"Embrace and instigate change, expect and accept intelligent failures, identify a need in the marketplace and have a passion for satisfying customers."
That was the advice of former B-W faculty member Sandra M. Stark, at a panel discussion, "Beyond the Quiet Crisis Through Growth and Innovation." It was the Oct. 4 edition of the Carl Kamm Lecture Series.
Stark headed the Entrepreneurship Center at B-W. She now heads her own consulting firm.
Other panelists were Paul Clark, president for Northern Ohio at National City Bank and chairman of the B-W Business Advisory Council; Brian Hall, president and CEO of Industrial Transport Inc. and founding president of the Presidents Council, an organization of executives of African-American businesses; and Mal Mixon, chairman and CEO of Invacare Corp.
Mixon, who said he has launched 10 businesses in the last 24 years, said entrepreneurs are risk takers and frequently contrarians, with views not flowing in the mainstream. He urged innovators to seek not just new products, but also "disruptive" ideas that transform the way products are brought to market.
Hall advised students to follow their passion.
"I love Mondays," he said, "and I'm restless on Sunday evenings because I want to get started on my work week." His company has succeeded by filling a niche in the trucking industry that no other company considered, he said.
Clark said entrepreneurs help large companies succeed, too. At National City, branch managers are entrepreneurs who innovate in the banking field, he said. For example, a manager of a newly built branch set up a card table to start business while construction was still under way; another had branch employees knock on doors and call on households in their neighborhood, explaining National City services.
Clark also praised large corporations where innovation is valued, such as Procter & Gamble, Cincinnati, which developed a new product line by having its chemical and consumer products divisions collaborate; and Sherwin-Williams Co., which developed innovative plastic paint containers.
The panelists talked about ways to make Northeast Ohio competitive nationally and globally. Mixon urged tort reform and tax code reform; Hall stressed that education - true education that prepares workers for tomorrow's jobs - is critical.
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