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Author, venture capitalist buys home in startup village where first Google Fiber network installed
There's a new home available rent-free to up to five entrepreneurs in Kansas City's 'fiberhood,' purchased by author, venture capitalist and entrepreneur supporter Brad Feld.
Mr. Feld, co-founder of the Foundry Group, has bought a three-bedroom home in the Kansas City Startup Village in Kansas City, Kan., according to this release, where the first Google Fiber network has been installed, offering 1-gigabit Internet – 100 times faster than the average broadband connection.
Mr. Feld is making it available rent-free for up to a year to five entrepreneurs, whose innovative startups can best make use of the speed and power of the Google Fiber network. They will be chosen through a contest co-sponsored with The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; the application deadline is March 22.
The house announcement is the latest activity around the startup village, a grassroots initiative that has created a concentrated area for startups; more than a dozen tech new businesses have already set up shop. It wil also be neighbours with another house known as "Hacker Home" that was purchased by software developer Ben Barreth, also giving rent-free accommodation to entrepreneurs for up to three months to develop their businesses.
Though he will not become a resident of the home, Mr. Feld, the author of Startup Communities, will lend his guidance to its inhabitants.
For further reading, check out articles including this one, this one, this one and this one.
Bear attack, frozen keys, bad breathalyzer: The most outrageous excuses for being late to work
One angry wife froze an employee's truck keys in a glass of water in the freezer. Another's car was attacked by a bear (with photographic evidence). And another drove to a former employer by mistake.
These are among the most outrageous excuses for arriving late to work compiled by jobsite Careerbuilder.com, based on a survey of 2,600 hiring managers and 3,900 workers in the United States.
If those aren't outlandish enough for you, how about the employee who got a late start because she had to put a raincoat on a cement duck in her front yard for an expected rainshower later in the day? Or the employee who dropped her purse into a coin-operated newspaper box, and couldn't get it back without change, which, of course, was in the purse. And then there was the employee whose car wouldn't start because the breathalyzer showed intoxication (guess that wasn't a first).
Traffic jams may not be so inventive but are among the more popular excuses, according to Careerbuilder, along with lack of sleep, a need to drop the kids off at daycare or school, public transit delays and bad weather.
It also found that 26 per cent of workers admit to being late at least once a month, and 16 per cent are tardy once a week or more.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Oxford Beach licenses St. Party's Day brand
Toronto-based events company Oxford Beach was the focus of a Challenge last May on how to expand its "St. Party's Day" event, a massive shindig held on St. Patrick's Day. It's made its move, according to this posting from owner Billy Hennessey: It's licenced the name to Budweiser, part of Labatt Breweries, in turn part of Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Budweiser St. Party's Day aims to hold more than 100 events, attracting 100,000 attendees across the country, according to the posting. Mr. Hennessey explains why he chose licensing over corporate ownership.
KEY EVENTS AND DATES
East Coast Startup Week
The first East Coast Startup Week will be held in Fredericton from March 20 to March 24, aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship in Atlantic Canada. For more information, click here.
Extreme Startups applications
Tech accelerator Extreme Startups has opened applications for its third cohort. Participants receive mentoring, connections and up to $200,000 in funding. For more information, click here.
What's Next Boomer Business Summit
As more boomers turn to entrepreneurship and more entrepreneurial opportunities abound to cater to aging boomers, the What's Next Boomer Business Summit focuses on the "boomer and beyond marketplace." For those in or interested in getting into the market, the event takes place March 12 in Chicago. For further details, click here.
EDITOR'S PICKS FROM REPORT ON SMALL BUSINESS
Young firm worries about cultural fit with older hire
This week's Challenge: Powered by Search needs a business development manager but is concerned about finding the right combination of experience and fit at a company where the median age of employees is 25.
FROM THE ROSB ARCHIVES
How to successfully teach young and older workers new tricks
Training across generations is a matter of picking the right approach, and recognizing how changing demographics will affect your workplace, recounted this story, published in June, 2012.
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