LaunchPad Inland Northwest LLC, a for-profit concern here known for putting on business-networking events, has added another line of business by offering professional development workshops.

LaunchPad, which is owned by Bill Kalivas and Allen Battle, began offering workshops in June, and so far has held 20 such classes that together have attracted more than 800 attendees, Kalivas says. He says the business plans to broaden its workshop offerings this fall.

So far, the workshops have included series on such topics as Introduction to Facebook and Google Analytics, he says. LaunchPad expects to offer a workshop titled Introduction to Social Media this month, and to introduce classes focused on health care, legal issues, and presentation skills this fall, Kalivas says.

He says LaunchPad teams up with other companies and organizations to put on the workshops, with its partners providing the content and LaunchPad providing the marketing, and often the venue. Both share in any profits, he says. The workshops generally run less than two hours and are priced from $29 to $49 each, Kalivas says. They usually are held in the LaunchPad Lounge, located in the Holley Mason Building, at 157 S. Howard downtown, he says.

"They have become a prominent revenue stream for our company," Kalivas says. "But more than that, they are good for our partners because they help them generate leads and new business."

LaunchPad, which Kalivas and Battle formed two years ago, has focused primarily on holding quarterly networking events. It also runs a social-networking site, www.launchpadINW.com, that currently has about 2,800 members, and offers shared workspace at its quarters in the Holley Mason Building, Kalivas says.