“The fix is looking a little loose for Target.com.
CEO Gregg Steinhafel recently assured investors that the Minneapolis-based retailer is smoothing out the kinks in Target.com after two embarrassing crashes following the site’s August launch. Steinhafel said Target has added money and staff to improving the website, though the company declined to disclose specific steps.”
“Best Buy Co. is recruiting its own internal Geek Squad.
The Richfield-based consumer electronics retailer plans to hire 200 information technology specialists over the next year as the company seeks to woo customers across multiple sales channels, including stores, mobile devices and BestBuy.com.
Since 2004, Best Buy has largely outsourced its IT needs. But given the scope of its ambitions, Best Buy needs to develop its own technology talent, said Jody Davids, Best Buy’s chief information officer, in an interview.”
“The former president of Target.com is launching a new company that will focus on helping retailers integrate mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets into store environments.
Dale Nitschke, now the managing partner at the Ovative/group consulting firm in Minneapolis, said Talking Fish will spin off from Ovative in the first quarter of 2012.”
“Chances are, a migraine in Somalia resembles a migraine in South Carolina. But describing those symptoms to a doctor who can’t speak your language can cause its own special brand of headache.
GeaCom Inc., a startup based in Duluth, Minnesota, is developing an interactive, hand-held device that can provide instant translation between doctor and patient, monitor vital signs and store data in an electronic medical record.”
“Battle-weary proponents of Minnesota’s historic $60 million angel tax credit had a simple message for the state’s entrepreneurial community:
Now that we passed the darn thing, you better use it!
“We’ve passed the baton onto you,” Sen. Kathy Saltzman (D-Woodbury) told the audience who gathered in Eden Prairie Monday to learn about the tax credit.
“Make good use of it,” said Rep. Tim Mahoney (D-St. Paul)”
Resources:
- Final legislation text
- MOJO guide
- DEED’s overview (application window said to open before 8/1)
“Investors rejoiced when Minnesota finally passed a five year, $50 million angel tax credit. Only one problem: the state’s largest angel group will be largely shut out.
Under a last minute provision inserted into the bill, investors participating in angel deals through individual retirement accounts and family trusts will not be eligible for the tax credit this year. That spells bad news for Rain Source Capital in St. Paul, where most of its funds list an IRA or trust as a member.”
“A consortium led by the University of Minnesota will receive $5.1 million in federal stimulus money to expand training in health informatics.
The school, along with the University of Minnesota campus in Crookston and College of St. Scholastica, will use the funds to develop curriculum, recruit students and evaluate programs.
With the recently passed healthcare reform law emphasizing the use of technology like electronic medical records to lower costs and improve quality, university officials say it’s crucial the school train students in informatics, the science of collecting and analyzing vast amounts of data.”
“Fresh from passing a landmark angel investor tax credit, Minnesota lawmakers are advancing a bill that would, in time, radically alter high-tech economic development in the state by concentrating authority in a single public-private entity.
The proposed Minnesota Science and Technology Authority, modeled after programs like Third Frontier in Ohio and The Ben Franklin Technology Partners in Pennsylvania, will craft a long-term science and technology strategy. More importantly, it would also oversee economic development efforts, including money to retain locally grown companies and attract out of state ones.”
“Aside from sharing the same first letter, “Mojo” and “Minnesota” are words that don’t seem to carry a lot in common, though that may soon change. The state is home to 19 Fortune 500 companies, a world class hospital and research center in Rochester, and Spam-what else do you need?-but the land of 10,000 lakes has long lacked competitive fire, the kind of risk hungry entrepreneur and investor that not only tolerates failure but embraces it.
Mindful of this, a group of entrepreneurs, lawyers, and investors have formed MOJO/minnesota, a grass roots group that wants to restore the state’s taste for risk and innovation. From advocating for the angel investment tax credit to finding the local Steve Jobs MOJO/minnesota hopes light a spark under the state’s proverbial rear end.”
“The $50 million angel tax credit passed by the Minnesota legislature Monday will no doubt provide much-needed early stage capital for young start-ups. But the law’s biggest benefit may not be dollars and cents, but rather how outsiders see Minnesota and how Minnesota sees itself.
By passing the bill quickly in the legislative year and with such overwhelming bipartisan support in the face of a $2 billion budget gap, lawmakers have instantly established Minnesota as a credible place to innovate and embrace risk, investors and entrepreneurs say. That’s quite a departure from the traditional rap on Minnesota, a high tax state whose 19 Fortune 500 companies had made its residents and leaders complacent and timid.”
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