July 16, 2009

The July 16 membership meeting featured a presentation on agile software development practices.  A panel of subject area experts from the Capital Area IT Council explained how the whole agile movement came about, how agile compares to other software development methodologies, what's actually involved in implementing an agile approach, and much, much more.

May 21, 2009

The May 21 membership meeting featured a presentation about the new film training project recently launched by Lansing Community College, Michigan State University and Capital Area Michigan Works!--including an overview of this comprehensive training program, discussion about its impact on our regional workforce and economy, a movie type trailer showcasing the connection between IT and the film industry, and a demonstration of a proprietary set-top box that's designed to protect digital assets by streamlining the secure delivery of dailies. 

March 19, 2009

The March 19 membership meeting featured an interview with Sean Heiney of Barracuda Networks.  Where the careers of many IT innovators and entrepreneurs are typically marked by many highs and lows, Sean's impressive resume contains one high after the other.  Having started his first endeavor while still in high school (a community ISP which he eventually sold to Earthlink), to a software start-up that ended up becoming a multi-million dollar product sold to AOL, to founding, building up and selling off Periscan, to eventually joining  Barracuda

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January 23, 2009

The January 23 membership meeting featured a return visit from Matt Roush, Editor of the Great Lakes IT Report, an e-publication of WWJ Newsradio 950, Detroit.  As the technology reporter for WWJ Newsradio, Matt travels all over the state covering Michigan's IT companies and their good news stories-delivering a unique, first-hand perspective that only he, and the GLITR publication can provide.

The City of East Lansing hosted the January meeting at its new Technology Innovation Center which features 7,000 square feet of newly renovated, loft-style office space overlooking downtown East Lansing's Grand River Avenue and the Michigan State University campus.  The Technology Innovation Center will act as a business accelerator for technology start-ups and its surrounding 18,000 square feet of anchor space will be used for business expansions and Michigan State University spin-offs.

November 14, 2008

The November 14 membership meeting featured a presentation about services/resources available through DC3 (Defense Contract Coordination Center) and PTAC (Procurement Technical Assistance Center) Lansing Regional Chamber.  Major General Lott discussed the military defense related contract opportunities for manufacturers and IT businesses.  General Lott heads the Defense Contract Coordination Center (DC3), a state initiative which seeks to match the capabilities of Michigan entrepreneurs, companies and researchers with defense industry purchasers and suppliers.  In addition, Judy Kruger - Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) counselor for Lansing provided an overview of the procurement system from state, local and federal sources.  Last year alone the PTACs of Michigan helped Michigan companies win over $300 million in contracts;  this year PTACs are on target to double last year's Michigan contracts.

October 3, 2008

The October 3 membership meeting was held out on campus to coincide with the 40th anniversary celebration for Computer Science and Engineering at Michigan State University in a show of our appreciation for the contributions that MSU/CSE has made (and continues to make) to our local IT industry.  Featured speakers included Ken Theis (CIO for the State of Michigan) and Louise Hemond-Wilson (Executive IT Architecture Consultant for the IBM Corporation--and notable CSE alum) who spoke about diversity in the workplace.

July 17, 2008

The July 17 membership meeting featured a presentation by Jeff Beamsley, President and founder of Hilgraeve Inc.  His Michigan company has a product that has shipped with every version of Windows for over 10 years, HyperTerminal. Jeff recently sold his privately held company (to a big Michigan IT company, no less) and his story about building software products, negotiating with Microsoft, and selling to a big company offers numerous business and life lessons for both prospective and experienced entrepreneurs.

May 22, 2008

The May 22 membership meeting featured a presentation by Brendan Newell, Partner Technology Specialist with the Microsoft Corporation who provided an overview of the new Microsoft Server 2008 and its virtualization capabilities—and how IT employers will be able to leverage this technology to make their businesses and workforce even more agile.

March 27, 2008

The March 27 membership meeting featured a presentation by Kirk Riley, Executive Director of ITEC Lansing--an extraordinary new partnership between the City of Lansing, Michigan State University, the Prima Civitas Foundation and several of our region's leading technology companies.  The ITEC Lansing project will have a profound impact on the technological literacy of Lansing youth and their families and enhance our ability to create the workforce of the future.  Kirk discussed how the former Holmes Street school is being transformed into a technology resource for the community and how the local IT industry will be able to leverage the technology and programs that will be housed in the center.

January 17, 2008

The January 17 membership meeting featured a presentation by Matt Roush, Editor of the Great Lakes IT report.  As the technology beat writer for WWJ Newsradio Matt has continued to populate the mainstream media with the “good news” technology stories that the leaders and citizens of our state need to hear.  At the January meeting, the IT Council also released the findings (raw data) from its “Employer Workforce Development” survey, adopted its bylaws and elected its first Operating Board.