Blogs

I received a message from Chip Bailey, the Incubator Director/TSBDC Counselor at the Holston Business Development Center, which is part of the Tennessee Small Business Development Centers (TSBDC). Chip informed me of some valuable training courses offered through the TSBDC website.

The on-line training courses are numerous and free. The following list are samples of some of the offerings:

The TIA is sponsoring a new program in 2010. The program is A to Z of Inventing. We will be following an idea from conception through commercialization. We will focus on the various steps and different aspects of the process.

The first thing every inventor does is come up with an idea. There may be some problem that needs to be solved. Something may just aggravate the inventor. Where ever it springs from, every invention starts with an idea. The idea grows, often like a fast growing plant. The inventor, like a master gardener, nurtures the idea and develops it into something that works, something that really solves a problem.

SCORE sent out the following news bulletin:

Many small businesses are encountering difficulty in obtaining financing to grow their business.  A new program sponsored by the State of Tennessee may offer a new source of capital.  The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development recently announced the launch of TNInvestCo, a funding program created by the Tennessee General Assembly in 2009 as part of a broad strategy to nurture entrepreneurship in the state and to jump start job creation in sectors of the economy with high growth potential.  Its goals are to develop Tennessee's entrepreneurial infrastructure, to bring additional capital into the state, to diversify the state's economy and to create "anchors" or "clusters" of business innovation which can result in new companies being created or spun off and new talent being attracted to Tennessee.

The video teaser below is produced by the United Inventors Association, a national non-profit dedicated to inventor education and support. The preview below features top industry experts giving insider tips and guidance on how to successfully develop an invention. The 10-part series is available for viewing by UIA members at the UIA website.

The Tennessee Inventors Association has once again updated their website. The TIA has moved the website to a new system that allows the TIA to better serve the community.

One big difference over the previous website is that TIA members can log onto a members only portion of the website.  This feature is not fully implemented.  It is expected to be fully enabled in the next few weeks. The members only section offers the following features: