GSA Technology Council

Next Session Begins: September 10, 2008!

FastTrac® TechVenture™ Program Overview

FastTrac® TechVenture™ is a comprehensive business training program that addresses the needs of start-up entrepreneurs refining and writing their business plans and seeking to grow sustainable high-impact companies. The program combines one-on-one coaching, peer learning, guest speakers and comprehensive tools to help entrepreneurs produce solid business plans and strategies.

Program Goal

The goal of FastTrac® TechVenture™ is to enable entrepreneurs to develop an effective Elevator Pitch, Business Plan, and Investor Presentation in order to effectively communicate your:

• Market opportunities
• Business concept
• Investment potential

Dates:
Ten Tuesdays starting April 8th from 6:00-9:30 p.m.; Program concludes with graduation where participants meet investors.

Location:
Innovate Building — Downtown Greenville, SC.

Class Outline:

* Week 1: Exploring Entrepreneurship
* Week 2: Defining the Target Market
* Week 3: Conducting Market Research and Analysis
* Week 4: Testing Your Business Concept
* Week 5: Entering and Capturing the Market
* Week 6: Planning for Financial Success
* Week 7: Building and Compensating Your Team
* Week 8: Protecting the Business & Your Intellectual Property
* Week 9: Identifying Funding and Working with Investors
* Week 10: Managing Cash and Operating Your Business
* Post-Class: Investment Pitch Refinement Session
* Graduation: Class graduates meet angel investors, venture capitalists and event sponsors

Cost of FastTrac® TechVenture™

* $150 per participant
** (FastTrac® TechVenture™ is subsidized by FastTracSC)

FastTrac® TechVenture™ Features:
* Teams of trained instructors with successful company building experience
* A focus on each participant’s own business rather than academic models
* Reviewed homework assignments that create a thorough business plan
* Extensive classroom participation with a high quality, select peer group
* Comprehensive course workbooks, business plan and financial plan software
* Expert guest speakers with real-world experience and valuable contacts
* Industry-specific breakout groups to enhance peer counseling
* Hands-on, individual business counseling from expert entrepreneurs
* An online discussion group that allows FastTrac® TechVentures™ entrepreneurs to network with each other, ask questions and discuss common issues (soon!)

Eligibility and Application Process:

FastTrac® TechVenture™ is designed for entrepreneurs with high potential business concepts or early stage businesses (pre-institutional money) where founders are seriously committed to their business. We will select a maximum of 15-20 companies (maximum of 25 participants; some companies may have multiple participants) with the below attributes:

* Compelling market pain has been identified
* Company is developing a unique solution to address that pain
* Company has identified sustainable competitive advantages of its technology product
* Business has potential to scale quickly and profitably
* Market is large and fast growing
* Team has relevant market and technology experience

For more information, contact: Greg Hillman. (first.last (at) gsatc.org)

The GSA Technology Council presentation of the FastTrac TechVenture class is provided with the assistance of these Community Partners:

• FastTrac SC
• SC Launch!
• Next!
• Clemson University’s Renaissance Center

Learn More
To learn more or to register for a class, click here: RSVP / MORE INFO

The GSA Technology Council and the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce continue their collaboration to deliver the IT Leadership Council. The IT Leadership Council provides a monthly facilitated networking, discussion and educational forum for the upstate South Carolina’s top level IT Professionals.

The IT Leadership Council is a monthly peer forum for senior ranking IT professionals. The group meets the fourth Wednesday of every month with attendance limited to forum members. The meetings tend to be “roll up the sleeves” and handle the real issues faced by senior level IT Professionals. Each meeting features a presentation and facilitated discussion of strategic Information Technology topics selected by the forum members.

If your organization’s VP of Technology, Chief Information Officer, or top level IT professional are interested in participating, please contact any of the following:

ITLC Executive Director:
Phil Yanov, 800-688-2094

Economic Development Manager (Greenville Chamber):
Drew Medlyn, 864-239-3709

This group is made possible by a donation from the Kearns Corporation.

On February 22nd, 2008, the new Upstate SC Chapter of the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) will be conducting its first meeting from 11:00AM to 12:30PM. Representatives from NuVox and Fluor have joined with the Greenville Spartanburg Anderson Technology Council (GSATC) to promote Information Security throughout the Upstate. The meeting will be held at the NuVox office in downtown Greenville. If you are involved or interested in Information Security, please come to the meeting and see what ISSA is all about. Please feel free to forward this notification to any others you might think are interested in attending.

CHAPTER MEETING - Friday, February 22nd, 2008 - 11:00AM to 12:30PM
- Determination of Initial Officers
- Review of the Chapter Development Process
- Presentation: Overview of Penetration Testing with BackTrack 2.0
This presentation will provide an overview of the various Penetration Testing tools included within the BackTrack 2.0 release along with an introduction to the Metasploit Framework. DVD and CD versions of the latest version of BackTrack will be made available to all attendees.

RSVP Info: Catered box lunches will be provided at a nominal cost of $5 per person. If you’d like to eat lunch with us, please make sure to RSVP to webmaster@upstate-issa.org at least 24 hours prior to the meeting.

website: www.upstate-issa.org

2008 marks the launch of the upstate’s only after hours, 100% networking event designed to exclusively connect tech entrepreneurs and professionals. We meet at Barley’s Taproom in downtown Greenville on the 3rd Wednesday of every month.

Next Event

Wednesday, July 16, 2008
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Barley’s Taproom
25 W Washington St, Greenville, SC
(map)

What’s Happening

RSVP Online and bring a business card with you and the first beer is on us. This is about networking and getting to know your fellow tech professionals.

RSVP

Ta5 Signup is open! Click here and we’ll have a spiffy name badge for you.
[RSVP ONLINE]

Sponsored by:

With support from HealthyLounge. (You gotta try it.)

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What are people saying about Tech After Five?

Great opportunity to meet people and share ideas. Informational events are useful and they have their place but there aren’t quite as many social opportunities. This gave me an opportunity to meet and spend some time with the “brain trust” in our community.
- Gary Berger

I was able to meet a lot of excellent business contacts. Very friendly people made me feel welcome, and several people introduced me to people they knew. Great opportunity for good conversations. Thanks so much for having the event!
- Laura MacPherson

I loved Tech After Five because it gave me an opportunity to meet with other in my industry and related industries in a more relaxed atmosphere. I look forward to future gatherings and the connections I will be able to make with others in the community.
- J. Patrick Greer

Tech After Five was my first GSA Technology Council event and it was great because it was a good atmosphere to socialize and network. I look forward to attending the next one….
- Erich

Free beer. Good friends. Meeting new people.
- Adam Gautsch

In association with QLI International, the GSA Technology Council is offering a series of morning workshops designed to assist the technology manager or business owner further develop the skills they need to succeed.

Next Session is TBA.

Sales Session 2 - Increasing Revenue Through Networking Effectively

Learn the techniques you need to network more effectively and build your business in our morning workshop with Manfred Gollent of QLI International.

Details

Topic: Sales Session 2 - Increasing Revenue Through Networking Effectively
Presented by: Manfred Gollent
Date: Tuesday April 22, 2008
Time: 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM (Continental Breakfast Served)
Location: Immedion (map)

RSVP Online:

Online RSVP Closed.

Onsite Registration

Event Day registration onsite is $75. Cash or Checks only.

What people are saying

Here are some of the comments we got from last session:

“A presentation of good common sense techniques for obtaining prospects and sales!”
G.F., Sales Manager

“Powerful Information! The presentation was powerful and to the point! I loved all the interaction with the group and benefited greatly from the points that came up. You gave me a lot to think about.”
J.O., Marketing

“Very relevant to sales work!”
S.G. IT Recruiter

“An innovative look at the sales process!”
D.T. , IT Business Owner

We offer a variety of programs for technology professionals, including:

• Managing Business Seminar Series - Whether you are a high tech entrepreneur, a business owner, or a manager of a high tech team, these programs are designed for you.

A list of the groups you will want to know about:

• Information Systems Security Association - monthly meetings of Upstate Security Professionals
• Upstate Carolina Angel Network - a group of angel investors formed by J. B.Holeman and Tim Reed.

Formation Announcement

Feb 4, 2008: The newly formed Upstate Carolina Angel Network has announced that they will hold two informational meetings for accredited investors who are interested in learning more about the group. Beginning in August of last year an exploratory group founded by J. B. Holeman and Tim Reed began the project of establishing an Angel Investment group primarily to support the formation of upstate technology businesses. The group held several organizational meetings, established a core committee, and initiated a search for a professional manager. The group is now ready to meet, discuss their progress, and invite investors to participate.
Accredited Investors are invited to attend one of the two (identical) introductory meetings where they will learn how the group is formed, how they can participate, and have their questions answered about the objectives of the angel group.

Thursday afternoon session
4:30 to 5:30 PM

Friday Morning session
8:00 to 9:00 AM

The two sessions are identical, so please RSVP for only one.

Where:
RBC Liberty
2000 Wade Hampton Boulevard
Greenville, SC
(Turn in to the second drive off Wade Hampton Boulevard after passing Pleasantburg, park in the visitor’s parking lot of the newer building, come to the receptionist)

map:http://tinyurl.com/38r4na

RSVP: Michele Boyle, mboyle2007@bellsouth.net

The road to successful entrepreneurship begins with passion about an idea, a business plan based on research and analysis, and the persistence to pursue the vision. Whether you have always dreamed of being an entrepreneur or recent circumstances triggered thoughts about starting a business, FastTrac® is designed to introduce you to the key elements of successful entrepreneurship.

Which FastTrac is right for you?

FastTrac is remedial entrepreneurial training for mid-career professionals. It give you the tools you need to evaluate your entrepreneurial readiness and to avoid the common pitfalls facing new or growing businesses. In Upstate South Carolina, three different FastTrac programs are offered.

FastTrac® NewVenture™
An entrepreneurial program that assists the start-up entrepreneur in developing their business concept and evaluating it through each step of the business planning process.

FastTrac® GrowthVenture™
An entrepreneurial program that assists entrepreneurs in evaluating their current business framework and determine the changes needed to improve performance and grow the business.

FastTrac® TechVenture™
An entrepreneurial program that offers technology and life science entrepreneurs the tools needed to start or refine their business venture, including the business concept itself, learn to access capital, and advance their venture to the next business stage. (Learn More)

Reserve your spot / Learn More
To learn more or to register for a class, CLICK HERE

Oh no! Are you having trouble with PayPal?

If you think we can be of help, please call 800-688-2094.

You should receive a confirmation email from PayPal shortly.

(It will be sent to the email address associated with your PayPal account, which may or may not be the email address to which you receive our announcements.)

Interested in sponsoring the GSATC website or an event? Let’s talk about how it might make sense for you to be involved with our growing upstate technology community.

The GSATC is committed to keeping Upstate Technology professionals informed of the goings on in the community. There are lots of great Technology support groups that have not yet found their audience. The GSATC helps by making sure the entire tech community knows about them. We can help promote your Technology group through our Affiliate program. Ask for more information by calling 800-688-2094.

If you’d like to see what the new Groups page is going to look like, check it out here:

http://www.gsatc.org/groups/

Thank you for your interest in the GSATC.

Would you like to have your group on the GSATC website? Perhaps you have a business that would like to sponsor the GSATC. Give us a call or drop us an email.

Send us News:

Send information technology news and press releases to: news@gsatc.org

Call Us:

Phone 800-688-2094

Skype Us:

Thinkhammer

Send Mail to:

The GSA Technology Council is a board driven, not-for-profit technology networking organization supporting the continued growth of Upstate South Carolina’s technology economy. The GSATC provides networking, education, business development, and community service opportunities to technology professionals and entrepreneurs through it’s technology newsletter, monthly meetings, annual job fair, and FastTrac training. Founded in 2002, the council has grown to over 11,000 subscribers.

Networking

1. Every GSATC meeting provides ample opportunity for technology professionals to meet and exchange ideas.
2. Affiliated technology organizations are encouraged to establish a visible presence at our meetings to let other technology professionals learn about their groups.
3. All upstate businesses are encouraged to send their technology news to news@gsatc.org.

Education

1. The GSATC delivers timely news, information, and job opportunities via its weekly email newsletter.
2. GSATC meetings provide high quality educational experiences to both working technology professionals and the business people who run technology businesses. Learning lunched focus on the issues of interest to most tech entrepreneurs while Tech Roundtables provide education to working technology professionals.

Community Service

1. The GSATC Affiliate program gives local technology organizations the media boost they need to get their message heard by thousands of technology professionals and local businesses. Fledgling technology organizations can have their news and announcements delivered via our website, newsfeed, and email newsletter.
2. Each year the GSATC identifies 4 core community service opportunities for charitable not-for-proftechnology organizations and then manages those projects to a successful completion. A stellar example of a 2003 project is the Sterling Community Center Computer Lab.

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