Rockin' Launch of Club E 2009!

Club E had taken the holidays season off (November and December) and we'd set the launch of our 2009 event season for Wednesday, January 14th with one of our own, Ira Rosen, as our guest speaker. Ira would bring a great crowd on his own-he is personable and well spoken and has the kind of raw charm that other entrepreneurs relate to. Our usual crowd of new and old would come, of that I was pretty confident. However, I was entertaining a pretty high profile out of town guest that evening and I really wanted Club E to put our best foot forward.

Not a week before, I'd taken a late night call from Sue Malone, the lady behind all of the SBA loans I'd been placing for our Veteran Club E members as well as our non-Vet Club E members (some 50 plus for over $1MM in funding) this past month or so. Sue Malone is also a member of our incoming President Obama's Small Business Council transition team and it was in this capacity, that she was reaching out to me now.

Sue was calling from Detroit, where she had been in emergency sessions with the major automakers who were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, despite the bailouts by the Feds. The situation was (and is) critical and thousands of auto workers are soon to be thrown out of work into the unemployment lines, which will paralyze our country through the ripple down effect. Sue had boldly presented the "Vertical Integration of Entrepreneurship" that I'd been developing with my brilliant team at Club E and the auto makers bought into it.

Specifically, Sue Malone brought my entrepreneurial education model which could be used to re-train displaced auto workers into becoming entrepreneurs themselves or part of a small entrepreneurial start-up team, through taking the course curriculum that I'd successfully created and which was now part of several universities as Colleges of Entrepreneurship.

Additionally, Sue introduced our eFactory innovation, which would serve to house the start-up busineses that would be launched through the re-education of the auto workers. It was even suggested that the sprawling state-of-the-art "campus," owned by one of the auto makers could be turned over to us for this purpose.

Finally, the introduction of Club E into the Detroit area to cultivate and support the spirit of entrepreneurship among the existing and to-be-established enterprises was discussed.

Sue was calling to ask us to prepare documentation in the form of a "White Paper" that outlined our strategy of doing our part to support Detroit in its pending troubles. I called the gang early into the headquarters the next day and for the next week, we met and brainstormed and at 4 PM this past Wednesday (1/14) a conference room full of us met with Sue Malone, who had flown in from San Francisco, and presented our first draft of the proposed "We Are America's Bailout." That draft is outlined here so everyone can see this very important work product and our plan to rebuild America from within...starting with Detroit.

"We Are Americas Bailout"
Entrepreneurs Helping to Rebuild America

In the same way so many of us rush to natural disasters to lend a hand, we must work together to utilize the resources available to help each other build a Sustainable America. This journey has already begun in the hearts and minds of entrepreneurs. There is a need for all entrepreneurs in the United States to fully comprehend the importance of their actions and how they change the course of history.

The small business owner in America is truly representative of the great spirit of freedom that resides in this country. Our still great nation is currently facing many trials and tribulations. Many US citizens are scared of losing their incomes, homes and lifestyles. Life is not over, as some would like to have you believe. This unfounded fear must be cast aside and replaced with the hope and promise of better days ahead. But, this hope must be encouraged and substantiated by the power of well-intentioned and precisely executed plans that will begin to fix our problems.

Our mission is to create a new paradigm in entrepreneurship and promote business concepts in the community. We will provide the necessary infrastructure to build a strong, adaptable economy:

• Education
• Collaboration
• Implementation


Investing in the New Economy
“Shovel-ready” Infrastructure for American Business

The capacity for economic growth is directly dependent on the creative drive and innovation provided by entrepreneurs who lead the way in both technological and service transformations of the economy. The Strategic Entrepreneurship Model is designed to function as “engines of innovation” — creating a proactive structure for entrepreneurial education, economic leadership, business collaboration, and new venture implementation. These firms are particularly attuned and responsive to the demands of an emerging “innovation economy”.

The Strategic Entrepreneurship Model

TIMELINE


Education
Living & Learning

Institute for Entrepreneurship (IFE)
The IFE is a for‐profit educational corporation providing entrepreneurial curricula, instructional delivery system solutions, and adjunct faculty services. By stressing a consistent and proven set of entrepreneurial practices, IFE will decrease the likelihood of new business failures and increase the discovery of innovative and viable opportunities. Through the IFE curriculum, postsecondary students will acquire the knowledge, skills, personal insight, and practical experience necessary to succeed in a variety of entrepreneurial settings.

American Professionals
The greatest knowledge resource goes well beyond the proven market leaders. While they provide successful strategies, Americans must learn from experiences of all working professionals. Club E, the social network detailed in the subsequent section, provides an online, video medium for all business professionals to lend advice and acumen from his/her respective corner of the market. This forum lends the opportunity for anyone to become known in a specific field.

Andrew Jackson
The motto of Andrew Jackson University - "We deliver quality education to your doorstep." At Andrew Jackson University, education is completely mobile. It truly can be taken anywhere, and our students get what they need, to go where they want to go! The university offers accredited Bachelor and Master degrees in a variety of disciplines.

Kauffman Foundation
The Kauffman Foundation is often referred to as one of the largest foundations in the United States—or as the world's largest foundation devoted to entrepreneurship. Ewing Kauffman believed that investments in education should lead students on a path to self-sufficiency, preparing them to hold good-paying jobs, raise their families, and become productive citizens. FastTrac, an award-winning, comprehensive package of entrepreneur-learning programs and materials, FastTrac provides existing and aspiring entrepreneurs with key business insights and skills, leadership experiences, and valuable networking and mentoring opportunities they need to start, grow, and lead businesses.

Other Specialty Educational Programs
Not everyone is cut to be an entrepreneur. We must provide the entire portfolio of educational programs based on New Economy jobs. Service-oriented positions should be the focus, as the United States will continue to decrease its manufacturing of “widgets”. New, sustainable business models will be the foundation of the New Economy skill sets.

Collaboration
American Stone Soup

Club E Network
The online social networks have torn down the barriers to entry for any type of service. Technology allows us to share knowledge and partnerships at a minimal cost. Club E Network is a comprehensive social network that facilitates deal flow between entrepreneurs, corporations, and consumers alike. Powering this community is a proprietary development of Web 2.0 capabilities that enable value‐ added interactions, connections and facilitation of business relationships.

Club E creates original multimedia content online that engages viewers and provides the information they need to succeed. Digital Media Centers in the Club E Factory locations provide opportunities for members of its community to share their knowledge and learn from successful entrepreneurs. Online entrepreneurs have a place to meet and interact with the local communities, in a non‐exclusive, open environment that encourages entrepreneurs at all experience levels to participate. Club E also hosts special events, from private receptions with celebrity entrepreneur speakers to the first large‐scale awards ceremony for entrepreneurs, held in person and simultaneously broadcast online through the Club E community.

Club E Factory
The Club E Factory is a turnkey, scalable system that provides the local entrepreneur community with a centralized location to access the support, education, training and resources they need to create successful enterprises, open 7 days a week. Many entrepreneurial individuals and companies lack the financial resources to operate in a physical location that is fully equipped for product development; equipment, technology, and infrastructure. The eFactory approach is a unique opportunity to positively impact the surrounding community. By offering this “one stop shop” of entrepreneurial opportunities, eFactory opens up many currently unavailable resources to the growing number of new and emerging entrepreneurs

Club E Lab
Club E Lab, business competitions, will encourage Members to discover new business solutions. Club E Lab will go beyond the traditional sources of knowledge participating in the business plan competitions. It will even go beyond business plan competitions, offering website and marketing contests, funding races, and other specific challenges to test the ability of the participants. The elements of Club E Lab include demand from the local market, self-organized teams of Members, and financial backing for the winners. Club E Lab will be a new marketplace for the people with great ideas, the people that implement the great ideas and the people that fund the great ideas.

Implementation
Git-R-Done

Community Leaders
From the ground chapter meetings to the facilitation of the Club E Factory, we need Community Leaders to take command of this initiative. We cannot be the ‘motor’ that drives the train. Instead, we will teach a group of local professionals the skills to build that the economic ‘motor’ it takes to sustain a strong, adaptable economy. These Community Leaders serve as an invaluable resource during all stages of building the Club E community; they know understand the capabilities and limitations of the local workforce.

SBA Loans
Quick access to government funding is currently available to nearly everyone via the Patriot Express and Community Express Programs. SBA-lender, Superior Financial Group (SFG) is committed supporting small business in America by offering innovative loan products and continuing to provide award winning superior service. By creating a quick and easy loan application, 48 hour funding, and service processes through the use of today's technology, SFG customers enjoy the service they deserve.

Micro-Financing
Just as the Grameen Bank (GB) has reversed conventional banking practice internationally, Americans must create a banking system based on mutual trust, accountability, participation and creativity. NGOs such as Kiva.org have the resources to build a Micro-Finance community. We need to utilize the resource immediately. The system must be transparent to show how money flows throughout the entire cycle, and what effect it has on the people and institutions lending it, borrowing it, and managing it along the way.

We must use the power of the Internet just as president-elect Obama garnered support with small contributions to fund his election. The individuals featured are real people who need a loan and are waiting for socially-minded individuals to lend them money. While traditional models focus on what has already been acquired, we need to look at the potential that is waiting to be unleashed from the entrepreneurs.


Much to our delight, Sue Malone's response was nothing short of being overwhelmed with the effort and production resulting from her late night call only days before this presentation. I couldn't have been more proud as each of our core members presented their part of the plan and we went around the room introducing ourselves and backgrounds to Sue. In the room was one of the 50 Strategic Alliance Advisors for Microsoft, who had recently negotiated a deal with Club E becoming a Microsoft Network Partner for their newly launched BizSpark Program. He shared Microsoft's great interest in our efforts and promised to help us in our mission to save America.
Another visitor of note was Steve Bonenberger, the founder of America's first microlender (Angels in Action), which promises to become a significant force in the alternate financing world for American entrepreneurs. Like Microsoft's Strategic Alliance Advisor, Angels in Action pledged their support to join Club E in working with Sue Malone in our plan of action.

The Club E event that night was nothing short of spectacular and there had to be 150 or more in attendance. Sue Malone spoke of our mission together, Steve Bonenberger spoke of the newly launched microlender of which Club E was now part and Ira Rosen gave a great talk to the audience. The atmosphere was charged up and there was no lack of optimism and hope for the future of America in the room that night!

Sue wrote the following email when she returned to SF that says it all..



Dear Peter,

Thank you for the fabulous time at Club E and the E Factory-- what a concept you have put together wow! I knew it was good, I had no idea it was that great! Yes, you have developed something that is outstanding--congratulations. And thank you for including me in the group!

I am so sorry about the tardiness in my reply's I got off the plane and ran to Sacramento to meet with the California Veterans Assoc and put a proposal together and we worked on it until after 10 PM last night...and it includes an educational component. We are in the first stage of it..and will continue to refine it.

And this morning, I had a conference call with GM -- it is another of many, I will keep you abreast as the concept moves forward.

With regard to Brooke she is set to fund today and should see the funds in her account on Monday -- Tuesday at the latest.

Thank you again Peter, it was great fun to be at the EFactory and attend Club E -- what a concept! A home run!!!

Best to you,

Sue Malone



Needless to say, Club E, the eFactory and the Institute For Entrepreneurship are all at the right place at the right time and with the dedicated core members we are blessed to have and the strategic alliances lining up to help....we cannot help but get America back on track because...."We ARE America's Bailout!"

Check out the video clips of the event below...

http://www.essentialet.com/clube/clube_011409_intro/index.htm

http://www.essentialet.com/clube/clube_011409_main/index.htm


Best to all,

Peter J. Burns, III
Founder