Starting a business requires some planning and fore thought.  Just like a product or system we might design, the effort of building a business requires changing, adapting, and evolving.  In a system design, we might call that an evolutionary spiral where we constantly drafting the requirements, design, implement, and test - and back around again.  As we grow a business practice, we go thru the same stages.  I intend to cover 3 main topic areas in this presentation - first, steps to forming a new business - forms of business,  evaluation of the business model, and initial planning & goal setting;  second - marketing, sales, operation, and getting paid; and third - tips and tools to improve operations, efficiency, and ROI.  Your business should iterate through all these concepts as it grows - re-evaluating,  improving operations, and automating repetitive business operations.   These topics and methods apply regardless of the type of business you are building - whether a consultancy, a product company, or service business.

William R. Kassebaum (Will) has over 30 years working in the private and government sectors, Will has extensive systems & computer (HW/SW) engineering, executive management, program management, and entrepreneurial experience. Will is an experienced technologist and computer hardware/software engineer. Will was the founding CEO of several Indianapolis based technology companies including Algaeon Inc - a local biotechnology startup company. His pioneering work at the Naval Air Warfare Center earned him and his team the prestigious National Performance Review "Heroes Of Government Reinvention" award presented by the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Vice President of the United States. While working with private companies such as Escient, LLC, he has led teams that developed award-winning products. Mr. Kassebaum holds a Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and has been a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Indiana. He is a past Chair and Director of the Central Indiana Section of the IEEE. And recently served on the IEEE-USA Board of Directors as Vice President Career & Member Services 2014-15, and as a corresponding member of the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Policy Committee of the IEEE-USA, a Founder and Co-Chair of the Central Indiana Engineering Consultants’ Network, and is a Past Chair and member of the Alliance of IEEE Consultants’ Networks (AICN), a committee of the IEEE-USA.

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BS/MS Electrical & Computer Engineering Purdue University 86,91; 10Years US Navy Lab - NAWC AD;  Hughes Aircraft; Raytheon;  10+ Start-up in Private Industry; Raised Private Capital; Investor; Entrepreneur;  IEEE-USA CIS Section, AICN, VP Career & Member Services ’14,15/BOD