Ever wonder how successful new businesses get started? Judy Mahan from the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship will share how new ventures get launched right here in our county. At the SLO HotHouse, she leads the programming to assist in the business development of the 21 current incubating companies. On the SBDC side, Judy manages the pool of 27 expert consultants who support SBDC clients. With her experience as a corporate and securities attorney, Judy also provides legal guidance to more than 200 company clients within the SLO County SBDC network.

Follow Louis Camassa, Managing Partner at EMPATH and Michael Dunn, Global Brand Consultant and Chief Cre-ative at EMPATH, as they lead you on a transformative journey to become both purpose-led and content-driven. You’ll learn how to combine deep human understanding and inspired storytelling to craft content that engages with and inspires your audience to take action. After attending this workshop and implementing the strategies shared, you’ll be on your way to crafting compelling content that magnetically attracts customers to your brand. A full recording will be available for those who register, including those who can’t attend.

Come find out how Google works, on the inside. We will be taking a deep dive into the technical infrastructure that powers Google Search, Google Docs, Android, Google Cloud, and several other billion-user services. Steve will be presenting material on an internal system called Borg, a predecessor to the Open Source Software: Kubernetes. This will show how Google Engineers get code into production efficiently, and scale it up to serve billions of customers.

Social media is absolutely crucial these days for the success of a business. It adds legitimacy and a personal connection to your customers. However, for many small business owners, it can feel like a waste of time or not worth the effort with all the other hats they wear. In this workshop Justin Nealey, Senior Marketing Specialist of Hosting at GoDaddy, will teach you proven strategies to attract your first 1,000 followers on Instagram without wasting your already limited time. Many of the strategies that will be discussed carry over to other social channels such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, too! Already over 1,000 followers? Great! This talk can get you to your next 1,000.

As the Commander of the 30th Operations Group, Vandenberg AFB, CA, Colonel Kris E. Barcomb is responsible for over 500 military, civilian and contractors supporting all aspects of spacelift operations, and missile and aeronautical testing on the Western Range. He was also the Commander of the 1st Air and Space Test Squadron and has held a range of positions across Air Force Space Command and the Intelligence Community spanning spacelift, cyberspace planning and operations, satellite systems operations, acquisition, and research and development. Col. Kris Barcomb will be discussing leadership and decision-making strategies.

Hear from Laura Swan at this month's C & C!

Learn how to plan and use Facebook Advertising to grow your business. Steve Burnside, Director of Development & Marketing for Clever Ducks, will share his expertise in online marketing and social media strategy. Steve holds an MBA in strategic management and years of marketing industry experience.

Damon Watkins, the Director of Finance & Operations for Cal Poly Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, is a motivated, personable business professional with a 15+ year track record in multiple aspects of financial control, management and policies/procedures. Learn how to set up your company and move around QuickBooks. Everyday Transactions: selling: invoices, sales receipts, payments, deposits, credit memos, and customer statements. Buying: bills, bill payments, checks, bill payment stubs, bills vs. checks, and credit memos. Inventory: purchase orders, receive items, adjust inventory. Sales Taxes: set up, adjust, pay, and report sales taxes.

Hear from Halleh Abedi at this month's C & C!

Halleh Abedi is a trailblazing entrepreneur with contagious energy and passion for design. Her expertise comes from over ten years of leadership in product and brand solutions for a diverse range of clients; from Nike, IBM, Samsung and other Fortune-100s to emerging startups. She shares compelling insights on what distinguishes UX vs. UI, the value of quality experience design and how cultivating UX culture levels-up an entire organization. Halleh is the founding Principal/Creative Director of Five Acres Agency, an active runner, ocean-lover, and mom to two strong, independent daughters.