Mango Languages creates 35 jobs; 30 more to follow
Source: metromode, 11/19/2009
Not all businesses are original. Many are
take-offs of an idea that just didn't work out for someone else. That's
the case with the guys behind Mango Languages, who turned an old idea
into a fast-growing start-up. And creating jobs left and right in the process.
The
four friends behind the Farmington Hills-based firm had been building a
web-development firm earlier this decade. Part of their jobs included
working on a foreign language learning program. The creator was having
difficulty, so two years ago the foursome decided to make their own
version and hence Mango Languages was born. Today the company employs
35 people, 60 independent contractors, and two interns.
"We're growing," says Beverly Cornell, marketing and social media director for Mango Languages. "We're adding about 30 developers over the next six months."
Mango
Language's primary product helps users master foreign languages. They
have been able to get their products in libraries across the U.S.,
including some of the big ones like the New York and Seattle public
libraries.
"About 40 million people in the U.S. have access to Mango Languages for free," Cornell says.
Mango
Languages plans to expand its product offering in the next year. That
should include the release of its latest product – Mango Basic. The
program teaches polite usage of foreign languages.
Source: Beverly Cornell, marketing and social media director for Mango Languages
Writer: Jon Zemke
Farmington's Mercedes-Benz Financial releases iPhone app
Source: metromode, 10/15/2009
Mercedes-Benz and iPhones seem like a natural combination of high-end toys for people who aren't exactly poor. It's why Mercedes-Benz Financial decided to combine the two to help streamline its payment process.
The Farmington Hills-based firm has recently released an application
for iPhones that lets its users pay their car notes through smart
phones. The 27-year-old automotive-focused finance company is the first
of its kind to create an iPhone app that lets customers manage their
accounts with safety, speed, and convenience.
"We're seeing more and more of our
customers making payments to us electronically," says Jack Ferry, a
spokesman for Mercedes-Benz Financial. "We want to extend that option
to their iPhones."
The
application is available for both iPhone and iPod Touch. It also allows
users to find the nearest Mercedes-Benz authorized dealer location,
contact a customer service representative, and see what's new from
Mercedes-Benz Financial.
The
firm employs about 350-400 people at its Farmington Hills office. It
recently decided to keep its offices in Metro Detroit after the
Daimler/Chrysler split. More than 450,000 people in five countries finance their cars through Mercedes-Benz Financial.
Source: Jack Ferry, spokesman for Mercedes-Benz Financial
Writer: Jon Zemke
Oakland County introduces voting reminder emails
Source: metromode, 10/8/2009
Oakland County is using cyberspace methods to get more real people voting in the next election cycle.
Its latest innovation is to send out an email reminder to voters two weeks before elections and then again on election days. The reminder will also include a bevy of other information voters can use to make the process easier.
"It's kind of like an electronic post-it note," says Ruth Johnson, Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds.
The
emails will be sent out before all local, school, state, and federal
elections and will link to the clerk's website. The site will feature a
list of candidates and ballot proposals, campaign finance reports,
polling locations, and instructional videos for using voting machines.
It
will also feature a new election reporting system that reveals results
in real time. Also included will be information on voter registration
and on how to become a poll worker, and a link to the state's Voter
Information Center.
"This is just one more tool in the tool box," Johnson says.
For information on these new systems, click here.
Source: Ruth Johnson, Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds
Writer: Jon Zemke
Critical Signal Technologies acquires firm, plans to grow
Source: metromode, 10/1/2009
Jeffery Prough and two others started
Critical Signal Technologies in Farmington Hills three years ago. Today
they are picking up venture capital, buying firms, and hiring people at
a torrid pace.
"We have had an aggressive growth strategy, to say the least," says Prough, president and CEO of Critical Signal Technologies.
The
start-up hit about 50 employees in Metro Detroit earlier this year
before buying a Massachusetts-based firm this summer, bringing another
70 people into the fold. It also recently collected $8.7 million in
venture capital, including $2 million from Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund and $100,000 from Automation Alley.
Of
its new hires, 20 of them came on board within the last year. Prough
expects "pretty significant growth" over the next two years, enough to
create 100 new jobs in Michigan.
Critical Signal Technologies is
a life sciences tech company that develops 24-hour personal emergency
response and remote medical monitoring services for elderly and
disabled people. The idea is to allow them to live a safer and more
independent life.
Prough used to work as the CEO of a local
security company and was taking care of his elderly parents when he saw
the need for these services. Shortly thereafter he was striking out on
his own.
"I saw the absolute void in care," Prough says.
Source: Jeffery Prough, president and CEO of Critical Signal Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke
Beringea partner blogs on VC for Huffington Post
Source: metromode, 10/1/2009
The Huffington Post
has a local voice when it comes to venture capital in Michigan, now
that Jeff Bocan has signed on to blog for the nationally recognized
website.
The managing partner of Farmington Hills-based Beringea
will blog about the state of venture capital, investing, and
entrepreneurship in Michigan and the Midwest. His posts can be found here.
Bocan
points out that there is a lot of wealth and talent in Michigan and the
Midwest because of the last century of industrial might that has
dominated the landscape. Even though a large section of that has
eroded, there is still considerable wealth, business acumen, and
talented people who are willing to take the risk of entrepreneurship
now.
"A lot of these people are here in one shape or another or
they are willing to come back if the opportunity arose," Bocan says.
"You have a lot of the key raw materials to be successful here in
Michigan. There is real opportunity here."
Bocan lived in Los Angeles and managed Beringea's
LA office before moving to Michigan to be a part of its InvestMichigan!
Fund team. He is responsible for deal sourcing, analysis, and ongoing
portfolio management. His expertise is in the new media and clean
technology sectors.
Source: Jeff Bocan, managing partner of Beringea
Writer: Jon Zemke
Burns & Wilcox hires 20, plans to add more
Source: metromode, 9/24/2009
Forty years ago, Herbert W. Kaufman
started Burns & Wilcox in a Southfield office with 20 people.
Today, the same family owned wholesale insurance firm hires about 20
per year.
"We're always hiring," says Suzie Mitchell, a corporate communications consultant for Burns & Wilcox. "We're expanding."
The
company employs 800 worldwide, including 200 in Farmington Hills. It
routinely posts 10-20 open positions, and expects to hire another 20 or
so people within the next year.
Kaufman's son bought back the
company in 1996, when revenues were $250 million, and converted it back
to a private family business that now takes in $900 million annually.
The firm has recently acquired new companies in California and opened
an Environmental Center for Excellence, and has also grown by focusing
on operational improvements.
"Technology has helped us streamline our costs," Mitchell says. "We have gone paperless in the last year."
Source: Suzie Mitchell, a corporate communications consultant for Burns & Wilcox
Writer: Jon Zemke
Ventech, Critical Signal Tech nail down $350K in funding
Source: metromode, 9/24/2009
Automation Alley is sinking $350,000 into
two local tech businesses, with plans to make a few more investments
before the year is out.
"It's definitely a certainty," says Michelle Zellen, spokeswoman for Automation Alley. "We have companies in the pipeline."
The two feeding at the venture capital trough are Ventech and Critical Signal Technologies.
The former will receive $250,000 in seed money while the latter takes
in $100,000. This latest round of financing brings Automation Alley's
total investment in Critical Signal Technologies to $450,000.
Ventech develops, manufactures, and
distributes a rapid heater technology called Liquid Heat Generator,
which is used to heat the interiors of school buses, cars and military
vehicles. The $250,000 allows the Wixom-based company to pump up its
production capacity and inventory.
Farmington Hills-based
Critical Signal Technologies provides 24-hour personal emergency
response monitoring services for elderly or disabled individuals,
allowing those suffering from medical conditions to continue living at
home.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation recently awarded
Automation Alley $1.5 million to invest in start-up technology based
companies across Southeast Michigan. This funding is used to encourage
the commercialization of technologies and support their growth through
investments of up to $250,000 per company.
Source: Michelle Zellen, spokeswoman for Automation Alley
Writer: Jon Zemke
Beringea locks down funding, hires in Farmington Hills
Source: metromode, 9/17/2009
Beringea isn't just growing here in Metro Detroit, but around the world as it brings more capital under management.
The
Farmington Hills-based firm also has offices in London, Los Angeles,
and China. The venture capital firm recently locked down $20 million
pounds in government funding from the United Kingdom, along with
another $10 million pounds from private investors.
"We can invest in more companies," says Andrea Wilmes, director of marketing and communications for Beringea. "It affirms our strength in the digital sector."
Beringea
employs 30 people. Its Farmington Hills office has eight staffers and a
few summer interns. The company brought on three new hires
within the last two years.
Source: Andrea Wilmes, director of marketing and communications for BeringeaWriter: Jon Zemke