I usually don't like to give hints about who's coming up on Venture Voice, but I can't resist breaking news: Ryan Allis -- who left college early to start his business iContact -- just raised a $5.35 million for his already profitable company. Stay tuned to hear the story.

I was reminded of how immigration policy affects all parts of the economy while reading Fare is Fair, one of my favorite columns in The L Magazine that’s a collection of quotes from those most in the know in NYC: the cabbies.

A number of our past guests on Venture Voice are immigrants. How does the immigration policy affect entrepreneurship in the US?

Bill Gates gave a very provocative Harvard Commencement speech. I was struck by this passage:

But I also want to be recognized as the guy who got Steve Ballmer to drop out of business school. I’m a bad influence.

While he said it jokingly, it's a great reminder that one of the entrepreneur's biggest jobs is team building and convincing others to take risks.