Headline June 11, 2017/ ''' START-UPS & STAR -DUST '''

''' START-UPS & STAR -DUST '''

*NORDSTORM -THE RETAIL GIANT*-      employs more than 72,000 people. and the company's employee handbook consists entirely of one rule:

''Use best judgement in all situations.  There will be no additional rules''. *Absolutely Remarkable*. 

FOR THE DEVELOPING WORLD  :   Tweaking the path to growth and job creations is never ever going to be easy.

Take the case of the   World Students Society's   temporary and fleeting host : Proud Pakistan.   Ali Baba Group Holdings  and   Pakistan recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding [MOU]-  

To promote the country's worldwide exports by SMEs  [Small and Medium Sized Enterprises] through  e-commerce.

NOW, to my way of thinking  :  Merium,  Rabo, Haleema, Dee, Zilli, Sarah, Saima, Eman, Hussain, Haider,  Mustafa, Vishnu/India, Toby/China, Faraz. Ali, Umer, Furqan-

*Proud Pakistan*  should have teamed up with- The World Students Society, most lovingly called !WOW!..... and....... !WOW! in turn would have got  *Ali Baba*    to face up to Amazon. 

The basic, the very basic question, Proud Pakistan has to address is : If it's time to decide if the country wants to grow and create jobs at home     -or become a consumer society and export jobs?.

*And with that, I return to the continuing  ''operational research and '' publishings  on Start-ups and  Risk management*. 

WENGER grew up in Columbia, Md. before he hit his teens, he was writing software for robots that his computer scientist father brought home from his job at the  National Institute of Standards and Technology.

''It comes naturally,'' Wenger said. ''I like being able to sit down a couple of hours. Logic is the most important piece.''

After graduating from the  University of Maryland in 1989,  -the computer science major worked for  NCR  for five years. At 22 years old, he was earning $30,000 writing software for the  savings-and-loan industry.

He then worked for  Thomas International, the Canadian based publisher, working on financial projects. He and some friends from  Thomson started a telecom consultancy in 1994, called  WaveFront. They sold the company in 1998. 

Wenger earned his first million and bought a house Bethesda. Then he launched another company called Active Matter, which created websites for associations. He made another million when they sold Active Matter in 2003.

The idea for  Higher Logic  came to Wenger in 2006 after he joined LinkedIn, the resume site now owned by Microsoft.

''You have a  50,000  member association of people who  have the same job,'' he said. ''The idea as to make a sort of private LinkedIn and give them a way to communicate with each other.''

He founded the company with a former client who worked for the  Risk and Insurance Management Society.

The company was founded eight years ago in a first-floor office in his home. Its mission was to take the next step from building websites at Active Matter and create software to sell to associations.

He built the company methodically and organically, staying away from outside money until  Higher Logic  was up and profitable. 

As world got around about his little project, he saved the contact information from various venture capital inquiries until he was ready to take their money.

Wenger was also deliberate in the focus of his business. He didn't try to boil the ocean by hyping  Higher Logic's  technology. 

Instead, he started small, working Washington's fertile association market, which he and his business partners knew well.

''The smartest move we made was staying focused, making a certain product and sticking with it,''  Wenger said.

He stayed away from the easy Washington path of focusing on government sales. He also stayed away from customizing for clients. That allowed him the  sale of the business and improve margins.

The $55 million investment gave him running room to make acquisitions and grow the business client side. Only recently has begun to make acquisitions.

Wenger, mindful of his vulnerable days when he had to cash out his nest egg, had tried to incorporate some good benefits for  Higher Logic employees-

Including 15 vacation days, health-care coverage, and a matching [401 [k] program.

Almost all the employees have amassed stock in the company which they cannot sell yet, even if they were to need rescue on a rainy day.   

And now, Wajahat, and all of you *good and great lads*  the world over, warming up for Start-ups, do consider that the best way forward is that Don't settle for having one mentor:

We all know that having a  mentor  is helpful, but it's not always possible to find that one perfect person. Try a different approach:

Create a  mentor  'board of directors', a group of people to whom you can turn for input. Start by asking yourself : Where I am headed professionally, and what skills do I need to get there>''.

Write down the people you know and respect who have those skills  -they could be peers, senior leaders or even junior employees. For each person. think through how and when you'll create time to connect.

Could you invite them for  a monthly lunch. Arrange to meet up at a conference? For these relationships to endure, they'll need to be reciprocal. so think about the skills and qualities you bring to the table, too.

For you all to succeed You need Many Mentors. Not just One.

For all the students of the world, locate the following 'outstanding thinkers' and request help and guidance:

Technologist Amin Malik/US, Dr, M, Jawad Khan/University of California, Ahmar Bari Khan/Apple, Engineer and Technologist Dr. Masood Reza, Engineer and Technologist Munawer-

Engineer and technologist Shahid Mir, Engineer and Technologist Imran Basit,  Engineer Shahid Shakoor,   Engineer Salim Khan Kasuryia, Dr. Mustansir Tanoli, Engineer and Technologist Rabo, Engineer and Tehnologist Haleema, and for Marketing,  Dee and Eman/LUMS.............

With respectful dedication to the Leaders, Students, Professors and Teachers of the world. See Ya all on !WOW!   -the World Students Society and.. Twitter-!E-WOW!  -the Ecosystem 2011:

''' Tweets & Tweaks "'

Good Night and God Bless

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless