This one-and-a-half-day course is designed to assist food and beverage entrepreneurs in planning a food or dairy start-up. The objective is to provide a comprehensive look at the business decisions needed to start a company and launch a local, regional or national brand. The course will include entrepreneurial self-assessments, legal information, lean business planning assistance, pointers on developing a “value proposition” and identifying available resources. Instructors will include CDR Technology Commercialization Manager, Vic Grassman, Tera Johnson from the Food Finance Institute, Jeffrey Glazer from the UW-Madison, Law & Entrepreneur Clinic and Nhi Le from Gener8tor.

Learn more and register online.

The OnRamp Insurance Conference brings together the insurance industry’s leading corporations, investors and startups. The conference highlights innovations disrupting the insurance industry, the leaders making such innovations possible and how new technologies and business models will reinvent the industry.

The “Conference Track” includes keynotes, panel discussions, fireside chats, and product demos. The “Startup Track” features curated, one-on-one pitch sessions between selected startups and corporate venture capital and innovation executives from participating insurance companies to discuss potential customer relationships, strategic partnership, and if appropriate, investment opportunities.

Learn more.

WEDA’s biggest education and networking event of the year is the Governor’s Conference on Economic Development. This three-day conference includes educational sessions covering the most important economic development topics and issues of the time, exhibits, receptions and other networking opportunities. The conference is a great opportunity to meet other economic development professionals who work to shape Wisconsin’s economic future within their community, and provides continuing education credits for EDFP and CEcD certifications.

Learn more.

Join Sustain Dane’s 2017 cohort of MPower Champions to get a first-hand look at their individual and collective successes!

• Attic Angel Place
• HotelRED
• J.H. Findorff & Son Inc.
• National Guardian Life Insurance Co.
• Planet Bike
• SVA
• UW Credit Union
• YMCA of Dane County

Learn from this year’s Champions about how MPower, a proven model of sustainability success, continues to help businesses and schools move toward a more sustainable future, making the Madison Region a national model for sustainability and sustainability innovation.

Doors open at 7:00 and program starts at 7:30 AM. This event is free and open to the public. RSVP online.

The 15th annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest is accepting entries online for the 2018 competition until 5 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018.

The contest is designed to encourage entrepreneurs in the startup stage of tech-based businesses in Wisconsin. The contest links up-and-coming entrepreneurs with a statewide network of community resources, expert advice and mentoring, management talent and possible sources of capital.

Over time, the contest has led to valuable public and media exposure for the top business plans and spurred economic growth in Wisconsin. Finalists will share in more than $100,000 in cash and in-kind prizes.

For their initial entries, contestants will submit a 250-word (about 2,000 characters) idea abstract online at www.govsbizplancontest.com. That’s where contestants will also find business plan templates and other information, such as the Entrepreneurs’ Toolkit. The toolkit provides business startup information and assistance, networking contacts and technical resources.

Contestants who advance to subsequent contest rounds will expand their plan in stages. More than 70 judges drawn from the finance, sales, marketing, research and technology sectors across Wisconsin will score the entries and provide feedback on submissions.

To enter, become a judge or learn about sponsorship opportunities, visit www.govsbizplancontest.com.