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"People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society."
- Vince Lombardi

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
- Margaret Mead

• Less driving, less emissions.  Our organization is a virtual one, with people working from their home offices to support our customers.  This eliminates commuting, and thus any carbon emissions.
• Work is often organized around family time.  Up and Running is focused on results, meaning our team members have great flexibility in how they choose to organize their time so long as it works for our customers.  Several of our team members use this flexibility to be available for their family during what are considered traditional work hours.  As an example, instead of a late dinner, they're able to share most meals with their family.  As another example, most of the kids' sporting events can now be attended.
• Less printing, less toner, paper, and other consumables.  We strive to perform all work and marketing electronically, and rarely print materials for any reason.

• We believe in entrepreneurism and business of all sizes because they create jobs, provide education, and are empowering to the people involved and the community.  Here are some of the ways we've helped in this area:
  • Ian McKilligan, our CEO, served as a board member of the Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance (KEDA).
  • Up and Running Software, Inc. has donated to Michigan Technological University (view home page) entrepreneurial initiatives.
  • Peter Hanson, founder and CTO, has presented to school children about careers in information technology and his personal experience starting his own business (thank you letter).
  • Ian McKilligan has spoken to a Michigan Technological University class about pursuing a career in IT, as well as managing operations in an IT organization (thank you email).  He also spoke for a Michigan SmartZone event where local entrepreneurs gave their stories to MTU students as a means of promoting entrepreneurism and motivating MTU students to start or join new ventures.
  • Up and Running supported an open source initiative with free hosting and server resources, as well as contributed financially to other open source related activities.
  • We've also supported the Chamber of Commerce in Houghton, MI with free technical services (click to open image to see how they honored us with our name on a plaque that resides in their office).
  • We provided thousands of dollars in services to help create (all software development and hosting) a jobs site called the Keweenaw Professional Job Board (view home page), where local businesses can post their jobs for free.
  
  
• We believe in sustainable green practices, and think green initiatives must be economically sound for longevity of the idea and practices.
  • To that end, we've provided pro bono technical consulting and support to OnGreen.com (view home page), the world's largest green business resource center.
  • We were an early adopter of cloud computing because we knew its economies of scale would be able to provide better computing power cheaper and with less of environmental impact.
  • We operate in a virtual environment, and perform nearly all of our work electronically.  This reduces carbon emissions and consumption.
  
  
• We believe in education because that's one of the foundational components for improvement of the individual and society.
  • Our CEO taught a class at Michigan Technological University on Information Systems Management.
  • Our founders regularly donate their time to help individuals and organizations learn more about business, software, and working with people in general.
  • We supported an online pre and post-survey used to research means to improve science performance at the high school level as measured by ACT scores.
  • Our CTO has mentored students not affiliated with and not working for our company.  For a recent one, he provided his recommendations on educational materials, and, in part by using lessons learned from those materials, she secured the job she was aiming for.
  • We've provided education in the form of martial arts to practitioners and organizations that seek more awareness and confidence on the personal security front.
  • We donated a SMART Board (view site) to the Joplin, MO school system, and this prototype resulted in more SMART Boards being purchased for the classrooms.  This has helped both the teachers and the students.
  • We've donated to the Houghton, MI library, and they honored us by placing a book in our name on the donation wall (click to see image).
  • We have provided financial support to Houghton High School events.
  • On a broader scale, we provide existing and potential customers with technical and business thoughts based on our experience.
  
  
• We believe in helping those who help others.
  • Rotary is a worldwide organization with over a million members focused on combating hunger, improving health and sanitation, providing education and job training, promoting peace, and eradicating polio (source). We've helped Houghton Rotary with their website (view home page), though we don't manage their content.  We have also helped this organization with their fundraising efforts by providing web services that have processed thousands of dollars for their club.  Roger S. Helman, J.D., CFP ®, a former Houghton Rotary President wrote, "Ian and his company have provided invaluable professional assistance to Rotary over the past year, helping with various tasks, such as: the Tri-District President-Elect Training Seminar registration process, which I personally utilized without any problems; on-line ticket sales and appropriate content for Houghton Rotary's Seafood Fest; and on-line registration for Houghton Rotary's Centennial Gala. Ian's willingness to help, as well as his availability, experience and depth of knowledge have proven to be most impressive (see full letter of recommendation)".  Houghton Rotary has thanked us publicly for our efforts as well (see an example thank you letter).
  • We've donated technical services and money to the Keweenaw Family Resources Center (view home page), an organization dedicated to helping families with young children since 1991.  They have a great mission: "The mission of the Keweenaw Family Resource Center is to support, enrich, and strengthen family lives in the Keweenaw Peninsula by providing a variety of programs that focus on families with children from birth through four years of age. (source)"
  • Peter Hanson oversaw the Amber Alert website to help find missing or kidnapped children through the Joplin Globe.
  • We've supported the Keweenaw Community Foundation with all of their technical needs, as well as financially.  Their mission is "to promote philanthropy, develop and manage permanent endowments from a broad range of donors, and award charitable grants that enhance quality of life in the Keweenaw. (view home page)". Barb Rose, their Executive Director, says some kind things about some of our help in this thank you letter.
  
  
• We believe in personal security and confidence.  Our founders, both blackbelt-level martial artists, have donated time to school children, college organizations, and crisis intervention specialists to help them learn basic personal security measures such as how to escape from common grabs and attacks, as well as how to avoid situations altogether via awareness and proactiveness.  In the classroom, we helped people of all ages and from all walks of life learn about martial arts, and the physical and mental benefits they afford.
  
  
• We believe people should learn about health and healthy living so they can make the choices that are right for them:
  • We've supported RecipeRx (view home page), a company dedicated to helping people eat well based on their personal health profile and needs.
  • We've donated to the Portage Community Foundation in support of the mission of Portage Health, which is to "To improve the health of our community by providing the highest quality healthcare services."
  • We've supported Home Health organizations and organizations that assist families in finding the healthcare services they need.
  
  
• We believe in athletics because it's educational for many reasons and provides positive community-building activities.
  • We've supported the Lake Superior Hockey Conference (L'Anse Purple Hornets, Kingsford Flivvers, Houghton Gremlins, Jeffers Jets, Hancock Bulldogs, and the Negaunee Miners) with free software development services.  http://lschockey.com is a site that lets coaches manage stats and teams; the resulting data is displayed on the website dynamically.
  • Our CEO volunteered at the US Ski Nationals in Houghton, MI in 2008, and had the honor of ensuring one of the first-place winners, Ivan Babikov, followed US Ski National policies.
  • We've provided personal security and martial arts education.
  • We've also supported the Copper Country Soccer Association with free technical services, an organization "that provides an opportunity to play soccer for over 800 children from Houghton, Keweenaw, and Baraga counties. (source)"
  
  
• We believe that artists make a community a better place.  Towards that end, we've provided free and in-kind services to artists and organizations that need help getting going.  This includes free hosting, free technical support, and general business advice.
  
  
• We believe in community and community events. We've donated to large community dinners, fireworks displays, local community events such as BridgeFest and Winter Carnival, Shrine Circus, and more.
  
  
• Other: we've donated time to other health organizations, religious organizations, small businesses, foundations, athletic organizations and clubs, government entities, artists, and other service organizations.  Here are some of the specifics: Cancer Drive, Polio Plus, Dial Help, Polio Plus (eradication), Gloria Dei, OlearyFoundation.com, United Way, BHK Child Development, Omega House (senior services such as assisted living), local Fire Fighters, American Chung Do Kwan Limited (Tae Kwon Do Association), Hancock Bike Shop, artists who needed web space, Copper Country Junior Hockey Association, Central Upper Peninsula (CUP) Hockey League, Western Upper Peninsula Healthcare Access Coalition (WUPHAC), Relay for Life, and Big Brothers Big Sisters.

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