Advancing the Region’s Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

The Tech Garden is gearing up for a busy summer. As part of CenterState CEO’s efforts to offer highly targeted quality programing and resources to companies at all stages of a business lifecycle, the Tech Garden recently hosted its first ever Ideation Workshop. This event was the first in a series of training opportunities concentrated on the initial stages of creating a strong business model, such as problem and solutions statements, segmentation, and next steps to move ideas forward. Workshop attendees also learned about programs and resources offered by CenterState CEO and the Tech Garden, including the Tech Garden Sandbox, Hack Upstate, PreSeed Workshops, Innovation Hot Spots, and Syracuse Tech Meetups.

Likewise, the Tech Garden Sandbox just welcomed its summer cohort of seven teams. The teams will spend six weeks immersed in the incubation program preparing to launch their businesses. This year’s teams are students from Syracuse University, Colgate University, and Onondaga Community College. Their business ideas range from portable rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, to a travel site for adventure photographers, to learning management systems. Teams are currently identifying mentors and subject matter experts. If you are interested in assisting, please contact program director John Liddy for more information at john@liddyenterprises.com.

GENIUS NY, one of the world’s largest business competitions focused on unmanned aircraft systems, is also drawing lots of national attention. The six teams participating in round one are nearly half-way through the year-long accelerator and are hiring new employees and expanding their customer base. This progress has helped drive increased interest in the program, which last month opened applications for the business accelerator’s second round. Applications from entrepreneurs and early-stage businesses are being accepted now through Oct. 1. Over the course of the program nearly $3 million will be invested in six finalist companies, including three grand prizes valued at up to $1 million, $600,000, and $400,000.

These are just a few of the high-quality programs available to the region’s entrepreneurs. We are proud of the breadth and depth of programs this region offers to innovators, and are grateful to the community partners, the business community, and public-sector leaders who support our vision for an economy powered by innovation. To learn more about the Tech Garden or any of its programs, contact Rick Clonan, CenterState’s VP of innovation and entrepreneurship, at rclonan@centerstateceo.com, or visit www.thetechgarden.com.

Robert M. (Rob) Simpson is president and CEO of CenterState CEO, the primary economic-development organization for Central New York. This viewpoint is drawn and edited from the “CEO Focus” email newsletter that the organization sent to members on June 2.