Ben Franklin’s quote very aptly describes this year at the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

 Passion is what makes our work happen. We seek passion in the management teams of prospective clients. We exhibited passion in responding to pressing regional economic development needs by finding a way to expand the Ben Franklin TechVentures business incubator despite severe cuts to our budget. But the key to harnessing the incredible power of passion is to temper it. A modicum of real-world prudence provides balance and must be integrated into planning and implementation. All of us must “let reason hold the reins.”

Click the image above to download a PDF of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA 2011 Annual Report

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners significantly increases the success rate of the highest-potential early-stage technology companies. We provide start-ups with access to seed capital, business and technical expertise, and a proven network of expert resources. We also help develop and implement productivity improvement strategies for established manufacturers through technological innovation and process improvement that allow the companies to be more globally competitive. Our job is to identify and evaluate opportunities, to select the most promising ones, and to provide client companies with crucial resources as they wage the war to prosper in today’s markets.

Recognized and modeled internationally as one of the best technology-based economic development organizations in the world, Ben Franklin Technology Partners is eminently successful by every measure. A long-range independent study by the Pennsylvania Economy League showed that Ben Franklin statewide boosted the gross state product by $9.3 billion from 2002 through 2006 and provided more than $517 million in additional tax revenues as a direct result of its work. From 1989 through 2008, Ben Franklin created or retained more than 50,000 highly paid, sustainable Pennsylvania jobs, as well as developed hundreds of new companies and new technology-based products and processes. Ben Franklin delivers $3.50 of incremental tax revenue to Pennsylvania for every dollar of state investment in our program.

Despite this stellar history of producing economic benefit for the Commonwealth, in the face of overwhelming state budget challenges, Ben Franklin’s funding was cut in excess of 50% since 2009. These devastating blows to our resources have curtailed Ben Franklin’s ability to deliver the tremendous results we have produced in the past and bode poorly for Pennsylvania’s future technology-based economic growth.

The Ben Franklin appropriation must be restored to its original level and then increased incrementally in subsequent years. This will enable an expansion of critical seed financing and business and technical support for early-stage technology-driven enterprises. It will allow Ben Franklin to help established manufacturers utilize innovation to be more competitive in the global marketplace.

Projecting historical performance, Pennsylvania’s investment in our program will provide a direct financial return of 350% in additional state tax revenue. It will allow technological innovation to be leveraged as a tool to economic prosperity. And it will help companies create the high-paying, sustainable jobs that will be the cornerstone of the economic recovery.

 R. Chadwick Paul, Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA

Click the image above to download a PDF of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA 2010 Annual Report

Being entrepreneurial is not limited to entrepreneurs. The most successful companies now and in the future will encourage and even demand an entrepreneurial spirit among their staff. Innovation will drive a company’s success throughout its lifecycle. Ben Franklin Technology Partners is uniquely suited to catalyze and support innovation and entrepreneurship in early-stage companies and in established manufacturers.

Recognized and modeled internationally as one of the best technology-based economic development organizations in the world, Ben Franklin Technology Partners is immensely successful by every measure. A long-range independent study by the Pennsylvania Economy League released in 2009 showed that Ben Franklin statewide boosted the Gross State Product by $9.3 billion from 2002 through 2006 and provided more than $517 million in additional tax revenues as a direct result of its work. In 1989 through 2008, Ben Franklin created or retained more than 50,000 highly paid, sustainable Pennsylvania jobs, as well as developed hundreds of new companies and new technology-based products and processes. Ben Franklin delivers $3.50 of incremental tax revenue to Pennsylvania for every dollar of state investment in our program. I know of no other government-funded program that provides such a return.

Despite an unparalleled history of producing economic benefit for the Commonwealth, Ben Franklin’s funding was cut 42% in fiscal year 2009-10. The combination of funding cuts and inflation erosion has seriously compromised our ability to continue delivering the stellar results we have produced in the past and negatively impacts future economic growth prospects for Pennsylvania. Reducing Ben Franklin’s funding was a tragedy.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners dramatically increases the success rate of the highest-potential early-stage technology companies. We provide start-ups with access to seed capital, business and technical expertise, and a robust network of expert resources. We also help develop and implement productivity improvement strategies for established manufacturers through technological innovation and process improvement.

Ben Franklin – a proven national model for tech-based economic development

In recognition of the remarkable success of this program, many other states have modeled their programs after the Ben Franklin Technology Partners. In 2008, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce, named Ben Franklin “the most effective regional economic development organization in the nation.”

The Ben Franklin state appropriation should be restored to its original level and then increased incrementally in subsequent years. This will enable an expansion of seed financing for technology-driven enterprises at their earliest stage and help to fulfill business and technical support needs that young enterprises face as they seek to bring their products to market. Further, a restoration of Ben Franklin funding will support the expansion of regional technology collaboration that links companies, colleges and universities, economic development partners, entrepreneurs, corporations, and service providers.

Entrepreneurship and technological innovation will drive the economic recovery and sustain long-term economic growth on a nationwide level. History has demonstrated that innovation and business growth often hit new strides during times of economic transition. Ben Franklin Technology Partners is a proven engine of job creation and retention that generates tremendous return on investment.

Pennsylvania should continue to reap the rewards of its foresight 28 years ago in creating, developing, and funding a program that has evolved to be the envy of the world. The Commonwealth should restore and increase funding to the Ben Franklin Technology Partners to the great benefit of Pennsylvania. Our success will serve as a model for the nation.

R. Chadwick Paul, Jr.

R. Chadwick Paul, Jr., President and Chief Executive officer
Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Please view the introductory video below.

Michelli is an internationally sought-after speaker, author, and organizational consultant who has been described as “catching what is right in the world and playfully sparking people and businesses to grow toward the extraordinary.” In addition to writing best-selling books about enduring business principles, he hosted an award-winning daily radio program in Colorado Springs, Colorado for over a decade.

In this video, filmed before his keynote address at the 2010 i xchange, Michelli discusses outcome-based vs. incremental innovation with Lehigh Valley Entrepreneur TV.

Click the image above to download a PDF of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA 2009 Annual Report (2.5MB)

Pennsylvania recently created an Alternative Energy Development Program (AEDP) to save energy costs, reduce dependence on foreign fuels, expand clean energy production, and create energy-related jobs in the Commonwealth. Under the AEDP, the four Ben Franklins statewide have been provided with a total of $40 million over five years to initiate activities that encourage the development and growth of energy-related companies in Pennsylvania. The AEDP will help bring energy to economic development across the state.

Similarly, now more than ever before, companies must bring “energy” to the marketplace. They have to do something that no one else does, and constantly employ innovation in order to continue to succeed. Firms that have the courage to try new things and to identify creative solutions will achieve sustainable competitive advantage.

Inspiration can’t be purchased. You can’t will it to come forth; in fact focusing on it often makes it even more elusive. But when the vision strikes, you must be ready to act upon it. Because inspiration without energy and hard work to drive it is nothing more than a lost idea.

Inspiration can’t be purchased. You can’t will it to come forth; in fact focusing on it often makes it even more elusive. But when the vision strikes, you must be ready to act upon it.

At Ben Franklin, we help companies to act swiftly and appropriately when their inspiration is marketable. They come to us with ideas. We supply them with the tools they need to seize the opportunity and achieve their goals. We provide financial investments. We introduce clients to proven business and technical experts, to resources at area colleges and universities, and to sources of follow-on funding. When we bring these elements together on behalf of our clients, there is no limit to what their creative energies can achieve. We energize innovation.

R. Chadwick Paul

President & CEO
Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania

Before the event, Lehigh Valley Entrepreneur interviewed DeGraff about the current state of the innovation in the United States. This is Part One of the interview. Click here for Part Two.

Degraff is a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. He is also the managing partner of Competing Values Company, a consulting firm that assists leaders in facilitating change, and the executive director of the Innovatrium Institute for Technology.

3M, Apple Computer, American Express, GE, Johnson & Johnson, LG, Pfizer, Toyota, and Yahoo are a few of DeGraff’s representative clients. Besides being a charismatic and in-demand speaker, DeGraff is a thought leader at top innovation incubators and think tanks such as the Aspen Institute. His advice is frequently sought by the investment community on how to choose, manage, and harvest winning ideas and successful business enterprises.

The i xchange combined the presentation of Ben Franklin’s fifteenth annual Innovation Awards and executive networking sessions with a keynote address by Jeff DeGraff, who is known as the “guru to the innovation guru” at Fortune 500 companies. Awards were presented in eight categories, to companies, organizations, or individuals who have achieved business success through Ben Franklin, have helped others to achieve success, or who have improved their business through innovation.

Click each picture below for a larger view.

Entrepreneurial Achievement Award, Solid Cactus

Past Innovation Award Winners

Academic Partner Award, Dale Falcinelli

i xchange 2009: What exactly is "innovation"?

Incubator Graduate Award, Right Reason Technologies

Keynote Speaker Jeff DeGraff, the "innovation guru"

Product Innovation Award, Saladax Biomedical

The lobby of Zoellner Arts Center during i xchange 2009

Innovative Application of Technology Award, Diversified Information Technologies

Keynote speaker Jeff DeGraff

Manufacturing Achievement Award, United Corrstack

Event host R. Chadwick Paul, President & CEO, BFTP/NEP

Entrepreneurial Advocate Award, CEO & Stuff

Ben Franklin, American Innovator

Special Achievement Award, Ellen Horan

This year, BFTP/NEP profiled client company Custom Processing Services in a video at the start of the awards ceremony.

Ben Franklin TechVentures is located on Lehigh University’s Mountaintop Campus, across the street from the former Ben Franklin Business Incubator at Jordan Hall. The facility is owned and managed by Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA.

Ben Franklin greets TechVentures visitors

Cutting the ribbon

Inside Ben Franklin TechVentures