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CORPORATE BUDGETING FOR SUCCESS
Moises J Goldman PhD and John Jonelis – Corporate resource allocation can get complicated—sometimes too complex to solve by ordinary human reasoning. When logic fails, how do you find common ground between stakeholders? Quantitative approaches can solve the problem but for those to work, everybody must understand the method and buy in. How can you do that with a critical budget allocation? We’ll give a practical example using AHP, de-mystify the process by walking through it by hand, and then provide a downloadable spreadsheet that solves the problem automatically. We’ll use only basic arithmetic.
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DON’T GO BELLY UP
Loop Lonagan – Sleep never comes easy when you’re building the next great tech giant from scratch. Every idle moment gets overwhelmed with a flood of notions, fears, and phone calls. You know what I’m talking about. Those extra hours you squeeze out every day and all that risk you carry on your back are killers. Keep pushing and something’s gotta give—brain, body, business—one of them goes belly up for sure. What’s that I hear? That won’t happen, you say? Believe me, whenever you tough it out too long, your personality gets so severe that nobody can stand working with you. From time to time, a CEO has to refresh, rejuvenate, reboot. You know it and I know it, so listen up.
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THIS AIN’T CHICAGO
Mark T Wayne – Never argue with an idiot. Onlookers may not be able to tell the difference.
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CONTROLLED DESIGN MANAGEMENT
Part 4
Moises J Goldman & John Jonelis –
Controlled Design Management is the most significant development in management theory in recent times. We’ve laid out the history and theory. Now let’s set up a working model.
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CONTROLLED DESIGN MANAGEMENT
Part 3
Moises J Goldman & John Jonelis –
The new Controlled Design Management Model is built on Control Systems Theory, as used in such places as inertial navigation systems. To circumvent the complex mathematics of Control Theory we will present the ideas in graphical form.
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CONTROLLED DESIGN MANAGEMENT
Part 2
Moises J Goldman & John Jonelis –
Lean is a management philosophy that considers any part of the enterprise, which does not directly add value to the final objective, as superfluous—be it product development, customer service, or for that matter, the entire enterprise. It examines all processes and eliminates the ones that do not add value to the end objective.
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CONTROLLED DESIGN MANAGEMENT
Part 1
Moises J Goldman & John Jonelis –
Using the language of the digital age, this article introduces a radically different technique to the management of the creative process, and then demonstrates an intuitive working model that functions in any modern organization.
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TAKE YOUR FOOT OFF THE BAG
John Jonelis …the prolific entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist—the son of a south Michigan Ave car dealer…an endless entrepreneur—constantly learning, constantly experimenting—the quintessential gentleman who gave everybody an at-bat—who spoke quietly but directly and told the truth as he saw it.
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CAN’T KEEP A SECRET
written by John Bueter, comments by John Jonelis – The 24 hour Campfire tradition continues, providing the backdrop for the usual hijinks, exchange of regional information (mostly lies), recounting of the day’s adventures (again, mostly lies), and permanent cementing of friendships. Campers are encouraged to use the showers to control the fly, bear, and buzzard problems.
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NORTH STAR
by John Jonelis –We catch 647 fish here in 4 days. On average, that’s a pike every 2.8 minutes. This place is wild, unspoiled, perhaps like this continent a thousand years ago and summer feels like spring. Huge northern pike. Gorgeous scenery. What man can resist a fishing expedition?
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TOP OF THE LIST
by Mark T Wayne – I scan the ranks of judges and note representatives of the Business Plan Police lurking in the wings. We want no trouble from them. But I must familiarize my guests with the program. “This, gentlemen, is IN2—potentially the greatest startup accelerator of its kind in the world, with facilities available at a mere handful of elite universities—offices here and at the huge 1871 incubator downtown.”
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CEOs THAT SELL
by Howard Tullman – You may not be an extrovert. You may not even know the technology as well as half the other people in the company. You are, however, the boss and that fact alone means a lot.
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JUST WRONG
by John Jonelis – “Dare’s hardly room fer ONE guy on dem little lude sleds,” says Loop Lonagan. “Kinda stretches da ‘magination, don’t it? ‘Course, it might be good if just one of ‘em went down holdin’ a greased pig. Er maybe a keg and see who can empty it da fastest.”
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A STOLEN STORY
by John Jonelis – How an immigrant entrepreneur passes down his tech company to his sons on Christmas.
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GET YOUR OWN ‘BOTS
by Howard Tullman – How does a Type A find rest from the daily barrage of demands and decisions? Alternate activity, of course! Here’s my best pick for a quick weekend retreat. This is too much fun to keep to myself.
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TOO MUCH FUN
by John Jonelis – How does a Type A find rest from the daily barrage of demands and decisions? Alternate activity, of course! Here’s my best pick for a quick weekend retreat. This is too much fun to keep to myself.
HOW HYPERLOCAL SOCIAL ECONOMIES EVOLVE
by William Arrington – The evolution of HSEs and the increasing commonality of them within marketplaces is rooted in technological innovation. Digital networks have transcended geographic bounds of social engagement allowing any individual to harness a collective global network to consume goods, services, and experiences.
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HYPERLOCAL SOCIAL ECONOMIES (HSEs)
by William Arrington – Commercialization of our digital lives on social networks leads us to realize our friendships and connections online have become nothing more than apparatuses for advertisers and marketers. In contrast, an HSE provides individuals within a collective group economies of scale and enhances the individual value proposition. I gotta get me one of those.
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WILDERNESS
by John Jonelis – In Chicago, we enjoy something few high-tech centers can boast—easy access to a primal wilderness—a vast paradise, ancient and unspoiled—unique in the world and very special. Whenever I’m in this place, I love the world just as I find it.
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CLOSURE
by John Jonelis – How do you deal with the death of a loved one? For me, an important facet of grieving is closure. This is an account of what I did at the burial of my mother.
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STARTUP OF THE YEAR
by John Jonelis – Here’s a Chicago Area startup that brings pleasure, relaxation, and satisfaction to tired business people, gets them out in the open air, away from the pressures of the big city, and teaches them to smile again. Does that sound like a worthy goal? I think so.
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INVESTORS LOSING PATIENCE WITH PIVOTS
by Howard Tullman – There’s no polite or easy way to say this, but winter is on its way in the venture world. It’s getting tougher and tougher for startups caught in the lukewarm limbo between ideas and invoices to get their early backers to up their bets especially when it’s not clear that they’ve found a viable business model and/or a way to stop the bleeding sooner rather than later. Too many pivots with too little to show for the dollars down the drain and pretty soon no one wants to hear your, “someday soon,” story or your next grand plan.
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SECRETS DARK AND OLD
by John Jonelis – “This eastern bloc squirrel represents the most monstrous and pernicious plot against humanity since the fluoridation of water!” shrieks Jim Kren. “Eastern bloc squirrels look out for their kind and know who is persecuting them! If you thwart their plans, they figure a way to take care of the problem! Nothing can stop them from getting what they want!”
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THE JOB INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM SHAKES
by Mark T Wayne – “Tell me about yourself.” What kind of softball question is he pitching? There sits William Shakes in frilly regalia, looking like something out of an Elizabethan play. He probably came here straight from an all-night costume party, roaring drunk, and Kren asks a fool question like that.
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MILLENNIALS ARE BECOMING OBSOLETE—ALREADY!
by Tom McBride – “Obsolete” was a terrible word. It still is. If something or someone is obsolete, then he, she, or it no longer works. He, she, or it languishes in irrelevance. And then he, she, or it comes to be avoided altogether. Everyone would rather take the side streets. Obsolete things are just in the way. They are like old professors on college campuses. The young sneak behind buildings in order to avoid them.
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CHICAGO TECH’S NEXT CHAPTER
by Jim Dallky – Chicago tech is growing up. One sign of a maturing tech ecosystem is the success of a city’s serial entrepreneurs, and recently we’ve seen some of Chicago’s most high profile founders and technologists move on to their next companies, and tackle big industries like the Internet of Things, cancer research, and artificial intelligence.
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WHY MILLENNIALS KEEP DUMPING YOU
by Lisa Earle McLeod – You hired us thinking this one might be different; this one might be in it for the long haul. We’re six months in, giving everything we have, then suddenly, we drop a bomb on you. We’re quitting.
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TO BE OR NOT TO BE HACKED?
by William Shakespeare, alias Moises J. Goldman and John Jonelis – To be or not to be hacked? That is the question. Whether ‘tis nobler to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of phishes, gouged by creatures who boast no scruple, nor affect any purpose higher than foul destruction—and by opposing, end them? (Editor’s translation—Hackers are a bummer. This is war.)
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THE BIG LITTLE TRAP
by Scott M Anderson – Don’t fall into the Big Little Trap. So many investor pitches do. Take A-Dot-Co. The founder of this promising venture believes his future projections are easily achievable. Problem is, nobody else is buying.
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THE SUM OF ALL PARTS
Optimizing Human Behavior with a STEM Model
by Moises Goldman – How does one reason, interpret, and convince scientists to modify their own behavior? I realized that I needed another language—a language that both empirical and intuitive thinkers will readily grasp and put to good use. Then my eureka moment came to me. STEM initiatives are defined by basic human bevavior and not the other way around.
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THE TRUMP EFFECT
by Erik Clausen – Several months have passed since the U.S. Presidential election, and…we’re still here, folks. After years of political rhetoric and theatrics, and a few months of uncertainty, we are starting to gain some clarity around exactly what the new administration and its policies might mean for the life science industry and, by extension, marketers within it.
Most importantly and as a wise man wrote before the election, “There is no need for panic.”
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CHICAGO—THE BEST INCUBATOR IN AMERICA?
by Denny O’Malley – A recently published article names Chicago the best city for early-stage companies. Surprise! What’s wrong with San Fran and NYNY? It costs a kidney to pay rent for a closet.
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INNOVATION AND INQUIRY
by John Jonelis – What happens when you invite the community into your high school and send your high school students into the community?
Amazing things! You create a 3rd Space in people’s lives. “You have your home and you have your work and you have third spaces in your life where you feel comfortable and find a community.”
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POWER PITCH
by John Jonelis –What happens when you give kids—kids gifted in math and science—a real chance to bust out with their God given talents and excel?
What if you trust them to lay their greasy little hands on equipment normally available only at elite universities? What if you allow them to direct their own time? What if you challenge them to construct their own goals and learn by themselves how to accomplish them? What if you dare them to build real startup businesses at such a tender age? And what if you throw them into a competition against a panel of critical judges from the real private equity world?
What happens? Good things! Good things happen! They happen here at IMSA – the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. I’ll give you an intimate peek at the inner works of this educational powerhouse so you can see for yourself what makes this one of the biggest success stories in the country.
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THE NAME IS IN2
by John Jonelis –What happens when you give kids—highly gifted in math and science—a state-of-the-art facility entirely dedicated to entrepreneurship? This could be the best-designed business incubator on the planet and the students are going to create real businesses here. Hey—this is too much fun! It sure doesn’t look like high school to me! Where did they put the usual long halls walled by the usual rows of lockers? Where are the standardized rigid rectangular classrooms?
This is IN2, the new entrepreneurship center at IMSA—the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy—the Statewide high school for the best and the brightest. It’s located near Chicago and students live on campus, as if attending a university four years too soon.
IMSA will host a big party and ribbon cutting for the new IN2 innovation space on the 30th of the month—that’s the 30th anniversary of the school’s founding. I had the unique opportunity to preview this amazing facility. Here’s a sneak peek:
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HAT TRICK
by John Jonelis – He can feel it, hear it—his heart—beating hard, beating fast. Pounding above the din of those big nubbly tires and the blast of snow hitting the wheel wells. Is it anticipation? Fear? Primeval blood lust?
How will it feel to gun down a living animal? Can he really pull the trigger?
Today, Loop Lonagan joins seven seasoned hunters and four highly trained dogs to indulge in what his editor calls one of the great joys in life—slaughtering a few of God’s creatures. He’s a last-minute stand-in and rounds out the party to eight. Two hunters per dog. Perfect! How did he let himself get roped into this?
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ENGINEERING YOUR PITCH
by Stephanie Wiegel – Angel investment deals aren’t made on the spot as the TV show Shark Tank suggests. Instead, entrepreneurs are excused from the meeting after delivering their pitches. If you’re vying for early investment money, what’s said behind these closed doors can make or break a deal.
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YOU MIGHT AS WELL DANCE
by Howard Tullman – Not feeling enough love? Yes, techies tend to be under appreciated until spit hits fan. Face it, we humans only understand the degree of our dependence on these machines and systems when they shut down, data disappears, and systems stop delivering the information we need to proceed. Here are three ways to raise your profile.
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BILLION DOLLAR UNICORNS
by Kenneth M Freeman – The world seems captivated by the growing number of unicorns – private companies theoretically worth more than $1 billion based on their latest round of funding. There are now more than 100 unicorns, led by Uber with a valuation of $66 billion.
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DRIVING VALUE WHEN FUNDING RUNS LOW
by David Johnson – The funding environment for early stage startups has been shifting for some time. As shifts accelerate, founders, executives, and investors reassess their strategies. Increasingly, early stage investors are looking to place fewer but more sizable bets on startups that are perceived as having the most promise. This likely will lead to a widening gulf between a clear path to additional funding and a struggle to generate investor interest.
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BEST GIFT
by Mark T Wayne – “I know a place where a man can immerse himself in wild nature—where no roads exist for hundreds of miles—a place dotted with thousands of pristine lakes rimmed with Jack Pine and Aspen forests. Populating the woods are bear, moose, deer, and untold numbers of avian species. The waters are teaming with a natural and burgeoning population of gigantic Northern Pike, which by afternoon, lounge so thick in the bays that a man can walk across the water on their backs! Shall I continue?”
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INVESTING: IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CASH
by Scott Anderson – One factor is common to all angel investing. Cash. How does the founder determine what she needs? And how does the investor determine if the investment amount is right? Is the cash bank balance projected to be positive at the end of any year? Do the timing needs of the startup match the investment? A process of funding in annual installments may prove more attractive to an investor.
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TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM
by Mark T Wayne – Howard Brookins Jr, the alderman for Chicago’s 21st ward, was biking along Cal-Sag Trail when a squirrel darted into his path. [The Washington Post] The squirrel wrapped itself in the spokes of the alderman’s bicycle. According to the alderman, “I can think of no other reason for this squirrel’s actions than that it was like a suicide bomber, getting revenge.” [The Chicago Tribune]
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TRUMPED
by John Jonelis – Political outsider elected president! Nationwide shock! Emotions run wild! Markets in turmoil! Worst riots since Orson Wells’ WAR OF THE WORLDS broadcast!
Loop Lonagan watches the mayhem on television. People on the streets shout lewd obscenities—carry hate signs—crawl over cars—destroy businesses—throw bricks at police. “Da theater of dee absurd,” Lonagan mutters, “Did deeze folks even vote?”
He continues his impromptu soliloquy. “Why don’t deeze malcontents all move t’ Greece?” Ah, Greece—where socialism is in full bloom and the weather is gorgeous. “Maybe President Elect Trump will offer free one-way luxury cruises to da Mediterranean and make da Greeks pay for it.” Lonagan figures that will make everybody happy. But then he reflects that Greece is bankrupt. Socialism didn’t work there.
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NO GOAT
by John Jonelis – “The longest championship drought for any continuously operating pro team in North America – nay, the world…we never truly thought this would happen. We joked about not seeing the Cubs win it all in our lifetimes. We said that with grins when we were young. We reached middle age, and we said it with blank faces. We grew old, and it curled off our lips like, yes, a curse.” (Rick Telander – Northwest Herald) Yup, that about sums it up for me. A hundred and eight years! Why should anything change today? Somehow the Cubs will find a way to lose this thing.
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ALIEN ABDUCTS FISH, THROWS FISHERMAN BACK
by Ron Kaszubowski – “Then me and my salmon get lifted by a glowing ray into some giant saucer-like ship that smells like fish inside. A tiny man in a silver suit approaches me carrying a long stick with knobs and buttons. He points it at me and the salmon I caught, and babbles something I can’t understand. Then in a flash, I drop like a lead sinker back in the river. But the alien keeps my fish!”
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IN YOUR FACE RISK
by John Jonelis – “Oh, you’re an angel investor! Isn’t that risky?” I hear such drivel all the time. Are people afraid of outsized returns? Or perhaps they don’t understand risk, don’t know how to measure it, or how to take control of it. Yet all that is quite easily done, and it’s a real charge to play the game.
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HOW BAD IS IT
by Loop Lonagan – Lotsa people keep tellin’ me good things about Bob’s Bad Poetry so I’m checkin’ it out. Yeah, yeah, I know what yer thinkin’. But there’s no law against an angel investor goin’ in fer high culture. That’s right, I like literature ‘n’ modern art too—’specially the abstract stuff. You got some problem with that, bud? Hey, me fodder and me mudder’s both Irish ‘n’ both poets, so’s I got it in da genes. Maybe you already figured that out from da way I talk.
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IMAGINED HORRIBLES
by Larry Hayward – Make a wish—that the corporate venture investment world continues to grow. Strategic investors are an increasingly vital source of capital for many entrepreneurs. Who else will put up the cash? Ask yourself, “How many financial venture capitalists are investing in material science these days? Or cleantech? Or hardware?” Not many, right? So let’s discuss finding corporate investors that understand an entrepreneur’s needs for flexibility and ubiquity.
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THE SAY/DO RATIO
by John Jonelis – You lose him. Jack Heyden was your father, your brother, maybe your son. A deep, intimate relationship. You know his profession—not the details, just what he did for a living. Normal so far. Then things start to turn.
His business colleagues invite the family here, and you all come, nerves raw from the shock that death brings. You arrive early, numb from the flurry of duties, people, and rituals that clutter such times and obediently take your seats in front, gazing about the room.
You have no idea what to expect.
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TURN THE PAGE
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