West Michigan firm generates 24 new jobs with pioneering web application

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

By harnessing the power of the world wide web, one Grand Rapids company is fast making the shift from working exclusively with local clients to becoming a global business. That shift has spurred phenomenal growth, and company leaders say that's a foreshadowing of what's to come.

ThinkWise, formerly Leadership Capital Group, rolled out its innovative web 2.0 business tools package to beta clients in October 2007. The company, 2090 Celebration Drive, Grand Rapids, specializes in organizational development—helping clients establish company-wide practices for hiring, training, developing a culture, conflict resolution, and development tools for managers and executives.

"We realized quickly that the same organizational issues pop up across industries," says Roger Jansen, CEO, "and we thought, if we can find a way to put this in a 'bottle,' we could deliver it in a more leveragable fashion."

About three years ago technology caught up with the idea and the development of web 2.0 enabled the company to create a web based system using animated avatars that help companies implement the strategies organization-wide, and the system is accessible 24/7 from anywhere there's web access.

The result of doing business differently at ThinkWise is phenomenal growth, with 14 new employees in 2007 and another 10 jobs predicted for 2008. The company is looking for software developers, web designers, and strategic planners.

"We've attracted new employees from Chicago, Detroit, New York, and Portland, OR, who are now Grand Rapidians," says Jansen. "We’re passionate about having a diversified economic base in West Michigan. We believe the knowledge economy and being a business 2.0 company is another evolution of white collar, intellectual property."

Source: Roger Jansen, ThinkWise; Kelly Smallegan-Maas, Lambert Edwards and Associates