By: M. Kim Saxton, IU Kelley School of Business Indianapolis Clinical Associate Professor of Marketing

You know who you are. Good news – there are more of you today than last year.

The latest research from the Kauffman Foundation’s Startup Activity Index says that more people are starting new companies every month in 2016 than in both 2015 and 2014. Even better, the biggest increase is coming from women!

The Kelley School of Business community is also working to support women in business. The Kelley Indianapolis MBA Women’s Association, or KIMWA, was started recently in the hopes of empowering women MBA students and alumni in their business ventures and to help them reach both personal and professional goals.

Kelley Evening MBA alum Natalie Mazanowski is working to start her own business right now, called Swupper – a web service to connect home cooks to other home cooks who want to swap meals.

“I met my business partner when we were both students in the Kelley Evening MBA program. Our experiences in DIVE, gSCIE and Venture Club gave us the tools to connect and communicate with potential investors. We developed our business concept in the classroom, and now we’re pitching it and looking for funders,” said Mazanowski.

If you’ve joined the ranks of women working to start their own business, you now have an opportunity to share your new venture with a lot of Indiana women.

Each year, the Indiana Conference for Women hosts a “dolphin” tank. It’s a women founders’ pitch competition where the judges are more like dolphins trying to help you than the typical sharks. But, you’ve got to hurry. The deadline to apply to pitch in September 6, 2016. Find out more
and apply today.

Kristen Cooper and The Startup Ladies will help you out.

They’ve scheduled three study halls to help you prepare for the October 26 pitch competition. You’ll get lots of one-on-one coaching. So, take the plunge and get attention for your new business. Then, reach out to your Kelley faculty. We’re happy to help you get ready too.