Commissioner @MarkSharpeFL and the discussion about Tampa’s tech ecosystem went on the road to the University of South Florida Book Store.
This week’s group talked about what draws students to Tampa and what is needed to keep them here after graduation. Other topics included:
Hillsborough County’s Economic Development Innovation Initiative (#EDI2)
Hillsborough County’ upcoming Hack-a-thon on April 12th – 14th at HCC Brandon
Ignite! Tampa Bay on April 25th at the Tampa Theater
Webcast # 4 in the Startup Tampa Bay series. Commissioner @marksharpefl leads a discussion on the EDI2 initiative for building the local tech and economic development’s evolving role in nurturing the startup community.
Participants for this week’s chat were:
Commissioner Mark Sharpe – Host
Irv Cohen, SouthEast Capital Equity Group
Chris Paradise, Paradise Law Group
Joy Randels, New Market Partners
Ken Evans, Evolution Advisors
Commissioner @marksharpefl was absent this week, so I sat in as the moderator along with some new and old faces from the local tech and economic development community.
Topics for this week’s chat were:
Hillsborough County’s Economic Development Innovation Initiative (#EDI2)
County Hack-a-Thon – April 12 – 14 @HCCFL Brandon Campus
Sprout Camp start-up accelerator program
Citizinvestor – Crowdfunding platform for community projects
Ignite! Tampa Bay – April 25th at the Tampa Theater
This weekend in downtown Orlando Hilary Mason the Chief Scientist at bit.ly, a co-founder of HackNY, and recently started the data science blog Dataists will be speaking on Data for Good: Creatives and Scientists can Change the World.
Details:
Sunday, May 6th at 1:30 PM
Plaza Cinema Cafe
Go here to grab a $10 ticket
Proceeds go to Urban Rethink and the Urban Rethink Foundation.
Calling all UX fanatics. The newly formed Tampa chapter of the Interaction Design Association will host its kickoff event on August 11th.
Interaction Design (IxD) defines the structure and behavior of interactive systems. Interaction Designers strive to create meaningful relationships between people and the products and services that they use, from computers to mobile devices to appliances and beyond.
Details:
Thursday August 11th – 5:30pm – 6:30pm
The Pub (International Plaza)
2223 N Westshore Boulevard
Thanks to Justin Davis for organizing this event and bringing the IxDA to Tampa. This is a great resource for Tampa Bay’s tech, creative and manufacturing community and I look forward to the contributions this group’s members will make to other events and activities.
Evolving a great idea into a sellable product requires a mix of innovation, instinct, and basic business discipline. My mission is to help early-stage founders understand start-up challenges, build their confidence, and establish their credibility. I’m not here to put lipstick on your pig or offer any silver bullets for venture funding; just grassroots experience blended with a little attitude and the occasional flinging of poo.
