‘Engineering to Entrepreneur’ to survey business climate

HUNTSVILLE – Huntsville and Madison have seen many tech-savvy individuals successfully start new businesses. What are the best steps to establish and maintain a new company?

The “Engineering to Entrepreneur” workshop on Feb. 26 will look for answers. U.S. Space & Rocket Center will host the event from 8 a.m. to noon in the education building.

“This half-day seminar is designed to layout a clear analytical path for engineers who want to start their own entrepreneurial effort,” public relations coordinator Vicki Morris said. Morris is President of Face To Face Marketing LLC and Program Director for R.I.S.E.

“Engineer to Entrepreneur is geared toward engineers and those in engineering roles in the general vicinity of Huntsville, who have started a business within the last year or who have an interest in starting a business,” Morris said.

“The Engineer to Entrepreneur seminar takes participants step by step through the process of starting a business, while still speaking the language of engineers through analytics, processes and formulas,” Morris said. “Participants will leave the workshop with clearer expectations of starting a business and how an entrepreneurship journey differs from engineering.”

Key concepts will include intellectual property and financial advantages/pitfalls of business ownership. Attendees will leave with a well-formulated statement of their target market, Morris said.

Thom Rigsby, who has collaborated with many U.S. business owners, is event organizer and program host. Rigsby describes Huntsville and Madison as unique communities. “With such a high concentration of engineers, we have some pretty amazing innovation that originates here,” he said.

Success as an engineer, compared to success in entrepreneurship, requires a mindset that varies almost 180 degrees, Rigsby said.

This year, the Engineer to Entrepreneur seminar will be new to the “Innovate Huntsville 2019” lineup. Innovate Huntsville is a week of collaboration and celebration of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in North Alabama. The activities will include panels and social activities with the region’s brightest investors, strategic advisors and community supporters.

To register, visit eventbrite.com. In the “Looking for” box, type “Engineer to Entrepreneur” and continue completing the form. Tickets range from $27 to $197.

For more details, visit innovatehsv.com or email Vicki@FaceToFace-Marketing.com.