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This article was originally published in Marketwatch at: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/learning-from-big-techs-missteps-is-putting-these-startups-on-a-stronger-growth-path-11610951617?mod=investing

Over the past several decades, Silicon Valley has produced some of the most innovative and successful companies, investors, products and entrepreneurs. Yet this wild success has not come without its share of well-publicized problems. 

As investors in startups in the Midwestern U.S., we tell our entrepreneurs to learn from the mistakes of others. Doing so will help Midwestern startups and entrepreneurial communities grow faster and more efficiently. Here are three ways that Midwestern startups are building upon lessons learned from Silicon Valley:

Be deliberate about diversity and inclusion

For every story you read about a tech company’s explosive growth, it seems that there is another about a company’s culture of discrimination, abuse, negligence, or all of the above.

In order to promote a culture of diversity and inclusion within a startup, it has to be ingrained. This starts with the founders establishing clear cultural values and direction. For example, Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Duo Security has been successful in its employee-first culture. From the company&

PADUCAH, Ky.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—To empower financial institutions with the tools they need to help their small business customers more effectively manage their finances, Computer Services, Inc. (CSI) (OTCQX: CSVI), a provider of end-to-end fintech and regtech solutions, has partnered with Autobooks, a fully integrated payments and accounting platform for small businesses, delivered through financial institutions.

Autobooks directly integrates with CSI Digital Banking and NuPoint®—CSI’s cloud-based core banking platform—enabling small and micro businesses to send d

This is an article about portfolio company, SkySpecs.

SkySpecs, Ann Arbor, equipment provider for the wind energy industry, has an agreement with TEPCO Ventures, Tokyo, Japan, subsidiary of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., an electrical utility, to deliver autonomous drone inspections, blade asset management software and predictive maintenance planning to the Japanese wind energy market. Websites: skyspecs.com, tepcoventures.co.jp

View source version on crainsdetroit.com: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/mergers-acquisitions/mergers-acquisitions-and-new-contracts-across-metro-detroit-41

ANN ARBOR, MICH. (PRWEB) JANUARY 26, 2021

Genomenon, Inc., an AI-driven genomics company that connects the world’s genomic knowledge with patient DNA, announced that a seminal paper written by its team of scientists has been published in the Computational Genomics section of Frontiers in Genetics. Frontiers in Genetics is an open-access journal that publishes rigorously peer-reviewed research on genes and genomes relating to all domains of life.

The paper, entitled “Mastermind: A Comprehensive Genomic Association Search Engine for Empirical Evidence Curation and Genetic Variant Interpretation”, demonstrates how this widely used bioinformatic platform has automatically identified and annotated over 6.8 million unique genetic variants across the published genetic evidence, a more than 22-fold increase compared to the largest manually curated alternative. The paper shows how a computationally intelligent approach to building a search engine for genetic evidence has quickly surpassed two decades of manual effort in building static genetic databases.

The study shows how the Mastermind Genomic Search Engine benefits clinical diagnostic laboratories by significantly improving the sensitivity and reproducibility of clinical variant interpretation. Mastermind data is also used to produce comprehensive genomic landscapes of genetic variants, which drive

This is an article about portfolio company, SkySpecs.

ANN ARBOR–Officials of SkySpecs, the provider of asset management for the wind energy industry, now has almost 100 full-time employees engaged in automating renewable energy operations and maintenance using unmanned aerial vehicles, software, and operational expertise.

“While we were initially cautious about how the pandemic would affect our business and our customers’ operations, we feel incredibly grateful that we safely and systematically provided the same level of service this year as customers have been used to receiving from us in the past,” said SkySpecs CEO Danny Ellis. “We worked together to find new ways of accomplishing our goals, while continuing to focus on our team’s expansion as well as the growth of our products and services. And our customers were doing the same, so we were able to achieve some pretty incredible things in 2020 despite the remote nature of our interactions.”

View source version on mitechnews.com: https://mitechnews.com/update/skyspecs-expands-wind-energy-asset-management-portfolio-full-time-employment/

This is an article about portfolio company, Bloomscape.

First-time plant parents love low-maintenance pothos and sansevieria because they are easy, but what about fussy staples like orchids and fiddle-leaf figs? It should come as no surprise that many of the people who bonded with their houseplants while stuck at home during the coronavirus pandemic are now looking to elevate their plant collections.

That’s just one of the Instagram-ready trends that L.A.’s plantfluencers predict for 2021.

View source version on latimes.com: https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2021-01-22/houseplant-trends-for-2021

Company expands leadership team as it advances lead candidate ONL1204 beyond retinal detachment into the chronic conditions of glaucoma and dry age-related macular degeneration

ANN ARBOR, MI – January 19, 2021

ONL Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for protecting the vision of patients with retinal disease, today announced the appointment of Connie Chang to the newly created position of chief operating officer (COO). As COO, Ms. Chang will lead key operational workstreams, build and integrate internal capabilities, engage with external stakeholders and develop the company’s global strategic plans, working closely with CEO David Esposito.

“Connie’s broad experience and leadership skills are well aligned with our immediate plans to accelerate the development of our pipeline, enabled by our recent Series B financing,” commented Mr. Esposito. “With our 2021 plans to complete the Phase 1 study of our lead asset in retinal detachment and to further advance programs for ONL1204 in two additional chronic indications, we welcome Connie to the leadership team as we embark on the critical next stage of ONL’s growth.”

Last month, ONL announced the closing of a $46.9 million Series B Preferred Stock financing round, led by Fort Worth, TX-based Bios Partners. The Series B funding supports the ongoing Phase 1 clinical study of ONL1204 in retinal detachment, as well as the advancement of the asset into the chronic conditions of glaucoma and dry ag

Q2 Holdings Inc. [NYSE: QTWO] loss -0.80% on the last trading session, reaching $129.11 price per share at the time. The company report on January 7, 2021 that Autobooks Becomes First Fintech to Launch in Q2 Partner Marketplace.

Get the hottest stocks to trade every day before the market opens 100% free. Click here now.

– Q2’s digital Marketplace enables financial institutions to rapidly partner with and launch new fintech solutions to their account holders. – Account holders can directly subscribe to Autobooks as an “extension” to their online banking platform. 

Q2 Holdings Inc. represents 53.57 million in outstanding shares, while the company has a total market value of $7.01 billion with the latest information. QTWO stock price has been found in the range of $128.50 to $132.08.

If compared to the average trading volume of 424.84K shares, QTWO reached a trading volume of 932114 in the most recent trading day, which is why market watchdogs consider the stock to be active.

Here is what top equities market gurus are saying about Q2 Holdings Inc. [QTWO]:

Based on careful and fact-backed analyses by Wall Street experts, the current consensus on the target price for QTWO shares is $120.41 per share. Analysis on target price and performance of stocks is usually carefully studied b

The Grand Rapids-based Grand Angels are planning on a grand year for 2021. The most active angel investor group in the state — and, founded in 2005, the oldest — is raising a new limited-partner investment fund of $25 million, its biggest ever. It will coinvest in deals with individual angel investors around the state. Previously, the Grand Angels had raised investment funds of $1.5 million, $7.25 million, and $11.8 million.

View source version on crainsdetroit.com: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/crains-michigan-business/grand-angels-raising-25-million-fund-its-biggest-ever

This is an article about portfolio company, Micro-LAM.

Keene, NH (Jan. 13, 2021) – AMETEK Precitech — in conjunction with Micro-LAM, Inc. of Portage, MI, Taylor Hobson of Leicester, UK, and Zygo of Middlefield, CT — is proud to announce the creation of the Precision Advancement Center of Excellence (PACE), which will open at Taylor Hobson’s world headquarters in Leicester, United Kingdom.

To help improve the facility’s capabilities, AMETEK Precitech has supplied a four-axis Nanoform X configured with the Optimus Laser Assisted Machining system from Micro-LAM, This machine is designed to improve the throughput and quality of diamond-turning processes for materials that are hard to machine, such as glass, fused silica, BK7, Zerodur, and more.

View source version on news.thomasnet.com: https://news.thomasnet.com/companystory/precitech-supplies-ultra-precision-nanoform-x-machine-tool-at-newly-formed-pace-facility-in-leicester-uk-40042238

This is an article about portfolio company, Akadeum Life Sciences

Ann Arbor, Michigan—(Newsfile Corp. - January 13, 2021) - Akadeum Life Sciences, today announced that it is participating in Biotech Showcase. Akadeum has achieved a series of recent scientific advancements and commercial successes through strategic collaborations and aggressive applications discovery. Addressing the needs of the ongoing pandemic, newly developed capabilities include nucleic acid extraction from pooled patient samples to improve sensitivity and throughput of existing molecular diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2.

View source version on Yahoo! Finance: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/akadeum-life-sciences-present-expanded-141100673.html

This is an article about portfolio company, ONL Therapeutics, Inc.

ONL Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for protecting the vision of patients with retinal disease, announced it closed on $46.9 million in a Series B preferred stock financing.

View source version on globallegalchronicle.com: http://www.globallegalchronicle.com/onl-therapeutics-46-9-million-series-b-financing/

This is an article about portfolio company, Autobooks.

Cross-border payment platform Currencycloud notes that financial innovation is now taking place at a “record pace.” However, when it comes to smaller businesses, you must first address their cash flow problems, because “nothing else matters” (if you can’t solve this issue first).

Derik Sutton, VP of Marketing at Autobooks, recently discussed (with the Currencycloud team) why “cash flow is everything when it comes to small businesses.”

View source version on crowdfundinsider.com: https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2021/01/171075-derik-sutton-from-autobooks-and-currencycloud-discuss-how-cash-flow-problems-are-a-major-issue-for-smbs/

This is an article about portfolio company, Akadeum Life Sciences.

The market is driven by the increasing use of cell separation in cancer research. In addition, the rising focus on personalized medicine is anticipated to further boost the growth of the cell separation market. The increasing use of cell separation in cancer research will be one of the major drivers in the global market.

The global blood cell separation market is estimated to be US$ 28.4 billion by 2029 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of 17.2%.

The report “Global Blood Cell Separation Market, By Product (Consumables, and Instruments), By Cell Type (Human, and Animal), By Technique (Centrifugation, Surface Marker, and Filtration), By End-Users (Research Laboratories & Institutes, Biotechnology & Biopharmaceutical Companies, Hospitals & Diagnostics Laboratories, and Cell Banks), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa) – Trends, Analysis and Forecast till 2029”.

View source version on ksusentenial.com: https://ksusentinel.com/2021/01/07/pandemic-impact-outlook-on-blood-cell-separation-market-and-latest-developments-during-the-forecasted-period/

This is an article about portfolio company, AdAdapted

Costco’s Kirkland brand and Walmart’s Great Value are the most popular store brands to get named on a consumer’s shopping list, according to exclusive insights pulled from the mobile platform AdAdapted.

The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based company is a mobile advertising platform that has the capability to analyze consumer mobile shopping lists across third-party grocery apps, identifying item and category performance across a broad audience of mobile shopping list builders.

For Store Brands, the company looked at which private brands stood out on their own and made the most mobile shopping lists, finding Walmart’s Great Value and Costco’s Kirkland brands frequently got listed from November 2019 to November 2020.

View source version on storebrands.com: https://storebrands.com/what-store-brands-made-pre-shop-shopping-list

MARQUETTE — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday announced appointments to the Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees and the Michigan Tech University Board of Trustees as well as the Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents and the boards of trustees of Ferris State, Grand Valley State and Western Michigan universities.

Named to the NMU Board of Trustees was Gregory J. Seppanen of Marquette, a retired teacher who taught U.S. history, government, world history and economics in the Marquette Area Public Schools for 24 years. Seppanen has also served as a Marquette County commissioner, supervisor of Chocolay Township and as a member of the U.S. Army Presidential Honor Guard. He remains an active member of both the Marquette County Planning Commission and the Central U.P. Planning and Development Regional Commission.

He earned a bachelor of science degree in history and geography from NMU in 1979 and attended trade skill training in welding at what was then called the NMU Skill Center.

Before enrolling at NMU, the U.S. Army veteran served in the U.S. Presidential Honor Guard, “The Old Guard,” in the Washington, D.C., area.

“When I was at Northern, the support for veteran students continuing their education was superb, and it’s my understanding it’s still very good. That was very important to me,” said Seppanen, whose grandparents arrived in the area separately from Finland at the turn of the 20th century, in a news release. “Northern was initially a teacher’s college and

Michigan spent $135.3 million on masks, gloves and other gear during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, when officials were racing against time — and other states — to protect medical personnel and other essential workers, an Associated Press analysis found.

The nationwide analysis found that states paid more than $7 billion for personal protective equipment and crucial medical devices such as ventilators and infrared thermometers between early 2020, when COVID-19 first emerged in the U.S., and late spring.

View source version on crainsdetroit.com: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/coronavirus/ap-michigan-spent-135-million-medical-gear-early-pandemic

This is an article about portfolio company, Bloomscape.

There was one plant that became a true shining star of 2020, and nope—it wasn’t the monstera or fiddle leaf fig. According to Bloomscape, the most gifted plant of the year was the Mini Money Tree. (Something we actually predicted last year around this time… before even knowing what a ride the next 365 days would be.) “The Mini Money Tree—along with the full-sized version—was our top-selling plant in 2020, and we anticipate it will remain popular going into the new year, as it’s the perfect tropical plant to liven up a home office or windowsill,” says J