UM-Flint launches new programs to help entrepreneurs and family businesses

The School of Management (SOM) at the University of Michigan-Flint will soon offer unique services to two important segments of the state's business community: family-owned businesses and entrepreneurs. The new programs were unveiled at a special "Opening Ceremony" held recently the lobby of the William S. White Building.
While there is a wide array of services and learning opportunities available for business, very little is aimed at the important family-owned segment. To fill the service and information gap, SOM will open a new center.

The Michigan Family Business Center will offer a variety of programs, seminars and resources all aimed at family businesses," said director Francine Cullari. "About 40 percent of the Fortune 500 companies are family businesses."
The Center has joined five local chambers of commerce to network and help identify their members that are family-owned businesses.

The Family Business Center has an annual membership fee of $400 a year; however, the first two seminars are complimentary to family-business owners.

The Michigan Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (MCEL) will offer a nine month course aimed at business owners and organizational decision makers. Topics may include B2B online marketing and other marketing issues. Other topics may include succession planning, address accounting/finance, human resource management, and legal and strategic management issues.

As part of the program each participant will be paired with a mentor as well as with an MBA student intern. This team will work together to create a strategic action plan with the focus being to grow the participant's business or to make the participant's organization more effective. The tuition for the MCEL leadership program is $6200. Applications for the inaugural course to commence January 2009 are being accepted now. The deadline for applications is December 15, 2008. For information concerning the MCEL or the application process, contact the Director of the Michigan Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership, Dale B. Tuttle @ 734.474.0550.