Building a Tech Cluster One Startup At A Time!

Susan Amat, MBA, Ph.D.

Founder, Venture Hive

11.7.13

@SusanAmat

• Most transient region in the US

• No support infrastructure

• Few businesses scaling

• Poor culture of mentorship

• Private sector not engaged

• No “smart money” for tech startups

• Few success stories

• No tracking or documentation

Case Study // South FloridaChallenges to Community Capacity Building

Case Study // South FloridaWhat Is Working for Us

• Mindset shifting

• College students

• Private sector

• Engaging students in the local business community

• Attracting & retaining new talent in targeted verticals

• Best practices and world class education

• Global branding through partnerships

• Focus on quality, accountability, and transparency

• Recruit startups on industry verticals

• Engage private sector from those chosen verticals

• Zero equity – no barriers to recruitment

• Individual and venture development

• World-class curated resources and support

• 230K for program support from Miami DDA (2 years)

+ 250K for ten 25K grants by Mayor’s Office (4 years)

Economic Development through Accelerators

Made possible by Miami-Dade’s Mayor’s Office and

Miami’s Downtown Development Authority

RAMP-UP PHASE //• 9/28/12- Application Released• 11/5/12 - Application Deadline • Due diligence and judging• 11/30/12 - Top Ten selected for a

$25K no-equity grant, our support, and a year of space

Less than 4 months: Applications to opening day!

Applications

U.S. LATAM Europe

74 58% 47 37% 6 5%

Hospitality/Tourism Healthcare Creative

39 31% 20 16% 68 53%

OPERATIONS PHASE //• Structured program • 35 Workshops• 1,345 Hours Advising • 50+ Local Mentors • 3 Off-Site Visits• The Swarm!

KEY PERFORMANCE METRICS // 1/21/13 - 5/31/13

Business Relocations

New Business

FormationsJobs Created

Average Salary w Equity

13 3 34.25 $40,360

 

Investment Leverage

Sales/Grant Revenue  

2.6:1 $56,750

• Founder: Serial entrepreneur/intrapreneur• Founder of The Launch Pad & Blackstone LaunchPads • Developed and oversaw replication to 12 universities• Grants from Kauffman Foundation, Blackstone

Charitable Foundation, Fairholme Foundation, Bradley Foundation

• White House Champion of Change in 2012

• CTO: 20 years of engineering experience, over a decade in Silicon Valley

• Ops: Seven years running 80Ksf incubator and raised/managed over 20M in grants

• PM: Entrepreneur, ran TechStars accelerator

The Team

- Entrepreneurship Education Partner to US State Department

Regions: Africa, Caribbean, LATAM, Mekong, MENA

- World-class team

- Curated, best-in-class content & platform

- Turn-key solution for communities/countries

ROI in Miami - 2.6:1 in our first four months12:1 in nine months and 20+:1 by 12 months

Scaling an International Model

National Initiative AnnouncementsOne in LATAM, two in Africa for Accelerator and VHU

Venture Hive PrepPartnership with Miami Dade County Public Schoolsand Miami-Dade County Mayor Gimenez

Corporate Innovation PartnershipsRecruiting and programming for corporation-specific solutions

What’s Next?

Susan Amat, MBA, Ph.D.305-735-1274@SusanAmat@VentureHive

Growing our own companiesDefinitions• Incubator

• Focus on local community• One to three year hosting with some services• Rarely vertically-focused• Companies pay membership fee or rent

• Accelerator• Local or national attraction• Three months-intensive program, then move back• Usually either one focus area or no focus at all• Program takes equity as payment

Venture Hive U®

University-wide Educational Model

• Culture shifting – solving problems!

• “Make a job” instead of “take a job”

• Slow success instead of fast failure

• Individual development focus – not the venture

• Curated best-practice resources

• Network across region/country/globe

• Training, transparency, and accountability

CAMPUS-WIDE, INTERDISCIPLINARY, COCURRICULAR

Venture Hive U®

Process and Platform

MissionVenture Hive exists to energize, educate, and cultivate entrepreneurs. The Venture Hive Accelerator and Incubator programs focus on connectivity and guidance for entrepreneurs and startups to maximize regional economic development impact.

• Transparency

• Accountability

• Complete program management tool

• Turnkey Solution – tech + content + support

• Customized to community needs

• Individual and Venture- level metrics

Platform delivers and reports results in real time