STARTING YOUR OWN IT COMPANY

1. STARTING YOUR OWN IT COMPANY Sarah Anderson Matt Selter Erin Wilke Jermaine Williford

2. Agenda • The Entrepreneur Test • Characteristics of Entrepreneurs • Case Study: STLToday.com • Case Study: Quilogy • Case Study: Amazon.com • Case Study: Dell • Conclusion

3. Do YOU Have What It Takes? THE ENTREPRENEUR TEST http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

4. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 1. Are you a self-starter? • If someone gets me started, I keep going alright. • Easy does it. I don’t put myself out until I have to. • I do things my own way. Nobody needs to tell me to get going. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

5. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 2. How do you feel about other people? • Most people bug me. • I have enough friends and I don't need anybody else. • I like people. I can get along with just about anybody. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

6. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 3. Can you lead others? • I usually let someone else get things moving. • I can get people to do things if I drive them. • I can get most people to go along with me without much difficulty. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

7. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 4. Can you take responsibility? • There’s always some eager beaver around waiting to show off. I say, let him. • I’ll take over if I have to, but I’d rather let someone else be responsible. • I like to take charge and see things through. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

8. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 5. How good of an organizer are you? • I just take things as they come. • I do alright unless things get too complicated. Then I may cop out. • I like to have a plan before I start. I’m usually the one who lines things up. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

9. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 6. How good of a worker are you? • I can’t see that hard work gets you anywhere. • I’ll work hard for a while, but when I’ve had enough, that’s it. • I can keep going as long as necessary. I don’t mind working hard. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

10. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 7. Can you make decisions? • I don’t like to be the one who decides things, I’ll probably blow it. • I can if I have plenty of time. If I have to make up my mind fast, I usually regret it. • I can make up my mind in a hurry if necessary, and my decision is usually O.K. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

11. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 8. Can people trust what you say? • Why sweat it if the other guy doesn’t know the difference? • I try to be on the level, but sometimes I just say what’s easiest. • They sure can. I don’t say things I don’t mean. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

12. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 9. Can you stick with it? • If a job doesn’t go right, I turn off. Why beat my brains out? • I usually finish what I start. • If I make up my mind to do something, I don’t let anything stop me. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

13. Do YOU Have What It Takes? 10. Can you keep records? • Records are not important. I know what needs to be known without keeping records. • I can, but it’s more important to get the work out than to shuffle numbers. • Since they are needed, I’ll keep records even though I don’t want to. http://www.bizmove.com/other/quiz.htm

14. WHAT IS AN ENTREPRENEUR? • “An entrepreneur is someone who perceives an opportunity and creates an organization to pursue it.” • “The entrepreneurial process involves all the functions, activities, and actions associated with perceiving opportunities and creating organizations to pursue them.” Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page2.

15. Personal Factors Achievement Locus of control Risk Taking Education Experience Job dissatisfaction Job loss Age Commitment Vision WHAT IS AN ENTREPRENEUR? Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page3.

16. WHAT IS AN ENTREPRENEUR? • Environmental Factors • Opportunities • Role Models • Creativity • Competition • Resources • Investors • Government Policy Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page3.

17. WHAT IS AN ENTREPRENEUR? • Sociological Factors • Networks • Teams • Parents • Family Responsibilities • Role Models Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page3.

18. “The 10 D’s” • Dream – A vision of the future • Decisiveness – No procrastination, quick decisions • Doers – Speedy implementation of idea • Determination – Commitment, stick-to-it • Dedication – Tireless efforts Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page6.

19. “The 10 D’s” • Devotion – Love what they do • Details – Stay on top of it • Destiny – Make things happen for themselves • Dollars – Money measures success • Distribute – Delegate critical tasks Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page6.

20. IS THAT ENOUGH? Only about 50% of small businesses are still trading after their first three years from initial set up. http://www.bizhelp24.com/small_business/business_failure_introduction_1.shtml

21. Reasons for Failure • Lack of Funds • Financial Control Issues • Development Problems • Lack of Skills • Marketing Issues • Sales Problems • Etc. www.bizhelp24.com/small_business/business-failure-print.htm

22. “The 9 F’s” for Success • Founders – good entrepreneur • Focused - specialize • Fast – make quick decisions and implement them ASAP • Flexible – open-minded response to change Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page25.

23. “The 9 F’s” for Success • Forever-innovating • Flat – few management levels • Frugal – keep costs down • Friendly – to workers, customers, and suppliers • Fun! Bygrave, William D., and Andrew Zacharakis, eds. The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, 3rd Edition. Hoboken:John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2004. Page25.

24. NAME THAT FOUNDER!

25. NAME THAT FOUNDER! Randy Schilling – Quilogy Fred and Marilynn Wilke – Sports Stats for STLtoday.com Jeff Bezos – Amazon.com Michael Dell – Dell

26. Fred & Marilynn WilkeSports Stats

27. Fred & Marilynn WilkeSports Stats • Both born in St. Louis, MO • Had been married for 8 years • First child one-year old • Fred was in the military & worked full-time teaching at Florissant Valley CC • Marilynn was a homemaker • Bought a house, computer, and got out of the military all in the same day

28. Fred Collaborative Manager Workaholic Hard Worker Life-Long Learner Competitive Analytical Marilynn Trusts her gut feelings Visionary Creative – “Thinks outside the box” Loves to read Persistent Outgoing Personality Characteristics

29. Sports Stats • Began the company in 1977 in their basement • Cost of a new computer? • Fred wrote the programs & Marilynn supported the company logistically • Everything was saved on a floppy disk • Had 14 Part-time & 1 full-time employee • Several people tried to implement this idea

30. Sports Stats http://prepsports3.stltoday.com/photo/top.htm • Previously, the only statistics available were for football • Changed to give play-by-plays & achievements of several different sports • Sold the statistics to the local newspapers • Paid through advertisements & a small amount from newspapers

31. Sports Stats • Relied on coaches to call and report game highlights at no charge • In exchange, coaches would receive a weekly scorebook for local schools • Statistical information used only in professional sports – not in colleges yet • Extremely popular immediately A Happy Shamrock team poses with their 1A Championship trophy.                                       Fred Wilke Photo

32. Challenges • Convincing coaches to call-in stats • Strict 11 p.m. deadlines with the local newspapers • No cell phones! • Making a profit • Getting advertisements • Working with attorneys

33. Selling the Company • 1981 sold the company to the Post-Dispatch for $225,000 – now worth millions • Didn’t have the specific databases & name recognition as the Post • Promised Fred a part-time job • Incorporated into Stltoday.com in 1992 • Coaches still call in stats • Today they report on 40 different sports

34. Pulitzer Stock vs. Gannett

35. Success of • St. Louis’ #1 Viewed Website • Reaches 35% of online adults per month¹ • Average monthly page views 23.1 Million for 2003¹ • Prep Sports website averaged 60,000 total visitors in 2003² • Prep Sports website averaged 1.5 Million page views in 2003² ¹ Pulitizer.comhttp://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/NYS/PTZ/presentations/ptz_06212004a/sld001.htm, viewed Nov. 6, 2004 ² Sports Stats, Fred Wilke, Nov. 6, 2004

36. Sports Stats Total Page Views¹ ¹Sports Stats, Fred Wilke, Nov. 6, 2004

37. Randy SchillingCEO Quilogy

38. Randy Schilling • St. Charles High School in 1981 • University of MO-Columbia BSEE 1985 • He was a typical ‘B’ student • Worked at Illinois Power 1985-1990 Electrical Engineer • University of IL-Springfield MBA 1989 • Worked at Grant Thornton Consultant 1990-1992 • Began Solutech, Inc. in August 1992

39. Randy’s Personality Characteristics • Great programmer • Mixture of left & right brained • Strong blend of technical & creative traits • Competitive • Persistent • Analytical • Life-long learner

40. Quilogy Timeline

41. Clients include: • Chicago Brookfield Zoo • Seattle’s Children's Hospital • U.S. Air Force, Air Mobility Command • Nebraska Public Schools • St. Charles City-County Library District • Mario Olives

42. Quilogy Focus • Full Service e-Business Professional Services * eStrategy * Creative * Technology * Hosting * Technical Training • Secondary Markets • Vendor Certified

43. Quilogy Focus • Main focus on Healthcare, Manufacturing and the Public Sector • Quilogy has 14 offices for the nationwide delivery of IT services. • 50-100 employees per office

44. Randy’s Quote “Don’t be Afraid to be Crappy, But Don’t Stay Crappy”

45. Quilogy’s Goals • #1 goal is to become a $100 Million Company • He wants to increase the number of offices & employees to eventually 30 offices & 1000 employees • Demand a higher cost for a unique product • Increased service • He’s never afraid to change his business model or strategies

46. Jeff Bezos Amazon.com

47. Intro • Jeff Bezos is the mind behind Amazon.com • World’s largest “e-tailer” • Why Amazon.com? • Simple idea • Selling books online • Very IT dependent • Would not be possible without the current advances in technology

48. Why the Name Amazon? • The Amazon is one of the world’s largest regions • Bezos wants to offer the “Earth’s Biggest Selection” of products (Fastcompany.com, Deutshcman, 2004)

49. Bio • The son of Miguel Bezos, an Exxon Corp. Executive • At 14 dreamed of becoming an astronaut or physicist • Studied electrical engineering and computer science at Princeton • Graduated 1986 • Summa Cum Laude (Business & Company Resource Center 2004)

50. Bio • Worked for FITEL • High-tech start-up company • Worked for Bankers Trust Company • Became company’s youngest VP in 1990 • Worked for D.E. Shaw & Co. 1990-1994 • Became their youngest Senior VP in 1992 • Left very successful career on Wall Street (Business & Company Resource Center 2004)