Innovation & Job News

What was once JCS Computer Resources is now becoming Accounting Business Solutions by JCS. What remains the same is that the company is growing its presence in Southfield.

The 18-year-old business specializes in integrating software solutions into parts of a business, such as accounting. The company also has locations in Dallas, Chicago, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Sacramento.

"Our work in the Metro Detroit area has doubled, primarily because of the economy," says Jennifer O'Brien, president of Accounting Business Solutions by JCS. "Businesses are trying to automate more processes and that's what we do."

The company's revenue is up 120 percent over the last three years. In that time it has added in excess of 50 new clients. That has allowed the company to hire two more people to its Southfield office, expanding it to seven employees.

"I think in the next 12 months we will grow another 50 percent," O'Brien says.

Source: Jennifer O'Brien, president of Accounting Business Solutions by JCS
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Vladimir Gendelman grew up in the U.S.S.R. dreaming of owning his own business. It seemed like a far-away dream for the youngster growing up in a communist country, until he immigrated to the U.S. in the early 1990s.

Gendelman worked as a website developer for a few years before he got laid off in 2002. That's when he decided to seize on his childhood dream, launching a start-up called Company Folders. The company helps make presentation folder selection easier to understand and use.

"With presentation folders there are a lot of options," Gendelman says. "People either offer you just one way or you get overwhelmed with information. I set a goal of taking that overwhelming information and turning it into something understandable."

The company now has a staff of six employees and the occasional summer intern. It hired one person (a writer) over the last year and now has three openings for jobs in social media, marketing and user experience.

That staff growth is coming on increases in revenue, which is up 50 percent since 2008. "Many of our new customers came from referrals," Gendelman says. "We also get a tremendous amount of customers who come back."

Source: Vladimir Gendelman, founder & CEO of Company Folders
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Kors Engineering is swimming against the conventional wisdom tide, working to make manufacturing a bigger part of the tech company.

The Waterford-based business specializes in systems integration and automation for manufacturers and other industrial facilities. It has spent the last year growing the manufacturing integration side of the business and setting the stage for the big revenue jump in 2013.

"We wouldn't be surprised if our number of customers doubled this year," says Tony Kaczmarek, president of Kors Engineering.

Kors Engineering now services customers in a wide range of manufacturing sectors, including metalforming, hide-processing, food packaging, chrome plating, forging and driveline systems production facilities. Today, a total of 43 plants leverage Kors' PleXML tool to integrate programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and other plant floor systems in order to automate processes and capture and share production data. More than 1,300 work centers are integrated through Kors’ PleXML tool, with 30 percent located outside of the United States.

Kors Engineering currently employs a dozen people and is looking to expand that staff soon. "We are definitely looking at hiring 1-2 people this year," Kaczmarek says.

Source: Tony Kaczmarek, president of Kors Engineering
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Lotus Bank will open its second branch in Farmington Hills later this month, a move that will help the Novi-based bank expand its staff by seven people in 2013.

"We needed more retail locations and space from a personnel standpoint," says Neal Searle, president & CEO of Lotus Bank.

The 6-year-old bank has hired three people in the last 30 days and now employs 18. Another four employees will be added to the payroll when the Farmington Hills branch opens within two weeks.

Lotus Bank is a full-service bank with $82 million in assets and $71 million in deposits. It grew by 17 percent in 2012 and expects to continue expanding its reach in Metro Detroit this year. The bank, which is 80-percent owned by Indian-Americans, has a five-year strategic plan of opening one new branch annually and its sights are set on suburbs like Troy, which has a large Indian-American population, in the near term.

"This is an opportunity to take it to the next level," Searle says.

Source: Neal Searle, president & CEO of Lotus Bank
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Red Level Networks has watched its business grow in Novi by double digits and its staff has gone up significantly because of it.

The 8-year-old IT company now employs 26 people after hiring six in the last year, including promoting one intern to a full-time employee. The company currently has three open positions in sales, help desk, and engineering.

"We have added a significant number of new clients and new business," says David King, president of Red Level Networks. "It has really stretched our ability to service that with existing staff levels."

To accomodate that growth, Red Level Networks has expanded its office space in Novi, adding another 3,000 square feet to bring its total square footage to just less than 8,000. The new space give the company room to double its staff to up to 55 new employees, which the firm hopes to do within the next 2-3 years.

"We expect 20-25 percent growth ion 2013," King says. "We are preparing for that with our latest office expansion."

Source: David King, president of Red Level Networks
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Farmington Hills-based Beringea and Credit Suisse will co-manage the newly launched Michigan Growth Capital Partners II, a venture capital fund focused on investing in promising new economy firms based in Michigan.

The $180 million fund will be deployed over the next 4-5 years, investing in companies in the following sectors: advanced materials and manufacturing, health care and life sciences, media and communications, specialized consumer goods, homeland security, IT and clean technology.

"We have always been a bit ahead on clean tech," says Charlie Rothstein, founder & senior managing director of Farmington Hills-based Beringea.

The Michigan Growth Capital Partners II fund, which was capitalized by the Michigan Strategic Fund, follows the original Michigan Growth Capital Partners fund launched in 2008. That fund made 28 investments, including some sizeable investments in a number of locally based companies, such as Livio Radio and ReCellullar. Its biggest exit has been from Accuri Cytometers, an Ann Arbor-based start-up that was recently acquired for nearly $300 million.

Source: Charlie Rothstein, founder & senior managing director of Farmington Hills-based Beringea
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

ReapSo launched its customer loyalty app last week. The start-up is initially focusing on Apple users in the downtown Royal Oak market.

The Farmington Hills-based company and its team of three people have created a mobile app that helps local businesses increase sales using things like traditional customer loyalty rewards programs, newer technology like QR codes and gamification techniques to keep customers engaged. The app also takes care to protect customer's privacy and makes it easy for merchants to use by making sign-ups free and easy.

"We get paid from our merchants when a user comes in and pays for a product," says Steve Valentine, co-founder of ReapSo. "There is no risk. There is no long-term contract for them to sign."

ReapSo has signed up 30 merchants in Royal Oak, mostly restaurants and bars in downtown. The start-up's market research shows that about 60 percent of people who frequent downtown Royal Oak use Apple products. The focus on eateries aims to leverage the frequency of spending money on food and drink in the city's center.

"I might not buy a shirt everyday, but I am eating everyday," Valentine says.

Source: Steve Valentine, co-founder of ReapSo
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Information Systems Resources bills itself as an asset management company, but the firm is looking at electronic recycling as a big avenue for its growth.

The Dearborn-based company, founded in 1989, is beefing up its recycling division, which specializes in remanufacturing of electronics like desktop computers. The 50-person firm currently has six employees, about half of whom are recent hires.

So when a school district looks to upgrade its computer system and wants to make sure it's disposing of the old technology in an environmentally friendly way and that its hard drives are erased, it will call a firm like Information Systems Resources to pick up the computers, dismantle them and recycle the precious materials inside. It also makes sure to shred the old hard drives to keep sensitive information secret.

"It's one of the few things out there that is beneficial to everyone involved," says Jeff Drolshagen, sales manager for the recycling division of Information Systems Resources.

Drolshagen was recently promoted to sales manager to help bring more material to the fledgling division. The company hopes an influx of old electronics will not only keep harmful materials out of landfills and sensitive information out of the hands of criminals, but also a few more jobs in Dearborn.

"The more electronics we can do, the more people we can hire," Drolshagen says.

Source: Jeff Drolshagen, sales manager for the recycling division of Information Systems Resources
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

There is another lending option for growing small businesses in Michigan with the launch of the Grow Michigan fund.

Grow Michigan is a $60 million fund that was capitalized by the Michigan Strategic Fund and a number of Michigan's banks, including Fifth Third Bank, PNC, Huntington, The Private Bank, Crestmark Bank, Seaway Community Bank, The Bank of Holland, The Bank of Northern Michigan, and Mercantile Bank.

"When we're done we will have about $50 million in private investment," says Russell Youngdahl, Jr., CEO of Grow Michigan, which is based in Plymouth.

Grow Michigan will provide strategic management advice and risk capital in the form of subordinated/mezzanine debt to established, Michigan-based small businesses. Grow Michigan mezzanine loans, made in conjunction with senior loans, will be in the $0.5-$3.0 million range in the form of 3-5 year subordinated debt, and carry a single digit coupon. The idea is to accelerate the growth of small businesses in the Great Lakes State by making more affordable lending options available to them.

"We want to touch as many small businesses as possible," Youngdahl Jr. says. "We want to touch as many people in the banking industry as possible.

Source: Russell Youngdahl, Jr., CEO of Grow Michigan
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Lisette Poletes remembers her mother, Hortensia Albertini, working at their kitchen table to build a business. That was in the 1980s and little did they know the single mom would create a multi-million-dollar company called Global LT.

"It's something I saw my entire life growing up," Poletes says.

Poletes came on board in 2009 and started running the day-to-day operations. She has now bought the entire company, giving her mother the opportunity to retire and keep the business in the family and growing.

Global LT specializes in language services, cultural training, expatriate destination services, and workforce training courses for international locales. If it has something to do with facilitating international business, the Troy-based business probably offers a solution for it.

The company has gone from generating $9 million in revenues in 2009 to $20 million in revenues today. It employs more than 100 staff and three interns after hiring 19 people in the last year. It currently has six openings. The company also has about 1,500 to 2,000 independent contractors abroad at any given time.

"I give credit to the team," Poletes says. "They are why we doubled the size of the company."

She expects to keep growing the company for the foreseeable future and to expand more into government work. Language training will remain a mainstay in the company's bottom line. Poletes also expect to keep hiring to meet the work demand.

"A lot of times we promote from within," Poletes says. "We hire a lot of interns."

Source: Lisette Poletes, CEO & owner of Global LT
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

RAVE Computer, formerly Rave Computer Association, has been growing its clientele through adding more business with Michigan-based firms. It's a plan that has allowed the Sterling Heights-based company to hire five people over the last year.

"The growth has been in our presence in Michigan," says Rick Darter, president & CEO of RAVE Computer. "It's been phenomenal."

RAVE Computer works in modeling, simulation and visualization work. It is the anchor tenant of the Macomb-OU INCubator, allowing it to focus on growing its business with firms based not only in the Great Lakes state but in the defense industry. A few years ago, about 3 percent of the company's customer base came from Michigan. Now it's well into the double digits.

The firm now employs 40 people and one intern. Its new hires work in areas that focus on government contracting expertise, product development and marketing. Darter expects to keep hiring in 2013.

"We will continue to hire a strong presence in the defense industry," Darter says. "I see a large portion of our growth being in the commercial sector right here in Michigan."

RAVE Computer is also serving as a mentor advocate for the Women In Defense Michigan chapter's GRID Mentorship program this year. The program assists Women In Defense Michigan members looking become more active in the defense and national security industries to help grow the military business sector in the Great Lakes State.

Source: Rick Darter, president & CEO of RAVE Computer
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

ArtServe Michigan, an arts-and-culture advocacy organization based in Wixom, recently released a new report detailing the economic impact arts and culture and the creative class have on Michigan.

The idea behind the Creative State Michigan report is to dispel the myth that spending on arts and culture initiatives is easily expendable, especially in hard economic times.

"This year's report dispels that argument," says Jennifer Goulet, president & CEO of ArtServe Michigan. "It shows hard data that makes it clear that arts and culture are things we should include in our economic tool kit. These are essential ingredients that make a community vibrant and a place people want to be."

The Creative State Michigan report shows that there were more than $553 million in expenditures alone in the Michigan economy in 2010. Nearly $194 million supported salaries for 22,335 jobs and $13.9 million in the employer portion of the payroll tax were also generated. From 2006 to 2011, there was a 15 percent increase in the number of arts-related jobs, and 65 percent increase in arts-related businesses.

"This is definitely a growth sector opportunity for the state," Goulet says.

To read the report, click here.

Source: Jennifer Goulet, president & CEO of ArtServe Michigan
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Avalon Technologies launched in 2002, but the IT firm has really seen its growth take off in recent years.

The Bloomfield Hills-based company has enjoyed either high-double-digit revenue growth or triple-digit revenue growth since 2006. That has allowed the firm to hire five people over the last year, doubling its staff to 10 employees. It's also looking to continue hiring and to bring on some interns to help accommodate its growth.

"We predict we will do another 100 percent in new business this year," says Brian Flynn, founder & president of Avalon Technologies.

Avalon Technologies' bread and butter is helping medium-to-large-sized business manage their data center demands. It has done work with the Detroit Pistons, Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Browns, University of Michigan and Genessee County, among others. Flynn expects the growth to continue through word-of-mouth referrals as his firm's work continues to speak for itself.

"The name Avalon is getting out there more and more," Flynn says. "People are looking for us."

Source: Brian Flynn, founder & president of Avalon Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Rigaku Innovative Technologies, a subsidiary of Rigaku, plans to expand its presence in Auburn Hills. The high-tech manufacturer plans to invest $55.7 million in its Auburn Hills operations and create 27 jobs.

"We have already started the expansion," says Jim Rodriguez, vice president of business development for Rigaku Innovative Technologies.

Rigaku Innovative Technologies manufactures high-tech optical products. It plans to expand into new markets, including the semiconductor industry, and grow its capabilities for research-and-development and production operations in Auburn Hills.

The company has already hired three people in recent months, bringing its Auburn Hills staff to 46 employees and some summer interns. Rodriguez expects the company to hire a few more later this year.

Rigaku Innovative Technologies won a $2 million Michigan Business Development Program performance-based grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. It also received a 12-year property tax abatement valued at $241,146 from the city of Auburn Hills.

"This is our home," Rodriguez says. "We are happy to be here."

Source: Jim Rodriguez, vice president of business development for Rigaku Innovative Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Michigan is showing strong signs of becoming the national leader when it comes to social entrepreneurship. The latest of those signs is the Pure Michigan Social Entrepreneurship Challenge, a business competition featuring $50,000 in prizes.

"This is the first time in the country a statewide social entrepreneurship challenge has been held," says Elizabeth Garlow, director of Michigan Corps, which is organizing the competition with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest. "We're really excited to see what happens."

The Pure Michigan Social Entrepreneurship Challenge will offer cash prizes, access to investors, and consideration for special program opportunities. Participants can also access potential mentors, network, and discover resources tailored to social entrepreneurs. The bottom line is to help advance ideas, ventures, and solutions to address pressing social challenges in the Great Lakes State.

To enter, complete an application at GLEQ.org before the March 27 deadline. A special Social Entrepreneurship Showcase and Pitch event will take place on June 18 at GLEQ's Entrepreneur Connect event in Lansing. For information, click here.

Source: Elizabeth Garlow, director of Michigan Corps
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.