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USA Firmware

The Process

This is a long winding but invigorating road I have decided to venture on. Many opportunities have popped up and it's difficult to determine which to pursue and which not to.

I've been in discussion on writing a book with a publisher of technical materials. This would be a two year project. I've had it reviewed by several colleagues that are knowledgeable in this arena. The $60 to the Writers Union was invaluable.

I've made many connections with various folks throughout the area who need the occasional consultant. All fronts seem to be moving forward but it's a slow process that requires patience.

Then there is what is USA Firmware. I've connected with a local incubator who has found the idea very intriguing. I've reviewed some of the concepts with senior HR leaders and received more encouragement. Many of my direct colleagues have also found the idea compelling. So I'm developing a business plan.

There are many elements but at it's root is the connected firmware community at the regional level. Once they are connected and active many opportunities start to trickle out. Anything from firmware for sale to job bidding to video sales, seminars, training, recruiting, and so on.

The trick is the niche that is firmware. And it's a bigger niche then folks realize. Therefore it is under-served. Also demand is growing faster then we are creating firmware engineers. The concepts help remedy this disparity.

First Day!

My first real day was Friday. I picked up my LLC papers, created a business checking account and gave my first proposal (which was accepted!).

Being my own Boss Starts TODAY

Well I wrapped up my position with Codonics today and am officially self employed for the first time in my life. It hasn't sunk in quite yet but it's begun too! I have some great friends and colleagues that are helping me get my feet on the ground! Thanks Jack for the website work! Thanks Bob Spinks for your help with my brand and advertising materials. Thanks Bob Foerster for the awesome logo's! Thanks Robin for your wise advise and support! Thanks all my USA Firmware and FENEO friends for helping me with technical questions! Thanks Chris Cole and Bob Paddock for all your help and guidance with selecting my system, figuring out this whole consulting thing and always ready and interested in providing me with your help and guidance! Thanks Dragan, Drew and Nick for all your help and support with FENEO and IEEE! Thanks Mom for your support and advice (hey, who knows you better then your Mom right?). Thanks to my beautiful and supportive wife for allowing me to become unemployed and yet trusting me and helping me figure out where to take my career.

Next week it starts getting really interesting. I have meetings with clients, a meeting at a training center, lunch meetings with colleagues, a couple of interviews, a proposal to generate, and I need to talk to the dean of the Enterprenauer MBA at BW to see what my next class should be and when I need to sign up!

Clients and Conversations

Today I met with a prospective client for some consulting work. I found out about this client through an old coworker who saw my linkedin profile changes and new they needed some help. The meeting went very well. I was please and I believe they were too. It seems that the world's products are all embedding little baby micro's in practically everything. This is happening because the cost of microcontrollers on the PIC scale have gotten rediculously cheap. But this is all good news for someone such as myself who knows very well how to program these little guys with lots of mojo.

I also received a curious email from a director of engineering I know at a local company. I suggested we chat. He also noticed my status change. I love linkedin :)

The Plan

Here is my initial concept minus a discussion with an attorney and minus a business plan! So take this with a grain of salt. I also read somewhere once that your customers will eventually be the one's that tell you what you business will do!

1. Contracting/Consulting – Leverage my connections to bring work in for myself and others. The range goes from at the lowest level VHDL and the highest level Emdedded Linux development. This is the bread and butter, Contracting, Subcontracting and Consulting. This will pay the bills.

2. Firmware Engineer Resources and Services – My site will have a membership capability. Once you are a member you have access to networking with other engineers, posting contract work you are aware of, seeing job listings, getting access to discounts for tools, training and seminars and so on.

3. Training and Seminars – I’m working right now with some big names to bring them to Cleveland to hold cyclical seminars. I have a meeting next week with someone from a local training company to discuss revenue sharing, as well as finders fee’s for me bringing in students from my website to classes. So in general I want to work to bring in more talent into the area. If Dan has good success, I think we have a shot at making this a long term endeavor with other talent as well.

4. FENEO – How this ties in is still vague but implicit. I can see FENEO being a local branch of members of USA Firmware. The issue is that the way I have it structured right now; I receive donations for IEEE Cleveland Computer Society. I usually foot the bill and send the donations to IEEE. They then receive my receipt and reimburse me. So for me to have this be part of my business, FENEO will have to change in its financial structure or something. Otherwise it will have to come directly out of membership fee’s and my income. I’m going to talk to my attorney on this one as it’s tricky.

5. Finder’s Fee’s – So I am heavily connected on both ends, from the recruiter side and the engineer side. I hope to bring in revenue through finders fee’s by making jobs accessible to my members but not making my members accessible to recruiters. I can also see using the funds from this to help out with FENEO events. So a portion of the finders fee could go to the event or could go to IEEE if I can somehow maintain this relationship to FENEO without a conflict of interest.

6. USA Firmware Franchise – This is an interesting idea I think and I’m looking forward to discussing this with my attorney. So the above could be done anywhere. But obviously I can’t do all this well from Cleveland if say we want to repeat this model in central Ohio. So I would francise out the USA Firmware ‘brand’. FENEO being one franchise and