RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK — Launching more successful businesses based on intellectual capital developed in the Triangle continues to be a major goal at the Council for Entrepreneurial Development, and the CED hopes a new program kicks-starts a few new ones.

“Essential Know-How and Networks” is the theme for a new day-long conference the CED will launch on Oct. 30. The Fuqua School at Duke University will be the host.

“We need to increase the success matrix of RTP technology,” says Grace Ueng, a veteran entrepreneur herself, who will co-chair the event. “This conference will help pre-stage companies to take off.
“Given what the overall mission of CED is, our mission in this conference is ti help continue feeding the pipeline for future success stories. If we don’t help people thinking about starting companies, we’re not feeding that pipeline.”

Ueng, who recently launched Savvy, says she discovered right away the need for such an event.

“I have a couple of CEOs who were not familiar with the CED,” she says. “Many people don’t know the resources that are available, such as the CED. It can be so daunting to start a business, especially for people involved in academia who have great ideas or knowledge but have not run a business. We want to help them take their ideas to the next level.”

To help draw entrepreneurs or hopeful entrepreneurs who already have other jobs, the conference is set for a Saturday.

“We have been getting a lot of requests from technical and non-technical people to have this kind of conference,” says Robert Albright, who handles media relations for the CED. “This seems like a good time to have the conference because entrepreneurship is picking up.

“We want to touch those people out there who are considering launching a business. We want to let them know that there are many resources they can use.”

Specifics of the program are being hammered out. Ueng, who recently started her own business, Savvy Marketing, after working with RTP firms TogetherSoft, SmartPath and OpenSite, will co-char the event along with Douglass Riddle of Wachoiva. Serving on the steering committee are: Steve Clark, CEO of SpectraSite; Giles Shih of BioSource International; Robbie Hardy of Tryon Capital; Jason Caplain of Southern Capitol Ventures; Jane Foreman of StrikeIron; Jeff Reid of UNC’s Kenan-Flagler business school; Farad Ali of the North Carolina Institute of Minority Economic Development; and entrepreneur Rich West.

The CED says the program will include panel discussions and interactive sessions focused on business trends, sales and marketing techniques and strategies on team building.

The CED has offered a Conference on Entrepreneurship program in the past, but this program is not designed to focus on information technology or venture capital, Albright says.

CED: www.cednc.org