizes various energy-efficient methods across its global data center footprint
to reduce its power consumption, including hot-aisle/cold-aisle air segregation,
computational fluid dynamics modeling (CFD) and employing rotary uninterruptible power
supply systems (UPS). Along with implementing innovative power conservation strategies
in its world-class data centers, Terremark’s suite of industry-leading virtualized products
provides customers with reliable, enterprise-ready solutions for their IT infrastructure
needs while minimizing their environmental impact.
"Smart organizations know that there are energy and money savings beyond data center
walls, and even beyond the IT department. Green-IT efforts are found up and down the
supply chain, from the data center to the desktop, from the mainframe to the end user,”
said Scot Finnie, editor in chief, Computerworld. “The organizations recognized in our
second annual Top Green-IT issue have explored new ways to apply technology to reduce
energy consumption and carbon emissions in every part of their operations."
About Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Terremark Worldwide (NASDAQ:TMRK) is a leading global provider of IT infrastructure services delivered on the
industry’s most robust and advanced technology platform. Leveraging data centers in the United States, Europe
and Latin America with access to massive and diverse network connectivity, Terremark delivers government and
enterprise customers a comprehensive suite of managed solutions including managed hosting, colocation,
disaster recovery, security and cloud computing services. Terremark’s Enterprise Cloud computing architecture
delivers the agility, scale and economic benefits of cloud computing to mission-critical enterprise and Web 2.0
applications and its DigitalOps® service platform combines end-to-end systems management workflow with a
comprehensive customer portal. More information about Terremark Worldwide can be found at
http://www.terremark.com.
About Computerworld
Computerworld’s award-winning Web site (Computerworld.com), weekly publication and focused conference series form the hub of the world’s largest global IT media network. In the past five years alone, Computerworld has won more than 100 awards including the Magazine of the Year Award from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) in both 2004 and 2006, and the American Business Media’s Neal Award for Best Web Site, Best Blogs and Best Article or Series in 2008. Computerworld leads the industry with an online audience of over 2.5 million unique monthly visitors and a print audience of more than 1 million readers each week (IntelliQuest CIMS, Fall 2008). Computerworld also reaches over 10,000 IT
executives every year through its high-touch conferences and custom summits.
About International Data Group (IDG)
International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, events and research company.
IDG’s online network includes more than 450 web sites spanning business technology, consumer technology, digital entertainment and video games worldwide. IDG also publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers. Media brands are in more than 90 countries and include CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro,
InfoWorld/TechWorld/TecChannel, Macworld, Network World and PC World. The company’s lead-generation service, IDG Connect, matches technology companies with an audience of engaged, high-quality IT professionals, influencers, and decision makers.
IDG is a leading producer of more than 750 technology-related events including Macworld Conference & Expo, OpenSource World, E3, DEMO, Storage Networking World, and IDC Directions. IDC, a subsidiary of IDG, is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events. Over 1,000 IDC analysts in more than 100 countries provide global, regional and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends.
Additional information about IDG, a privately held company, is available at http://www.idg.com.
Note: All product and company names are trademarks of their respective organizations.
Statements contained in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Terremark's actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements due to a number of risks, ability to cross-sell across an acquired customer base, ability to increase revenue yields within facilities, ability to refinance existing debt, uncertainties and other factors, as discussed in Terremark's filings with the SEC. These factors include, without limitation, Terremark's ability to obtain funding for its business plans, uncertainty in the demand for Terremark's services or products and Terremark's ability to manage its growth, the successful integration of
operations of acquired companies. Terremark does not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
# # #
CONTACT:
Media Relations
Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Xavier Gonzalez
305-961-3134
xgonzalez@terremark.com
Investor Relations
Terremark Worldwide, Inc.
Hunter Blankenbaker
305-961-3109
hblankenbaker@terremark.com
Terremark is a member of the South Florida Technology Alliance.
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Thursday, April 16, 2009
1Vault and Host Depot Inc
South Florida Technology Alliance member news:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: John Bell
954-970-3394
prseitz@bellsoulth.net
Host Depot Selects Category 5 Hurricane Rated 1Vault Networks to Safeguard Server Infrastructure
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL‹APRIL 17, 2009
‹Host Depot, Inc. (http://www.blogger.com/www.HostDepot.com) a leading hosted solutions firm located in Coral Springs, FL, has selected 1Vault Networks (http://www.blogger.com/www.1vault.net), a secure colocation facility, to safeguard its powerful server infrastructure.
³Host Depot had managed all of its server infrastructure in its own facility, but decided to switch to our secure location, which not only offered disaster security and redundant power, but also proved more cost effective in the areas of cooling, power and Internet services,² said Joe Leuci, Senior Vice President of Sales for 1Vault Networks.
Clients who colocate their servers at 1Vault are protected from catastrophic events such as loss of power, network outage or natural disaster. The 66,000-square-foot World Class Data Center is Category 5 hurricane-rated and also provides businesses and governmental agencies with hosted IT services and disaster recovery suites.
Host Depot has migrated their infrastructure to the 22,000 square-foot, raised floor 1Vault Data Center that is monitored for ideal temperature and humidity levels throughout. The Data Center features 24/7 monitoring and protection systems that immediately alert personnel in the event of an alarm. In addition to redundant power to ensure uninterrupted service to its customers, Host Depot also secured redundant and diverse 1Vault Networks Internet connectivity.
"With this move to 1Vault, we are setting the stage for the future of Host Depot. Not only will we have better capacity to grow our platform but we'll be able to do it more efficiently and with better reliability for the customer," said Mark Erskine, President and CEO of Host Depot.
The world class data center, located in Fort Lauderdale, can withstand any disruption caused by natural disaster, system failure or human intervention.
The company¹s comprehensive plan covers business continuity, disaster recovery suites and seats, high-speed IP connectivity, self-contained power, support services, and SAS 70 Type II certification, Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPAA audit compliance certifications.
About 1Vault Networks
Offering colocation, disaster recovery and hosted IT services, 1Vault Networks combines over 50 years of experience in helping small, medium and large enterprises design, manage, maintain and monitor IT infrastructure and disaster recovery plans.
For more information, please contact:
Kevin Bly
Vice President Business Development
954-736-2709
kbly@1Vault.net
About Host Depot, Inc.
Host Depot, Inc. was founded in September of 1997 as a technology company with a focus on hosting solutions for small, medium and large businesses.
Since their inception, they have grown to provide a breadth of services including backup solutions, domain name services, e-commerce solutions, complete hosting solutions, Internet access, web site development and promotional services. Their goal, to this day, is to provide a convenient, high-performance and reliable hosted experience. They have assembled a solid foundation of state-of-the-art servers, high-performance networks, and experienced professionals to ensure that Host Depot, Inc. remains the vendor of choice. Further information about Host Depot may be obtained visiting the company's web site at http://www.hostdepot.com/ <http://www.hostdepot.com/> .
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Facebook
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: John Bell
954-970-3394
prseitz@bellsoulth.net
Host Depot Selects Category 5 Hurricane Rated 1Vault Networks to Safeguard Server Infrastructure
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL‹APRIL 17, 2009
‹Host Depot, Inc. (http://www.blogger.com/www.HostDepot.com) a leading hosted solutions firm located in Coral Springs, FL, has selected 1Vault Networks (http://www.blogger.com/www.1vault.net), a secure colocation facility, to safeguard its powerful server infrastructure.
³Host Depot had managed all of its server infrastructure in its own facility, but decided to switch to our secure location, which not only offered disaster security and redundant power, but also proved more cost effective in the areas of cooling, power and Internet services,² said Joe Leuci, Senior Vice President of Sales for 1Vault Networks.
Clients who colocate their servers at 1Vault are protected from catastrophic events such as loss of power, network outage or natural disaster. The 66,000-square-foot World Class Data Center is Category 5 hurricane-rated and also provides businesses and governmental agencies with hosted IT services and disaster recovery suites.
Host Depot has migrated their infrastructure to the 22,000 square-foot, raised floor 1Vault Data Center that is monitored for ideal temperature and humidity levels throughout. The Data Center features 24/7 monitoring and protection systems that immediately alert personnel in the event of an alarm. In addition to redundant power to ensure uninterrupted service to its customers, Host Depot also secured redundant and diverse 1Vault Networks Internet connectivity.
"With this move to 1Vault, we are setting the stage for the future of Host Depot. Not only will we have better capacity to grow our platform but we'll be able to do it more efficiently and with better reliability for the customer," said Mark Erskine, President and CEO of Host Depot.
The world class data center, located in Fort Lauderdale, can withstand any disruption caused by natural disaster, system failure or human intervention.
The company¹s comprehensive plan covers business continuity, disaster recovery suites and seats, high-speed IP connectivity, self-contained power, support services, and SAS 70 Type II certification, Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPAA audit compliance certifications.
About 1Vault Networks
Offering colocation, disaster recovery and hosted IT services, 1Vault Networks combines over 50 years of experience in helping small, medium and large enterprises design, manage, maintain and monitor IT infrastructure and disaster recovery plans.
For more information, please contact:
Kevin Bly
Vice President Business Development
954-736-2709
kbly@1Vault.net
About Host Depot, Inc.
Host Depot, Inc. was founded in September of 1997 as a technology company with a focus on hosting solutions for small, medium and large businesses.
Since their inception, they have grown to provide a breadth of services including backup solutions, domain name services, e-commerce solutions, complete hosting solutions, Internet access, web site development and promotional services. Their goal, to this day, is to provide a convenient, high-performance and reliable hosted experience. They have assembled a solid foundation of state-of-the-art servers, high-performance networks, and experienced professionals to ensure that Host Depot, Inc. remains the vendor of choice. Further information about Host Depot may be obtained visiting the company's web site at http://www.hostdepot.com/ <http://www.hostdepot.com/> .
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
An Entrepreneur's Battle
April 8, 2009
By Brian Javeline
This is an exciting time to be an entrepreneur. Why? Because everyone across the board is in the same boat. Everyone has been pushed back to the wall and is facing the same crisis. So this is where a true entrepreneur can shine and stand above the rest.
Being an entrepreneur is always hard, in good times or bad. Entrepreneurs should never lose sight of this fact – almost no one is on your side on the way up or down, and the few who are on your side should be embraced (including investors, customers, employees and even vendors).
Friends and family are not included for the sole reason that they should always be on your side – face these facts and do not get too excited when your neighbor says he likes your idea.
I have been a partner and co-founder in four technology firms and have always had to fight the majority of the pessimists to find the minority of a few optimists.
Here is a quick resume so you can understand where I am coming from.
Out of college I help build an apparel software company that eventually had hundreds of customers such as Hanes and bebe located in many countries.
Pessimists originally would say things like: You are too inexperienced to start a company; you don’t have what it takes to sell to a huge corporation; you do not know how to manage cash flow; you do not know how to hire and retain; and you do not know how to service a lot of customers.
I treated all these comments as just obstacles to overcome. I then went on to win an IBM Long Term Success Story.
Bottom line, I was successful at this venture and made good money while learning how to mature as a business person.
In the late 90s I went on to create a rapid development tool for Java called webTML. Unfortunately a product called ColdFusion beat us to market, and it was a hell of a great product at that. I thought I could still compete but my competitor raised a ton of cash about a year before me. Then the dot-com arena crashed. It was a real tough thing to swallow losing a few years and possibly a half million dollars at such a young age.
Bottom line: I failed at this venture. Then miraculously I had an opportunity to participate in a consulting job during JP Morgan’s merger with Chase. It was a project in the private banking sector that required speed with no concern about proprietary technologies, so we used webTML.
The project turned out to be hugely successful and that led to the creation of another company called InvestmentCafe.com. The vast majority of people told me that I was entering a complex world of private equity with some major players I would have to go up against.
A few short years later, InvestmentCafe had thousands upon thousands of users with marquee firms such as The Carlyle Group using the platform. This was a successful venture and continues to be one even though I sold my interest to pursue another opportunity. Come to think of it, perhaps webTML wasn’t a failed venture. It was just the means to another end.
I forgot to mention, all of the above was done with my own sweat and financial equity and there was no outside help.
I got the bug to do something different and wanted to go faster. The way to do that is raising money from sophisticated angels and VCs. I was warned about the differences of building a company versus raising money. Boy, were all these warnings understated. Raising money is a full-time job but then so is building a company. Where would I find the time to do both? I looked in the mirror and said, “I am an entrepreneur and this is just another obstacle to overcome”.
I am based in South Florida, and while it is a nice place to live, it is a very challenging place to raise capital. Everyone told me that angels need to be in driving distance. I practiced and practiced on how to position my company for raising capital and was able to find my first angels in Minnesota and New Jersey.
We grew the model to the next milestones and were then able to raise more capital from California and Britain. I then finalized the product development and was able to raise another round of financing from Canada. Sure I wanted to raise money locally, but it wasn’t happening. The odds were definitely stacked against me to raise money in these different locations as a start up. I bet they would say the odds for winning the lottery would have been better.
Without giving away the store, these investors all exceed the average investment dollars that are projected as an industry average. I did what I had to as an entrepreneur to make this happen. I think I could fill up dozens of pages to summarize the painful process.
Anyway, the result was the creation of http://www.myonlinetoolbox.com/, a platform for contractors in home repair and remodeling that launched in mid 2008. We won a Dell Top Ten Innovator Award just months after product launch.
I was successful in the 3- year plan for raising money and hitting the milestones with that money. The 2006 plan was to then raise more money towards the end of 2008 to rapidly scale the model.
Who would have thought about the financial meltdown that we would face? So where do I stand today?
I have a working product that is growing on its own via its collaboration features and co-marketing partners. Our customers are talking up a positive storm about us. The forums are buzzing with how we are providing a disruptive innovation to the market.
This all sounds great except that I am not profitable yet and require another round of financing to dominate the planet (in my optimistic opinion). So what am I going to do?
I literally have one problem and it’s just a little cash. I am an entrepreneur with some really smart investors and customers and vendors who all want me to succeed. I have leveraged this to work out a plan to bootstrap the operations until the economy or next investor comes around.
All I do is simply position for the huge opportunity for me that is just around the corner, and darn it, I am not going to let a little cash stand in the way of our success.
Bottom line: I have prepared myself to weather the storm and treat each day as an opportunity to position myself better for that next investor to be knocking on my door – which will happen – it is just a matter of when.
The road to success as an entrepreneur is lonely, frustrating, tiring and sometimes scary but is also a heck of a lot of fun and hugely rewarding. Every day you need to be open minded about learning how to build, market, sell, finance, support and even let your idea go (preferably as an exit strategy for the investors). You need to accept the fact that many things are beyond your control. You take the cards dealt and then make decisions, try new things, learn from your mistakes and continue on.
In my mind this is the best time to be an entrepreneur since a new financial card has been dealt to everyone.
I was wrong when titling this article “An Entrepreneur’s Battle” since it’s not a battle at all. It’s a way of life.
Brian Javeline is CEO and co-founder of ServusXchange, LLC, creator of http://www.myonlinetoolbox.com/, a platform that targets contractors in the $300 billion home repair and remodeling market.
Have a personal story to tell about being an entrepreneur? Contact TJS editor Allan Maurer at: allan@techjournalsouth.com
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Facebook
By Brian Javeline
This is an exciting time to be an entrepreneur. Why? Because everyone across the board is in the same boat. Everyone has been pushed back to the wall and is facing the same crisis. So this is where a true entrepreneur can shine and stand above the rest.
Being an entrepreneur is always hard, in good times or bad. Entrepreneurs should never lose sight of this fact – almost no one is on your side on the way up or down, and the few who are on your side should be embraced (including investors, customers, employees and even vendors).
Friends and family are not included for the sole reason that they should always be on your side – face these facts and do not get too excited when your neighbor says he likes your idea.
I have been a partner and co-founder in four technology firms and have always had to fight the majority of the pessimists to find the minority of a few optimists.
Here is a quick resume so you can understand where I am coming from.
Out of college I help build an apparel software company that eventually had hundreds of customers such as Hanes and bebe located in many countries.
Pessimists originally would say things like: You are too inexperienced to start a company; you don’t have what it takes to sell to a huge corporation; you do not know how to manage cash flow; you do not know how to hire and retain; and you do not know how to service a lot of customers.
I treated all these comments as just obstacles to overcome. I then went on to win an IBM Long Term Success Story.
Bottom line, I was successful at this venture and made good money while learning how to mature as a business person.
In the late 90s I went on to create a rapid development tool for Java called webTML. Unfortunately a product called ColdFusion beat us to market, and it was a hell of a great product at that. I thought I could still compete but my competitor raised a ton of cash about a year before me. Then the dot-com arena crashed. It was a real tough thing to swallow losing a few years and possibly a half million dollars at such a young age.
Bottom line: I failed at this venture. Then miraculously I had an opportunity to participate in a consulting job during JP Morgan’s merger with Chase. It was a project in the private banking sector that required speed with no concern about proprietary technologies, so we used webTML.
The project turned out to be hugely successful and that led to the creation of another company called InvestmentCafe.com. The vast majority of people told me that I was entering a complex world of private equity with some major players I would have to go up against.
A few short years later, InvestmentCafe had thousands upon thousands of users with marquee firms such as The Carlyle Group using the platform. This was a successful venture and continues to be one even though I sold my interest to pursue another opportunity. Come to think of it, perhaps webTML wasn’t a failed venture. It was just the means to another end.
I forgot to mention, all of the above was done with my own sweat and financial equity and there was no outside help.
I got the bug to do something different and wanted to go faster. The way to do that is raising money from sophisticated angels and VCs. I was warned about the differences of building a company versus raising money. Boy, were all these warnings understated. Raising money is a full-time job but then so is building a company. Where would I find the time to do both? I looked in the mirror and said, “I am an entrepreneur and this is just another obstacle to overcome”.
I am based in South Florida, and while it is a nice place to live, it is a very challenging place to raise capital. Everyone told me that angels need to be in driving distance. I practiced and practiced on how to position my company for raising capital and was able to find my first angels in Minnesota and New Jersey.
We grew the model to the next milestones and were then able to raise more capital from California and Britain. I then finalized the product development and was able to raise another round of financing from Canada. Sure I wanted to raise money locally, but it wasn’t happening. The odds were definitely stacked against me to raise money in these different locations as a start up. I bet they would say the odds for winning the lottery would have been better.
Without giving away the store, these investors all exceed the average investment dollars that are projected as an industry average. I did what I had to as an entrepreneur to make this happen. I think I could fill up dozens of pages to summarize the painful process.
Anyway, the result was the creation of http://www.myonlinetoolbox.com/, a platform for contractors in home repair and remodeling that launched in mid 2008. We won a Dell Top Ten Innovator Award just months after product launch.
I was successful in the 3- year plan for raising money and hitting the milestones with that money. The 2006 plan was to then raise more money towards the end of 2008 to rapidly scale the model.
Who would have thought about the financial meltdown that we would face? So where do I stand today?
I have a working product that is growing on its own via its collaboration features and co-marketing partners. Our customers are talking up a positive storm about us. The forums are buzzing with how we are providing a disruptive innovation to the market.
This all sounds great except that I am not profitable yet and require another round of financing to dominate the planet (in my optimistic opinion). So what am I going to do?
I literally have one problem and it’s just a little cash. I am an entrepreneur with some really smart investors and customers and vendors who all want me to succeed. I have leveraged this to work out a plan to bootstrap the operations until the economy or next investor comes around.
All I do is simply position for the huge opportunity for me that is just around the corner, and darn it, I am not going to let a little cash stand in the way of our success.
Bottom line: I have prepared myself to weather the storm and treat each day as an opportunity to position myself better for that next investor to be knocking on my door – which will happen – it is just a matter of when.
The road to success as an entrepreneur is lonely, frustrating, tiring and sometimes scary but is also a heck of a lot of fun and hugely rewarding. Every day you need to be open minded about learning how to build, market, sell, finance, support and even let your idea go (preferably as an exit strategy for the investors). You need to accept the fact that many things are beyond your control. You take the cards dealt and then make decisions, try new things, learn from your mistakes and continue on.
In my mind this is the best time to be an entrepreneur since a new financial card has been dealt to everyone.
I was wrong when titling this article “An Entrepreneur’s Battle” since it’s not a battle at all. It’s a way of life.
Brian Javeline is CEO and co-founder of ServusXchange, LLC, creator of http://www.myonlinetoolbox.com/, a platform that targets contractors in the $300 billion home repair and remodeling market.
Have a personal story to tell about being an entrepreneur? Contact TJS editor Allan Maurer at: allan@techjournalsouth.com
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
South Florida Technology Alliance Presents an Evening Dedicated to Alternative Sources of Financing
Ft Lauderdale, April 14th, 2009
The South Florida Technology Alliance (SFTA) announces their upcoming monthly event “An Evening Dedicated to Alternative Sources of Financing”.
This program brings together, moderator John Igoe of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP, along with panelists Cheryl Cook of the South Florida Regional Planning Council, William Mateo of Florida for ACCION USA, Nancy Rackear of U.S. Small Business Administration, and Andrew Rico of Silicon Valley Bank to discuss the latest knowledge and insight regarding lending programs stemming from the economic stimulus programs, as well as new lending programs and SBA resources.
“In today's tight capital markets, it is important to know what alternatives are available beyond the traditional venture capital and conventional paths,” says Chris Burgio, president of the South Florida Technology Alliance. “SFTA is also honored to recognize EAPD (www.eapdlaw.com)as the sponsor for this event.
The event will be held on April 23, 2009 at 5:30 PM, located at the Marriott North 6650 North Andrews Ave. Fort Lauderdale, Fl,. To register for this event online, go to: www.southfloridatech.org.
About the SFTA
With over 11 years of leadership as the most effective regional technology organization, the South Florida Technology Alliance (SFTA) promotes the growth, success and awareness of the vibrant South Florida technology community. SFTA fosters an exciting network of companies, academia, capital resources, and government for the immediate and future success of technology- related interests in our region. (www.southfloridatech.org)
The South Florida Technology Alliance (SFTA) announces their upcoming monthly event “An Evening Dedicated to Alternative Sources of Financing”.
This program brings together, moderator John Igoe of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP, along with panelists Cheryl Cook of the South Florida Regional Planning Council, William Mateo of Florida for ACCION USA, Nancy Rackear of U.S. Small Business Administration, and Andrew Rico of Silicon Valley Bank to discuss the latest knowledge and insight regarding lending programs stemming from the economic stimulus programs, as well as new lending programs and SBA resources.
“In today's tight capital markets, it is important to know what alternatives are available beyond the traditional venture capital and conventional paths,” says Chris Burgio, president of the South Florida Technology Alliance. “SFTA is also honored to recognize EAPD (www.eapdlaw.com)as the sponsor for this event.
The event will be held on April 23, 2009 at 5:30 PM, located at the Marriott North 6650 North Andrews Ave. Fort Lauderdale, Fl,. To register for this event online, go to: www.southfloridatech.org.
About the SFTA
With over 11 years of leadership as the most effective regional technology organization, the South Florida Technology Alliance (SFTA) promotes the growth, success and awareness of the vibrant South Florida technology community. SFTA fosters an exciting network of companies, academia, capital resources, and government for the immediate and future success of technology- related interests in our region. (www.southfloridatech.org)
The Co-Founders of DATACORP ... Max Miguel and Hugo Perez named “2009 Entrepreneurs of the Year”!!!
South Florida Technology Alliance members, Hugo Perez and Max Miguel, Managing Directors of DATACORP have been honored by Business Leader Magazine for 2009!
Anyone who knows these guys know they are the ones to know in the technology sector in our region. SFTA is proud to be able to count them among our valueable members.
Congrats, Hugo and Miguel!!
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Anyone who knows these guys know they are the ones to know in the technology sector in our region. SFTA is proud to be able to count them among our valueable members.
Congrats, Hugo and Miguel!!
Jackie Fernandez
Executive Director
South Florida Technology Alliance
954.239.9739
P.O. Box 831046
Miami, Florida 33183-1046
http://www.southfloridatech.org/
http://jackiesfta.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/JackieatSFTA
Thursday, April 9, 2009
to twit or not to twit?
SFTA was privileged to have Jay Berkowitz at our last event in March.
So you know, Jay is an expert in internet marketing, and a bit of a celebrity speaker (at least in South Florida). Both times that I have heard him present, I have walked away with a valuable tool(s) that I can use immediately to further my business.
Twitter was a free tool he offered up as a method of extending your brand recognition. So being the obedient listener that I am, first chance I got went to twitter and signed up for an account.
Now what?
So I am on a mission to figure out how this is all going to work together (blogging, linked in, facebook, twitter).
Stay tuned...feel free to use me as your guinea pig ;-)
So you know, Jay is an expert in internet marketing, and a bit of a celebrity speaker (at least in South Florida). Both times that I have heard him present, I have walked away with a valuable tool(s) that I can use immediately to further my business.
Twitter was a free tool he offered up as a method of extending your brand recognition. So being the obedient listener that I am, first chance I got went to twitter and signed up for an account.
Now what?
So I am on a mission to figure out how this is all going to work together (blogging, linked in, facebook, twitter).
Stay tuned...feel free to use me as your guinea pig ;-)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
