Jun 29

Turney Stevens Joins E|SPACES Member Council

Turney Stevens has joined the E|SPACES Member Council, according to Jim Lackey, Chair of the Council. Turney is Dean of the College of Business at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee. Prior to moving into academia at Lipscomb, Stevens spent his career as an investment banker, entrepreneur and corporate executive.

Stevens serveimaged as Chairman & CEO of Harpeth Companies, an investment banking and consulting company; Founder and Chairman of a consolidation of commercial printing companies with $240 million in revenues and plants in 10 U.S. cities; as president of a magazine publishing company with five titles; and as President of a mid-market investment banking firm with offices in the U.S. and Europe.

Stevens is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where he earned his Executive Master’s of Business Administration degree from the Owen Graduate School of Management and serves on the Board of Kohlberg Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: KCAP) where he is an Independent Director and serves on the Compensation and Valuation Committees. He is a recent graduate of the UCLA Anderson School of Management’s Director’s College where he focused his study on corporate governance and ethics.

E|SPACES is a new type of office designed for today’s generation of mobile, connected professionals—entrepreneurs, attorneys, accountants, consultants, designers, and professionals in all areas. It combines the warm, open and inviting environment of a coffee shop with the functionality of an office—a business address and phone number, high speed wireless internet, printers and copiers, along with conference rooms for meetings. Members sign up for the time they need, from two days a month up to twenty days, for a price significantly below the cost of a traditional office.

In his role on the Member Council, Turney will help the company redefine the concept of the office by providing feedback on the offerings, service and all aspects of the E|SPACES experience. The first center located in the new Hill Center at Belle Meade in Nashville is scheduled to open in early July.

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Jun 28

E|SPACES Opens for Business

After years of planning and months of design and constructions, we are happy to announce that E|SPACES will be open for business at 7:00 AM on Tuesday, July 6, 2010.  Please come by and visit us any time during the opening week!

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Jun 26

You Are the Business Plan

It takes a lot of time and effort to write good business plan. Sometimes I wonder if all that time and effort could be better spent actually starting the business rather than researching and writing and editing. It really is a lot of work!

So, if I want to start a new business, do I have to write a business plan?

It clearly depends on the nature of the business you are starting.  Instead of spending months writing a business plan, sometimes it is better to lay out your plan in a simple concept paper–three or four pages. Scoping out what you plan to do helps you think through the process and is highly recommended.

Then get to it. If it seems like it is beginning to work, you can always go back and write a detailed plan. If not, you have not wasted a lot of time.

If your business requires capital that you are going to ask others to put at risk, unless it is a small amount coming from close family and friends, a business plan is a must. People who invest want to know that you have very carefully thought through the concept and have looked at every important aspect of the business.

  • Can you clearly describe what you plan to do?
  • What is your product or service?
  • What is unique about the product or service?
  • Who are the customers?
  • How are you going to sell the product or service?
  • Who is the competition?
  • What are the barriers to entry?
  • What is the experience of the management team?
  • What do the financials look like?
  • How much capital is required?
  • What are the risks?
  • How do I get paid back?

You have to be able to answer each of these, plus a few others thrown in for good measure, in great detail. Now that doesn’t mean that the investor will always read the complete business plan, but you better be prepared to answer any question that is asked. The business plan is critical in your preparation for this important exam.

When I write or read a business plan, the one thing I know for sure is that the business will not turn out exactly as the plan predicts. But it is a road map and critical planning tool.

So, if you do not need outside investors, write a concept paper and spend your time starting the business. Do not waste months writing a detailed plan.

If you need investors, write the plan. Do the research and learn the material. The test is not the quality of the plan. The test is do you know the business well enough and are you experienced enough to make the right adaptations when the plan falls apart.

Ultimately, there is only one important section in a business plan–The Management Team.  The secret is that YOU are the business plan–not the document–and YOU are the focus of investors’ interest.

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Jun 4

Mark Montgomery Joins E|SPACES Member Council

Entrepreneur Mark Montgomery has joined the E|SPACES Member Council, according to Jim Lackey, Council Chair. Mark currently serves as Entrepreneur in Residence at Claritas Capital, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a pioneer in the e-commerce and business to consumer marketing space, working with hundreds ofclip_image002 entertainment and corporate clients ranging from Sony and Best Buy to Keith Urban and Bon Jovi.

Mark has been working in the web space since the early 90’s, launching his first B2C e-commerce play in early 1996. In 1999, he co-founded echo, a company focused on building communities around entertainment brands. He was the co-creator of the patented platform echotoolsTM, a direct to consumer delivery and data management system which ultimately grew to serve millions of users and distribute hundreds of millions of pages, data feeds, and e-commerce transactions. The company was sold in 2007 to IAC/Ticketmaster for eight figures.

Mark maintains a small list of consulting clients focused on overall strategy, business development, branding and technology initiatives, and is a frequent keynote speaker and panelist in the US and Europe for corporate functions as well as conferences on a variety of topics.

E|SPACES is a new kind of work and meeting space for today’s generation of mobile professionals. It is an open office design with many types of work spaces, from comfortable lounge chairs with tablet arms, to co-working tables, to private conference rooms. In addition to a physical environment, E|SPACES provides a professional community for entrepreneurs, consultants, designers, attorneys, accountants, and professionals in all areas to learn and network

In his role on the Member Council, Mark will help the company redefine the concept of the office by providing feedback on the offerings, service and all aspects of the E|SPACES experience. The first center located in the new Hill Center at Belle Meade is scheduled to open in July.

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Jun 1

Bo Bartholomew Joins E|SPACES Member Council

Healthcare entrepreneur Bo Bartholomew has joined the E|SPACES Member Council, according to Jim Lackey, Chair of the Council. Bo is a co-founder and CEO of PharmMD, a medication management company that works to improve patient outcomes and reduce overall costs. Prior to forming PharmMD, Bartholomew incubated a health advocacy company and a telemedicine physician access start-up company, and spent four years with HCA’s Executive Development program.

Bo serves on the Board of the Nashville Healthcare Council, where he represents the $50 billion healthcare industry, and is the Chair of Leadership Healthcare, wimagehich creates networking and leadership training for over 550 healthcare executives.

E|SPACES is an open office design with many types of work spaces, from a comfortable lounge chairs with tablet arms, to co-working tables, to private conference rooms equipped with the latest conferencing technology. E|SPACES is a new type of office designed for today’s generation of mobile, connected professionals—entrepreneurs, attorneys, accountants, consultants, designers, and professionals in all areas.

In his role on the Member Council, Bo will help the company redefine the concept of the office by providing feedback on the offerings, service and all aspects of the E|SPACES experience. The first center located in the new Hill Center at Belle Meade is scheduled to open in July.

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