Tag Archives: Lester Center for Entrepreneurship
In case you missed it: Startup Berkeley Forum highlights
Last month, Berkeleyside held its second Local Business Forum, concentrating on “Startup Berkeley” — the strengths and weaknesses of the city for startups. If you weren’t able to attend, or if you just want a quick refresher on the evening, we’ve condensed the two hours into a little more than six minutes of highlights (above).
Speakers at the Forum were Mayor Tom Bates’ chief of staff, Judy Iglehart, Stupid Fun Club founder Will Wright, MOG founder and CEO … Continue reading »
Startup Forum: What does it take to make it in Berkeley?
What makes a city a magnet for startups? Why do entrepreneurs and financiers flock to the South Bay even though there are so few good places to eat there? Does Berkeley want to be Silicon Valley anyway? (You can guess the answer to that one.) Maybe Berkeley is just not hip enough to attract young talent? Does the city’s red tape makes it too cumbersome to be innovative? And, perhaps most significantly, is there just too much distrust of businesses as they thrive and grow? Perhaps Berkeley should focus on what it already does well: incubating startups then allowing them to fly to pastures new, be that San Francisco or Palo Alto.
All these questions were raised and debated at Berkeleyside’s Startup Berkeley Local Business Forum, last night in downtown Berkeley. An estimated 220 people gathered at the Freight & Salvage to listen and engage directly with two sets of panelists, and to discuss the issues among themselves both before and after the program.
[...View a Photo Gallery of the Startup Berkeley Forum, with photographs taken by Berkeleyside contributing photographer Nancy Rubin...] … Continue reading »
Head of UC Berkeley’s Lester Center joins Startup Forum
Andre Marquis, Executive Director of the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship at UC Berkeley, will be joining the panel at Berkeleyside’s Local Business Forum 2012: Startup Berkeley on March 5th.
“Andre brings the perspective of having been involved in a lot of startups over the years, and the perspective from the university,” said Berkeleyside’s Lance Knobel. “Part of the challenge for Berkeley in terms of fostering more startup activity is building the right links between the university and the local business environment.”
Marquis will join the following panelists:
- David Hyman, founder and CEO of streaming music service MOG
- Will Wright, creator of The Sims and founder of Stupid Fun Club
- June Taylor, founder of jam and marmalade company The Still Room
- Judith Iglehart, chief of staff for Mayor of Berkeley
- Rauly Butler, senior VP Retail Banking for Mechanics Bank
- Kalimah Priforce founder of Qeyno Labs … Continue reading »
