Immigration Roundtable Event

Join us today - Monday, January 26^th  - for two events with Ali Noorani, National Director of Immigration Forum

and

Michelle Warren, Regional Director of the Bibles, Badges, and Business Network.

10:00AM at the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce on University and Arapahoe.

2:00 PM at the Aurora Chamber of Commerce

You don’t even have to leave your desk to attend. ICOSA Media will provide a live stream presentation of our press conference at 1:30 on Monday afternoon. You can find the video streaming below:

Connect & Collaborate - Reforming Immigration & Workplace Culture

The Colorado Business Roundtable is instrumental in bringing businesses and individuals together to work on issues that matter for our city, our state and the world. This week, we have two great guests.

First, is Michelle Warren, Mountain West Consultant for Bibles Badges Business Network for the National Immigration Forum. Together we discuss the aspects of community that come together to promote effective immigration reform. Bibles, represents the church communities, who know some immigrant struggles first-hand. Badges, refers to law enforcement, who have a special perspective, seeing the impact of families separated by immigration laws. Business weighs in with views from employment law and workforce issues.

For more information on immigration reform, join the COBRT for a special roundtable event Monday, January 26^th for two events with Ali Noorani, National Director of the Immigration Forum

10:00AM at the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce on University and Arapahoe.

2:00 PM at the Aurora Chamber of Commerce

ICOSA Media will provide a live stream presentation of our press conference at 1:30 on Monday afternoon. Just go to www.ICOSAMedia.com to access the live stream window.

Stay for the final segment for our second guest, as Vistage Chair, Pat Maley introduces us to Gustavo Grodnitzky, speaker and author of "Climate Trumps Everything". Gustavo is an expert on integrating different generations in the workforce, what motivates them and how to best facilitate four generations working together.

Listen as Gustavo explains the generational differences, and how to understand the factors to recruit and retrain Generation Y employees, and create one culture for every generation. Listen Saturday at 1:00 PM on 710 KNUS –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

Google to Invest $1 Billion in SpaceX

Google is in the final stages of investing in SpaceX to create an internet-beaming satellite constellation, as first reported by The Information. While the deal is still in the works, the apparent aim is to support the development of SpaceX satellites that will beam low-cost Internet around the globe --- connecting billions more people.

"The price and terms Google and SpaceX are discussing couldn’t be learned although one person familiar with them said Google has agreed to value SpaceX north of $10 billion and that the size of the total round, which includes other investors, is very large." writes Jessica E. Lessin

While SpaceX continually makes headline with its bold advancements, they have not taken on a big primary round of investment in many years. SpaceX’s current investors include Founders Fund, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Valor Equity Partners.

Elon Musk spoke about SpaceX's plans for the satellite-enabled Internet system last week in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek , which described the program as "hugely ambitious."

Hundreds of satellites would orbit about 750 miles above earth, much closer than traditional communications satellites in geosynchronous orbit at altitudes of up to 22,000 miles. The lower satellites would make for a speedier Internet service, with less distance for electromagnetic signals to travel. The lag in current satellite systems makes applications such as Skype, online gaming, and other cloud-based services tough to use. Musk’s service would, in theory, rival fiber optic cables on land while also making the Internet available to remote and poor regions that don’t have access.

Connect & Collaborate - DNA Crime Lab

One of the greatest examples of collaboration is evident in the cooperation between Denver's police investigators and the District Attorney's office, in the form of the DNA Crime Lab and Cold Case Project.  The success of the Cold Case project has formed over a number of years. DNA evidence first came about in the late 1980s and the admission of DNA evidence became widely accepted in the 90s. By the year 2000, a boost to technology brought about exponential demands on the the DNA lab due to their great success solving crimes.

When the DNA database was first introduced, after compiling and entering forensic evidence from years of cold case investigations, the first 100 hits they put in showed that 70 of the suspects who were tied to the old DNA were in prison for other crimes. This lead to the realization that cross-referencing the DNA from unsolved cases, to other felony crimes would be useful in solving cold cases. As Denver District Attorney, Mitch Morrissey emphasizes,  "These criminals don't stop until we stop them."

Denver Crime Lab Director, Greggory LaBerge developed a unique DNA training program for police investigators and district attorneys. As a result, he and Mitch Morrissey have taught the program to other jurisdictions, in the United States and abroad.

Join us for a conversation about how recent legislation requires those criminals, charged in felony cases, to register their DNA in the database to assist investigators in solving crimes. This is the most effective, and least expensive way to get rapists and murderers off the streets.

Listen Saturday at 1:00 PM on 710 KNUS –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

To Become a Billionaire, Help a Billion People

"Bold is a visionary roadmap for people who believe they can change the world"President Bill Clinton

In 2012, Dr. Peter Diamandis and Steven Kotler published their bestseller Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think. Standing out in stark contrast from the common theme of doom and gloom that was pervasive in the news and on bookshelves back then, Abundance provided a new perspective on the history and future of humanity and technological advancements.

Now Diamandis and Kotler have just announced their follow up book project, BOLD, as a practical guide for entrepreneurs and change makers. It's now available for pre-ordering.

"Abundance showed us where the world can be in 20 years. Bold is a roadmap for entrepreneurs to help us get there."

Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman, Google

In Abundance, four potent emerging forces are explored — exponential technologies, the DIY innovator, techno-philanthropists and the rising billion. These give us the opportunity to solve many of the world's grandest challenges and the potential to meet the needs of every man, woman and child over the next two to three decades.

In BOLD, a game plan is laid out for taking the the next steps. It's a highly practical playbook that arms today's entrepreneurs, activists and leaders with the tools they'll need to positively impact the lives of billions while making their biggest dreams come true.

BOLD unfolds in three parts. Part One focuses on the exponential technologies which are disrupting today's Fortune 500 companies and enabling upstart entrepreneurs to go from 'I've got an idea' to 'I run a billion-dollar company' far faster than ever before. With advice garnered from their own experience and hundreds of interviews with Silicon Valley elite, the authors provide exceptional insight into how anyone can harness the power of 3D printing, artificial intelligence, robotics, networks and sensors, and synthetic biology—the very technologies enabling today's entrepreneurs to tackle the kinds of enormous challenges that were once only possible for governments and major corporations. Part Two of the book focuses on Psychology of Bold—the mental toolkit that allows the world's top innovators to raise their game by thinking at scale, including detailed interviews with and lessons from Larry Page, Elon Musk, Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos. Also in Part Two, Kotler reveals the keys to ultimate human performance garnered from fifteen years of research with the Flow Genome Project and Diamandis reveals his entrepreneurial secrets garnered from building fifteen companies, including such audacious ventures as Singularity University, the XPRIZE, Planetary Resources (for the mining of near-Earth Asteroids) and Human Longevity, Inc. (focused on extending the healthy human life-span). Finally, BOLD closes with a look at the incredible power and essential best practices that allow anyone to leverage today's hyper-connected crowd like never before. Here, Diamandis and Kotler teach how to design and use incentive competitions to find breakthrough solutions, how to launch million-dollar crowdfunding campaigns to tap into ten's of billions of dollars of available capital, and finally how to build communities – armies of exponentially enabled individuals willing and able to help today's entrepreneurs make their boldest dreams come true.

BOLD: How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World is both a manifesto and a manual. It is today's exponential entrepreneur's go-to resource on the use of emerging technologies, thinking at scale, and the awesome power of crowd-powered tools like crowdfunding, crowdsourcing and incentive competitions. All around us, technology is democratizing the power to change the world, and BOLD spells out how anyone can spy the opportunities and put their vision into action, blazing a path from mind to market.

About the Book Cover The BOLD Book Cover show's the Earth being hit by an asteroid. What is the relevance of this image?

66 million years ago, dinosaurs were the uber-dominant species on Earth. But when an asteroid collided with our planet—unleashing everything from mega-tsunamis to global firestorms—these creatures were unable to adapt to the upheaval and instead went extinct.

For our species, this was very good news. While the dinosaurs were large, lumbering and inflexible, those early small, furry mammals—our ancestors—were far more nimble and resilient. They took opportunistic advantage of the radical changes sweeping the globe, adapted to their new environment, and never looked back.

In today's business world, this tale is especially relevant. Right now there is another asteroid impacting our world—it's called: “exponential technology.” And its awesome power is threatening a different breed of dinosaur—large and innovation-resistant companies. Yet there's a new breed of small, furry mammal starting to emerge. These mammals are today's exponential entrepreneurs—those using radically accelerating technologies to transform products, services and industries to pave the way for a world of abundance. Abundance

"If you read one business book in the 21st centry, this should be BOLD. It clearly explains how to change the world and overcome the age old afflictions of human civilization." Ray Kurzweil, inventor, author, a director of engineering at Google.

Jason Silva Video Review of Abundance

Job Openings at Highest Level in 14 years as U.S. Economic Growth Forecasts Become Brighter

U.S. economic growth forecasts have been upgraded to an expected 3.2% by the World Bank.  The full "Global Economic Prospects" report is available here:  http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/GEP/GEP2015a/pdfs/GEP15a_web_full.pdf

Employers are feeling confident about their future prospects and have advertised the most job openings in 14 years. Roughly 5 million positions were available at the end of November, according to the Jobs and Labor Turnover Survey released Tuesday by the Labor Department. That's a 2.9% increase from October and the highest level since January 2001.

"International Payments: "If We Sell to Mexico, How Will We Get Paid?"

Check, Wire transfer, Proforma invoice, Incoterm®

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The Company's First Export Sale

My business dinner guest sat on the board of directors for a company preparing for their first export sale. This new venture thrilled the gentleman as he anticipated the prospect of the company’s initial entry into Mexico. We discussed the benefits of the sale and examined some of the logistical details. Since he understood many of the twists and turns, he surprised me when he posed a basic question: “If we put the sale together, how will we get paid?”

Stunned and taken aback, I asked, “What do you mean, ‘How will we get paid?’ I would assume the buyer and seller have already agreed to the payment terms.”

Pesos or Dollars?

He replied, “I don’t know all the arrangements made by management. My basic question is: Will they pay us in pesos, or dollars? Will the payment arrive by a check or a wire transfer?”

Admittedly, as a board member, he would not necessarily concern himself with knowing all the details of the transaction and I do not intend to criticize him. However, it continues to amaze me how some companies naively decide to go global. We went back to basics as I explained how payments work and the importance of having their agreement stipulate the currency and the method of payment.

Use Contracts to Eliminate Surprises

A well-written agreement, such as a contract, or a proforma invoice, will avoid misunderstanding among all parties. It should clearly indicate key information including the intended method of payment, as well as merchandise description, pricing and shipping information, Incoterm®, etc., to eliminate surprises down the road.

SpaceX Successfully Supplies the Space Station

A much-needed shipment of groceries and other supplies, including belated Christmas presents, has finally arrived this morning at the International Space Station (ISS). SpaceX's supply ship pulled up at the ISS two days after its launch. Station commander Butch Wilmore used a robot arm to grab the capsule and its 5,000 pounds of cargo while they flew over the Mediterranean at an altitude of more than 260 miles.

The six astronauts aboard the station were getting a low on supplies because the previous supply ship — owned by Orbital Sciences Corporation — was destroyed in a launch explosion back in October.

Rocket science isn't easy, however, as SpaceX's Dragon itself was stalled nearly a month by technical issues. It was originally planned to arrive at the space station well before Christmas. Better late than never.

"We're excited to have it on board," Wilmore said. "We'll be digging in soon."

NASA is paying SpaceX and Orbital for shipments, though Orbital's rockets are grounded until next year because of the recent launch accident. SpaceX is working hard and picking up as much slack as it can to deliver the supplies the ISS needs. As the station is an international venture, Russia and Japan are also planing on sending up deliveries later this year.

In addition to the main resupply mission, SpaceX conducted an experiment in return-landing the 1st stage of the rocket safely aboard an autonomous ocean going vessel. SpaceX's team is still poring over data from Saturday's rocket-landing test.

SpaceX founder Elon Musk is optimistic that recovering and reusing rockets will lead to a dramatic reduction is the cost of spaceflight. He asks people to imagine how expensive air travel would be if you had to build a new airplane for every flight.

The "hypersonic fins" on the booster ran out of hydraulic fluid, however, right before touchdown, and the landing was too hard and broke into pieces.

Elon Musk was encouraged regardless and plans another rocket-landing test next month. He had gone into the experiment with an understanding that there was a 50 - 50 percent chance of success, according to a recent Reddit AMA.

Connect & Collaborate - Legislative Preview

Colorado's new legislative session began this week, on January 7th, after November elections brought on board a number of first-time legislators. To celebrate the efforts these leaders contribute to create and pass legislation that are good for local businesses, growing businesses - ICOSA teamed with the Colorado Business Roundtable to host a Legislative Reception at ICOSA studios. By bringing our state representatives together with business owners and entrepreneurs, they can work together to build relationships for advocacy through regulations and legislation that impact business.

Jeff Wasden and Emily Haggstrom, both of the COBRT join us for this episode. We'll talk with Beth McCann, representative from District 8 in Denver who focuses on tax credits to encourage development of renewable energy, as well as FDA recognition of bio-pharmaceuticals and development issues regarding the I-70 corridor, Globeville, and Swansea.

Then we have a pairing with Chris Holbert (R) District 44 Douglas county representing Parker, and newly-elected representative Terri Carver (R) District 20 from El Paso County. They plan to work on pro-business legislation, construction defects and more.

Finally we have a roundtable discussion with Yeulin Willet (R) District 54 representing Mesa and Delta counties, Kim Ransom (R) District 44 from Douglas county, and Kit Roupe (R) from Colorado Springs -- together, their interests focus on energy, economic issues, relieving burdens on business, and creating non-traditional education opportunities.

We at ICOSA along with the Colorado Business Roundtable believe in building relationships with our legislators, so we can all work together for the change we need.

Tune in for the full conversations this Saturday at 1:00 PM on 710 KNUS –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

Filling A Full Set

Letter Of Credit, Ocean Bills Of Lading, Full Set, Negotiable Bills Of Lading, Title, Carrier, Original Bills Of Lading, Issuing Bank, Collateral

WHAT IS A FULL SET OF OCEAN BILLS OF LADING?

Letters of credit often call for documents with interesting conditions, such as the presentation of a “full set of ocean bills of lading.” In order to present a full set of documents you must first know what comprises a full set.

First, let’s understand the why, not just the what. The carrier can issue an ocean bill of lading in “negotiable” form. The document itself conveys title of the goods which the carrier releases in exchange for surrender of the bill of lading. The carrier will release the goods only to the party who holds the original bill of lading. The buyer benefits because he may sell the goods while still in transit. In that case, the seller endorses the bill of lading to the new buyer, who then can claim the goods directly from the carrier. Years ago, someone asked the obvious question: “If the bill of lading is lost, how does the rightful owner receive the goods?”

A reasonable solution requires the carrier to issue more than one original bill of lading for a shipment. Then, if one of the originals is lost, one or more additional original bills of lading would still exist, for surrender in exchange for the goods. The carrier releases the goods to the first party who appears with an original bill of lading. At that moment all other original bills of lading become null and void.

Of course, the importance of knowing the location of all original documents at all times reduces risk. If an original bill of lading were lost, stolen or fell into wrong hands, the carrier could release the merchandise to the wrong party, since whoever holds the negotiable bill of lading has rightful title to the goods.

HOW MANY ORIGINAL BILLS OF LADING?

How does one know how many originals the shipping company has issued? The bill of lading itself will contain a statement similar to the following: “In witness whereof, the Master or Agent of said vessel has affirmed to three Bills of Lading all of this tenor and date, one of which being accomplished the others to stand void.” This wording usually appears in the lower right hand corner box on the document. The word “three” indicates the number of identical original documents issued for that particular shipment. It should be noted that the carrier may, on occasion, issue originals in any other number, such as one, two or four, etc.

When the exporter delivers the goods to the carrier, the carrier issues the original documents and gives all of them to the exporter. The exporter then, still has control and the title to the goods. If the exporter presents only two of three bills of lading to the bank, the bank will ask, “Where is the third original?” Since an unaccounted for original could find its way into the wrong hands, the exporter must deliver all the originals to the bank, to provide maximum protection for the buyer.

From that point on, the documents move in banking channels, ultimately received by the bank that issued the letter of credit. The issuing bank will honor the letter of credit and make payment only if they receive all originals as required by the terms of the letter of credit. This appropriately protects the interest of the buyer to ensure he has control of the title to the goods. It also protects the issuing bank in the event the buyer defaults. The bank may retain title to the goods as collateral to cover any losses.

LESS THAN A FULL SET - BE CAREFUL!

In recent years a common practice emerged when importers started to request letters of credit payable against “2/3 set of bill of ladings.” They also request a statement that the exporter has sent 1/3 set directly to the importer. This allows the importer to receive an original in advance of the bank. The buyer benefits because he can arrange customs clearance without waiting for the bank to receive and examine the documents. Surprisingly, some exporters accept this condition. It allows the importer to receive the goods, a risk if the bank refuses to honor the documents for any reason. In that case, the exporter has surrendered title to the goods and has also lost the guarantee of payment.
One final interesting note: When an exporter presents all originals to its bank, that bank sends them to the issuing bank as already stated. For best protection, banks should send documents in different courier pouches at different time intervals. In actual practice today, they send the documents in one package. If that package becomes lost, it has the same consequences as if they had only one document. This, of course, defeats the whole purpose of issuing multiple documents. Since such losses rarely occur, banks take the risk. Even if the package becomes lost, the shipping company can issue replacement documents, given the ease of issuing documents in today’s electronic environment.

International CES 2015 Focuses on Internet of Things

The International Consumer Electronics Show is the world's largest stage for presenting the latest in consumer technology. It's an exciting time, and it's all happening this week. The trade show, hosted every year in Las Vegas, is an important indication of what's coming up and what's going to be big in the near future.

This year, the Internet of Things (IoT) is taking center stage with more than 900 exhibitors sharing their products, services, and technologies that connect everyday devices to the network.

“The ‘Internet of Things’ is the hottest topic in tech right now,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, International CES and corporate business strategy, CEA.

She continues by saying, “It’s all about the opportunity to connect everyday items  like cars, home security systems and kitchen appliances to networked devices like PCs and smartphones for greater control and management of our everyday lives. We’re excited that the 2015 CES will bring together all of the companies and products that are making this a reality.”

The IoT, while less flashy than a new TV model, is more important because it is all about creating an infrastructure. Building upon this nascent infrastructure will be many new startups and products from existing companies. Some will flop, while others will change the world in which we live.

The Sensors Marketplace will highlight one of the key technologies that is enabling the growth of the IoT movement. Some exhibitors participating in the marketplace include eyeSight Mobile Technologies, Logbar and QuickLogic Corp. In addition, the Smart Home Marketplace will showcase a smarter, more efficient home accelerated by smartphones and tablets interacting with a myriad of connected objects and devices, from basic security systems to connected lighting systems. Some of the 2015 CES exhibitors expected to showcase IoT technologies include Bosch, Lowe’s, Konnect Labs, iDevices, Muzzley and Blinksight among many others.

2015 CES keynoters Boo-Keun Yoon, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., and Brian Krzanich, CEO of Intel Corp., are expected to share their insights on IoT innovations.

Other CES conference programming will also explore the future of this trend with the following sessions:

Privacy and the IoT: Navigating Policy Issues

The Impact of the Internet of Things

The State of the Internet of Things

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Another interesting highlight of the CES is the second year of Gary's Book Club, showcasing the works of prominent, thought-leading authors in the tech industry.

(Gary Shapiro is the president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association)

Books to be featured this year include:

Shawn DuBravac, Ph.D

Digital Destiny: How the New Age of Data Will Transform the Way We Work, Live, and Communicate

What happens when everything is digital? In this provocative new book from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), host of the International CES, CEA’s chief economist and lead technologist, Dr. DuBravac, has a straightforward answer: Everything will change. Most people perceive the digital age as simply the accumulation of sleeker and more powerful gadgets. But our understanding of the digital age is narrow, because we are still in its infancy. This book explains that the world’s mass adoption of digital technologies portends the beginning of a new era for humanity, one that will rival the invention of the printing press for its transformational effects on every person, country and institution in the world. From driverless cars to automated homes to personalized healthcare, digital data will usher in a new phase of living for every person on the planet.

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Andrew Keen The Internet is Not the Answer

The Internet, created during the Cold War, has now ushered in one of the greatest shifts in society since the Industrial Revolution. There are many positive ways in which the Internet has contributed to the world, but as a society we are less aware of the Internet’s deeply negative effects on our psychology, economy, and culture. In The Internet Is Not the Answer, Andrew Keen, a twenty-year veteran of the tech industry, traces the technological and economic history of the Internet from its founding in the 1960s through the rise of the big data companies to the increasing attempts to monetize almost every human activity, and investigates how the Internet is reconfiguring our world—often at great cost. In this sharp, witty narrative, informed by the work of other writers, academics, and reporters, as well as his own wide-ranging research and interviews, Keen shows us the tech world, warts and all, and investigates what we can do to make sure the choices we make about the reconfiguring of our society do not lead to unpleasant unforeseen aftershocks.

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Peter Nowak Humans 3.0 -The Upgrading of the Species

Our species is entering a new era. We’re now applying the latest technology to our own biology, and it is becoming part of our environment. But is that a good thing? Not if media scares about government spying, limitless automation, and electronic addictions are to be believed. Veteran journalist Peter Nowak looks at what it means to be human—from the relationships we form to the jobs we do and the things we believe—and measures the impact of these innovations. Humans 3.0 shows not only how technology is propelling us into a new epoch, but also how it is improving us in the process.

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Frank Gruber Startup Mixology

Entrepreneurship starts with an idea and a dream. Startup Mixology is first and foremost a book about turning your ideas into action. From the cofounder of Tech Cocktail, a veteran entrepreneur and investor who was named one of the most connected people in tech, this book covers the basic "ingredients" of winning entrepreneurship. Author Frank Gruber shows you how to tackle everything from idea generation to launch to marketing to funding and how to start getting things done. Inside, you'll find the stories of companies like MakerBot, WordPress, Zappos, Basecamp, Uber, and more.

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Patrick Stroh Business Strategy; Plan, Execute, Win!

Embrace strategies for improving your business and reaching your organization's goals

"I wholeheartedly agree with Patrick Stroh: Good leaders understand strategy and good strategists need to be good leaders. Make this book a strategic tool for improving your business strategy." — Harvey Mackay, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Swim With The Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive

In today's fast-moving and competitive business environment, strong leadership, insightful strategy, and effective innovation are critical links to staying ahead of your competition. Getting your business house in order can often be complicated, but does it really have to be? How do you take MBA 101 lessons, great models, and exceptional concepts and put them into play in the real world? Business Strategy: Plan, Execute, Win! strives to answers these questions in an educational and entertaining format. Working as a Fortune 20 practitioner with C-level executives, author Patrick Stroh has a keen understanding of the role played by current day strategists.

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Paul Paetz Disruption by Design: How to Create Products That Disrupt and Then Dominate Markets 

No business buzzword is more frequently discussed or misused than "disruptive innovation". Yet despite widespread misunderstanding, the impact remains great. Disruptive innovators change the competitive playing field, often capturing 40 to 80% of total market revenue and half or more of total profits in categories they create. Unfortunately, only a small fraction of potential disruptors ever succeed, often by accident. It doesn't have to be that way. For the first time, disruption theory is de-mystified into a practical step-by-step guidebook that walks you through creating a disruptive business strategy and putting it into practice. Written for entrepreneurs, CEOs, and product developers, Disruption by Design teaches invaluable how-to insights learned from successful disruptors, and from innovators who could have disrupted, but failed.

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Scott Steinberg Make Change Work for You

Business, culture, and competitive landscapes have fundamentally changed, but basic principles and best practices for succeeding and future-proofing both yourself and your organization haven't. With a mix of compelling stories, research from the social sciences and psychology, and real-world insights, Make Change Work for You shows how to reignite your career, rekindle creativity, and fearlessly innovate your way to success by providing the tools needed to conquer every challenge in life or business. Readers will discover how to develop the vital skills required to triumph in the “new normal” by understanding and engaging in the 10 new habits that highly successful people share.

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Barry Wacksman Chris Stutzman Connected by Design

The twin goals of growth and competitive advantage are proving difficult to attain in a world of fierce global competition and rapid technological change. Traditional strategies for gaining market share no longer yield the returns they once did. How can companies drive consumer preference and secure sustainable growth in this digital, social, and mobile age? The answer is through functional integration. Connected By Design is the first book to show business leaders and marketers exactly how to use functional integration to achieve transformative growth within any type of company. Based on R/GA’s pioneering work with firms like Nike, McCormick and L’Oreal, Barry Wacksman and Chris Stutzman identify seven principles companies must follow in order to create and deliver new value for customers and capture new revenues in the design and operation of functionally integrated ecosystems.

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Nicole Gallucci Adversperience ~ The Convergence of Advertising & Experiential Marketing

Adversperience is a word and world of her own creation, speaking to the convergence of advertising and experiential marketing. Its Nicole’s take on how brands can relevantly touch consumer senses, engage target audiences, get noticed and win in this era of distraction, mass proliferation and global connection. The book focuses on the pre-event (AWARENESS), the event (ENGAGEMENT) and post event (SHARING). An Adversperience speaks to the physiological impact that occurs when consumers have a relevant personal experience in the context of a brand experience. The two become inextricably linked and part of the consumer’s very being. Once something is experienced it cannot be unexperienced.

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Alexis Ohanian  Without Their Permission: How the 21st Century Will Be Made, Not Managed

As Alexis Ohanian learned when he helped to co-found the immensely popular reddit.com, the internet is the most powerful and democratic tool for disseminating information in human history. And when that power is harnessed to create new communities, technologies, businesses or charities, the results can be absolutely stunning.

In this book, Alexis will share his ideas and tips about harnessing the power of the web for good, and along the way, he will share his philosophy with young entrepreneurs all over the globe.

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Aneesh Chopra INNOVATIVE STATE: How New Technologies Can Transform Government

With INNOVATIVE STATE: How New Technologies Can Transform Government, Aneesh Chopra, the country’s first Chief Technology Officer, provides an essential guide for how we can create a government that is more transparent, participatory, and collaborative, one that harnesses the full potential of today’s technologies and is defined not by its size but by its smarts.

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Anna van Slee & Carolyn Chandler  Adventures in Experience Design

In today’s mobile, global, 24/7 content world, consumers expect products, services and experiences that are personalized and intuitive. They expect good design. You don’t need to be a whiz with code or a Photoshop ace, but design thinking has become an essential skill set for everyone. Adventures in Experience Design is an activity book that interactively teaches experience design through games, pithy lessons and other delightful exercises. With Adventures, you will create a product from scratch (or innovate on your existing one!) and get an introduction to design methodology in the process.

Connect & Collaborate - New Visions

We at ICOSA plan to elaborate upon our partnership with the Colorado Business Roundtable in the coming year. You'll hear more  about COBRT events and endeavors along with more great guests in the form of business leaders. On this first broadcast of the new year, we'll start off with ICOSA president, Gayle Dendinger, and Jeff Wasden, president of the Colorado Business Roundtable discussing the advantages of working together, and what it means to you as a listener. In the coming weeks, we will explain more about the partnership and how you can get involved.

We also have a great line-up of guests, including Giovanni Tomaselli, CEO of iON America, Jim Salestrom tells us about Ski for Light, an organization close to his heart, and Major Mom, Angela Cody-Rouget tells us about her move from the military to building her own business.

iON America creates consumer video products like the iON Speed Pro wearable camera. These cameras first hit the market to record and share action sports from the point of view of the athlete. Giovanni tells us sharing previously recorded material is so 2014... this year, expect to share your moments live, as they happen!

Ski for Light celebrates 40 years of introducing the blind and people with other physical challenges to the sport of skiing. Ski for Light International week will be held in Granby, Colorado from Sunday January 25 through Sunday February 1, 2015. We will stay at The Inn at Silver Creek and ski at nearby Snow Mountain Ranch.

Volunteers guide blind skiers with verbal cues, building a bond of trust while enjoying one another's company and the beautiful outdoors. You can volunteer by contacting Skiforlight.org.

Motherhood for one military mom meant the military was no longer for her. Angela Cody-Rouget gave up her Air Force Commission to be a stay-at-home mom, and work with her husband's real estate appraisal business, right up until the bottom dropped out of the market and she had to find a job that would accommodate her life at home with the kids. Listen in to find out how she created Major Mom - a professional organizing service that helps other moms, and employs women in four states.

Listen Saturday at 1:00 PM on KNUS 710 –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

U.S. & China Cooperating on Trade Issues (Mostly)

Cooperation on export controls tops a long list of recent outcomes achieved at the 25th U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT). While encouraging overall, this and other reports also highlight areas in need of improvement.

“This dialogue comes at an important time for the two largest economies in the world who share an enormous stake in the global trade and investment system,” says U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman.

Having recently taken place in Chicago, both sides are speaking highly of the outcomes of the JCCT, such as those on medical devices, pharmaceutical access and agricultural biotechnology. The newly released fact sheet (embedded below) also offers greater detail into the Chinese efforts to import deep-water oil & gas exploration equipment from the U.S.

While potentially under export controls, the U.S. side of the High Technology and Strategic Trade Working Group (HTWG) says it will “actively review” individual cases for civilian high-technology items, such as deep-water oil and gas exploration equipment, an issue which the Chinese side raised in the HTWG meeting. The U.S. side committed to provide “timely feedback upon receipt of necessary and sufficient information.”

Remaining disagreement often revolve around intellectual property. While the majority of IP issues pertain to U.S. concerns about China's intellectual property rights regime, China was concerned that the U.S. fairly take into account information it receives from China about its efforts.

U.S. trade officials, congressional researchers and industry stakeholders have described Chinese progress on IPR issues as incremental, invariably adding that much more needs to be done. The U.S. committed “to consider and pursue additional steps as appropriate to enhance the transparency, objectivity, and fairness” of the reports, pledging to “recognize the efforts made and results achieved by foreign governments and entities.”

Other Outcome Areas Include:

•  U.S. transport aircraft bilateral airworthiness expansion;
•  Chinese enterprises participation in U.S. public-private partnership projects;
•  competition policy;
•  visas;
•  cargo airlines co-terminalization;
•  data on trade in fish products;
•  trade related to illegal logging;
•  railway locomotive vehicle import certification;
•  government procurement;
•  access to the Chinese legal services market;
•  Chinese investment in U.S. legal services market;
•  cooperation in promotion of trade in services;
•  cooperation on climate change and clean energy;
•  criminal law enforcement cooperation on intellectual property;
•  food and drug safety inspections;
•  legal exchanges;
•  administrative law issues; and
•  engagement on judicial best practices.

Click here to see the full U.S. fact sheet

CRS Report

In related news, the Congressional Research Service Dec. 19 released a report on “China-U.S. Trade Issues” by Wayne Morrison, a specialist in Asian trade and finance.

The report updates previous reports to include the outcomes of the latest JCCT as reflected in a Dec. 19 Commerce Department fact sheet.

It highlights that China stated that it would approve the importation of new biotechnology varieties of U.S. soybeans and corn and improve trademark protection for certain agricultural products; amend its trade secrets law and increase cooperation with the U.S. on enhancing sales of legitimate U.S. intellectual property-intensive goods and services in China; streamline China's processes and cut red tape for imports of pharmaceuticals and medical devices; and make improvements to its competition enforcement policies by improving transparency and ensuring equal treatment for foreign firms in anti-monopoly investigations with Chinese firms.

USTR Report

Also just released is the U.S. Trade Representative's final report to congress on China's compliance with its World Trade Organization commitments.

The USTR finds several areas where China is lagging in its commitments: intellectual property rights (IPR) enforcement, supporting state-owned enterprises, homegrown innovation policies, technology transfer initiatives, export restraints, investment restrictions and agricultural policies blocking U.S. market access.

The USTR also found China to be inappropriately using antimonopoly and trade remedy laws. Additionally they say there remains transparency issues and “slow movement” toward accession to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.

“Going forward,” the report said, “the United States looks to China to reduce market access barriers, uniformly follow the fundamental principles of non-discrimination and transparency, significantly reduce the level of government intervention in the economy, fully institutionalize market mechanisms, require state-owned enterprises to compete with other enterprises on fair and non-discriminatory terms, and fully embrace the rule of law.”

These steps are considered “critical to realizing the tremendous potential presented by China's WTO membership.”

SpaceX to Boldly Attempt Falcon 9 Rocket Landing

As if launching something into space wasn't challenging enough, SpaceX is now about to try to do the reverse process - landing a rocket so that it can be used again. Elon Musk wants to land a Falcon 9 on a small platform in the Atlantic Ocean. The bold experiment, scheduled for launching next week, is a calculated move towards reducing the high costs of space exploration. The company admits that "The odds of success are not great -- perhaps 50% at best.  This test represents the first in a series of similar tests that will ultimately deliver a fully reusable Falcon 9 first stage."

Since the Falcon 9 is roughly 14 stories tall, trying to control the rocket's re-entry would be "like trying to balance a rubber broomstick on your hand in the middle of a wind storm." SpaceX said.  SpaceX is targeting a landing accuracy of within 10 meters.

"A fully and rapidly reusable rocket -- which has never been done before -- is the pivotal breakthrough needed to substantially reduce the cost of space access," SpaceX said on its website. "While most rockets are designed to burn up on re-entry, SpaceX is building rockets that not only withstand re-entry, but also land safely on Earth to be refueled and fly again."

If SpaceX can successfully land the rocket, it will have developed a way to reuse rockets in subsequent flights, drastically reducing waste and the overall cost of space exploration. This is in stark contrast with the current status quo model where rockets spend their fuel and subsequently crash into the sea as garbage.

 For years, Musk, who is also the chief executive of Tesla Motors, has been working on a way to land and reuse rockets. In two previous launches this year, the company completed soft landings in the ocean that hovered over the water before toppling over.

“If one can figure out how to effectively reuse rockets just like airplanes, the cost of access to space will be reduced by as much as a factor of a hundred.  A fully reusable vehicle has never been done before. That really is the fundamental breakthrough needed to revolutionize access to space.”

--Elon Musk

The Falcon 9 flight was originally scheduled to launch in December but was delayed after a test firing of the rocket engines did not go precisely as planned. The company conducted additional tests last week that were successful. Jan. 7 is the backup date should the scheduled Jan. 6 launch get pushed back.

Earlier this year, SpaceX, along with Boeing, won a NASA contract to fly astronauts to the International Space Station.

Read more at spacex.com

Panasonic to Bring Engineering Jobs to Colorado

Panasonic Enterprise Solutions announced it is building a new technology center and business solutions hub near Denver International Airport, bringing more than 330 jobs to the city. Mayor Michael Hancock calls this a "first win" for the Denver Aerotropolis.  He also says it is "the catalytic opportunity we have been waiting for."

The new facility will be part of Peña Boulevard Station, a 400-acre transit-oriented development at East 61st Avenue and Peña Boulevard, where a commuter rail line is expected to open in 2016.

Panasonic's project is also expected to be completed in summer 2016.

The location will house Panasonic's Eco Solutions line, which installs large-scale solar systems and includes a battery storage and testing facility

The company's rapidly growing audio-visual solutions business, best known for the large video screens and scoreboards at sporting and entertainment venues, also will be based here.

That means many of the expected jobs, which are concentrated in professional services and manufacturing, could end up as local hires. "We will need a lot of engineers," Doyle said.

Export Assistance: Lessons from a Lap Counter

Incoterms®, freight forwarder, USEAC, World Trade Center, International Chamber of Commerce

Evaluate Export Readiness

A young entrepreneur invented a new type of a lap counter, used for counting laps in swimming pools. He possessed obvious inventive and technical skills, and his unbridled enthusiasm more than compensated for his lack of marketing skills.

Promotion and launch of the product included displaying it at a trade show in Atlanta. An unexpected visitor appeared at his booth. The German visitor, immediately awed with the lap counter asked, “Are you ready to do business internationally?” Not wanting to lose a potential sale, he emphatically responded, “Sure!” The German expressed an interest in distributing the lap counters in Germany and solicited price quotes.

Upon his return to the office, our young friend frantically called for help. After relating his experience in Atlanta to me, he admitted, “I have no experience in selling to Germany. I don't know how to price and ship the product. I want to consummate the sale and I certainly don’t want the German distributor to know about my ignorance.”

Export Assistance Counseling Available

We spent several hours discussing the risks from a financial perspective and pricing with several different Incoterms® options. For governmental assistance, I referred him to the local office of the U.S. Department of Commerce and to a competent freight forwarder who educated him about the logistics of international shipping.

While I observed his entry into international business with interest, including his several trips to Germany, ultimately our friend’s lack of capital and credit resulted in the downfall of his venture and he closed his doors.

Successful international companies develop a tactical global strategy before entering a new market. First, they successfully expand domestically. A successful business history in the United States, the best place to build a successful business, will prepare a company for a global market. If not successful at home, how can a company be successful in a market with different laws, business norms, languages, culture, currencies, etc.?

Smart companies strategize well in advance. They devote financial resources to the expansion and have a firm commitment from top management which permeates through the entire organization. Great product ideas, backed with a strategy of how to obtain and use resources, will result in a long and profitable venture.

Export Assistance Resources Available

Companies needing help can find it. The United States federal government hosts useful websites such as http://www.export.gov/ and the U.S. Export Assistance Centers (USEAC) as well as state and local governments. Many banks, freight forwarders, and colleges eagerly offer assistance. World Trade Centers, or similar nearby organizations, offer classes and workshops which cover many topics relative to international trade. Visit the International Chamber of Commerce website for a list of practical books at www.iccbooks.com. In short, anyone looking for help doesn’t need to look far.

Colorado Man Tests Out New Bionic Arms

Advancing neuroscience clearly has the power to improve lives. While there remain many obvious needs for continuing R&D into the treatment of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, a futuristic type of neurotechnology known as a Brain Computer Interface (BCI) is beginning to emerge as a functional reality. A subset of BCIs, neuroprosthetics, are helping a Colorado man to regain his ability to handle manipulate objects. Les Baugh lost both of his arms in an electrical accident over 40 years ago. With the help of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), he'll regain some functionality while making history as the first bilateral shoulder-level amputee to wear and simultaneously control two Modular Prosthetic Limbs (MPLs).

It's not just the accomplishment, but the opening of frontiers and realizing that there's so much more to learn." Courtney Moran, Clinical Lead for Amputee Research.

Connect & Collaborate - Jake Jabs

We're talking to Colorado icon Jake Jabs this week in our Pro-Business Colorado edition of Connect and Collaborate on 710 KNUS. If you've ever wanted business advice, insight on how to save on costs, or how to survive a recession (or seven) Jake Jabs should be at the top of your list. If his day-to-day knowledge of operating a business as big and as well-known as American Lifestyle Furniture doesn't impress you, then consider that Jabs has seen his company through seven economic recessions. Not only surviving them, but doing so without laying off employees.  You'll want to listen to the full program to learn why he believes liquidating merchandise, and closing stores is a tough but smart decision.

Jabs is so ubiquitous to Colorado business, that the University of Denver established the Jake Jabs Center for Entrepreneurship. Many people can learn from him. Consider this week's radio program a primer, both informative and entertaining.

Listen Saturday at 1:00 PM on 710 KNUS –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

Community Leaders Head to Washington, D.C.

COLORADO - Originally posted on the Highlands Ranch Herald. Written by Christy Steadman It was a bustling three days in the nation's capital — people were protesting the Keystone XL pipeline project and the World Health Organization was having a function on Ebola.

Amid it all was a group of south metro Denver's elected officials, educators and two graduate students, chamber of commerce members and business leaders.

The trip to Washington, D.C. was very successful, said Jeff Wasden, president of the Colorado Business Roundtable, because there was something for everybody.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for those who had never gone before,” he said, “and the veterans to D.C. got to experience something new.”

The 24 attendees visited Washington for three days Nov. 18-20. The main purposes included building relationships, increasing visibility locally and nationally, gaining knowledge and providing input to national leaders.

“An understanding of the issues critical to our representatives at the federal level, and how those can end up affecting us locally, is key,” said Josh Martin, Parker mayor pro tem.

The group had a full itinerary with a “very robust business agenda,” Wasden said, which included meetings with the National Business Roundtable, the White House Business Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

The trip was also significant because the local participants had opportunities to network with each other, said Wasden, a Highlands Ranch resident.

“All the lunches and dinners are my favorite part,” said Katia de Orbegoso, president of the Roxborough Business Association. “The unstructured environment was the perfect time to get to know each other, share ideas and comment on the different briefings.”

And there was some time for fun, Wasden said.

The group went bowling at the Harry S. Truman Bowling Alley, and they enjoyed an evening monument tour. Being able to tour the monuments in the evening, away from the rest of the tourists and people tending to business matters at the capital, provides a person with a different feel of their significances, Wasden said.

“It becomes more reverent and reflective,” he said. “You can reflect in solitude on some of the great leaders.”

One highlight of the trip was a meeting with U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, said David Schlatter, corporate real estate adviser, of Centennial.

Bennet is in favor of the Keystone XL pipeline project — an $8 billion Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline — and there were protesters demonstrating their disagreement. A Senate vote was occurring that day, and Schlatter said, “We were there at the moment of truth.”

“It went from a five-minute meeting to a 40-minute intimate conversation with him,” Wasden said. “That really provided some of the wow-factor to the trip.”

In addition to their time with Bennet, the group was able to meet with Congressmen Ken Buck of Colorado and Ted Yoho of Florida, and Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum.

“We got to engage with people in D.C. and meet the people that make a difference,” said Englewood-based Steve Roper, president and CEO of Roper Insurance. “Get our voice heard on a national level.”

Overall, the trip was “a great opportunity to learn first-hand about what's going on in Washington,” said Natalie Harden, director of public policy and economic development for the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce.

“And we were demonstrating that we care enough to be willing to physically meet with them,” she added. “They appreciate us making that effort.”

It's important for people to be engaged, Roper said. The people in Washington are also “normal people trying to do the best job they can,” and getting involved can make a difference, he added, because they do listen.

“It's hard to say if we did move the needle at all,” Roper said, “but we hope that it does.”

Lockheed Engineers Develop Graphene Technology That Could Make Desalination 100x More Efficient

In order to make sea water more useful, large desalination plants around the world use tons of power to force salt water through a reverse-osmosis process. An amazing new filter material recently developed by engineers at Lockheed Martin could make this process 100x more efficient. Known as Perforene, this new material uses a graphene nanotechnology.

John Stetson, who has been working on the idea since 2007, said in an interview with Reuters, "It's 500 times thinner than the best filter on the market today and a thousand times stronger. The energy that's required and the pressure that's required to filter salt is approximately 100 times less."

This breakthrough is yet another example of how technology can be a resource-liberating mechanism (to borrow a phrase from Dr. Diamandis).

Imagine greening the Sahara desert and creating a global abundance of sustainable food production.