Daily Archives: 06/04/2009

(Community Matters)

The Austin area was the nation’s strongest big-city job market last month, according to a new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. AAS story

Gotta give kudos where they’re deserved: Austin’s businessmen & women, especially our entrepreneurs & small business owners as well as the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Capital Area African American Chamber of Commerce, Gay/Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, Asian Chamber of Commerce and all the groups who advocate on behalf of Austin’s business community. And certainly not least Gary Farmer & his team at the Opportunity Austin Foundation, all their supporters as well as our elected leaders, community leaders and, oh yeah :), Central Texans who make ours such a dynamic, thriving and sustainable community.

(Community Matters)

(Community Matters) GEO: Grantmakers for Effective Organizations presented their Change Agent Project to a group of funders over lunch yesterday.

The mission of GEO is understanding that grantmakers are successful only to the extent that their grantees achieve meaningful results, GEO provides strategies and practices that contribute to grantee success.

The KDK-Harman Foundation organized bringing the presentation to Austin, also sponsored by the Webber Family Foundation and Topfer Foundation. Lots of discussion about GEO’s research and recommendations from grantees on how funders could enable the process, further the success of grantee programs. We spoke a lot about the idea of common grant applications, unrestricted funding, build vs buy and the different objectives of philanthropists.

At my table, lucky to spend a couple of hours with Kim Wilson (Greenlights), Teresa Miller (Dell, Inc), Michelle Walker-Moak (Applied Materials), Sharon Reddehase (Double Line Partners) and Kay Kirchner (Applied Materials). Others attending included Jennifer Esterline, Melanie Riddings, Chris Earthman, Meeta Kothare, Janet Harman, MariBen Ramsey, John Long, Erica Ekwurzel, Jackie Matta, Amy Allen, Tara Kirkland and Jessica D’Arcy.

Interesting conversation and brainstorming. I suspect it’ll carry over to today’s meeting about potentially pooling monies for health & human services NPO emergency grant funding.

(Community Matters) I stopped by the Acton Academy’s open house on Wednesday to hear more about the initiative from Laura & Jeff Sandefer.

A montessori enriched environment, with project-based learning, apprenticeships, socratic dialogue based on classic literature, arts, language, sports, character development, free market and individual liberty curriculum, multiple intelligence testing, friendships, community, love, respect, accountability, achievement? Yes! It’s true. Oh, and each student will be taught by the methods which work for them – individually.

Jeff & Laura Sandefer (center & right) at the Acton Academy

Our friends have either met Laura & Jeff or know of them from the Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship. They are very dear friends – Jeff & Steven friends and colleagues for more than a decade. The same extraordinary intellect, planning, research, passion & treasure being invested by them into this elementary school initiative as they’ve done to build one of the three best MBA programs in the country (according to the Princeton Review).

Jeff’s & Laura’s two sons – Charlie & Sam – will be attending this school, located at 1106 West Ave, across the street from Pease Elementary. The open house continues through Friday from 10 to noon. They are accepting students aged 6 – 10 for their inaugural year. If I had a child this age, I’d be sending her. I have tried figuring out how my brother and sister-in-law can be convinced to “send Paulina to boarding school” (ie., to live with us & attend Acton), but since this recommendation has fallen on deaf ears as discussed about my nephew, I know they won’t – rats.

(Community Matters) Baker Botts partner, Steven Tyndall presented to Entrepreneurs Foundation member company CEOs and friends at yesterday’s Legal Bites Breakfast. His topic: mergers & acquisitions, fiduciary duty of officers & directors during M&A, and acquisitions involving distressed entities or depressed valuations.

Well attended. The Entrepreneurs Foundation hosts these once a quarter. In addition to Legal Bites Breakfast (presented quarterly by the five law firms on our legal council), we also host Capital Interests at which our banking partners present on relevant capital markets topics.

Steve presented lots of note, especially that the standards by which directors and officers will be held by Delaware courts changes from the business judgement rule to one of Entire Fairness if an M&A transaction involves a controlling shareholder, affiliate or some other insider – also, the fact that the acquisition of assets can be declared a defactor merger and all liabilities deemed assumed in certain circumstances.

(Community Matters)

(Community Matters)

And, the final in the series: