Event Notices From February 18-20
Detroit Area Clean Cities to hear from Argonne official: Detroit Area Clean Cities will present Andrew Burnham of Argonne National Laboratory Wednesday, Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to noon at the SME Building, One SME Drive in Dearborn. On behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy's Clean Cities program, Argonne National Laboratory has created a number of tools to measure the petroleum displacement and greenhouse gas emissions associated with the transportation sector. Burnham, a member of the Argonne National Laboratory GREET development team|, will provide an educational overview of Argonne's GREET Tools for fleet managers, students, and others interested in comprehensive analyses of vehicle emissions and energy use. The presentation will be followed by focus groups to help drive GREET utilization in Michigan-based automotive fleets. Coffee and light breakfast provided; this event is free and open to the public. Questions? Contact Matt Sandstrom or (888) 818-0987 x712.
Michigan CHI Group to meet: Michigan CHI group -- the (Michigan Chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest group on Computer-Human Interaction -- wll meet Thursday, Feb. 24 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Gale headquarters, 27500 Drake Road in Farmington Hills. The cost is $8 for full-time students, $15 for members of ACM, HFES, SIGCHI, STC, UPA and IXDA members, and $20 for all others. More at http://michichi.org/. The presentation, "You Need To Learn The 3Rs," will cover the latest in user experience research.
March Business Workshops Offered By Oakland County
Business owners and entrepreneurs who need assistance are invited to attend seminars in March, 2011 offered by the Oakland County Business Center. Business Basics workshops are now offered in the evenings on alternating months.
Wednesday, March 2: Social Media Marketing Part 1 - Millions of people use social media for fun, but they are also powerful business tools that encourage communication and collaboration. Before you start using social-media tools, learn how they work and what they offer. They can enable internal collaboration, allow information-sharing with external partners, exchange information with your customers, and harness the collective ingenuity of the public to build brand advocates. Learn what it means to be engaged in social networking, which social networks are the most effective for conducting business, how to select the right tools for the job, how to protect yourself and your business and what you need before you get started. Part I of a three part series. This meeting runs from 9 a.m. to noon at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The fee is $40. No refunds.
Thursday, March 3: Pre-Business Research - Are you thinking of starting your own business and want to research your business idea? Are you a business owner who wants to understand which research sources to use for your business plan and where to find the information you need? Presented by The Oakland County Business Center, The Entrepreneur's Source, Oakland County Market Research Department, and a Business Reference Librarian. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. This workshop is free, but pre-registration is required.
Friday, March 4: FastTrac Growth Venture (Venture Forward) is an intensive, 10-week program designed for owners, CEOs and top management team members of businesses with at least two years of operating experience. Focused on issues most important to business health and growth, attendees gain knowledge to make critical decisions about their business and strategy, investigate next-stage growth and opportunity, plan for strategic growth, build and maintain a competitive advantage and maximize cash flow for profitability. This class runs from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on 10 consecutive sessions through May 6 at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The fee is $140. No refunds. Admission is not automatic as all applicants need to be pre-qualified.
Wednesday, March 9: CEED Microloan Orientation - Many small businesses face obstacles when trying to obtain a business loan. The recognition of the serious need for working capital for existing businesses, start-up or expansion, equipment purchases, and job creation is not the priority it once was. If you have a need for alternative financing consider the MicroLoan Program. Discover the requirements and process necessary to apply and obtain a microloan. Program Presented by Center for Empowerment & Economic Development (C.E.E.D.). The session runs from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. This workshop is free, but pre-registration is required.
Thursday, March 10: Fundamentals of Starting a Business is a seminar for anyone thinking about going into business. Participants examine their entrepreneurial skills, learn how to implement their ideas and receive a list of pitfalls to avoid when starting a business. The session runs from 9 a.m. to noon at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The fee is $30. No refunds.
Wednesday, March 16: Five Keys to Successful Financial Management for Small Business - Fiscal Management Tools for the Non-financial Manager. This workshop provides the business owner an in-depth look at the essentials of using financial information to make effective decisions about improving their business performance. Topics include Ways to improve your company's cash flow, How to use the balance sheet and income statement to diagnose business problems and opportunities, how breakeven analysis helps you make better pricing and business decisions and How to insure you have enough working capital to support growth. This session runs from 8 a.m. to noon at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The fee is $25. No refunds.
Thursday, March 17: Fundamentals of Writing a Business Plan is a workshop for small business owners who are developing a plan to serve as their road map to success. Workshop participants will learn what elements are commonly found in effective plans and will work on developing each of these for their own business. Assistance in the process as well as information on resources will be provided. The session runs from 9 a.m. to noon at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The fee is $40, which includes all materials. No refunds.
Thursday, March 24: QuickBooks Essentials -- This introduction to small business financial management provides an overview of accurate recordkeeping, report interpretation and utilization, and management of the variety of tools provided in this system. Presented by Kildal Services, LLC. Session I, from 9 to 11:30 a.m., covers basic accounting terminology, new company file setup, customizing forms and letters and working with bank accounts. Session II, from 12:30 to 3 p.m., covers invoicing customers, receiving payments and making deposits, entering vendor bills, paying vendor bills and uUsing credit card accounts. The sessions will take place at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, west of Telegraph, Waterford Township. For pre-registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar, or call (248) 858-0783. The sessions are $40 each or both for $75. Includes a 30-day QuickBooks software demonstration. Bringing a laptop is highly recommended.
