By Clay Kraby

The North Dakota Business Challenge program is currently accepting registrations for its 2011 program to be held June 26 – July 1 at Dickinson State University and historic Medora. Business Challenge is a week-long business program for high school students in grades 9-12, including 2011 graduates. Participants learn valuable skills in business, leadership, communication, and gain insight into career choices. Registration is available online at www.GoBusinessChallenge.com and is only $125 until June 22nd.

Business Challenge aims to provide participants with a better appreciation and understanding of business and entrepreneurship while earning credit towards graduation. Students tour industry sites, run their own business through a computer simulation, learn to write a marketing plan and create effective presentations, and meet some of North Dakota’s most influential people.

In addition to gaining a better knowledge of North Dakota’s economy, its opportunities, and obtain insight into career choices in the state participants also experience college life and strengthen scholarship applications.

Over 250 businesses, organizations, and individuals provide sponsorships, financial support, and in kind donations each year to enable students to attend the program with minimal costs. Business Challenge is a program of the North Dakota business community, Dickinson State University, and the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction. For more information or to register for this year’s program, visit www.GoBusinessChallenge.com or call 1-800-279-4295, Ext. 2515.

By Clayton Kraby

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Strom Center – Dickinson State University

Summary: The Strom Center at Dickinson State University in Dickinson, North Dakota has been selected by the U.S. Economic Development Administration to become a “University Center.” Within this designation the Strom Center will develop a comprehensive program of entrepreneur incubation for southwestern North Dakota. The Strom Center is seeking a contractor to provide strategic guidance, training and technical assistance related to “entrepreneur or business coaching” or the practice of working with rural entrepreneurs.

Scope of work: Applicants are asked to perform the following:

1. To conduct a comprehensive professional training program focusing on the practice of entrepreneur or business coaching to work more effectively with rural entrepreneurs.

2. The training program is to include on-going technical assistance to the Strom Center and local coaches.

Deliverables: Within this Agreement the Strom Center seeks the following deliverables in calendar year 2011 and possibly into 2012:

1. This training program should include both “in-person” and “webinar” based delivery with customized mentoring. The training program should include support materials and tutorials that can be used by participants during and following the training.

2. Strategic guidance on how to set up a “hub (Strom Center) and spoke (area communities)” network of community entrepreneur or business coaches including organization of local entrepreneur resources and regional resources.

3. On-going technical assistance to the Strom Center and local coaches in the identification, outreach, intake, screening, referral and tracking of entrepreneur clients.

Applicants for this Agreement are asked to address how they would fulfill each of these requested deliverables.

Qualifications: Applicants should provide their qualifications for completing this work including a listing of key staff and/or consultants who would be engaged, identification of their roles and qualifications. Listing of relevant past experience with references would be helpful.

Budget: Applicants are asked to provide budget options associated with the above scope of work. Budgets should include both cost by key activity, scope of work and deliverables and cost area (e.g., personnel, consultants, travel, etc.).

Availability: Applicants should indicate their capacity and time availability to engage in this work beginning in the late winter of 2011 and beyond.

Submittal: Responses to this RFP should be submitted to the Strom Center by no later than (February 1, 2011). Electronic submittals are acceptable.

Questions & Submittals

Questions should be directed to Steve Glasser with the Strom Center at steve.glasser@dickinsonstate.edu or 701-483-2893

Submittals should be submitted to Steve Glasser with the Strom Center at: steve.glasser@dickinsonstate.edu or Strom Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 291 Campus Drive, Dickinson, ND 58601

This educational event lasts from 10am – 3pm and will introduce a new fundraising model geared towards helping nonprofits reach their financial goals by focusing on improved organization and planning. Churches, charities, nonprofits, and other groups which attend will learn how to lead fundraising operations of all sizes and to avoid common pitfalls.

Those interested in attending can find more information HERE or call 701-483-2757. To register, visit www.COCOnonproifts.org. The cost of the event is $40, with discounts available for COCO members as well as North Dakota Association of Nonprofit Organizations (NDANO) and Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) members.

COCO’s “No Money, No Mission” seminar is being held in partnership with the Impact Institute, the Strom Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and the Bush Foundation.

Dickinson State University’s Strom Center is now supported by the Economic Development Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, through its University Centers Program. The EDA’s mission is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting innovation and competitiveness, preparing American regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. EDA implements this mission by making strategic investments which are results driven and embrace the principles of technology innovation, entrepreneurship, and regional development.

“This is a highly competitive process and we are both proud and honored to be selected as a recipient of EDA support to develop and implement a Business Incubation Program for southwest North Dakota,” said Strom Center Executive Director Steve Glasser.

This investment will be utilized to develop a virtual regional business incubator and entrepreneur coaching initiative. This incubation model will develop and deliver marketing, consulting, training, and research programs to strengthen the entrepreneur’s personal, professional, organizational and financial development. This model will have the ability to reach entrepreneurs with education, training, and coaching, and will serve those who are not in need of physical space.
The incubator will employ three innovative economic development strategies (virtual incubation, community collaboration, and entrepreneur coaching) to increase the economic competitiveness of growth oriented entrepreneurs in western North Dakota and eastern Montana.

Focus groups are being conducted in the SW ND region in December 2010 to gather input on what area economic developers and entrepreneurs would like to see included in the Business Incubation Program’s offerings.

Residents of southwest North Dakota who are concerned about the vitality of their communities have a unique opportunity through November to participate in conversations aimed at giving voice to their concerns and developing potential solutions for consideration by newly elected policymakers. These conversations will be facilitated by Dickinson State University’s Strom Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation and are a part of a larger effort headed by the Bush Foundation.

In collaboration with the Bush Foundation, eight organizations in both North Dakota and South Dakota will hold sessions that involve roughly 4,000 participants across a wide geographic and demographic spectrum for 80 Prospects and Possibilities gatherings. Sessions will be held locally in Medora, Killdeer, Bowman, and Dickinson.

At the meetings, facilitators will present data about current trends in the respective states, and listen as people discuss the issues that most concern them in their communities. The attendees will learn of successful instances where communities have engaged in solving tough problems and generate ideas from those successes for resolving the issues their own communities face.

Invitations are being sent to prospective participants for the upcoming listening sessions, and other residents of southwest ND will have the opportunity to weigh in on these issues. Recorders from each meeting will post the statistical and anecdotal results at www.CitiZing.org where the public may review, comment on and add their own opinions to the conversation.

Similar conversations are ongoing in Minnesota, convened by the Citizens League.

In early 2011, the Bush Foundation will share the outcomes of these Prospects and Possibilities gatherings with the newly elected governors, their cabinets and the full legislature of the states, as well as with other locally elected leaders across the three states. It will also issue a public report of the outcomes. The Foundation expects the findings of the conversations to inform its future work in each state.

For more information on the listening sessions occurring in Southwest North Dakota, contact the Strom Center by emailing info@stromcenter.com.

The Bush Foundation was established in 1953 by 3M executive Archibald Bush and his wife, Edyth. The Foundation strives to be a catalyst to shape vibrant communities in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography, by investing in courageous and effective leadership that significantly strengthens and improves the well-being of people in these areas.

Since 2008, the Bush Foundation has been pursuing its Goals for a Decade—to develop courageous leaders and engage entire communities in solving problems, to increase educational achievement and to support the self-determination of Native nations. (For more information, visit www.bushfoundation.org.)