DETROIT - Continental CIO Bill MacFarlane is the ConnecTech May Mentor of the Month. He is paired with ConnecTech member/mentee Angela Brown. To hear what MacFarlane said are the best reasons for working as a CIO, and for mentoring up and coming CIOs, listen to this special ConnecTech edition of Newsmaker Interview.
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DETROIT - On June 4 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Detroit, you’ll be able to meet and greet some of the area’s prominent technology and community leaders at the cocktail reception while contributing to two great Foundations - SIM (Society of Information Managers) and the Michigan Council of Women in Technology. On June 5, a day-long event for Directors of IT and CIOs, with guest speakers including Tony Scott, CIO of Microsoft, John Crary, CIO of Lear, Timothy Cox, CIO of OnStar and Tom Peck CIO of MGM Mirage, Las Vegas. Midwest Technology Leaders Founder Tracy-Ann Palmer discussed both in this News Maker Interview.
LANSING - Michigan on Monday released its four-year IT strategic plan, which will spend more than $400 million to continue consolidating the state’s Information Technology infrastructure. Michigan Chief Information Officer Ken Theis details what he has in store for the state in this News Maker Interview. Theis replaced former CIO Terri Takai who was recruited in January to become CIO in California.
GRAND RAPIDS - American manufacturers want change, and they want the three candidates for US president to not only hear them, but also deal with their demands, said David Brousell, editor and chief of Managing Automation magazine. Brousell will detail on Wednesday during PowerPlex the results of a survey of 2000 manufacturers his magazine conducted. Brousell is the keynote speaker during Plexus Systems user conference at the Marriott Hotel in downtown Grand Rapids. Listen to what he’ll tell the audience in this News Maker interview.
YPSILANTI - The task for four accomplished and veteran investors and entrepreneurs, come up with a business plan for a self sustaining, green-friendly, island community in less than 10 minutes. Yes, the second annual Battle of the Elevator Pitches at the New Enterprise Forum had a Gilligan’s Isle flavor to it and in the end Ann Arbor’s Biggest Gilligan won, Dick Beedon, CEO of Mac Beedon Group, won, for the second time in a row. Beedon bested Ron Reed of Seneca Partners, Roger Newton, Co-Discoverer of Lipitor and Founder of Esperion, and Rich Sheridan, CEO of Menlo Innovations. A tongue-in-cheek News Maker Interview captured the spirit of this event.
YPSILANTI - Diane Durance, executive director of Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest, outlines what’s next for the 79 teams that submitted business plans for the Spring 2008 cycle. The business-plan submission deadline was May 15. The awards ceremony is June 12 in Lansing.
YPSILANTI - You wouldn’t think of Michigan would be home to an Internet wine sales company that wants to take the wine eCommerce market by storm, but that’s the game plan for WineBuys.Com. Two long-time friends and business partners are behind this business plan, which calls for $10 million in sales over the next 18 to 24 months.
YPSILANTI - Rick Galdi, long time investor and entrepreneur, is the new President of Great Lakes Angels, replacing David Weaver who moves up to Chairman. Galdi, in this News Maker Interview, talks about the changes he wants to make to one of the state’s largest angel investing groups and how he hopes his investor-members will serve as mentors to the companies in which they invest. Galdi also wants to steal a page from Ohio angel groups and get the state of Michigan to match investments in Michigan companies.
