Vision Reframed
VSP is changing the way we think about eyewear — and ideation
“In order for a company like VSP to be around for 60 years, we’ve had to be innovative — to change who we are,” says incoming CEO Jim McGrann, who used to be the company’s Chief Technology Officer. Plenty of companies like to toss around buzzwords like “innovation,” but it’s usually just an empty slogan. VSP has spurred innovation by creating The Shop, launching their Project Genesis, and supporting a 90-day rotational program that lets everyday employees — no matter what division they work in — pitch new ideas and brainstorm new products.
Tech for All
Hacker Lab co-founder Gina Lujan on the power of making
Hacker Lab co-founder and CEO Gina Lujan has been focused on entrepreneurship for over two decades. Hacker Lab’s 10,500-square-foot space in midtown Sacramento had become a hub of innovation for numerous creators and doers in the Sacramento Region, from artists to engineers. The site has been so successful it has opened a second site in Rocklin. We sat down with her recently to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the hacker innovation space.
Chevron CEO Blasts California Environmental Laws Governor Touts
As Governor Jerry Brown is in Paris urging other political leaders to follow his lead in curbing global warming, the chief executive of California’s largest oil company said the state’s policies “unambiguously raise energy costs and do nothing about greenhouse-gas emissions.”
Solar-Powered Success
Habitat for Humanity partnership offers troubled youth the opportunity to to learn job skills
To certain young adults, the rising sun is no longer just a metaphorical promise of a new day, but rather a literal chance for a new start in life. The very light the sun provides is working as the harbinger of opportunities and career skills for students who have been in the dark.
Sacramento Urban Farmer to Start Food Academy after Visit to Milan
South Sacramento urban farmer, Chanowk Yisrael, wants to see local food systems improve. Eight years ago, he started growing organic food for his family and eventually launched the Yisrael Family Urban Farm in Sacramento’s historic Oak Park neighborhood. Now, he’s expanding that vision to motivate Sacramento youth to become more engaged in changing our local food system — announcing today that he’ll be partnering with Slow Food Sacramento to charter the city’s first Food Academy.
Student Debt Can Hurt Women More Than Men
It will take women MBAs a year longer than men to pay back their student loans, according to our analysis of Bloomberg data, gleaned from our annual ranking of MBA programs.
Sexism in Hackerspaces
Hacker Lab founder Gina Lujan says gender doesn’t matter
The most significant challenge for tech coworking spaces is usually having enough physical space, equipment and bandwidth for multiple creators to be able to work on a diverse number of projects at the same time. But women using hackerspaces often face another challenge as well – overcoming the tech world’s male-dominated “brogrammer” culture.
A Sour, Hard-to-Eat, Occasionally Deadly Fruit Makes a Comeback
Let’s face it. The grapefruit is cumbersome and often sour. Also, it can kill you. So of course Stewart and Lynda Resnick decided it will be their next celebrity plant product. The Californians and their company, the Wonderful Co., have made a lot of money turning unassuming agricultural commodities into well-known brands.
So, You Want To Be the Next Big Thing?
5 tips for launching a successful product
Sometimes, a real no-brainer, problem-solver of a product can crash and burn spectacularly upon entering the market. This isn’t limited to the Pepsi Clears of the world, where sheer ridiculousness doomed the idea from the start: According to Nielsen data, 85 percent of new consumer packaged goods will fail within two years. Marketing snafus, bad luck and timing aside, pitfalls in the process of product design are often to blame. Catching oneself before blundering into them takes a conscious effort, as several local designers and makers illustrate.
How Do We Empower Our Innovators?
Collaboration between feeders and leaders is essential to the Capital Region’s innovation economy
I’ve been thinking a lot about a 3-year-old book in recent days- — even more so in the aftermath of the recent study mission to Chicago. The book is Brad Feld’s Startup Communities — a how-to manual for building vibrant, connected communities of innovative companies and entrepreneurs.