Archive for September, 2008

Nov 19 – 21: Astia it Conference

September 19, 2008 at 10:24 pm · Filed under Business Networking, Venture Connection ·Tagged , ,

There are venture conferences and then there’s it.  Astia, dedicated to accelerating women-founded and and -led IT businesses, brings smart startups to the stage to present their businesses.  Now in its seventh year, the Astia conference has driven real results for these young companies:

  • Over $4868 million raised
  • Funding success rate surpassing 60% of presenting companies
  • Ten successful exits, including two IPOs

The conference has been designed for entrepreneurs by entrepreneurs who understand the value of an extraordinary business network.  The conference connects entrepreneurs to investors, industry leaders, advisors, service providers, and other players who can help young companies win.

This year’s keynote speaker is Diane Greene, founder of VMWare, who certainly has lots of great experience to share.

For more information and to register to attend, visit the Astia it Conference page.

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Oct 15: AlphaLab Applications Due

September 18, 2008 at 5:55 pm · Filed under Contests and Competitions, Skills Development ·Tagged ,

AlphaLab, the Pittsburgh-based startup incubator, is now accepting applications for its Winter/Spring 2009 cycle.  The application deadline is October 15th, 2008.

AlphaLab is a catalyst for launching the next generation of software, entertainment technology and Internet-related companies. Created by Innovation Works, one of the nation’s most active seed-stage investors, AlphaLab provides funding, free office space, expert business advisors and services through an intensive 20-week program in Pittsburgh. AlphaLab helps companies rapidly develop their technology, gain user feedback from early product releases, develop go-to-market strategies, and move toward successful commercial launch.

For more information and to access the application, visit: www.alphalab.org .

If you would like to learn more about the program, you can attend one of the upcoming events at AlphaLab, located at 2325 East Carson Street in Pittsburgh’s South Side.  AlphaLab team members will be at these events to answer any questions you may have about the program and to help you determine whether your business idea is a good fit for the program.  You can also meet others who are interested in the program and a few of the current AlphaLab teams.  We will provide an overview of the program at some point during the event.  The two upcoming events are:

1) The Open Coffee Club (more information on the Open Coffee Club can be found here: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/171782/ ): October 1st, 9 am-noon.  The overview presentation will take place at 11 am.

2) DevHouse Pittsburgh (http://devhousepgh.org/index.php ): October 2nd, 5 pm-midnight.

NOTE: Guidewire Group’s Chris Shipley is an adviser to AlphaLab.

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Nov 3-4: Defrag, Accelerating the “Aha” Moment

September 17, 2008 at 1:20 pm · Filed under Business Networking ·Tagged , , , ,

On the morning of November 3, I’ll be moderating a panel at Defrag, an excellent conference now in its sophomore year.   Organized by Eric Norlin,the conference explores the tools and technologies that accelerate the “aha” moment.  It is a growing community of thought leaders, experimenters, implementers, and innovators.

With an agenda divided between formal sessions, breakouts, and plenty of time for ad hoc learning, Defrag is packed with “aha” potential.  Speakers at this years event include Esther Dyson, Professor William Duggan, Charlene Li, and dozens of entrepreneurs and thinkers pushing the edges of the social computing paradigm.  Defrag is an opportunity to clear your head of the day to day to consider new perspectives on business, technology, and society.

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