The response was so positive, said Bruce Kidd, the IEDC's director of entrepreneurship, that the agency plans another boot camp next spring in Indianapolis and is organizing its first Collegiate Venture Idol "elevator pitch" competition Nov. 8 at the Indiana Convention Center.
However, no amount of competitions or classroom learning can make up for actual experience running a business.
Since they began training workers in wait service, bartending and other skills in donated space at a family friend's restaurant in Terre Haute last spring, Lifford and Keckhaver have moved Prodigy Staffing Solutions to Indianapolis. They have had to hire someone to staff their local office to help interview prospective applicants and schedule appointments with clients, including the Ritz Charles in Carmel and the Brickyard Crossing Golf Resort & Inn.
"The business has really taken off since we first started," Lifford said one recent weekend, while fielding business-related calls. And all that from an initial investment of $500.
- Associated Press
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