How to Innovate for Business Success Workshop

The Washtenaw Community College - Student Enterprise Zone is pleased to present a FREE workshop featuring three international experts on How to Innovate for Business Success.

When:Thursday, October 18th, 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Where: Towsley Auditorium, Washtenaw Community College
4800 East Huron River Drive
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106
Cost:FREE

Learn how to:

  • Turn your idea into real-world business opportunity
  • Reveal target customers real needs and how to deliver it
  • Solve the "unsolvable" problems preventing your business from achieving success
  • and growth
  • Dramatically reduce costs and effort of competing and increase your profitability
  • Turn your customers into an enthusiastic, efficient and inexpensive sales force

Len Kaplan, Managing Partner, OutCompete, www.OutCompete.com, has spent more than 20 years as a Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ) consultant, trainer and researcher. He has led more that 100 successful innovative projects around the world for companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies. Using his FutureMapping technique Len has revealed emerging trends in various industries, including: automotive, electronics, lifting cranes, hair care, advertising and stem cell therapy.

David M. Verduyn, President, C2C Solutions Inc. www.c2c-solutions.com, has more than 20 years industry experience in Design and Systems Engineering, Technical Instruction, Product Development Consulting & Technical Course Development. Since 1983 he's trained over 9,000 engineers and product developers in leading methods including Systematic Innovation, TRIZ, FMEA, QFD, CAD, VA/VE, and other Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) Methods.

Mark Frazier, President Solvtech, Inc. www.solvtech.com. Evangelism Marketing Expert and Internet Pioneer responsible for creating and bringing many innovations to market. Mark is an expert in evangelism marketing, the concept of making your customers so happy they eagerly sell your product for you. A Silicon Valley veteran with 20 years experience including clients such as Apple, Microsoft, Nintendo, Visa, Hewlett Packard, General Motors, Nissan, Zurich, BitTorrent and Zingermans, Mark will open your eyes to opportunities all around you.

Agenda:

  1. Introduction
  2. David Verduyn: Understanding your Customers and Systematic approaches to Innovation
  3. Mark Frazier: Turn Your Customers into the Most Powerful Sales Force
  4. Len Kaplan: How to Turn Your Idea into a Real Business Opportunity
  5. Short Break
  6. Experiential workshop: turning the business idea into the business opportunity
  7. Q&A, concluding remarks
  8. Networking

More Information:

Cheryl Davisson Gracie

Washtenaw Community College, Faculty Advisor to the Entrepreneurship Certificate Program

E-mail: cdgracie@wccnet.edu

Phone: 734-973-3481 (click to SkypeOut)