Articles

Strides taken in life sciences, experts say: Industry panel: Thanks to ongoing efforts, Indiana has experienced serious progress as biomedical hotbed during last 5 years

Five leaders of Indiana’s life sciences industry offered their perspectives at the Indiana Convention Center June 26 as part of the Indianapolis Business Journal’s Power Breakfast Series. The panelists: Mike Arpey, managing director of global investment bank Credit Suisse’s Asset Management Division and manager of the $73 million Indiana Future Fund for BioCrossroads, the state’s life sciences economicdevelopment initiative. Ron Ellis, co-founder, president and CEO of Lafayettebased Endocyte Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the treatment of cancer through receptor-targeted…

Read More

Butler class to invest university endowment money

When a Butler University finance class starts investing in the stock market this fall, it won’t be Monopoly money that’s on
the line. In a three-year pilot program that is unique for a school of Butler’s size, a group of senior finance students will
use $1 million from the university’s endowment fund to invest.

Read More

EYE ON THE PIE: Taxes pay for what Hoosiers want

Good people, me included, have been making dumb statements about the property tax mess in Indiana. The problem is that we don’t know enough to talk or write intelligently on the topic. The result is that we can be led by our noses into an even worse mess. “Abolish the property tax!” some demand. Then what? Abolition of the property tax means raising some other taxes or fees, unless government spending on services decreases. The state has been urging counties…

Read More

NOTIONS: A property tax sigh of relief and a reform wish list

The nightstand clock reads 5:17. Too early to wake up. But hey, I’ve been tossing and turning for hours, so why lie here any longer, pretending? The cause for this night’s insomnia is money. Money for two kids starting college. Money to replace the Money to paint the house. Money for employees’ salaries. Money for employees’ parking. Money for employees’ retirement. Money for employees’ health insurance. Money for their families’ health insurance. Money to get the yellow highway paint off…

Read More

Scientific work experience gives attorneys a boost: Lab knowledge helpful in intellectual property work

At first thought, people might assume most attorneys have undergraduate degrees in political science or criminal justice. And while many do, those with backgrounds in engineering, chemistry, physics, and other sciences are being drawn more and more to law because of the growth of interest from businesses in intellectual property. Some IP attorneys decided to take the leap from working in the science world to the legal one, and those who did it say their time working in a lab…

Read More

EYE ON THE PIE: Health care and the pursuit of happiness

Some people believe the Fourth of July grants them liberty to disturb the night with their firecrackers. My pursuit of happiness is in conflict with theirs and I want them jailed. We all gladly infringe on the liberties of others while in pursuit of our own happiness. For example, should motorcyclists wear helmets? Yes, if all of us expect to pay their hospital bills (through higher premiums) and maintain them on disability after they have head injuries that might be…

Read More

PROFILE TINA MOE: Persistence paid off for local business owner Tenacious accountant shares with clients valuable lessons she learned from the school of hard knocks

Moe’s path to opening Indianapolisbased ACT Services Inc., her accounting, tax and consulting firm, was fraught with roadblocks. In 1998 she graduated from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis with a degree in accounting. That same year she divorced. Moe has had her share of breakups. While still an undergraduate, the Greenwood native worked for a year as a business partner with a certified public accountant at Accounting Store LLC in Speedway. The partnership continued for five…

Read More

Commentary: We need a sensible alcohol policy

The recent bust at the home of former Colts quarterback Jack Trudeau, and his subsequent arrest for allegedly hosting a party where high school students consumed alcohol, reflects current law in Indiana. But it does not reflect the attitudes of some toward the appropriate age at which one is capable of making fully informed decisions about alcohol use. More important, it reflects the fractured nature of how the law views an adult and the rights and responsibilities associated with adulthood….

Read More

State beefs up incentives available to tech companies:

Companies receiving a Phase 1 SBIR match from the state need to apply for second-stage funding by July 20. Applications can be downloaded on the IEDC Web site. The proposal for funds should be no longer than 12 pages and include a commercialization plan describing how the product would be moved to market and any challenges that would need to be overcome. The proposal also should include a budget describing the funds required for The Indiana Economic Development Corp. has…

Read More

Snyder crams for job as Ivy Tech president

In the three months since being named president of Ivy Tech Community College, Tom Snyder
has read up on the school’s history and held meetings with 4,000 faculty, students and others to gain insight into the school.
He’s also made decisions about hiring, cost-cutting and student services.

Read More

WEDJ one year later: Ratings more than double: Revenue growth pushes Hispanic station toward record

After years languishing as a ratings bottom feeder, WEDJ-FM 107.1 is quickly moving up the radio charts with its Hispanic format and is positioned to crack the market’s top 10 stations. Since local radio veteran Russ Dodge was hired as general manager in late April 2006, WEDJ’s rating for area listeners 12 and older has more than doubled, from 1.0 to 2.1, according to New York-based Arbitron Co. WEDJ’s morning show is ranked No. 3 with listeners ages 18 to…

Read More

PROFILE: Piano Solutions Inc.: Shop singing piano’s praises Shop owners want to give community an arts education

Piano Solutions Inc. Shop singing piano’s praises Shop owners want to give community an arts education Piano Solutions Inc. owners Greg Durthaler and Brian Hostetler like to think they’re in tune with the music industry-all the better to help their clients. The key (so to speak) is to offer a full range of products and services. “Today, we offer tuning, moving and storage of pianos while carrying an array of method books, print music and piano accessories,” Durthaler said. “We…

Read More

Happily ever after?: How to avoid the roadblocks to financial security

Happily e ver after? How to avoid the roadblocks to financial security In her new book, “The Feminine Mistake,” author Leslie Bennetts cautions women to seriously consider the financial consequences of exiting the workplace to be a stayat-home wife and mom. The former journalist and Vanity Fair writer says “few intelligent people would sink a lot of money into refurbishing a rental, but stay-athome wives think nothing of subordinating their own financial interests to those of their husbands, blithely assuming…

Read More

City steps up effort to help immigrants: Mayor’s wife spearheading program to better acclimate newcomers

The burgeoning number of immigrants arriving in Indianapolis have a new source available to help them navigate unfamiliar surroundings and the kaleidoscope of social support systems available. The Immigrant Welcome Center is a program launched in October that uses volunteers dubbed “natural helpers” to link foreign newcomers to such basic needs as health care, government and transportation services. Although the effort is nearly 9 months old, it’s just now getting up to speed as organizers are interviewing candidates to lead…

Read More

Commentary: Hedda gives a searing Civic review

I cede my column this week to Hedda Hopper, a Hollywood gossip columnist. Hopper died in 1966, but she agreed to come back again to review the Indianapolis Civic Theater benefit performance. HEDDA HOPPER’S HOLLYWOOD-Just detrained in Hoosierland to catch the Indianapolis Civic Theatre benefit. Charlie Morgan played Ed Sullivan in a sendup titled “A Really Big Shooow.” Sullivan, your career is safe. Morgan, general manager and vice president of Cumulus radio stations in Indy, was stiffer than Charlie McCarthy….

Read More

‘Find your niche ‘:

His goal was to provide the proverbial one-stop shop, a place where “honey do” lists got done. Before long, he realized he may not have been aiming high enough. It seemed homeowners with not-so-handy honeys weren’t the only customers interested in what Schneller was selling. He also got calls from real estate agents who needed some last-minute home repairs completed before a sale could close. “They came to us with a laundry list of items,” Schneller said, ticking off an…

Read More

Court reporters in short supply: School closings lead to openings

Tom Richardson credits fictional defense attorney Perry Mason and the climactic trials on the long-running television series for prompting him to become a court reporter more than 30 years ago. But the romance of participating in a high-profile court case or deposition and translating riveting testimony seems to be lost on the younger set. Industry experts say the dwindling number of licensed court reporters and the closure of a number of court-reporting schools have mired the profession in a severe…

Read More

Commentary: Chasing after the younger crowd

A couple of weeks ago, I ate lunch with an attorney friend who was telling me about his eldest daughter-born, raised and now living in Indianapolis. A 27-year-old registered nurse, she was preparing to move to Chicago because she thinks “there is nothing to do here” for people her age. This really hit home for me because I have two daughters in the same age range living here, and both are starting to talk about moving away for a while,…

Read More

Bigger not best for all: drophead Many attorneys find greener pastures in smaller practices after leaving major firms

not Bigger leaving best for red all tape drophead Many attorneys find greener pastures in smaller practices after leaving major firms When lawyers Debra Miller and James Fisher fled legal powerhouse Ice Miller LLP and the prestigious partner status they had earned, their stable of coworkers swiftly sank from nearly 250 to none. Yet 15 months later, after the pair left the largest law firm in the city, they say they’re quite content practicing together at Miller & Fisher LLC,…

Read More

Philanthropy center busting assumptions: Institute’s research shows there’s still much to learn

The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University plans to share more of its prolific research through two new courses to be tested this fall in Indianapolis, and launched here and elsewhere next spring. Both new courses, including one on the dynamics of women’s giving, could be a gold mine for perpetually prospecting not-for-profits-and for wealth advisers and wealth managers. “We’re hoping there could be some niches we can carve out in this area. There’s a great thirst for knowledge,” said…

Read More