“I wish something like this (Philly Startup Leaders and the Founder Factory) existed when I was starting my business”, proclaimed serial entrepreneur David Brussin at a recent Advisory Board meeting of Philly Startup Leaders.
Brussin, co-founder and CEO of Monetate, is one of a number of successful entrepreneurs scheduled to speak at this year’s Founder Factory conference. Designed to help foster the growth of Philadelphia’s startup company ecosystem, the Founder Factory brings together all of the key players in the community for a day of success and lessons-learned stories, peer to peer advice and networking; all meant to energize and empower young startup founders to build better businesses. The Founder Factory is one of a handful of yearly events run by Philly Startup Leaders that is open to the general public.
The format of the Founder Factory conference is quite different from the typical business conference. In keeping with Philly Startup Leaders’ grassroots approach, the Founder Factory offers a chance for interaction across multiple generations of business, venture capital, education and technology leaders. The all day event at the World Café Live begins at 10:00 AM with a presentation from Wharton Finance Professor Jeremy Siegel, author and frequent guest on CNN, CNBC and NPR. Siegel will dissect the macro-economic climate as it relates to this year’s Founder Factory theme ‘Lessons from the Edge.’
To gain additional perspectives, Doug Alexander, President of Internet Capital Group, will examine the venture capital outlook for the region. Geoff Cook, CEO of MyYearbook, the nation’s fastest growing social network, will discuss the hurdles facing venture-backed startups. Rounding out the lineup of speakers will be David Brussin, CEO of Monetate.
Interspersed throughout the day, three local companies will be given the opportunity to present a business problem they are currently facing to the panel of featured speakers. Known as Fishbowl workshops at Philly Startup Leaders, the company will give a short presentation describing the relevant aspects of their business and discuss the problem at hand. Next, the panel of speakers will offer advice, followed by suggestions and questions from the audience.
"Presenting my company in the Fishbowl was rewarding. I received a lot of actionable feedback, not only from the esteemed panel members, but from the audience as well. Afterward, many attendees came up to me to continue the conversation. I'd recommend the experience to any local entrepreneur." said Gabriel Weinberg, CEO of search engine DuckDuckGo.com, a 2008 Founder Factory Fishbowl company.
Joining this year’s Fishbowl panels will be speakers from the 2008 Founder Factory, including Steve Goodman, a Partner in Morgan Lewis’ Business and Finance Practice, Lucinda Holt, CEO of Click Equations, Gil Beyda, Managing Partner of Genecast Ventures, and moderator Colin Evans, Managing Partner of Sandwith Ventures.
The Founder Factory will wind down the day with networking, beginning at 5:00 PM. For those unable to attend the conference during the day, networking-only tickets are available, though space is limited.
Tickets for the 2nd Annual Founder Factory Conference are available online at www.founderfactory.com.
2nd Annual Founder Factory
November 19th, 2009
World Café Live
www.founderfactory.com
About Philly Startup Leaders
Philly Startup Leaders is the largest and most active community of startup entrepreneurs in the Philadelphia region.
They connect technology-focused startups with the things they need most – information, inspiration and a community of their peers. They are run entirely by volunteer entrepreneurs who contribute their sweat and passion on top of 70+ hour workweeks at their startups.
Philly Startup Leaders host dozens of events each year. Their members share advice, wisdom and startup humor on their vibrant e-mail listservs.
Philly Startup Leaders’ members are startup entrepreneurs, early stage companies and people who wish they were startup entrepreneurs (like technologists, investors and community leaders).