Direct Dimensions showcased our new ShapeShotTM concept for imaging faces in full 3D with high definition color at the 1st annual MDTechCrawl event at the ETC on December 17, 2009. The event featured 21 presenting companies and over 200 attendees and featured a competition between the presenters for the best business pitch as judged by a panel of ETC selected judges. At the end of the night, our new ShapeShot concept took the honors!

Baltimore City’s technology incubator, the Emerging Technology Center (ETC), announced today that they will be hosting the first Maryland TechCrawl, a technology show and tell event, on December 16, 2009. The event is being organized by ETC and two incubator companies, mp3car.com and SmartLogic Solutions.
John Trupiano of SmartLogic talks about why he is excited about Maryland TechCrawl.

Baltimore City’s technology incubator, the Emerging Technology Center (ETC), announced today that they will be hosting the first Maryland TechCrawl, a technology show and tell event, on December 16, 2009. The event is being organized by ETC and two incubator companies, mp3car.com and SmartLogic Solutions.
John Trupiano of SmartLogic talks about why he is excited about Maryland TechCrawl.

By Steve Kozak –
How’s this for holiday cheer?  TeleCommunication Systems has acquired 3 companies in the last 45 days.  Nov 3 - Solvern Innovations (a $18M company), Nov 16 – Sidereal Solutions (~ $20-$24M company) and Dec 1 - Networks in Motion (for $170M).  Then we hear that Millennial Media receives $16M in new funding.  There’s the news that early clinical trials by PharmAthene, testing a potential treatment for exposure to chemical nerve agents, have generated positive results.  TESSCO posted a 16% spike in profit and was ranked by Forbes magazine as one of the Best 200 companies for a third year in a row.  And the word, according to Robert Half Management Resources, that when the economy reboots, CFO’s are planning to improve their information technology systems…which is great news I’m sure everyone would agree.

Yes, tech will bring us back and while we may not be feeling the economic surge yet…I can almost taste it…and I can’t wait.

By Steve Kozak -
A couple weeks ago we had the fortune of having Barbara Dreyer join us for our Face2Face dinner program.  I hear members talk about wanting to take their company to the “next level” and how to get there.  Well, Barbara certainly fits the bill by taking Connections Academy from start-up to a $100M plus organization…and still growing.  She shared many stories, and from that, many more take-aways about business & success.  To me, two stand out – 1) when you find good people, do everything you can to keep them with you (your people are the key to your success) and 2) it’s all about connections and building relationships.  So many of the relationships she established & nurtured years ago have led her to who and where she is today.  I think that’s a good lesson for all of us – get out of your businesses and network, build meaningful relationships.  They transcend business “purposes”.  They fulfill life, they give it meaning.