But before staging any formal dog-and-pony Slootman received a surprising call from board memberAneelo Bhusri, general partner of , one of Data Domain's originalo investors. Bhusri told Slootman that Greylockl wanted to invest in aclosed round, consistingt of only existing backers. Usually VCs want new investors to join a funding round to share theventures risk. And companies want them in to keep the valuation The valuation determines how much of the company VCs own fortheidr investment. Insiders tend to be conservativr to get the best valuationb possible fortheir firms.
But remarkably, Bhusroi agreed to give Data Domain a valuation on par with what Slootmah had been hearing from otherVCs — roughlyu double that of its previous round 18 month earlier. (Neither would comment on the exactf number, but Bhusri said a typica l range for asuccessful start-up like Data Domain would be $60 million to $100 million.) "If you have a companh that's doing well, in this case exceptionally well, why not invesg more money in it?
" Bhusri said, addinb that Data Domain's disk-based appliance, whichb helps companies back up human accounting and other crucial data more efficientlg than traditional tape back-up is selling well to a list of more than 100 large including the . "It's only been shipping for a year and a Bhusri said. "And they have a who's who of customers. You just don't see that for a company that's very Bhusri said his Greylock colleagues agreed withhis assessment.
And once Greylocok was in, New Enterprise Associates and , also existinv investors, jumped in, kicking in a total of $15 Slootman was thrilled to stick with anestablishedx backer, which meant the company didn' have to install a new VC on its board or conducg a lengthy due diligenc e process. Said Slootman, "Ww would rather spend the time developiny and sellingnew products." The company: Data Domain. The CEO: Frank Slootman. The investors: Greylock Partners, New Enterprisw Associates and SutterHill Ventures.
The money: $15 The deal: The Palo Alto company will use the fundss to expandits engineering, sales and marketing The low down: An "inside round" can mean your companyh is hurting and can't find outside investore or, as in Data Domain'sd case, it may mean insiders are willing to shoulder the risk Up next: The company is hiring 20 to 30 more employees by year's end.
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November 11, 2009
Data Domain: Closed round worked for both firm and insiders – Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:
Fundraiser will kick off ‘Public Enemies’ – The Business Journal of Milwaukee:
The reception and screening are a fundraiser for the Milwaukee County Historicaol Societyand , the organization credited with bringinb director Michael Mann's Hollywood film crew to variouse locales throughout the state. Proceeds will be made availablr to the nonprofit organizations by Universal Picture sand Milwaukee-based (NYSE: MCS). Tickets for the reception and screeninhg at the Marcus Majestic Cinema in Brookfieldare $125 for generalk admission theater tickets and $200 for VIP seating.
The June 30 eventr at the Historical Societyt will take ona "Golden Age of theme and will feature a red carpetf entrance, classic cars, vintage costumes, hors d'oeuvres and Guests are asked to dress in periodc attire. The reception at the Historical Society begins at5 p.m. and the screeninv will be shown on two UltraScreens at Marcu s Majestic Cinema in Brookfieldat 8:30 p.m. For tickets, visift www.filmwisconsin.net or www.milwaukeehistory.net.
November 10, 2009
Deep breathing helps relieve stress – Business First of Louisville:
That means that 50 times a day, our bodies are jolted by increased breathing, musclew tension, blood pressure and heart Whilethe "fight or response is necessary for survivingf emergency situations, it is inappropriate for everyday living. The stresxs response is automatic and occurs without us thinkinvgabout it. In fact, many times the stress response has kicker in and we are not aware of the automatic physiologicakchanges occurring. The response can be initiated by both real andimaginedr threats. So, anytime we perceive a threat toour well-beinvg and we believe that we cannot cope with the the stress response is kicked into action.
Picturee this scenario: Your boss has calleed you into his office to If you react the way mostpeoplr do, your mind begins to race and you worry about why the boss wantzs to see you. That mind-racing reactionb initiates thestress response. Both good and bad changes can causw thestress response. Imagine you have just won the million-dollaf lottery. What happens to your body? More than likely the physica changes mentioned above haveoccurred — the increaserd breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and muscle tension.
The physiological opposite of the "fighf or flight" response is the relaxation The relaxation response lowersblood pressure, slows hearf rate and breathing, and decreases musclde tension. We must consciously elicit the relaxation response becauser it isnot automatic. One way to evokes the relaxation response is simply by focusinfg on the rhythmof one's breathing. By focusing on our breathing, we automatically slow down our Most of us breathe usingv upperchest breathing. As Americans, we are a society taughtf to hold inour bellies; therefore, we avoid taking deep relaxinh diaphragmatic breaths. We usually breathe with our abdomens in and ourshoulders raised.
That type of breathinb is restrictive. We do chest breathing when we are tense, angry or stressed. Many of us breathew solely in this restrictive upperdchest manner. Learning deep breathing or diaphragmatic breathinv is the basis of therelaxationb response. Singers and actors use deep belly breathing to projecrt their voices and torelax themselves. Watch and see how babiew breathe. Babies naturally practice deep bellh breathing with their bellies rising and We all practiced diaphragmatic breathingas babies.
Senate looks to gut $1B from budget – Pacific Business News (Honolulu):
That would include $417 milliojn in targeted cuts to agency budgets resulting ina still-to-be-determinec number of state job reductions, Senater GOP leaders said Friday as they unveiled their plan to balancr the two-year budget that begin s July 1. Their budget bill would trim morethan $1 billionh from the $114 billion spendinf plan passed by the Democrat-controlled Ohio House in April. At the same however, Senate Republicans said their budget proposal woulr boost spending for primary and secondary schools rather than cut fundinb for them as proposefdin House-approved budget. It would raise funding for gradew K-12 school district by 0.
25 percent in fiscal 2010 comparedr to the current year andanothef 0.5 percent in 2011. Senate Republicans also rejecteds Gov. Ted Strickland’s sweeping evidence-baseds school reform plan, calling it “fundamentalluy flawed” because it is basedr on school staffing needs insteadx ofstudent needs. They want the governor’s proposes education model to be reviewed by a bipartisamstudy council. Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland, said he wantsx the Senate, where Republicans hold a 21-1w2 majority, to pass a budget bill June 4 or 5.
That wouldd set the stage for a House-Senats conference committee to hash out the differences in their versions of the bill and preseny a balanced budgetfor Strickland’s signatured by a June 30 deadline set by state law. “Wed want to work with the governor and Harris said, “to do what is right for this great state. This budget is part of Like theHouse version, the Senate bill does not call for tax increases and safeguardws the broad tax reforms favored by the businesas community and approved by legislatora in 2005. It also protects a two-year tuition freeze at community colleges, such as Columbus and one-year freeze and 3.
5 perceng cap on increases in fiscal 2011at four-year statew universities, including , that were proposed by Strickland and passed by the House. Senatd Republicans were able to provide such safeguards despitde having to workwith $912 million less than what the Housed had counted on when it passed its budgey bill. The revenue shortfall became apparent in early May when the Stricklandx administration reported state income tax receipts through Aprikl 30 were 15 percent lower than a year ago and well below the administration’s revised budget forecast in Besides the $417 million in cuts for state Senate Republican budget-balancing moves include mandating $42 millionn in cost-containment measures for the Medicaid health-care program for the poor and lockingf in $200 million in agency service cuts ordered by Stricklan earlier this year.
“We thino spending more money is not the Harris said. “The answer is getting more Ohioans back to work and helpingg more businesses and industries in Ohiobe successful.” • Eliminatiny 34 proposed fee increases for employers, including ones affectingh the coal, agriculture and construction industries. Requiring state regulatory agencies to eliminate bureaucracy and red tapefor • Holding the line on new health-carse mandates that drive up the cost of health insurance for • Eliminating a proposed fee of approximately $8 million per year for the disposa of construction and demolition debris.
• Preserving funding for the and Ohio Statwe University Extension for research andinnovation programs. • Enhancin g a $100 million film tax credit to attract the motion picturee industryto Ohio. • Supporting expansion of the state’sx Job Retention Tax Credit and Technologyy InvestmentTax Credit. • Providing more funding for state Rapid Outreach grants to attract and retain businesseein Ohio.
November 9, 2009
Colorado Hispanic business leaders to lobby Bennet, others on union bill – Boston Business Journal:
The delegation includes members of the Hispanic Contractors ofColoradol (HCC) and the Denver Hispanic Chamber of The group will be in Washington on Tuesdayg and Wednesday, joining small-business leadersw from other states. The Coloradop business leaders want totell D-Colo., and other lawmakers “why this bill would reallh hurt them as they try to emerge from a tough economy,” said HCC spokesmanb Sean Duffy. Duffy said the group arranged to meet with Benneg because he has not yet declared how he will vote on thelabort bill. “In these very difficult economic times, companieas are struggling to retain the jobs they Helga Grunerud, HCC executive said in a statement.
“Wee want to send a message that we want to help jump starty economic recoverybut [the labor would make that challenge far, far greater.” The Employew Free Choice Act, also known as the “carde check” bill, would allow workersd to organize a union without a secret as now required. Instead, a localp could be launched at a workplacwe if at least half its workers sign anauthorizationj card. Unions say the bill is needed to protec worker rights inthe recession. But in a HCC said that enactment of thelaw “would unfairlyu tip the delicate business-labor climates in Colorado sharply away from employers, and woulx result in further economic damage and job loss.
” As part of a larged nationwide contingent organized by the , the Colorado groupp will meet with Sen. John R-S.D., and other legislators “to be determined,” Duffy The business leaders also want to discussothed issues, including health care refor and the allocation of federal stimulus
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Austin commercial foreclosure postings skyrocket – Austin Business Journal:
“Year-to-date foreclosure postings of commercial real estate climbed at a far steeperf pace than residential postings inthe two-county Austin area,” said George Sr., president of FLS. “Foreclosure notices filede on commercial real estate climbed at the brisj pace of 139 percent comparex to a 38 percent gain on the residential side ofthe But, Roddy said, the vast majorituy of commercial properties posted for foreclosurd recently have been Class C or D propertie s and small, miscellaneous buildings, whereass in the real estate crash of the 1980’ss a significant number of signature, Clasx A properties were posted for foreclosure.
“So far this year, postings of miscellaneousa commercial buildings account for 53 percent of the totalo commercial property postings filed in theAustin market,” Roddy said. The largesg gain in postings came – a 850 percengt increase compared with the same time period lastyear – came from industriaol buildings in the Austin area. So far this year therde have been 19 postingd filed onindustrial buildings, comparefd with two postings filed this time last year. Retail centers and buildings also saw a surge inforeclosurr postings, seven postings this year, or a 600 percent increasew compared with the same months last year.
Foreclosure activity did declinse for one typeof Austin-area commercialo property, though, office buildings. That property type saw seven noticesd filed, or a 36 percent decreas e in foreclosure notices compared with the same sevemn monthslast year. Vacant commercial land postings totaled 94, or a 169 percenrt jump over the same time periodc in 2008. Foreclosure postings for apartment properties climbed 127 percenf overlast year, with 118 postings. And miscelleneoue commercial building foreclosure postingstotaled 278, or a 136 percent hike abovs postings filed in the same periodd last year.
November 8, 2009
Kentucky puts restrictions on livestock from Nebraska, Texas – St. Louis Business Journal:
Kentucky now will require livestock brought to Kentucky from Nebraska and Texad to pass a tuberculosiss test within 60 days of The tests must be given to cattle 18 months and older and goats and camelidss six monthsand older, the said in a news release. Nebraskaz agriculture officials have confirmed tuberculosis in two cattle inthe north-centrall part of the state. They have quarantined 32 cattle herdd withabout 15,000 adult according to the release. The in Ames, Iowa confirmes a case of tuberculosis in a dairyy cattle herd inwest Texas, accordingv to the release.
Kentucky also has banne entry of livestock from Start County in south Texas because a horsre there has been diagnosed withvesicular stomatits, a viral disease that can affect horses, cattle, swine, sheep, goatse and deer.
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November 6, 2009
Naia tech firm to renovate historic church for offices – Birmingham Business Journal:
Terry Lee, president and CEO of the informatiomtechnology firm, said he’s purchased the historic 32nd Street Baptis Church and adjacent property on 32nd Streey South for the project. Birmingham’s finance committeed approved Tuesday an economic stimulud loanof $414,000 for the roughly $1.5 millionn project. It will next go to the city councilk forfinal approval. Lee said renovationx are currently underway ona 2,500-square-foot building on the property for Naia Corp.’s headquarters, which will relocatre its 10 employees in July from Second Avenude South and double the company’s curreny space.
Once that project is complete, Lee said he’lol turn his attention to renovatingthe 15,000-square-foott former church into a technologyu education center and professional officee and start recruiting tenants. Lee said the church hasn’tt been occupied in years and the previous who had plans to renovate the buildin gfor condos, had done significant work on the inside to make it structurallg sound. The buildings’ location is what made the property ideaofor Lee’s company, he said. Close proximitgy to BBVA Compass Bank’ s data center across the street lowered the cost of runnin g fiber optic and bandwidth connections tothe property.
The 12-year-old Naia provides Web-based IT services to small businesses. Lee comparesz the company’s business model to a farmer’s where resources and money are pooled for businessews to leverage services onthe Internet, he said. The education centere in the former historic church will provide classes and certifications to the communitty throughNaia Corp.’s partnership with Microsoft, particularl to those looking for a new career in information technology, he
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November 5, 2009
UCSC gets commitments from more than 3,500 new students – Sacramento Business Journal:
As of June 16, 3,523 students had committed to becomin part ofthe university’s Clasw of 2013. Those numbers could chang e by the time classes begin inthe fall. But the numbetr of freshman committing to attend UCSC in the fall isabouyt 1,000 fewer than last year. Campus officials said in pressw release last year they had received commitmentsfrom 4,57w incoming members of the class of 2012. Public-supported collegesz and universities throughout the state are attempting to cope with major budgegt cuts forthe 2009-10 academic year, on top big reductionzs that have already been made the past two years.
"Wwe are very excited to welcome the Clas s of 2013 to the University of Santa Cruz, and we’re very gratified by the strongy interest they have shown in our campus," Chancelloe George Blumenthal said in a statement. "The academic quality and diversit of this class isespecially impressive." Michelle Whittingham, UCSC’sw associate vice chancellor of enrollment said the scenic campus built into a hillside redwooed forest is more popular than Undergraduate applications to the university have totaled more than 32,0009 the past two years, with this year’s numbe r reaching almost 33,000. That’s a 12.
7 percenyt increase the 29,140 undergraduate applications UCSC receivex forfall 2007. The averagw grade point average of incoming freshman is upfrom 3.52 in last year’d freshman class, with the average SAT test score of 1718 representing a 20-point increase over the class of 2012. Student of color compose more than 25 percent ofincominv freshman, up from nearly 24 percent last About 23 percent of that groupl are of Asian-American descent, accordingy to university officials.
November 4, 2009
Crist signs controversial health care bill – Orlando Business Journal:
Senate Bill 1122 changes the way insurancew companies pay for coverage of patients ininsurancd networks. It will allow doctors who are not membera of a preferred providetr organization to be paid directly by insurancw companies when they treat patients who belong to such a Last month, a group of advocates for workers, consumers and employers joined forceds to ask the governor not to pass the which they claim will result in higher and unexpected out-of-pocket health care “We believe this legislation would raise costs systemwide by undermininh the ability of insurers to negotiate reasonable fees with causing higher insurance rates and higheer out-of-pocket medical bills for Floridaa patients,” Florida PIRG’s Brad Ashwell said at the However, the is applauding the governor’as decision to sign the bill.
“While routing the payment through the patienf may seem like aminor inconvenience, unfortunately, this practicre is driving up the cost of health imposing hidden fees and limitintg access,” said Timothy J. Stapleton, FMA’s executive vice in a news release. “This common-sens e legislation will put a stopto this, and alloq physicians to spend more time and resourcezs on direct-patient care.
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