As part of the Business Buffalo event which will be held on Friday, June 27th, Buffalo Homecoming will be featuring our region’s most progressive new economy companies at an event titled Buffalo Technology and Enterprise Conference 2008, or BTEC for short.
As an experiment in social event planning, I’d like our volunteers, attendees and friends to help me plan this event. We’ll call it event planning 2.0
As a businessman and member of venture capital organizations, I have attended dozens of mind numbingly lame business conferences at which people droned on about their companies and their business plans. I’ve always wanted to host my own event and make it fun, engaging, and a networking opportunity to build community. In my opinion, one event gets it right when it comes to showcasing new economy companies of varying levels of planned success. TechCrunch40
My loose vision for the event is as follows and I hope you will help me fill out the agenda, tell me if I’m barking up the wrong tree, or if I’m being too narrow in scope.
Goal: Showcase 25 of the region’s most progressive new economy companies to demonstrate that we are rapidly building a burgeoning entrepreneurial sector in Western New York. We want it to be a networking event at which larger companies can show the way to success, mid-level companies can reach out to new customers, find talent, locate real estate, and smaller companies that are just starting out can find some investors or just share their plans. It will be interactive with questions from the online community via text and Twitter, live attendees, and the whole event will be streamed online via BuffaloHomecoming.com, wnymedia.net, and ustream.tv When we’re done, we’ll upload each presentation to Google Video and dozens of other viral sites to spread the word about Buffalo’s business future.
Audience:Â Local professional community, budding entrepreneurs, venture capital community, and YOU!
Skeleton Event Plan:
Session 1: Established companies with 25 or more employees discussing who they are, what services they offer, why they are in WNY, looking for new business, partnerships, or talent. Session will feature 5 companies with each getting 5-8 minutes on stage.
15 minute break, networking
Session 2: Startups with fewer than 25 employees and less than 2-3 years in business. They’ll discuss who they are, services offered, why WNY, looking to grow, need capital/investors, talent, real estate, partnerships, new business. Session will feature 5-7 companies with each getting 5-8 minutes on stage
15 minute break, networking
Session 3: Startups looking for capital, mentorship, or startup assistance. Essentially, each presenter is giving his/her elevator pitch on a business idea and is looking for funding. Company needs to have already incorporated and have published a full business plan. Session will feature 5-7 companies with each getting 5-8 minutes on stage.
Lunch, networking session, roundtable discussions.
So, what do you think? I’m open to hearing your feedback on the idea and I’m even open to a different name for the event. Let’s plan this showcase event together and help showcase some of the wonderful growing businesses in WNY.
March 13th, 2008 at 5:37 am
My only suggestion would be to ensure that the HR types be kept to a minimum. They are great with selling a business in general, but sometimes have a little trouble explaining the the vision of a company and where that came from.
March 13th, 2008 at 10:23 pm
We intend to feature CxO types as speakers at this event and avoid discussion with HR personnel. There is a job fair across the hall if you are looking for work, this event is by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs.
March 15th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Is this event for only tech entrepreneurs, or all entrepreneurs? How “progressive” do you need to be? And who do you see as the audience for session 3? By definition, as established companies, local success stories will be in session 1 and 2. But do you see locals, or people from outside the area, presenting in session 3?
We’ve talked about the high hurdle of convincing large numbers of people to move back in four days. Having someone come in from Austin, to not only attend the party, but also present their business plan in search of funding, seems much higher. Agreed?
I think the audience is important when disucssing this. Is it okay if the out-of-towners attend the traditional job fair, and the locals attend the BTEC?
March 16th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
The only problem with a room filled with type A thinkers is that sometimes that is not very functional. Is there some way to previously find out what positions are open so that participants can come prepared with a resume? Or will they have representatives at the Career Fair that can do this? Remember the goal is to give people a solid incentive to return here right? Applying for a job right then and there would be a solid reason to do this and prove that we are actively helping people to return
March 16th, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Hi Chris,
1) Ban PowerPoint 2) Put the presenters in the middle of the audience, or do something to eliminate the whole idea of “audience”. Circle the chairs, have everybody stand up, something.
I’m not joking. If you’re really giving them 5 to 8 minutes, they won’t have time to crank up Powerpoint anyway. See if they can get their heads around the idea of speaking to a group of people who are looking at THEM, not a screen.
Also, hold them strictly to the time limit and give extra time to conversation after a quick outburst from the “presenters”. Maybe don’t have breaks, just keep it going at a fast pace.
We’re hoping at our Deconstruction Conference to eliminate “conferency” things and try to mix it up as much as possible. Also have hands-on activities as much as possible.
March 17th, 2008 at 12:27 am
Brian,
Most of the presenters will be local to Buffalo, but members of the audience (entrepreneurs and VC) will be from out of town. I am working on an invite list right now…what businesspeople from out of town can take away from the event is that there is a thriving community of likeminded people working to create a spirit of entreprenuerialism in this town. That if one were to move their company or start a company here, that there would be a support system and network/business opportunities.
TJ, this event is not about jobs, it’s about networking, community, entrepreneurship, and growing businesses in Buffalo and WNY. The career fair that features companies who are looking for people will be across the hall.
Kevin,
I look forward to the conference and I absolutely agree with you on making it as non-conference-y as possible. We want this to be an extended roundtable discussion. Doing it in the round could be very interesting…I’d like to extend this conversation to a planning committee for the event. Perhaps some of you would be interested in joining?
March 17th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Chris - I’ll buy that. Are we aiming to get out-of-town VC’s in specifically to decide to invest in Buffalo? Do they know they are being courted at this event? Or do we think they will naturally arrive as part of the 5-5000 process (I have doubts about that).
Kevin - I like the idea as well. One note of caution: the problem with doing something new and different is that it is . . . new and different. Unless attendees immediately “get it,” you can get bogged down in the new process, and never get to the good ideas being presented. I have been to conferences where we were supposed to break up and use some brand new problem solving method to fix all the worlds troubles. In 2 hours we spent 1:45 on process and :15 minutes on ideas. When people hear they have to do (or are attending) a presentation at a conference, everyone kinda knows that means. I think the trick is to shake it up a bit, but so much that the edgy presentation becomes the focus, and not the ideas on display.
March 17th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
I’m not so much proposing new and different as eliminating some of the old and same - Powerpoint, dim lights, podium/dais, chairs in rows, canned presentations. I’m asking if it’s possible to concentrate on the important things, which appear to be networking and perhaps starting a meaningful conversation about business and specifically business in Buffalo.
Chris is proposing a fast-paced program, so you need to look at making that really work. This would mean a very assertive moderator/facilitator. The natural tendency of people to take too much time in transition is why I suggest not breaking at all (but make it easy to leave and rejoin).
It’s also important to communicate the desired goals, and keep those goals in mind the entire time.
Giving someone eight minutes to “sell” their company should focus them. If not, they have a problem.
March 20th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
budding entrepreneurs?
venture capital community?
I would love to see some tech examples of this.