MIT: Independent Activities Period: IAP

IAP 2013 Activities by Category - Management and Entrepreneurship

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3 Day Startup Entrepreneurship Program

Cassandra Cortez Cano

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/07
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions

3 Day Startup (“3DS”) is an academic program designed to teach entrepreneurial skills in an extreme hands-on environment and enable students to start companies. The 3DS program creates a living entrepreneurship laboratory on university campuses by bringing together students ranging from freshmen to freshly-minted PhDs, with diverse backgrounds, including computer science, business, engineering, law, design, communications and others.

Participants gain experience in cross-disciplinary collaboration, brainstorming and ideation, and group productivity, including ad-hoc leadership and decision-making under severe time constraints. The resulting experience is just like that of working with a budding startup company.

The 2000+ 3DS alumni from 40 events over the last three years have started over 33 technology companies that have collectively raised over $8.5 million in investment capital. The weekend is designed with two specific goals in mind: kick-start new student-run companies and build entrepreneurial capabilities in students and their university communities.

To register go to http://training.rackspace.com/iap by January 7, 2013.

Sponsor(s): Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Student Information Processing Board
Contact: Cassandra Cortez-Cano, cassandra.cano@rackspace.com


Jan/18 Fri 02:00PM-11:45PM 32-155
Jan/19 Sat 12:00AM-11:45PM 32-155
Jan/20 Sun 12:00AM-09:00PM 32-155

Cassandra Cortez Cano


32-Hour Mediation Training

Christy Anthony, Director, Student Citizenship

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/07
Limited to 20 participants
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions
Fee: $100.00 for non-students (free to current students)

Conflict Resolution @ MIT announces the dates for January/IAP 2013 mediation training.  This comprehensive training teaches participants how to conduct mediations, basic mediation skills, mediation ethics, and meets Massachusetts requirements for mediation training.  Applications are currently available at the website below and are due by January 7, 2013.  

Please note that priority is given to early applications.  The training is free to MIT students.  A $100 fee is charged for those with other connections to MIT.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEFZSnhGOG9KT1lfTHpwd002amFNWHc6MQ#gid=0

If you have any questions, please contact ConflictResolution@mit.edu

If you are interested in other conflict resolution skills workshop, please contact ConflictResolution@mit.edu.  We offer a wide range of conflict management skill workshops that are shorter than this full mediation training.

Sponsor(s): Office of Student Citizenship
Contact: Christy Anthony, W20-507, 617-253-0193, ConflicResolution@mit.edu


Mediation Training Day 1

Jan/22 Tue 12:00PM-05:00PM Location TBD

Please note that you must attend all sessions.


Mediation Training Day 2

Jan/23 Wed 09:00AM-05:00PM Location TBD

Attendance is mandatory at all sessions.


Session Title TBD

Jan/25 Fri 10:00AM-04:00PM Location TBD

Attendance is mandatory at all sessions.


Mediation Training Day 4

Jan/28 Mon 09:00AM-05:00PM Location TBD

Attendance is mandatory at all sessions


Mediation Training Day 5

Jan/29 Tue 12:00PM-05:00PM Location TBD

Attendance is mandatory at all sessions.


Alumni Talk with BC Krishna SM 94

BC Krishna SM 94, President and CEO, MineralTree, Inc.

Jan/15 Tue 07:00PM-08:00PM 32-141

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Financial Fraud

BC will share his experiences as the founder and CEO of fraud detection software company Memento. The fast-paced session will cover a broad range of topics, including, but not limited to: 

  1. Bank fraud that you have never heard about: insidious, expensive, and, never talked about.
  2. Why fraud persists, and why it is so hard to address.
  3. It’s not about the technology and algorithms, but all the real-world crap.

At Memento, BC also spent time looking into the world of Health Care fraud, and another nasty, insidious problem that does not get enough attention: Prescription Fraud. This is the systematic, significant, expensive abuse of prescription drugs like Oxycodone, Oxycontin, Fentanyl, and Suboxone. Time permitting, he will share some of his findings addressing Prescription Fraud.

The session will use case studies and examples. Attendees should expect to walk away angry, foaming at the mouth, and hopefully inspired to study the topic more and do something about it.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Basics of Obtaining a Patent

Howard Silver, MIT Libraries, Jack Turner, Technology Licensing Office

Jan/23 Wed 02:00PM-03:30PM 4-231

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/23
Limited to 50 participants

Come and hear Jack Turner, Associate Director of the MIT Technology Licensing Office and patent attorney Sam Pasternak, recently of Choate, Hall and Stewart and now at the TLO, discuss the ins and outs of obtaining patents. This popular session covers a bit of patent history and a lot about current practices, processes, and issues surrounding obtaining a patent; the focus is on the process used at MIT for ideas/inventions developed by the MIT community. A portion of the session is devoted to questions and answers. If you think you will ever invent something, you need to be here.

 

Please Register

Sponsor(s): Libraries, Technology Licensing Office
Contact: Howard Silver, 14S-134, 617 253-9319, HSILVER@MIT.EDU


Beating the Corporate System; An Engineer's Guide

John F. Carrier, Senior Lecturer, Sloan School of Management

Jan/24 Thu 07:00PM-08:00PM 66-110

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Prereq: none

Back by popular demand!

In this lively and engaging one-hour session, we will examine how a fundamental understanding of systems can help engineering, science, and humanities students overcome the tremendous hurdles they will encounter in their pursuit of a successful rewarding career in the face of large, bureaucratic companies and institutions - organizations that seem to have been set up solely to degrade their professional skills and extract all measures of job satisfaction.

We will specifically touch on the following topics:

We will wrap up with a brief discussion with a short discussion of the history of System Dynamics at MIT, with current examples of its application in the manufacturing and processing industries, based on Dr. Carrier's 10+ years in the field.

Sponsor(s): Chemical Engineering
Contact: John Carrier, JFCARRIE@MIT.EDU


Building a Prototype Without an Engineer

Cort Johnson

Jan/16 Wed 09:00AM-02:00PM E40-160,, Sign up at http://iap.eventbrite.com/

Enrollment: Register at http://iap.eventbrite.com/
Sign-up by 01/15
Limited to 30 participants
Prereq: none

Learn the 3 step process of building a technical prototype without having to write a line of code. You'll learn:

Sponsor(s): Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship
Contact: Benjamin Israelite, E40-160, (978) 621-9826, bji@mit.edu


Commercialize your science or engineering research

Howard Silver, MIT Libraries

Jan/17 Thu 12:00PM-01:00PM 14N-132

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/17
Limited to 30 participants

This session will introduce scientists and engineers to business information resources that will help you understand the commercial potential for your ideas, how to find partners, and sources for financial support.  We will use realistic examples and hands-on exercises with key resources to demonstrate how to match your ideas and discoveries with the opportunities and realities of the marketplace.

 

Please Register

Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Howard Silver, 14S-134, 617 253-9319, HSILVER@MIT.EDU


Coolnetworking 3.0: Coolhunting and Coolfarming through Swarm Creativity

Peter Gloor

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/07
Limited to 25 participants
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

This course consists of three parts, part I is the foundation for parts II and III, parts can be taken separately.

Day 1: I. How to Be an Efficient (Online) Networker

Part I is for everybody who would like to learn how they can be more efficient in their online and face-to-face networking.

Day 2: II. Coolhunting

Part II is for the power user who would like to learn how to apply Social Network Analysis to discover and predict emergent trends on the Web by mining Twitter, Blogs, Facebook, Wikipedia and the Web at large. Coolhunting means finding new trends by finding the trendsetters before anybody else, by tapping into the collective intelligence on the Web, and interpreting it through dynamic semantic social network analysis.

Day 3: III. Coolfarming

Part III builds on the basics from part II, it shows you how you can develop new trends through self-organizing teams (Coolfarming) by nurturing COINs (Collaborative Innovation Networks), and how you can better advertise your products on the Web through viral marketing using Twitter, Facebook, and Wikipedia.

This is a revised and condensed version of a distributed course, which has been taught for the last 8 years at MIT, Helsinki, Cologne, and Savannah. (http://sites.google.com/site/coincourse2012/)

http://www.ickn.org/iap.html

Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management
Contact: Peter Gloor, NE25-749, x3-7018, pgloor@mit.edu


Jan/09 Wed 03:00PM-06:00PM NE25-746, Bring your laptop

How to Be an Efficient (Online) Networker

twenty rules for networking :

You will create a "virtual mirror" of your own communication behavior, telling you how much of a "star" or a "galaxy" you are, analyzing your own Facebook and e-mail networks. 

 

Peter Gloor


Jan/10 Thu 03:00PM-06:00PM NE25-746, bring your laptop

Coolhunting

As part of the course you will get Condor-2.6.6, which allows you to analyze Web sites, Blogs, Twitter, Wikipedia, Facebook and E-Mail.

Peter Gloor


Jan/11 Fri 03:00PM-06:00PM NE25-746, bring your laptop

Coolfarming

In this part we will use Condor-2.6.6 to analyze organizational e-mail networks, and study interpersonal networks on the Web, Twitter, and Facebook.

Peter Gloor


Creating a Non-Profit Enterprise

Janet Rickershauser, Senior Lawyer, Charles L. Cooney, Robert T. Haslam (1911) Professor of Chemical Engineering, Alyssa Fitzgerald, Lawyer

Jan/31 Thu 01:00PM-03:30PM E70, 12ft Floor

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/04
Prereq: None

Not all teams achieve impact by creating a for-profit enterprise.  Organizations like Ashoka, MITx, New Profit, and The Robin Hood Foundation are organized and reach their target audiences as non-profit organizations.

The seminar will enable members of the MIT community to further their understanding of how 501(c)(3) status can help them better deploy their technologically-based projects, and is open to students, faculty, and staff who have practical questions about how to organize and operate a non-profit. 

Sue Abbott, Janet Rickershauser, and Alyssa Fitzgerald, core attorneys in the Tax-Exempt Organizations practice group at Goodwin Procter LLP, a Boston-based Am Law 50 firm, serve the legal needs of many of the Greater Boston Area’s most prominent non-profits. 

Since the inception of these free seminars in 2003, we have provided the legal tools for achieving and maintaining 501(c)(3) status to over 1400 organizations in the Boston area. 

Over the 2.5 hour seminar, we propose to cover:

 

Sponsor(s): Chemical Engineering
Contact: Jose Estabil, E70-1270, 617 253-5978, JJE@MIT.EDU


Design Thinking For Scientists

Alorah Harman, Course 1 , THE MEME design

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/10
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions
Prereq: "scientist" self-label, some experience in a wet-lab ideal.

For the scientist who wants an extra shot of creativity in their IAP!

Design thinking is a framework and a process that uses a designer's tools to analyze and characterize ill-defined problems. Using design thinking, we can supplement a linear approach to a problem (in lab for example) with a more fluid and iterative investigation alongside. 

This hands-on class is about idea generation, communication, and team dynamics specialized for scientists. Working in groups, we'll get a primer on how to think like a designer, especially with regard to mindset, group and solo brainstorming, and how to tease out and categorize qualitative insights to inform the design of quantitative experiments.

To learn by doing, we'll apply our human-centered frameworks to a high-energy 2-day exercise of envisioning the future of "the lab," sharing our end results with each other. All disciplines are welcome, but we'll have a focus on wet-lab environments (especially bio-labs).

**ROOM CHANGE** Saturday and Sunday (1/12-1/13)  1pm-4pm in 32-124. 

Now enrolling excited scientists (U/G/etc.) as space allows until Jan 10th. Contact aharman@mit.edu with interest.

Sponsor(s): Biology
Contact: Alorah Harman, AHARMAN@MIT.EDU


Session I

Jan/12 Sat 01:00PM-04:00PM 32-124

Session II

Jan/13 Sun 01:00PM-04:00PM 32-124

Entrepreneurial Strategy for Engineers

Jorge Guzman

Jan/22 Tue 09:00AM-04:00PM E51-151
Jan/23 Wed 09:00AM-04:00PM E51-151
Jan/24 Thu 09:00AM-12:00PM E51-151

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/18
Limited to 30 participants
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions

Many engineering students hope to build their own business one day, some might even already be working on it, or would do so if they just thought they could make a business out of their work. Business strategy, however, is a foreign concept for them. As they start their businesses they often only learn what strategy they can from observation, conversation, and reading online. Though it has results, this approach is quite suboptimal.

This course provides a “crash course” on entrepreneurial strategy, prepared specifically for engineering students (both graduate and undergraduate) with no previous knowledge of business. Jorge Guzman, the instructor, has been on both sides, he is a former software developer and is a current PhD student at MIT Sloan, TIES (the S stands for Strategy). He observes that strategy concepts are very different from engineering concepts, and that it is often hard for engineers to appreciate their value. In the structure for this class, he tries to bridge that gap.

This class is useful for anyone who wants to start their own business, join an early stage company, or join an established firm in which (s)he some someday hopes to create new product lines.

Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management
Contact: Jorge Guzman, jorgeg@MIT.EDU


From Innovation To Commercially Viable Products

Afarin Bellisario, Technology Licensing Officer

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Limited to 40 participants
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

The course consists of 4 independent 2 hour sessions, and will focus on the journey from an innovative concept (or proof of concept) to a commercially viable product.  Each session covers an independent part of the process.  All sessions will use real examples from real world products.  We may have other mystery guests.   Throughout the course we will discuss building of a financial model to determine the viability and test a variety of scenarios. Students are encouraged to bring their own projects to work on.  Participants are welcome in individual sessions and can sign up by sending an email to aobell@mit.edu up to 24 hours before the actual class. 

Dr. Afarin Bellisario is currently a technology licensing officer at MIT, overseeing electronics and semiconductor portfolio.  She has over three decades of experience in semiconductors, advanced materials, communications and signal processing, and holds both a doctorate in engineering and an MBA from MIT. Professionally, she has held executive positions with Intel Corp., Analog Devices, BBN (now part of Raytheon), Booz-Allan and Hamilton, Shawmut Advanced Materials, and Fonix. Prior to joining TLO, Dr. Bellisario was the founder and president of Transtrategy Inc. a consulting firm specializing in commercializing technology in advanced materials and semiconductors.  She has taught this IAP class since 2005.

Sponsor(s): Mechanical Engineering
Contact: Afarin Bellisario, ext. 8-8329, aobell@mit.edu


Session 1

Jan/10 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM 4-145

Session 1 is focused of identifying and selecting a target application/market. This session covers concept of commercial viability, and the process of identifying opportunities, the value proposition, pricing, and timing.

Afarin Bellisario - Technology Licensing Officer


Session 2

Jan/17 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM 4-145

Session 2 covers concept of markets, size, growth and eco systems.  We will cover customers, channels, supply chain, as well as market sizing, competition and the role of partnerships and start up revenue and business models.  The financial aspects of product and business are also discussed.

Afarin Bellisario - Technology Licensing Officer


Session 3

Jan/24 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM 4-145

Session 3 covers commercialization strategy and role of IP, and its protection, in commercialization.  In addition to various strategies to commercialize technology, the subjects covered include:  IP protection and formation of corporations.  A patent attorney will join us for this session.

Afarin Bellisario - Technology Licensing Officer


Session 4

Jan/31 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM 4-145

Session 4 is focussed on a variety of commercialization strategies and synthesizing a commercialization strategy for a new technology base and testing various assumptions and scenarios.  

Afarin Bellisario - Technology Licensing Officer


Having more Time per Minute - An Introduction to Time Management

David Engel

Jan/22 Tue 02:00PM-03:00PM E51-145

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/21

Time is one of the most precious assets we have and we should make sure that we are spending it wisely. Time management is a broad term that includes a wide variety of techniques and systems to improve the way you approach your tasks and goals. This course will give an introduction to some of the main ideas and some suggestions where you might be able to improve your own time management system. We’ll discuss topics such as “What time management can do for you”, “Why your inbox should not be your to do list”, “What should I do next” and “How 15 minutes could save you a lot of stress”.

Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management
Contact: David Engel, dengel@MIT.EDU


Intro to C++

Peter Vassallo

Jan/07 Mon 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-395
Jan/09 Wed 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-395
Jan/14 Mon 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151
Jan/16 Wed 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151
Jan/21 Mon 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151
Jan/23 Wed 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151
Jan/28 Mon 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151
Jan/30 Wed 04:30PM-07:00PM E51-151

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 12/28
Attendance:

The goal of the course is to provide students with no prior experience in C++ with an introduction to the basics, as well as the resources and guidance to enable them to pursue self-study on their own time after IAP. The course will provide some context as to how C++ is used in practice and what employers would expect of someone who can program in C++. It is organized by the Quant Finance Club at Sloan and examples from Finance will be used wherever possible. Tracy Licklider is an independent software projects advice & rescue consultant. He mainly consults on or directly does rescue of projects in trouble -- one of the fastest growing segments of the computer software industry.

Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management
Contact: Peter Vassallo, pav87@mit.edu


Invention to Marketplace

Joshua Schuler, Executive Director, Lemelson-MIT Program

Jan/14 Mon 03:00PM-04:30PM 10-105 (Bush Room)

Enrollment: http://lmitiap.eventbrite.com/#

The Lemelson-MIT Program welcomes back its 2005 and 2012 $30,000 Lemelson-MIT Student Prize winners, David Berry, MD-PhD, and Miles Barr, PhD

Berry is a partner at Flagship Ventures, and founder of Flagship portfolio companies: LS9, Joule Unlimited, Eleven Biotherapeutics, Seres Health, and Pronutria. Barr is president and CTO of Ubiquitous Energy - a company he founded while finishing his PhD in the Department of Chemical Engineering. Barr co-founded the company with Vladimir Bulović, PhD, Professor of Electrical Engineering in EECS. Bulović holds over 50 U.S. patents, in the area of nano-structured electronics - a majority of which have been licensed and utilized by both start-up and multinational companies, including QD Vision, and Kateeva, which he also founded with his student.

Berry, Barr, and Bulović will describe their inventions and their process of bringing them into the marketplace – including interactions with the Technology Licensing OfficeCome learn about the surprises and lessons they encountered, and hear tips on how to effectively commercialize your ideas and technologies, interact with the media, and bring your academic successes out of the laboratory and into the real world to affect change.

Discussion Moderated by: Joshua Schuler, Executive Director of the Lemelson-MIT Program.

 

 

Sponsor(s): LEMELSON-MIT PROGRAM
Contact: Shannon O'Brien, 10-110, 617 258-5798, SHANNON1@MIT.EDU


IP Fundamentals and Perspectives on the Patent Marketplace

Everardo Ruiz SM '00, Intellectual Ventures

Jan/31 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM E62-250

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Apple v. Samsung.  Microsoft and AOL.  Kodak in digital imaging?  Google, Motorola, and Nortel.  Litigation everywhere.
Inventions are now bought and sold worldwide as businesses, institutes, agencies, and inventors seek to monetize their intellectual property, frequently through the sale or litigation of patents.  This seminar will begin with an overview of technology intellectual property - the concepts of copyright, trade secret, and patents, and then review the patent marketplace from several perspectives, discussing modern patent strategy along with several patent valuation approaches including key economic and legal factors.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Josh Wachman 90, SM 96

Josh Wachman 90, SM 96, Entrepreneur

Jan/14 Mon 12:15PM-01:15PM 10-105

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Ditto, A Social Media Venture

This is an alumni talk and recruiting event.

What can machine vision see in the 300 million photos uploaded to Facebook everyday? And what if the content of every Facebook photo linked to Wikipedia, YouTube and Amazon?

Serial entrepreneurs David Rose and Josh Wachman ’90, SM ’96 have conceived, developed and sold several companies individually and through a long standing collaboration. Driven by imagination and a tenacious vision for what could be, the pair has developed products and businesses spanning healthcare (Vitality), consumer products (Ambient Devices), interactive TV (WatchPoint Media), on-line photo sharing (Opholio) and interactive media (iFactory). Come hear about their new venture in social media called Ditto.

We're looking for students and alumni with programming skills and an interest in social media, image processing and graphics. We are recruiting interns and staff.

This is a technical recruiting event and pizza will be served.

Register Today!

This free event is sponsored by the Class Connections program and the MIT Alumni Association.

 

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Making a Career Working in Start-Ups

Sid Probstein '90, CTO of Attivio, Robert Rizika '89, SM '94, President and CEO of Vidscale, and the CEO of ProfitBricks

Jan/29 Tue 02:00PM-03:00PM E51-376

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Come learn from two successful entrepreneurs what it is like to work in start-ups, and how they have managed their careers as entrepreneurs.

Sid Probstein ’90 has spent more than 20 years managing R&D organizations including Northern Light Technology and Fast Search and Transfer. He s currently the CTO of Attivio. Robert Rizika ’89 has spent nearly 25 years leading and building successful technology companies, including Blackwave (sold to Juniper Networks in 2010), Reflective Technologies, and VerdiSoft (sold to Yahoo! in 2003). He is currently the President and CEO of Vidscale, and the CEO of ProfitBricks.

Don’t miss this informative talk about what it’s really like to work at a start-up!

This free talk is sponsored by the Class Connections program and the MIT Alumni Association.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Maximizing Mentorship

Katherine Julian, Staff Associate, Shendi Xu, Staff Associate

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

 These workshops will help you learn how to maximize the power of mentoring on both an individual and organizational level.

Sponsor(s): Office of Undergrad. Advising/Academic Programming
Contact: Katherine Julian, 7-103, 617 253-9764, KJULIAN@MIT.EDU


How to Get the Mentoring You Want

Jan/22 Tue 04:00PM-05:00PM 4-149

Looking for a mentor? Want to further develop a mentoring relationship you already have? Come to this session to learn how to get the mentoring you want!

Topics that will be covered include:

-how to find a mentor

-making a good first impression

-avoiding pitfalls in the mentoring relationship

-communication and self advocacy

-building a sustainable relationship

Katherine Julian - Staff Associate


Building a Mentoring Program

Jan/23 Wed 04:00PM-05:00PM 4-149

Looking to start a mentoring program for your group or organization? Want to revamp a mentoring program you oversee? Come to this workshop that will focus on the development and administration of a mentoring prgoram.

Topics this session will include:

-creating a mission statement and goals for your program

-communication and publicity

-matching mentors and mentees

-trainings and events

-evaluation

Shendi Xu - Staff Associate


Patents & Pizza: Careers in Intellectual Property Law

Amanda Peters, Career Development Specialist

Jan/17 Thu 05:00PM-07:00PM 4-163

Enrollment: Registration required through CareerBridge

Learn from MIT alums working in patent law about careers that let you stay abreast of the newest technologies. By working in the field of intellectual property, you can make a career of patenting, protecting, licensing, and valuing the most recent technological discoveries! Topics discussed will include an overview of intellectual property rights available to inventors, a day-in-the-life of patent attorneys, and a discussion of how intellectual property rights are protected in the realms of academia and industry.

Pizza for this event will be sponsored by iRobot. Preregistration requested on CareerBridge.

Panelists:

Glen Weinstein, Senior Vice President & General Counsel at iRobot Corporation

Kristin Smith, Associate at Beyer Law Group

Alex Wissner-Gross, Founder of Enernetics, Inc. and Gemedy, Inc.

Clay Satow, Patent Counsel at Bose Corporation

Renee Fuller, Technology Specialist at Wolf Greenfield

Sponsor(s): Global Education and Career Development
Contact: Amanda Peters, 12-170, (617) 253-4733, acpeters@mit.edu


Personal Records Management 101

Kari R. Smith, Digital Archivist, Krista Ferrante, Collections Archivist

Jan/25 Fri 11:00AM-12:00PM 14N-118

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)
Limited to 24 participants
Prereq: none

Do you keep a lot of stuff at home because you're not sure if you can throw it out?  Do you have piles of paper or folders of digital files of old phone bills, insurance policies, tax returns, bank statements, credit card offers, and other similar kinds of paper or digital material?  If so, then this session is for you!  Learn how knowing what you need to keep (and for how long) allows you to get rid of all the things you don't need to keep.  That's the essence of personal records management. Free yourself from the clutter and inertia of feeling like you should keep everything (and know what you should be keeping).  Bring in a few items and we'll talk you through guidelines to help you at home!

Presenters:  Krista Ferrante, Collections Archivist; Kari R. Smith, Digital Archivist

Please register for this event.

 

Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Kari Smith, 14N-118, 617 258-5568, SMITHKR@MIT.EDU


Politics, Economics, and the Euro Area Crisis.

Athanasios Orphanides

Jan/29 Tue 10:30AM-12:00PM E51-315

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

Until its tenth anniversary and even after the start of the global financial crisis, the European economic and monetary union was a considered a success. Since 2009, however, the euro area is mired in a crisis that presently threatens the survival of the monetary union and even the European Union in its current form.   This session will briefly review the framework of the euro area and some of the weaknesses that have been playing a role in perpetuating and magnifying the crisis.  One focus will be the governance of the euro area, the absence of a representative government that can decisively tackle the crisis, and the role of political considerations at individual member states.  Another focus will be the role of the ECB and economic considerations for the euro area as a whole.  Questions serve as a backdrop:  Will the euro area survive? What are possible paths towards a resolution of the crisis?   

Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management, Economics
Contact: Athanasios Orphanides, orphanid@mit.edu


Protect your Invention & Turn it Into a Startup!

Christopher Noble

Jan/23 Wed 12:00PM-01:30PM 3-133, Please register at http://tlo.mit.edu/iapevents

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

 You've invented something really cool. Now can you protect it and create a company around it? Come and hear Christopher Noble, Technology Licensing Officer of the MIT Technology Licensing Office.  Learn How and When to file a patent (and if you need to); how your startup can spin the invention out from MIT and get that coveted “exclusive license”; how MIT’s Technology Licensing Office can help you (and what they want from you); and what your investors are looking for when they ask the question: “Tell me about your IP”. Please register at: http://tlo.mit.edu/iapevents

Sponsor(s): Technology Licensing Office
Contact: Kikuyu Daniels, NE18-501, 617 253-6966, KDANIELS@MIT.EDU


Responsible and Ethical Conduct at MIT

Deborah L. Fisher, Institute Auditor, Toni P. Robinson, Ombudsperson, Mark DiVincenzo, Deputy General Counsel, Marianna Pierce, Director, Policy, Compliance, and Labor Relations

Jan/24 Thu 10:00AM-11:00AM 32-141

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Prereq: none

MIT as an institution and a community maintains high ethical values and standards; these are embodied in the Institute’s Statement of Responsible and Ethical Conduct.

This session will review these longstanding policies, and describe ways for members of the community to obtain answers to questions or raise concerns about conduct that may not be consistent with these values and standards.

The respective roles of the Ombuds Office, the Office of the General Counsel, Human Resources, the Audit Division and the Institute’s Anonymous and Confidential Reporting System (“hotline”) will be covered in this session.

 

Sponsor(s): Audit Division, Presidents Office, MIT Human Resources
Contact: John Dvorak, NE49-3021, 617 452-3577, DVORAK@MIT.EDU


Sales Boot Camp

Kent Summers, Jim Noschese, MIT Venture Mentoring Service Volunteer Mentor

Jan/10 Thu 01:00PM-05:00PM Stata Center 32-141

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/08
Limited to 75 participants
Prereq: none

The lifeblood of any new business venture is revenue – the result of successfully selling an innovative new product or service. One of the biggest challenges facing any start-up is landing the first paying customers, and a tremendous amount of thought and energy goes into this all-important mission. Technical MIT entrepreneurs often hack into the sales black box with much trial-and-error, or spend precious time and resources on a "sales professional" with marginal results. During this session, sales experts will cover basic sales concepts, mechanics, vocabulary, and sales Do's and Don'ts at the block-and-tackle "how-to get a sale" level. Our goals are to help entrepreneurs with a technical background increase the likelihood and pace of early customer acquisition, decrease time-to-revenue, and provide a solid foundation from which founders can establish and grow a new business. The Sales Boot Camp is targeted at researchers and engineers who are the founders of early stage ventures and intended to equip you to be both sales conversant and knowledgeable, so you can make better decisions and incorporate sales-thinking into your day-to-day operations and organizational culture.

Contact: Roberta McCarthy, 10-358, x8-0720, rmccar@mit.edu


Small Business Toolkit: Financial Strategies and Online Marketing Strategies

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner, Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96, Founder, Prometheus Web Solutions

Jan/10 Thu 04:30PM-05:30PM 34-101

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Starting and growing your own business can be tremendously rewarding.  But it involves much more than just offering a product or service.   How do you manage your personal finances if you haven't received significant funding?  What do you need to know about employees and taxes?  How do you create an online presence that will drive revenue and growth?  Come learn the essentials regarding:

• Taking advantage of changing tax brackets during start-up
• Efficient use of your personal funds
• Managing payroll and taxes
• Building the optimal website for your business
• Attracting your target customers to your website
• Finding the best resources for your web design and marketing
           
The first half of this seminar will focus on small business finances and is taught by Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner.  The second half will focus on promoting your business online and is taught by Andrew Percey of Prometheus Web Solutions.  The seminar will last 60 minutes with Mark and Andrew available afterwards for additional questions.

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Small Business Toolkit: Financial Strategies and Online Marketing Strategies

Mark Porter '05, Certified Financial Planner, Andrew Percey '95, MNG '96, Founder, Prometheus Web Solutions

Jan/16 Wed 06:00PM-07:00PM 34-101

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Starting and growing your own business can be tremendously rewarding.  But it involves much more than just offering a product or service.   How do you manage your personal finances if you haven't received significant funding?  What do you need to know about employees and taxes?  How do you create an online presence that will drive revenue and growth?  Come learn the essentials regarding:

• Taking advantage of changing tax brackets during start-up
• Efficient use of your personal funds
• Managing payroll and taxes
• Building the optimal website for your business
• Attracting your target customers to your website
• Finding the best resources for your web design and marketing
           
The first half of this seminar will focus on small business finances and is taught by Mark Porter '05, certified financial planner.  The second half will focus on promoting your business online and is taught by Andrew Percey of Prometheus Web Solutions.  The seminar will last 60 minutes with Mark and Andrew available afterwards for additional questions.

 

Register today!

Sponsor(s): Alumni Association
Contact: Elena Byrne, W98-206C, 617 252-1143, EBYRNE@MIT.EDU


Startups 3.0: Seeing the System

Fady Saad, Shirish Nilekar

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)
Limited to 50 participants
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Prereq: none

Majority of startups fail because of managerial issues, and mainly because managers fail to see the organizational system. This practical and concise activity will explore the different lifecycle phases an organization goes through, and the changing needs in each phase. At the end of this activity, students will be able to see the complete startup system and the interdependency between its elements

Sponsor(s): Engineering Systems Division
Contact: Fady Saad, 617 386 9861, FADY@MIT.EDU


Jan/09 Wed 06:00PM-08:00PM E51-085
Jan/10 Thu 06:00PM-08:00PM E51-085
Jan/11 Fri 06:00PM-08:00PM E51-085
Jan/12 Sat 06:00PM-08:00PM E51-085, potential optional session

Fady Saad, Shirish Nilekar


Uncovering the Leader in YOU: Avoiding Self-Deception, Expressing Inner Courage

Partha Gosh, Global Strategist and Policy Advisor

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/09
Limited to 85 participants
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions
Prereq: Interest in leadership in any field

Leadership is a common buzzword in many fields, and a desirable trait for all employers. But what really constitutes an effective leader? How can you tap into your own potential and lead with authenticity? Don't miss this opportunity to build your leadership skills and learn about yourself through a five-day seminar taught by renewed global strategist and policy advisor and MIT alum Partha S. Gosh.

Day 1: Understanding what makes a person an effective leader: “The art of becoming”

Day 2: Listening to your inner voice: Avoiding self deception? Know thy self

Day 3: Developing a 360 degree perspective on the emerging possibilities: Sensing your passion in the universe

Day 4: Internalizing the 21 golden rules in cultivating the essentials of leadership

Day 5: Crafting your agenda in seeking self-fulfillment

Seminar web site: http://psgleadership.scripts.mit.edu/2013IAP/

RSVP by 1/9 to kjulian@mit.edu

Sponsor(s): Office of Undergrad. Advising/Academic Programming, Office of the Dean for Undergraduate Education
Contact: Katherine Julian, 7-103, 617 253-9764, KJULIAN@MIT.EDU


Jan/10 Thu 09:30AM-12:30PM E51-315
Jan/11 Fri 09:30AM-12:30PM E51-315
Jan/14 Mon 09:30AM-12:30PM E51-315
Jan/15 Tue 09:30AM-12:30PM E51-315
Jan/16 Wed 09:30AM-12:30PM E51-315

Partha Gosh - Global Strategist and Policy Advisor