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SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2009 |
SDSU and the San Diego Padres Team Up to Provide Economic Opportunities in the Dominican Republic Dr. Kathleen Krentler Presented with 2009 Outstanding Faculty Contributor California State University Mandated Personnel Furloughs SDSU's International Business Program Ranked 11th in U.S. SDSU HR Degree Program Receives Endorsement EMC Launched Fall 2009 Lavin VentureStart Program Spanos Family to Speak at EMC Event Environmentalist Lectures IB Students SDSU Welcomes EMBA XX Students 2009 International Economic Summit Dean Naughton Presents Award to Sempra Energy’s Felsinger M.B.A. Students Assist with Campus Housing for Student Veterans |
Alumni Spotlight: Kim Folsom
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Change is something that many people fear. Kim T. Folsom (’90, information systems) is NOT one of those people.
With a father in the U.S. Navy, Folsom became accustomed to change, particularly when the family had to make a move. When Folsom’s father was stationed at the Naval Amphibious Base in Coronado, California between Kim’s 3rd and 7th grade years, she fell in love with San Diego.
Upon her father’s retirement, Folsom moved with her family back to their hometown of Philadelphia. However, her brother, Stephen Tadlock, remained in San Diego where he pursued his undergraduate graduate degrees in psychology at SDSU. In 1977, Folsom marked the first major change in her life by joining her brother in San Diego, where she completed high school.
In 1986, she was accepted to SDSU where she chose to major in information systems (IS). “I love to solve business problems, design software that makes processes more efficient and apply mathematics to these issues,” said Folsom. “Information systems gave me that foundation to develop and apply these skills to provide value to the businesses where I was employed.”
After after graduating from SDSU, Folsom taught IS classes at a local community college and it was there that she realized that there was a market for working students that were looking to “update their skills and obtain professional certificates.” And while the Internet was relatively new, Folsom saw its potential in helping adult learners take classes that conformed to their schedule.
With this in mind, Folsom jumped into her first major entrepreneurial venture, SeminarSource, 1997. SeminarSource offered video seminars online to individuals who generally traveled or took time out of their busy schedule to attend educational sessions. At its peak, the organization had a staff of 60+ and over 100 clients including the American Bar Association, Arthur Anderson and Prudential Securities.
As the events of September 11, 2001 disrupted the lives of people on a worldwide basis, SeminarSource found its market sharply dwindling and the company sold its assets and closed shop at the end of the year.
And while 2001 was a tough year for Folsom, 2002 saw her complete her M.B.A. at Pepperdine University and also brought about the founding of her next entrepreneurial venture, Momentuum Solutions Inc. Since Folsom had gone through the entrepreneurial cycle once, Momentuum Solutions, a consulting company specializing in helping small businesses obtain financing and execute effective business planning, was a perfect outgrowth for Folsom’s talent and experiences.
Folsom continued to operate Momentuum Solutions until 2007, when she hit upon the idea for her newest entrepreneurial outing, VuQuest Inc., which launched in 2008.
VuQuest Inc.’s product, showUhow (www.showuhowinc.com), offers retailers and manufacturers the opportunity to provide online instructions and video for products that require set up, assembly and installation. This service helps companies “improve their end consumer experience, increase sales and reduce support costs,” said Folsom. “Through showUhow, we developed innovative technology that solves a huge problem for the retail product industry and contributes to the San Diego community.”
When she’s not working on one of her entrepreneurial endeavors, Folsom stays busy within the San Diego community. In 2008, she was appointed to the Qualcomm Stadium Advisory Board by Mayor Jerry Sanders. She gives back to SDSU in that she currently sits on the Entrepreneurial Management Center’s board of directors and she established a scholarship for community college transfer students.
Folsom’s advice to current SDSU students? In a word: Networking. “SDSU provides a wonderful educational experience and resource to build rewarding career,” she said. “If the student chooses to leverage their SDSU degree to contribute to the San Diego community, they will be welcomed into a group of highly qualified, San Diego-based, SDSU alumni.”