Turning ideas into thriving businesses

By Jack Harris and Peter Hong

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There's no lack of innovation and creativity in Iowa. But people with the most innovative ideas may not always be experienced business people.

Giving them the right tools can help them turn their great ideas into viable businesses, generating jobs that move Iowa forward.

Some resources to help entrepreneurs already are available in Iowa. But as the Battelle report on Iowa, “Strengthening the Entrepreneurial Support Infrastructure,” pointed out, what has been lacking is a coordinated, continuous support network to shape those ideas into thriving businesses.

That's where the newly created Iowa Integrated Innovation and Commercialization Network comes in.

The IIICN helps provide a road map for entrepreneurs, taking their promising ideas and turning them into revenue-generating businesses.

Legislation passed in 2007 set aside dollars for state economic development officials to create this statewide commercialization network.

The network will serve as a fundamental building block of the Iowa Innovation Council's goal of creating high-paying jobs as part of an innovation-based economy. The IIC will partner with existing service providers to achieve this goal. Regional meetings are being planned to roll out the IIICN to the local economic development community, including accelerators and public and private service providers, angel investors, bankers and attorneys.

Along with mentoring, the network will help funnel startup companies toward the seed capital they need to grow and move forward.

It's the single-most important thing Iowa can do to make its entrepreneurial businesses successful.

Having a coordinated network is also a signal to the investment community that these companies have been thoroughly scrutinized and are off to a solid start.

With this type of vetting, the network will help fill the “hopper” with companies with a higher probability of success that can be presented to investors.

The assistance provided through the network to start-ups goes beyond what many traditional entrepreneurial programs provide.

The network brings together a panel of experts that can serve as something of a senior management team for the fledgling business, identifying potential opportunities and obstacles and asking the entrepreneur tough questions.

Advice on how entrepreneurs can improve their business plans is another benefit the experts can provide, as well as helping them understand the market and potential demand for their products or services and who their competition might be.

To understand how a mentor can assist a startup business, Anemometry Specialists in Alta makes a compelling example.

Formed by a husband and wife team, the business uses towers with anemometers that measure when, how fast and how long the wind blows in a particular location to see if a wind farm there could be a viable investment. The company was doubling its sales every year, but wanted to move to the next level as the country's wind energy industry expands.

A mentor helped refine the company's business plan and steered them to financial resources, including a fund that invested in rural areas. A program that helped train employees also was recommended for the growing company.

The assistance and advice helped Anemometry Specialists grow and its owners win the designation as Iowa's top small business people in 2010 by the Small Business Administration.

The company recently landed its first national contract with a leading energy company.

The IIICN hopes to generate similar success stories in Iowa by developing and nurturing homegrown business ideas.

Strengthening the innovative culture in Iowa is essential to creating the types of high-paying jobs that will sustain the state's economy for future generations.

All of Iowa gains when innovation is a top priority. The IIICN aims to be a key part of that effort.

Jack Harris is Director of Advanced Manufacturing Technology at Rockwell Collins and Vice Chairman of the Iowa Innovation Council. Peter Hong is Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of New Tech Ceramics and a member of the Iowa Innovation Council. Comments: jrharris@rockwellcollins.com and peterleehong@gmail.com