NCET

Startup Open, a competition that recognizes startups with high-growth potential, has launched its search for the 50 most promising new startups around the world as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2011. The "GEW 50" will be announced on Oct. 15, 2011, with those companies then competing for the top honors and prizes.

"Economic growth and job creation is directly tied to young businesses with the potential to become part of tomorrow ‘s Fortune 500, so recognizing and rewarding those most promising startups on the path to success may inspire others to follow their examples," said Carl Schramm, president and chief executive officer of the Kauffman Foundation. Read full story:

Are you trying to get a loan or line of credit for your small business? Then you need to know what bankers are thinking when they consider your application. One key to success in obtaining the financing you need is to understand the “six C’s of credit.” Here’s a closer look:

1. Character: Bankers will consider your personal character, which includes both your personal and business credit history.

2. Capacity: Does your business have the ability to repay the money you are borrowing?

3. Capital: How much capital do you and your business already have?

4. Collateral: Collateral is extremely important in getting a small business loan. The bank will want to see that, in case the profits you project from the business don’t pan out, you have a “backup plan” for how they will get repaid.

5. Conditions: This refers to the loan terms, including how much you are requesting, the length of the loan and the purpose you intend to use the money for.

6. Cash Flow: Last, but not least, bankers will want to know how the loan or line of credit will affect your business’s cash flow.

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The recent articles proclaiming that 25 is the peak age for entrepreneurship deserve a considered and factual response. The demographic and racial profiling that has plagued venture capital and tech entrepreneurship has a new friend—ageism. This has to stop.

Anecdotal Evidence: It does not take but one minute to look around the world and prove any thesis of a peak tech founder age incorrect. There are countless entrepreneurs over the age of 30, including Reid Hoffman (age 35 in 2002), Evan Williams of Twitter (age 35 in 2007), Mark Pincus of Zynga (age 41 in 2007), Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post (age 54 in 2005), among many others. Read full story:

Some of the most important things in life don’t come with instruction manuals: homes, spouses, kids, and start-ups are a few. That’s why I created this start-up road map. Inspired by the lean approach often favored by today’s tech entrepreneurs, the principles apply to any industry.

1. Come up with an idea.

2. Think through all angles.

3. Get feedback.

4. Respond to feedback.

5. Build a basic product.

6. Open shop.

7. Test what you’ve created.

8. Make adjustments.

9. Get ready to grow.

10. Stomp on the start-up accelerator.

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Do scientists’ job locations have any impact on the way their work spreads? Or, in today’s highly networked world, does research flow around the globe without regard to its point of origin? According to a study co-authored by an MIT economist, location still does matter — a finding with implications for technology transfer, the process of deriving innovations from pure research.

The study shows that when scientists switch jobs — and job locations — during their careers, the move has two distinct effects on their influence. First, their papers gain citations from scholars who are their new neighbors, even as their citation frequency in papers by their former neighbors remains constant. Read full story: