In these challenging economic times it is good to remember what has made this country great – good people with a clear vision and inner drive to make life better for others and in doing so made life better for their families and their communities. Camp BizSmart wants to salute just such a company – WAGIC - an industrial design firm that has created problem solving products of their own design as well as improved the designs and go to market strategies of products for many firms.

Some of the WAGIC Team who come to Camp BizSmart

Working with Camp BizSmart student teams over the past two years, WAGIC designers have sat with students to bring their product solutions to life to address the business challenges provided by Hara, FRS, Valence Energy, HopeLab, Club One, iBuild2, Tigo and Sopogy. Students have created iPhone and iPad apps to track energy and resource use, solar panel cleaning innovations and useage monitors, water desalination inventions, healthy energy drink solutions to compete for the teen market and healthy activity devices and programs to encourage healthy habits, encourage physical fitness and well being. Every Camp BizSmart session takes on real business problems to solve, provided by company founders and executives who are working on game changing innovations.

Each design is worthy to have place in this blog illustrating the original sketches by the students and the final renderings created by WAGIC that bring them to life. But If I placed them all in this blog, you would be reading dozens of pages. Therefore, let me share just a few. If you are interested in seeing more, browse our past blogs to catch a glimpse of others.

While solving a real world business problem students create a product design

WAGIC designers display the rendering created from students drawings

Camp BizSmart Team Presents Business Solution to Panel of Judges in the Business Plan Competition

Brainstorming Features Benefits Advantages of FRS

Sketching out the product design

Meeting with WAGIC to see how their design for FRS was captured in a rendering

Created by Bob Johnson and his sons, Ron and Ken Johnson, WAGIC has not only helped companies bring their products to life through renderings and prototypes, they have the personal knowledge of how to position and launch a product successfully, that only comes from having a line of their own products go from a problem to solve, a customer to serve, and finally a product in a store on the shelves to purchase.

Ron and Ken Johnson at WAGIC

You would think that this would be enough – but when you bring together a great team of dreamers and doers you get something more – and this team has given of their expertise and time to inspire students at Camp BizSmart for two years now, and in the process has helped the creations born out of the imaginations of our student teams come to life in full color renderings that always make the students’ catch their breath when they are first unveiled. Why? Because when these professional designers sit with a team and engage them just as they would a team within a company, the students rise to the occasion, bring their A game and let their inner inventor and artist go free.

WAGIC designers, Cassie, Steve and Anders in sessions with students

The result? Amazing innovations made possible by students who are not constrained by the phrases, “we don’t do it that way”, or “that will never work” – because when you are age 11-15, as the Camp BizSmart students are, you dream in full color and create a full technicolor movie in your head that supports your vision for a product that most believe would be science fiction at best.

WAGIC rendering of Student design

These young people are channeling their best Jules Verne, Steven Spielberg and Steve Jobs – which reminds me, did I mention that WAGIC also is in the special effects movie business? If you watched the Iron Man or Transformers movies, just to name a few, you saw their work. No wonder they have the ability to relate to the active and current imaginations of these young people.

Why is WAGIC an important role model for our kids? Simple, they are not only a great design company, they are active in the community and with our students at Camp BizSmart mentoring, modeling and motivating what it takes to make dreams come true and create value for your family, your community, the world.

Mentor - Model - Motivate

WAGIC believes so deeply in helping Camp BizSmart students get engaged, excited and develop the skills that will help them be successful in life, that they created the Bob Johnson Memorial Scholarship Fund to make it possible for worthy students to attend Camp BizSmart. What a great way to expand the number of young entrepreneurs that are acquiring the essential skills that will help them thrive in this new competitive global economy.

Bob Johnson, WAGIC founder

We salute this great company who gives their time, talent and treasure to ensure that our students are exposed to really great thinking, dreaming and of course – doing!

In this challenging economic environment – the true champions are the companies and professionals like WAGIC who know that the craftsmen of the past are needed more than ever today and through a hands-on approach, our students are apprentices gaining valuable insight from these special people. No wonder WAGIC is known as the “what a great idea company”.

Camp BizSmart founders, Mike and Peggy Gibbs with WAGIC team and Ellen Pieterse, Camp BizSmart Camp Director

Yes, we do believe that there is magic inside of WAGIC. That magic is the people and it all started with the dream of creating value and solving people’s problems. Now that is a life lesson worth sharing with all of our students and we are very grateful to WAGIC for partnering with Camp BizSmart.

To quote our dear friend and advisor, Bill Reichert, Managing Partner of Garage Technology Ventures, “Only an entrepreneurial approach – flexible, scrappy, collaborative, and unafraid of risk and failure will succeed in this new world. We owe it to our children to help them develop these skills and attitudes with programs like Camp BizSmart.”

Co-founders of Camp BizSmart, and education entrepreneurs, Dr. Mike Gibbs and Peggy Gibbs, believe that partnering with great companies like WAGIC, makes it possible to mentor, model and motivate students to acquire the very best entrepreneurial skills and attitudes as they work hands-on to solve real business problems – learning at a young age the value of critical problem solving and adding value. Now, that is inspiring!

Camp BizSmart is a two-week intensive immersion into business and entrepreneurial skills. Successful CEO’s and founders provide a business problem for student teams to solve, support and defend to a panel of funders and executives. Experts in competitive analysis, finance, marketing and sales, are among the mentors that give examples from their own experience. In the process, students learn the value of critical thinking, brainstorming, problem solving, collaboration, design, assets and liabilities and more. Camp BizSmart inspires students to be courageous, dream big and work hard, play by the rules, and challenge themselves to create priceless value for their customers, communities, their country and the world. If you would like to help us inspire young entrepreneurs, contact us at www.campbizsmart.org

Great companies inspire great ideas – especially when they care about inspiring the next generation of young entrepreneurs! Hara sponsored one of the business problems for student teams to solve at this year’s Camp BizSmart 2010 business plan competition. The task, create an iPad app that will help companies reduce their resource use to save them money and be energy efficient.

The Hara 2 team from the Santa Clara University session of Camp BizSmart, won the final competition being named “Camp BizSmart 2010, Tweenpreneurs of the Year”. They competed for this honor with 3 separate sessions of students who attended Camp BizSmart at Stanford University, a combined session at Punahou and Iolani Schools in Oahu, and Santa Clara University.

Students’ presented their business solution to a panel of executives and angel funders. The Hara 2 team competition was held at Microsoft in their executive conference center.

Biz Plan Competition at Microsoft

One of the rewards of winning the competition, is the honor of being invited to the company that sponsored the business problem, to present and discuss the team’s business solution with the executive team.

On Sept. 2, 2010, co-founders, Amit Chatterjee and Udo Waibel, with other members of the executive team listened to the student’s and then discussed their solution and brainstormed possible next steps necessary to move towards execution of their idea.

In addition to their original pitch used in the business plan competition, the students’ also prepared a sample pitch to demonstrate how they would propose taking their Hara iPad app to one of Hara’s clients, and used Safeway as their example.

Maggie Sun and Greg Hosono propose the next step

Representatives from a client company of Hara were also present and provided valuable feedback, saying that they felt it was a viable product that would be interesting to develop further.

Udo Waibel, CTO, offers valuable feedback

Following the presentation and formal feedback, several members engaged in a lively conversation about business with CEO Amit Chatterjee over pizza and Udo Waibel, CTO and Katherine Brittain, who worked with the students during Camp BizSmart, joined in providing their thoughts as well.

Talking business over pizza - what could be better!

During Camp BizSmart, the student’s product designs are brought to life by industrial design company, WAGIC, who sits with the teams and listens to their ideas, sees their drawings and takes extensive notes about what they student’s have created in both rough sketches and in their mind’s eye.

Working from their meeting with the students, their drawings and notes, the WAGIC designers create a rendering of their product that the students use to illustrate their solution in the business plan competition. As a thank you, a copy of the WAGIC rendering was given to Hara with the signatures of the student team and founders of Camp BizSmart.

Thank you to Hara for inspiring Camp BizSmart young entrepreneurs! We look forward to seeing how this team continues to grow in skills and create innovations that will tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges!

Get Inspired! Join us at Camp BizSmart!

Maggie Sun and Gloria Liou - Two of the Camp BizSmart Tweenpreneurs of the Year!

Hope Lab VP Richard Tate discusses the business challenge

Udo Waibel, Hara co-founder, shares the business problem

Sound impossible? Than you don’t know these students and the amazing team of faculty and staff that mentor them through the essential hands-on skill building that allows them to build piece by piece the thought process and critical components that create a game-changing product to address a customers need. Camp BizSmart 2010 took on two big issues facing out nation, energy efficiency and childhood obesity.

Knowing that some of the best learning happens in the struggle, co-founders, Dr. Mike Gibbs and Peggy Gibbs, have created an intense, yet fun, immersion that simulates what it is like to startup a company or work on a project team to create and execute on a new business idea. Students learn to be persistent and collaborative while they gain confidence, problem solving and critical thinking to support and defend their business solution with fierce courage and passion.

By bringing great examples of successful entrepreneurship, these students heard why overcoming obstacles, creating new solutions to great challenges, and doing so in an ethical way that creates great impact for people all around the world is not only a good idea it is good business and therefore, worth their energy, their passion and their skills.

Inc Entrepreneur of the Year, Kevin Surace, CEO Serious Materials

Founded in 2007, Camp BizSmart has rapidly expanded to operate at 4 locations, Stanford University, Santa Clara University, and in Oahu, Punahou and Iolani Schools with a newly introduced program in Hyderabad, India just this summer. Students who competed in the 2 week programs in Oahu, SCU and Stanford and won a 1st or 2nd place ranking were eligible for the grand finale round. The Camp BizSmart First Annual “Tweenpreneurs of the Year” competition has just concluded and after carefully reviewing the written business plans and final presentations from each eligible team, the judges have made their decisions for the top 1st and 2nd place teams of 2010.

It is with great pleasure that we announce the CampBizSmart, “Tweenpreneurs of 2010″:

• “Top Tweenpreneur Team of 2010 goes to Hara 2, Santa Clara University session” who has been named, the 1st place team for 2010 out of the 3 Camp BizSmart regional competitions. Team members are: Gregory Hosono, CEO, Devan Panchal, CTO, Gloria Liou, CFO, Maggie Sun, CMO, Jeremy Veis, CSO and Dylan Patel, CIO. The students were challenged by Hara executives to design a fun and creative iPad Hara OMI app that would help Fortune 500 businesses calculate and improve their OMI or efficient use of resources.

Hara 2, SCU wins grand finale, named 2010 top team

WAGIC rendering of Hara 2's winning solution

• “Tweenpreneur Team with the most innovative idea, ready to go to market, goes to Hope Lab 1, Santa Clara University session” who captured the 2nd place,  judges choice award  out of the 3 Camp BizSmart regional competitions. Team members are: Monica Thukral, CEO, Aditya Reddy, CTO, Seema Saini, CFO, Alyssa Saviage, CMO, Hannah Robinson, CSO, Raymond Zhuang, CIO. Hope Lab executives have been working on reducing childhood obesity and challenged students to test, evaluate and improve upon their concept of an activity tracker, the Zamzee prototype, to engage and create effective incentives for tweens 11-14 to get active and get healthy.

Hope Lab 1, SCU wins 2nd place in grand prize 2010

Hope Lab 1, SCU 2nd place winning design, WAGIC rendering

Both teams, as part of their grand prize, will make presentations to the company that provided their business problem and will engage in a lively discussion with the executives on the details of their solution.  Much like a product development team within a company, they will find out what the executive team thinks about their solution and what is required to actually take their business solution to market.  Students learn during Camp BizSmart that, “lots of people have dreams, entrepreneurs have goals” – and, “an idea is just that – an idea – until you successfully execute upon it”.  Therefore, these candid conversations with company executives, help the students to understand what is required to take a great idea into the marketplace to let the customer decide what is truly successful. A valuable lesson to learn early in life.

Camp BizSmart not only inspires young entrepreneurs, they are helping students be confident and courageous and use critical thinking when solving problems, embracing change as a natural state and looking forward to creating bold innovations that have positive impact.

So, when you find yourself concerned about the state of the world, remember that organizations like Camp BizSmart are inspiring young entrepreneurs to be the difference they want to see in the world! Founders, Mike and Peggy Gibbs, believe that providing these young people with these essential skills will create the thoughtful inventors and entrepreneurs we need to ignite a renaissance of critical thinkers with a can-do spirit!

Camp BizSmart, CEO Mike Gibbs says, "These young entrepreneurs are the ones to watch!"

Special thanks go to the company sponsors and their executives who worked with their teams to provide Camp BizSmart business problems this year: Udo Waibel, Amit Chatterjee and Katherine Brittain of Hara and James Bickford of Tigo and Darren Kimura of Sopogy in the energy efficiency space; and Carey White and Larry Tobin of Club One, Inc. and Pat Christen, Richard Tate, Liz Song and Chris Murchison of Hope Lab in the health and fitness space. Ken and Ron Johnson of WAGIC, who provided their design team, Anders, Cassie, Valerie, Sueng, and Steve to make the students sketches come to life. Faculty mentors, Howard Charney, Cisco Sr. VP, Kevin Surace, CEO, Serious Materials, Maigread Eichten, Eichten Consulting, James Bickford, Tigo Business Development, Paul Witkay, Founder, Alliance of CEO’s, Greg Kim, lawyer and Russel Cheng, entrepreneur, Robert Yonover, inventor, Sharon Web and Chris Horgan, intellectual property. Business Plan Competition sponsor for Silicon Valley sessions: Dan’l Lewin, Sr. VP, Microsoft; Site sponsors, Jim Sweeney, Dir. Precourt Center for Energy Efficiency, Stanford University, Dan Aguiar, Dir. Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Santa Clara University, Ann Yoneshige, Iolani School and Cathy Kawano-Ching, and Casey Agena, Punahou School, Oahu. and Mr. K. Sharat Chandra and Mr. T. Anatharajan, for arranging the Indian School for Business, Hyderabad. Mini-case sponsors: Ron Hazelton with iBuild2 and Tim Jahnigan and Mal Walwick with One World Futbol and Bronson Chang -Uncle Clay’s.  Competition judges, Lata Krishnan, Bill Reichert, Manish Chandra, David Dembitz, Harry Motro, George Chao, Maigread Eichten, Paul Witkay, Greg Kim, Patt Steiner and Robin Campaniano. And to our great Camp Directors – Bryan Cockel, John Rankin and Ellen Pieterse, our amazing staff, facilitators and leaders in training  at each site – you were great!

Thanks to you all for inspiring Young Entrepreneurs! It’s been quite a year, we look forward to expanding even more to inspire yet more students with entrepreneurial thinking and problem solving!  We are already signing up great companies to provide innovative business problems for students to solve in 2011. If you know of a curious student age 11-15 who loves to solve problems and learn about business while they do -you  will want to tell them about Camp BizSmart.

The 4 companies providing business problems in these areas were: Tigo and Hara – energy efficiency solutions and Hope Lab and Club One Fitness – health and fitness solutions.

New company, iBuild2, provided a mini-design challenge that allowed students to exercise their creativity and design to come up with potential activity kits for children to work with safe tools while learning basic design and building skills. Each team of students came up with one or two potential products. Here is just an example:

Gaining design skills while creating an actual product

Ron Hazelton, affectionately known as the “The House Doctor”, has created iBuild2 with his wife Lynn to provide children with a safe way to learn to use design and building tools. They were pleased by the creativity of the students and recognized each design. Ron Johnson, of WAGIC, who also leads the team of designers who act as the vendor to all Camp BizSmart student designs, was on hand to help judge the students’ creations.

Mini-design case helps students gain important design skills

In addition, students from Camp BizSmart Oahu, were Skyped in to share their business solutions and carefully matched with non-competitive teams.

Skyping in Oahu students to discuss ideas

Applying skills gained on mini-cases, the seven teams of students brainstormed potential solutions, for the Hara, Tigo, Club One Fitness and HopeLab business problems. support and then defend the solution they believed would best address the business problem that company executives provided.

These teams presented their business solution at Microsoft, Silicon Valley, to an esteemed panel of judges: Maigread Eichten, George Chao, Harry Motro and Paul Witkay.

Judges question students at Microsoft

Competition results for the Santa Clara University session of Camp BizSmart:

The Hara 2 team captured the 1st place for the best business plan and presentation from the Camp BizSmart Santa Clara University session.

Hara team 2 wins 1st place

Hope Lab team 1 captured the 2nd place award, Santa Clara University session, “for the most innovative idea ready to go to market”

Hope Lab team 1 wins "most innovative idea" at Microsoft

During the 2 week immersion into entrepreneurial business skills, students were inspired by successful entrepreneurs who shared personal stories that illustrated how to build great teams, overcome obstacles,and stretch to innovate in order to create value for the customer which translates into making a company successful.

Dr. Ellen Pieterse, SCU Camp Director, checks results of the egg drop design contest

Camp BizSmart Faciliators, SCU sr and grad students, Becky, Angelique, Alex and Mike

Each year, founders Peggy and Mike Gibbs look for exciting new companies that passionately are making a difference and providing an example of a self-sustainable organization – this year, we recognize One World Futbol for bringing a great innovative solution executed brilliantly – the indestructible soccer ball – so strong it can survive a lion – to youth in places ravaged by war, poverty, and natural disasters. Camp BizSmart students were inspired by this amazing story and look forward to helping founders Tim Jahnigan and Lisa Tarver, continue to generate interest. Hats off to you Tim and Lisa!

One World Futbol VP Mal Warwick inspires students

On the final day of camp, students in Hyderabad, India Skyped in their business solutions to local judges, Peggy and Mike Gibbs, founders of Camp BizSmart, who joined two judges in India.

Hyderabad students pitch their solutions via Skype

The Santa Clara University Camp BizSmart session connected students from Oahu and Hyderabad with students on the campus of SCU in Silicon Valley truly representing the universal interest in gaining entrepreneurial skills and inspiring young students 11-15 to gain business acumen that will propel them forward.

“We are grateful to Dan Aguiar, Director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and to Linda Jenkins, executive assistant of the center, at Santa Clara University for sponsoring Camp BizSmart, and sharing our vision of inspiring young entrepreneurs to gain great skills that will provide great benefit to them, their families, their communities, and the world.” Mike and Peggy Gibbs, co-founders of Camp BizSmart.

Peggy Gibbs thanks SCU CIE Dir. Dan Aguiar & Linda Jenkins

Dr. Mike Gibbs with Additya Reddy, named the "student most likely to be an entrepreneur"

Stay tuned for the Camp BizSmart grand finale announcement of the top two teams of 2010!

Camp BizSmart provided the curriculum that introduced students to key marketing and sales strategies that are essential in creating the successful launch of any product. The 5 day immersion was lead by Camp BizSmart Lead Curriculum Director, Bryan Cockel with the assistance of local business students. Held at the Indian School for Business in Hyderabad, India, 48 students participated in teams to create the best marketing strategy for one of two products they were given. Mr. T. Anantharajan and Saket Gadia did such a terrific job marketing this new program that the limited available spaces filled rapidly. Perhaps, next year we will be able to expand the capacity to serve more students both in Hyderabad and other cities in India, and even those who wish to attend at one of the locations in Silicon Valley.

Sharing a marketing strategy

Click on this link to enjoy the video highlights of the Butterfly Fields – Camp BizSmart Budding Entrepreneurship Workshop competition was held both in person and on Skype on Aug. 13 in order to link the 2 judges in Hyderabad and with Dr. Mike Gibbs and Peggy Gibbs, co-founders of Camp BizSmart acting as the 2 judges in Silicon Valley. “It was a great pleasure to hear the students present their ideas and were impressed with how much they were able to accomplish in this short period of time.” “We look forward to continuing our relationship and growing the ways that we are able to serve students in India and the US.”

Responding to judges' queries using Skype

Congratulations to all who worked to make this energizing program such a success for the 48 students who participated! Special congratulations to the Final 2 winning teams!

Camp BizSmart operates on campus at prestigious Universities and surrounds the students with great thinkers who are creating solutions that impacts on our world. These successful entrepreneurs of innovative companies bring real world business problems for student teams to solve, support and defend. Students gain essential skills that help them become agile problem solvers and innovators.

Am I dreaming or in a parallel universe you ask?  No, these are typical statements from real kids who attended Camp BizSmart, a 10 day,  entrepreneurial business academy for students 11-15, held for one week at Iolani and one week at Punahou schools.  How does this happen you might ask? These students were inspired to work on big issues of the day by successful executives Richard Tate from HopeLab and Darren Kimura from Sopogy, who provided the business problem students worked on.

Richard Tate VP exec from HopeLab with student teams

Darren Kimura CEO Sopogy with student teams

Students gain experience in business skills through hands-on activities and receive coaching from Camp BizSmart staff members Camp Director, John Rankin, and facilitators Phil Kimi, Krisha Arnobit and Brent Aratani. Expert mentors offered real life examples of how they apply competitive analysis, cash flow, marketing and sales strategies that support their business models. These business examples combined with mentored hands-on practice helped students gain skills in problem solving and critical thinking which they applied to brainstorm and solve the business problem they were given.

How is it determined if the students understood the concepts they were exposed to? Students compete in a business plan competition where they present and defend their solutions to a panel of executives. Was there a winner? You bet! Since there were multiple teams working on the same business problem they are designated by team number and company name. Camp BizSmart Oahu – 1st place winner – went to Sopogy team 1 students: Team: Ryne Sato, Christian Gutierrez, Tate Higahihara, Troy Enoka and Dakota Miller created a water desalination device that was portable and affordable and runs completely on sunlight! The rendering below was created by industrial design firm, WAGIC, who used both the students sketches and discussions with them to illustrate their new product invention.

Sopogy Team 1 takes 1st place!

Sopogy Team 1 winning design for water desalination device

and 2nd place winners – HopeLab team 1 students:Brett Tsuzaki , Tamlyn Tamura, Ben Uchimura Kiana Kim, Kelly Correa. Congratulations!

HopeLab team 1 Oahu Zamzee product illustration

The Zamzee measures a child’s activity level and features incentives to encourage increasing fitness while having fun.

"HopeLab team 1 - with Camp BizSmart Camp Dir., John Rankin

Winning teams are given the opportunity to make a presentation to company executives as their reward. But the real reward is knowing that even when you are 11-15 you are able to make a big impact and create important solutions to real problems.

So, what did you do on your summer vacation? Solve any problems that will improve our world? No? Well, maybe next year if you go to Camp BizSmart you too can make a big difference! Camp BizSmart founders, Mike and Peggy Gibbs take their hats off to Ann Yoneshige at Iolani and Casey Agena at Punahou for hosting Camp BizSmart this year.The program was so popular that Camp BizSmart 2011 will be held earlier next summer so that students 11-15 from all over Oahu will be to attend and have their own stories of solving problems during their summer vacation. Stay – tuned! Oh and by the way,in addition to the Oahu site, Camp BizSmart held sessions at Stanford and Santa Clara Universities and launched an introductory program in India this summer.

Join us next summer!

Dr. Michael Gibbs, CEO, Camp BizSmart

Bryan Cockel, Camp BizSmart Curriculum Director will travel to India to be the Chief Mentor for the Hyderabad workshop. The Camp BizSmart-Butterfly Fields Budding Entrepreneur Workshop will be held at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. This program will occur at the same time there will be a Camp BizSmart session operating at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, CA, USA. Students from Hyderabad will Skype into Camp BizSmart students in Silicon Valley to share their ideas.

Bryan Cockel, Camp BizSmart Curriculum Dir & Mentor

Butterfly Fields, founded by Mr. K. Sharat Chandra, is a young start-up of professionals who graduated from IITs, IIMs and NID, with a vision to make learning more effective through activity-based pedagogy, setting up science exhibits and providing innovative teaching and educational aids. Butterfly Fields operates in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Vishakaptnam, Vijayawada and Warangal, Chennai and Jamshedpur in India. Butterfly Fields program is comprised of  hands-on activities and “enriching” experiences which are specifically designed to make the child “easily” understand the underlying concepts of “how things work” and at the same time, “enjoying” it. Butterfly Fields believes in “learning by doing” and the name Butterfly Fields becomes clear when you learn their motto is “why crawl when you can fly”. Mr. T. Anantharajan and Saket Gadia together with Mr. K. Sharat Chandra lead the effort in Hyderabad that made the partnership with Camp BizSmart such a success.

Butterfly Fields Students in India

“In Today’s competitive marketplace, early exposure to hands-on real world business skills could go a long way in shaping your careers.  We are excited to work together with Camp BizSmart and give a platform to inspire Budding Entrepreneurs in India” says Saket Gadia, Strategic Alliance Director of Butterfly Fields.

The learning theory of Butterfly Fields, “learning by doing” and that of Camp BizSmart, ” learn, do, check, act” compliments one another.

Camp BizSmart was founded, designed and developed by Dr. Michael Gibbs and Peggy Gibbs whose vision is to “inspire young entrepreneurs” by providing hands-on education and expert mentors to prepare students for the global competitive marketplace, drawing upon real world, business experts and business cases to practice and gain mastery in 21st century skills.

Camp BizSmart students brainstorming ideas

“Only an entrepreneurial approach – flexible, scrappy, collaborative, and unafraid of risk and failure – will succeed in this new world. We owe it to our children to help them develop these skills and attitudes with programs like Camp BizSmart.” Bill Reichert, Garage Technology Ventures, Managing Director and Camp BizSmart Advisor.

Camp BizSmart is a non-profit social enterprise founded in 2008 and is based in Los Gatos, CA  in the heart of Silicon Valley. Camp BizSmart currently operates in 4 locations – 3 in the US and the introductory program launching this August 2010 in Hyderabad, India.

Shaurey Vesta explains his teams' business solution at Microsoft

Well, what if you could do a rough sketch of your idea and write down to the best of your ability the features and the benefits to the customer? Now, if only you had someone who could take these sketches and descriptions and with input from you – bring your idea to life in a beautiful rendering.

That’s exactly what the great industrial designers at WAGIC do when they sit with our student teams at Camp BizSmart. The students have already received the business problem that they are to solve directly from the executive of leading companies. The students are in fact operating as if they were a project team in the company coming up with a solution with an objective, outcomes and measurements and boundaries like budget and time to market. Now working with the WAGIC team they hone their ideas and bring it to life. Now the WAGIC guys are pretty impressive not just because they do great design work, but because they also do special effects business for movies and the students are impressed to know they have worked on Transformers, Iron Man and many others.

Ken and Ron Johnson the brothers at the helm of WAGIC have created a magical design company that helps solve real problems by making sure companies and our students are able to illustrate what they are thinking so others can see it clearly too and get as excited about it as they are when they see it in their “minds’ eye”.

Ken Johnson, VP of Innovation, WAGIC

Ron Johnson, CEO WAGIC sketches a concept

This year, the WAGIC designers, Cassie, Anders. Valerie and Steve came to listen to the students and capture their ideas to be brought to life and then returned for the students’ review and approval. Just like when working with any company the industrial designers asked “did we capture your ideas as you imagined?” They work with our students at all of our sessions, Stanford Univ., Oahu and Santa Clara Unv.

Anders asking for clarification

Valerie with Turman Leung capturing design ideas

Steve gathers design specs

Cassie and Steve in front with Anders in the back work with teams

This year, Bob Johnson, father of Ron and Ken Johnson and part of the team at WAGIC passed away. Bob was a great mentor to many people and set an example of what if means to give back by being there for others who need some coaching to get to the next level. The family and many of the folks who were touched by Bob’s generous giving spirit, decided to create a scholarship fund that would allow young entrepreneurs the opportunity to have assistance if needed to attend Camp BizSmart.

This year, 6 students were able to attend Camp BizSmart helped by partial scholarships that were made possible by many who wanted to honor Bob and his legacy of mentoring others. Now, his mentoring continues as others take up his role and mentor students who come to Camp BizSmart. Now, students who are passionate about learning to be an entrepreneur but have limited means will have an opportunity due to the generosity of many. If you would like to contribute to the Bob Johnson Memorial Scholarship Fund, send us a note at Camp BizSmart, Bob Johnson Memorial Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 33271, Los Gatos, CA 95030 and pass it on! Camp BizSmart is a non-profit social enterprise organization.

Do great role models matter? We believe they do, and that’s why the entrepreneurs who come to share their wisdom and experiences with students at Camp BizSmart are selected with great care. These entrepreneurs have created successful companies, with real value and are also great people who are respected by their peers! We honor them because they take time out of their very busy schedules to inspire the Camp BizSmart students knowing how important it is to fill kids up with great stuff to get great stuff back.

So here’s to our heroes – the dreamers and visionaries who are doers and collaborators creating amazing value that is good for all of us! Let me share a glimpse of the entrepreneurs who are mentoring and inspiring our students in Silicon Valley this summer:

Maigread Eichten is a kick-off speaker for us at Stanford and Santa Clara talking about what makes great teams and how to work with the company executives who have sponsored business problems this summer. Last year, whenMaigread was the CEO for FRS, the company sponsored a business problem for student teams to solve.

Maigread Eichten

Maigread has led teams as CEO at FRS and now Eichten consulting.

Howard Charney, Sr. VP for Cisco, is an annual favorite! Howard talks to the students about solving the right problem, critical thinking and respecting your team. Having founded 3 companies including 3com and Grand Junction, he knows about innovation and working with a great team to achieve great things!

Howard Charney

Howard also shares insight from his journey as an entrepreneur and holds a “contest of ideas” with the students to let them pre-test their business solutions before going in front of a panel of judges for our business plan competition.

Kevin Surace, CEO, Serious Materials, and Inc Magazine, “entrepreneur of the year”. Kevin talked about what it’s like to start-up a company, stating it takes persistence, innovation and determination because there will be good days and hard days and you need to be ready to get through them both! He gave real examples of being a game-changer and valuable thoughts on how to address tough problems and tough questions other throw at you. Kevin’s company sponsored a business problem in 2009.

Kevin Surace

Chris Horgan, of Pinnacle, demystified the topic of intellectual property, what has value and what can be protected. We all think that our ideas are extremely valuable – but are they? And if they are, can they be protected? Should they be? An interesting discussion from an industry expert who made the topic easy to understand. He created a game for us to teach what intellectual property is. The kids loved it!

Chris Horgan

James Bickford, is one of our young entrepreneurs, having founded his first company, Valence Energy, while he was still a student at Santa Clara University, and now working with a second company, Tigo Energy to continue building his career at the ripe old age of 23! James share his story of leading the 2008 SCU Solar Decathlon team to 3rd place in the national competition overcoming what seemed like insurmountable odds. A great story about always being ready to compete, overcoming obstacles and never giving up!

James Bickford

Entrepreneurial thinking and problem solving, creativity and innovation applies to all kinds of business. Students sometimes forget that those who have chosen a career in the arts must use good business skills if they want to create a sustainable business. Remember the old saying ” how do you get to Carnegie Hall?” “Practice, practice, practice!” It is fitting to close with this next entrepreneur, a musician, teacher, and composer – Brian Moran. He is part of a local Brazilian Jazz group, Grupo Falso Baiano.

Brian Moran

Brian was able to share with the students that it isn’t enough to have a talent or a love of something – though a very good place to start. You must want it enough to put the time in, be persistent, dedicated, practice so you know it really well and can then color your presentation with the richness of your experience and the passion that made you believe so strongly in committing to this idea, this problem to solve, this song to write, your part to play as a soloist or in a well-honed team. Making beautiful music as well as making successful companies looks easy when a master is showing you what they do – but oh my friend do not be fooled – even though you did not see it happen – it took lots of dedication, persistence, and the willingness to defeat obstacles by coming up with yet again, new solutions. Brian wrote our original “Camp BizSmart Theme”. We will post it soon for your enjoyment. In the meantime, dream of ways to solve the problems you encounter and be determined to create value in your world. Creating something of great value takes hard work, guts and determination, but it is worth every effort you put into it! Thanks to all of those who inspire us to stretch and grow beyond what we are today to be ready to solve the great challenges of tomorrow!

HopeLab Team 1 - Stanford session

HopeLab Team 1 – Stanford session, was awarded first place for the best business plan and presentation by the esteemed panel of judges. HopeLab Team 1 -Stanford, was lead by student CEO, Tony Klachin, with CTO, Shaurey Vetsa, CMO, James Otani, CIO, Mohnish Shah, CFO, Ashley Pak, CMFO Grant Narasin and CSO, Nick LaBruna. The team created a winning solution using the HopeLab Zamzee device, to encourage tweens to be active.

Club One Fitness Team 2 - Stanford session

The second place team, named “the most innovative marketing idea” was the Club One Fitness Team 2. Student team members are: CEO, Claire Wang, CTO, Chirag Toprani, CSO, Gabriel Cao, CMO, Jessica Xu, CIO, Valentine Nguyen and CFO, Truman Leung. This team came up with a winning marketing idea to encourage healthy habits in tweens.

In addition individual awards were captured by: Tony Klachin (Stanford Camp 1), and Gabriel Cao (Stanford Camp 2), named “most likely to be the next Steve Jobs” and Sammer Vij (Stanford Camp1) and Karen Sung (Stanford Camp 2), named “most inspirational leader and entrepreneur”. All of our students worked hard but these students set themselves apart by displaying heightened persistence, innovation, critical thinking and problem solving while inspiring their teams and other students.

That’s all we can report for now because the competition is still going on, with additional teams working on their solutions for these business problems as well as ones from other companies. Student Teams actual solutions won’t be made public until the competition finale. So continue to watch our blog for the latest update.

Judges panel - Stanford Camp BizSmart session

Judges for the Camp BizSmart Stanford session July 16, 2010, held at Microsoft’s Executive Conference Center were: David Dembitz, lead judge, Lata Krishnan, Bill Reichert, Manish Chandra, Chris Law, Harry Motro and George Chao.

Camp BizSmart 2010 will have 1st place winners named at each of its three locations holding 10 day Camp BizSmart programs: Camp BizSmart at Stanford University, July 6-17 (which just concluded), Camp BizSmart Oahu shared by Iolani and Punahou schools, July 26-Aug 6, and Camp BizSmart at Santa Clara University, Aug 2-13,2010.

Camp BizSmart operates a 10 day, business academy where students work hands-on to gain 21st Century business and entrepreneurial skills. Student teams are given a real world business problem to solve from company executives. Every company that provides a business problem has an executive come to Camp BizSmart to discuss the objective and desired outcome just as if they were a project team within the company. Student teams work to solve, support and defend their solution to a panel of judges to compete for the 2010 best team business solution.

Special thanks to our Camp BizSmart Stanford session angels:

James Sweeney, Dir. of the Precourt Energy Center at Stanford University. Business problem sponsors - Hara, Tigo, HopeLab and Club One Fitness. Business Plan Stanford Competition host: Microsoft Our fantastic and inspiring entrepreneurs: Howard Charney, Sr. VP Cisco, Kevin Surace, CEO, Serious Materials, Maigread Eichten, CEO, Eichten Consulting, James Bickford,Tigo Energy and Chris Horgan, Pinnacle Partners and Ron Hazelton, iBuild2. The WAGIC crew of Anders, Cassie, Valerie and Steve, lead by Ron Johnson,and the esteemed judges panel listed above. The students, faculty and staff of Camp BizSmart thank you for sharing your wisdom, experience and inspiration!

So game on! The best from each of the three sessions: Stanford, Oahu and Santa Clara University will compete for the honor of being named the best of the best for Camp BizSmart 2010. Stay tuned for the next 1st and 2nd place winners to be announced from each site as they conclude. The Camp BizSmart 2010 grand finale 1st place team and 2nd place marketing idea will be fiercely competitive and the excitement will continue to build until they are named. No matter who wins the final competition – we all win because these bright students are sure to create priceless value for their communities and the world! I can’t think of anything we need more when you consider all the problems in the world that need to be solved!