Students Participate in the first round of Boeing's New Business Challenge with UAH's College of Business Administration

The Boeing Company teamed with the College of Business Administration at UAH to give undergraduate students an opportunity to plan the launch of a new business. The teams are competing for $10,000 in scholarship winnings that can be used for undergraduate or graduate study at UAH. The first round of competition was held on November 30th. Eleven teams entered the competition with a total of 26 students participating. Daniel Olberding, Anissa Weed and Jack Kachelman were judges for the Boeing Company's Huntsville Operation.

The judges met with each team and critiqued the ideas, provided feedback, and extended invitations to teams for the second phase of competition in the spring. Student teams will continue to work on their business ideas with coaching and assistance from faculty and mentors. In April, students will pitch their business plans and compete for the scholarship winnings.

Entrepreneurship Club Hosted its First Annual E-Launch Business Plan Competition

The Entrepreneurship Club hosted what it hopes will be an annual 48-hour business plan competition. UAH students pitched ideas ranging from a character-themed restaurant to fusion-powered rockets to Mars. The students formed teams, developed business plans and presented them to judges. Over 25 professionals and experts in the community mentored the students, and taught them the breadth of skills they will need to fully develop business plans. E-Launch students ranged from freshmen to graduate students and represented every College. At the event finale students described their business plans to judges in five minute presentations. The MaptIt team won first place with an app to help universities reach students with event information and event maps. MaptIt received $1,000 plus free CPA and legal counseling. Feedback from the event shows that mentors strongly support E-Launch's goals and approach.

College of Business Administration holds Entrepreneurial Roundtable to discuss Commercialization of Space

The College of Business at the University of Alabama in Huntsville held an Entrepreneurial Roundtable on November 8th in the Chan Auditorium to discuss the Commercialization of Space. A crowd of over 200 people heard a panel moderated by Dean Caron St. John, and featuring Mr. Tim Pickens, Mr. Bob Sackheim and Mr. Dennis Wingo discuss the future paths forward for entrepreneurs in this emerging market space. The next Entrepreneurial Roundtable event will be held in the spring and the topic will be Bio Tech.

College of Business Administration Recognized by TEDxHuntsville

CBA was recognized as an in kind partner by TEDxHuntsville at its annual TEDxHuntsville event and TEDxYouth event. Dr. Ravi Patnayakuni works actively with TEDxHuntsville to promote and organize TEDx events in Huntsville.

Romania Study Abroad Program Raises Money for Mia's Children

The Romania study abroad classes for the last two years raised over $1,000 to benefit Mia's Children, an orphanage located in Bucharest, Romania. A local business, All Points Logistics, matched the amount raised by the students, raising the total donated to over $2,000.

CMER Interim Director Participated on TARCOG Planning Committee

CMER Interim Director, Jeff Thompson, participated on the Top of Alabama Regional Council of Governments (TARCOG) Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) planning committee. The committee assisted TARCOG staff in the development of the five year strategic plan for the North Alabama five county service area.

Karen Yarbrough is Keynote Speaker

CMER Senior Business Advisor Karen Yarbrough was the keynote speaker at the Women's Economic Development Council (WEDC) 25th Anniversary Celebration dinner on October 18 in Huntsville. Her talk included the evolution of entrepreneurship assistance and resources in Huntsville for women business owners over the last twenty-five years.

Center for Management & Economic Research (CMER) Hosted Leadership Management Academy

UAH Center for Management and Economic Research (CMER) hosted Leadership Huntsville/Madison County's Leadership Management Academy on November 14 with Senior Business Advisor Karen Yarbrough serving as the day's co-chair. The topic for the day was "External Communications." LMA Class 3 members met with local industry leaders to strengthen leadership skills in public relations and marketing strategies to better communicate to external stakeholders and compete in the marketplace.

CMER Interim Director Discussed Alabama's Aerospace Industry

CMER Interim Director, Jeff Thompson, discussed Alabama's aerospace industry with the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama Partners at their statewide meeting on November 2. Topics of discussion included the aerospace supply chain and workforce issues.

Center for Management & Economic Research (CMER) Staff Presented Energy Savings Session

Anthony Holden presented a session at the Alabama Community College Association entitles Practical Strategies for Energy Savings on November 19, 2012. This session included ideas for reducing energy costs in HVAC, lighting, and boilers with suggestions offered for engaging students, faculty, and staff in energy conservation.