I just returned from attending Tim Berry’s BA 410: New Business Planning class at the University of Oregon. My reasoning for attending his class was two-fold. One: I manage our Academic Channel and instructors often ask me if and how our software can be used in the classroom. I generally reply with something like, “The best example I can give is to check out how Tim Berry incorporates it into his class at U of O by visiting www.ba410.com“. Therefore, I thought it would be beneficial for me to see it with my own eyes. And two: I am in marketing and the topic of today’s class was marketing, so I thought I could possibly learn something new.
When I arrived, I learned the agenda had changed slightly, as a guest speaker was scheduled for the second hour. So not only did I get to see Tim in action in an academic setting and expand my knowledge, I also got to hear a very cool story about a successful, growing start-up here in Eugene, OR. Mama Rose’s Naturals is an herbal skin care product company that started when one woman’s child got sick and she experimented with herbal mixtures to try and bring relief to her daughter. I won’t go into all the details, but check out her site for yourself. You don’t often hear the behind the scenes stories, so this was a nice treat. And I think the students in Tim’s class thoroughly enjoyed it while also learning some valuable lessons from a real life entrepreneur.
I plan to attend a few more of Tim’s classes as well as co-lead one while Tim is out of town. I am excited to learn more about how Tim incorporates Business Plan Pro into his class and be able to better share that knowledge with my customers as well as continue to see how Tim’s students grow and change during the course of the class. This is fun – I am sort of back in college – but I am able to sit back, relax and take it all in without worrying about homework or my final grade!
Kristen Langham
Marketing Manager
Palo Alto Software
