News Category: Virtual Resources
04.30.20
#GivingTuesdayNow Campaign to Aid Small Businesses
Small businesses may not have qualified for or received recent COVID-19 funding and still need assistance. The NIIC is launching a one-day campaign on May 5, 2020, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., to raise money for a business recovery fund to provide resources for small businesses to look forward and reset their businesses. It will focus on providing inspirational and financial capital to business builders.
The Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne (CFGFW) is providing matching funds up to $110,000 on a first-come, first-served basis. “The morning of Tuesday, May 5, provides the best opportunity for matched funds through the generosity of the Greater Fort Wayne Community Foundation,” said Karl R. LaPan, President & CEO, The NIIC. “We’re asking all who care about the future of small business in our community to make a gift on Tuesday morning. This is an excellent opportunity to double your donation dollars.” Visit cfgfw.org/donate on May 5 to give.
“Working together we will help support the backbone of our regional economy—small businesses,” said LaPan. Initially, in this campaign, the NIIC seeks $20,000 for a Small Business Recovery Fund. All money received will be used to support a loan pool for NIIC clients to reimagine their businesses. “As companies recover from this immediate crisis and repay their loans, those funds will be reinvested and recirculated continually through the regional economy,” said LaPan.
The NIIC campaign is part of a larger initiative inspired by The Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne. The Foundation is leading a community-wide campaign through the foundation’s website including over 100 participating nonprofit organizations.
About #GivingTuesdayNow
We believe generosity has the power to unite and heal communities in good times and bad. A global threat like COVID-19 touches every person on the planet, and it presents an opportunity to come together as a global community. #GivingTuesdayNow is a new global day of giving and unity that will take place on May 5, 2020 – in addition to the regularly scheduled December 1, 2020, #GivingTuesday – as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.
Let’s come together to create a wave of generosity, citizen engagement, action from business and philanthropy, and support for communities and nonprofits around the world.
About The NIIC
467 new products launched, 189 patent applications submitted or granted, and 2,290 jobs created—that is what entrepreneurs have achieved through The NIIC since its inception two decades ago. The NIIC has also connected Northeast Indiana companies to attract $91 million in grants and capital.
The NIIC is a non-profit, vibrant entrepreneurial community designed to advise entrepreneurs to plan, launch, and grow successful business ventures. The NIIC bolsters innovative companies to move ideas into action. The NIIC is located in a designated U.S. Small Business Administration HUB Zone. In April 2018, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb designated The Northeast Indiana Innovation Park Campus as an Opportunity Zone through the U.S. Treasury. The NIIC is the country’s only ISO9001:2015 registered business incubation and acceleration program. TheNIIC.org. Click here for The NIIC press kit.
About WEOC
2,354 women and immigrants served, trained, and counseled—since WEOC’s formation five years ago. The Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Center (WEOC) serves Northeast Indiana women at all stages of their business ventures. WEOC responds to the unique needs of women entrepreneurs through business growth coaching, training, and entrepreneurial education, connectivity and access to capital. WEOC is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. As the Host organization, The NIIC also provides supplemental funding and complementary resources. WEOC is an SBA designated Women’s Business Center—one of two in Indiana. For more information, visit www.inweoc.com.
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04.14.20
NIIC Provides Virtual Resource for Businesses
Click here for video interview and full story.
Tuesday, April 14th 2020, 12:39 PM EDT, Updated: Tuesday, April 14th 2020, 1:32 PM EDT
FORT WAYNE – The chief executive officer of the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center in Fort Wayne says innovation is often times born out of crisis. The NIIC recently launched a virtual resource center designed to support the entrepreneurial community in Indiana during the COVID-19 pandemic. Karl LaPan says there will be a new normal for businesses, particularly small businesses and entrepreneurs, once the crisis passes.
In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, LaPan said the pandemic has created a “significant amount of trauma” for businesses.
“I think it’s important that we pay attention to emotional well-being and self care for entrepreneurs, that we recognize that there will be a new normal; we’re not going to just go back to the way things were. And there’s also a real need to kind of reimagine the businesses in light of maybe some different ways that we’ll be working in the future.”
“With some of these new programs that have come out on economic injury and payment protection, they barely scratch the surface of the profound need that businesses have,” said LaPan. “A number of studies have shown that, just in the payment protection program, there’s almost a trillion dollar need and there’s only about a third of that amount funded in the stimulus bill. So I think for a lot of companies, the funding to get to a safer landing place is a huge issue.”
LaPan says the current situation creates a great opportunity for entrepreneurs and innovators to recharge, reset and retool. He says many companies are looking at businesses that they would never have considered before.
04.12.20
The NIIC Helps Entrepreneurs to Reimagine Business Models
“During these uncertain times, The Northeast Indiana Innovation Center in Fort Wayne, implements a virtual resource center to help start-ups who are looking to start, grow or innovate. CEO Karl LaPan will talk about a unique opportunity for entrepreneurs to reimagine their business models,” Gerry Dick, Inside Indiana Business.
03.31.20
NIIC Navigator® Academy—Virtual, Global Resources and Tools—Available for Small Businesses
The NIIC and The Academy by Breakthrough4Business Partnership Propels Launch
For immediate release
March 31, 2020, Fort Wayne, Ind. — Recently, the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center (The NIIC) launched a new virtual resource center (https://niic.net/virtual-resource-center/). It provides access to virtual business building tools and enhanced services to support Indiana’s entrepreneurial community while all combat the spread of COVID-19. Through a partnership with The Academy by Breakthrough4Business, the new NIIC Navigator® Academy portal offers a suite of virtual services for small businesses. This expanded offering of The NIIC provides additional ways to keep learning, linking, and collaborating as early-stage companies pivot, evolve their business models, and restart their businesses.
“Our partnership with Breakthrough4Business reflects our shared vision to level the entrepreneurial playing field and gives access to proven resources and encouragement to business builders. We recognize and celebrate the role small businesses play in restarting and growing our economy—locally and nationally,” said Karl R. LaPan, NIIC President and CEO.
The New NIIC Navigator® Academy builds on the online learning management system available through The NIIC. For the next 12 months, The NIIC is waiving sign-up and membership fees its advance level (valued at $97 per month per person) to any company, organization or micro-entrepreneur in Indiana to support their efforts to reset and reimagine their business and to assist them in activating their business. “The NIIC is a fortunate recipient of a technical assistance grant from U.S. SBA’s Prime Program. One area of focus is to launch and grow accessible resources to support microenterprises directly through The NIIC OPENS Program,” said LaPan.
To join this online community and have the opportunity to connect to a broader network of business builders and scaling organizations globally, visit http://www.niicnavigator.academy/. “As part of our commitment to preparing vulnerable early-stage companies for the new normal, we are pleased to bring important business-building support services—forums, online tools, curated videos, webinars, and a resource library to interested and motivated business builders, existing companies or non-profit organizations in Indiana,” said LaPan.
Steven Dixon, Founder of The Academy by Breakthrough4Business, stated, “In these unprecedented times, the need for action, connections and learning has never been greater. To ease the disruption, confusion, isolation, and loss of momentum that some business builders and entrepreneurs have experienced, we are collaborating with leading entrepreneurial centers to offer a highly dynamic and connected platform to support the global entrepreneurial community.”
The Academy provides a highly curated set of tools and resources to enable entrepreneurial companies and business builders to access:
- world-class business podcasts;
- tools to be more productive and profitable;
- support to enhance and grow an online presence;
- library access to motivational and inspirational business-building videos; and
- access to a forum to ask questions and get advice.
About The NIIC OPENS Program
To learn more about the NIIC OPENS program powered by the U.S. SBA, please visit our web page at: https://niic.net/inclusive-entrepreneurship/opens/.
About The NIIC
467 new products launched, 189 patent applications submitted or granted, and 2,290 jobs created—that is what entrepreneurs have achieved through The NIIC since its inception two decades ago. The NIIC has also connected Northeast Indiana companies to attract $91 million in grants and capital.
The NIIC is a non-profit, vibrant entrepreneurial community designed to advise entrepreneurs to plan, launch, and grow successful business ventures. The NIIC bolsters innovative companies to move ideas into action. The NIIC is located in a designated U.S. Small Business Administration HUB Zone. In April 2018, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb designated The Northeast Indiana Innovation Park Campus as an Opportunity Zone through the U.S. Treasury. The NIIC is the country’s only ISO9001:2015 registered business incubation and acceleration program. TheNIIC.org. Click here for The NIIC press kit.
About B4B (Breakthrough4Business)
Headquartered in Australia, B4B Academy (https://www.b4b.academy/) provides online business coaching, training, education and mentoring services to all stages of a business through an innovative online platform and portal that curates podcasts, books, tools, mentors, coaches and other resources to support and empower a vibrant global entrepreneurial community.
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03.19.20
Ideas@Work Event Rescheduled, Ongoing Events Transitioning to Virtual Format
For Immediate Release
March 19, 2020, Fort Wayne, Ind.— The NIIC Ideas@Work entrepreneurial event is rescheduled from April 21, 2020, to October 28, 2020. “The health and safety of our staff, clients, and community are important to us. In collaboration with our partner organizations, we rescheduled Ideas@Work until the fall,” said Karl R. LaPan, president and CEO.
The NIIC has secured a keynote speaker and will announce details soon. “We’re excited to celebrate with the entrepreneurial community, educators, and business leaders at our annual signature event. This year is extra special, as we are celebrating our 20th anniversary at the event,” said LaPan. For more information about Ideas@Work, visit https://niic.net/ideasatwork/.
Training and workshops offered through The NIIC and Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity (WEOC) are transitioning to virtual delivery. “Earlier this year, we announced our events for this year. The topics are robust and are what our clients and new business builders need as they launch, build, innovate, and grow. We are proceeding as planned, except for how we are providing this information,” said Leslee Hill, WEOC Director. “We are also in the process of providing additional virtual resources to serve our clients and the broader entrepreneurial community. Stay tuned for an upcoming announcement about that.” For more information about The NIIC events, visit https://niic.net/our-events/.
“These are challenging times for our clients and our community. We are here to support our entrepreneurial community. We have transitioned our one-to-one coaching to a virtual model. Our WEOC Mastermind Groups will continue to meet virtually, which has always been an option for them,” said LaPan.
About The NIIC
467 new products launched, 189 patent applications submitted or granted, and 2,290 jobs created—that is what entrepreneurs have achieved through The NIIC since its inception two decades ago. The NIIC has also connected Northeast Indiana companies to attract $91 million in grants and capital.
The NIIC is a non-profit, vibrant entrepreneurial community designed to advise entrepreneurs to plan, launch, and grow successful business ventures. The NIIC bolsters innovative companies to move ideas into action. The NIIC is located in a designated U.S. Small Business Administration HUB Zone. In April 2018, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb designated The Northeast Indiana Innovation Park Campus as an Opportunity Zone through the U.S. Treasury. The NIIC is the country’s only ISO9001:2015 registered business incubation and acceleration program. TheNIIC.org. Click here for The NIIC press kit.
About WEOC
2,354 women and immigrants served, trained, and counseled—since WEOC’s formation five years ago. The Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Center (WEOC) serves Northeast Indiana women at all stages of their business ventures. WEOC responds to the unique needs of women entrepreneurs through business growth coaching, training, and entrepreneurial education, connectivity and access to capital. WEOC is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. As the Host organization, The NIIC also provides supplemental funding and complementary resources. WEOC is an SBA designated Women’s Business Center—one of two in Indiana. For more information, visit www.inweoc.com.
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