MONTHLY CHANCE MEETINGS
Wed, May 8th, 5 - 7 pm @ Melvin Brewing in Alpine, WY
Sometimes all you need is the right connection and a little inspiration. Well, what are you waiting for? Find both at our free monthly networking event. You never know...
About our esteemed presenter...
Lindsey Kneuven, founder of Pure Impact, is an award-winning impact practitioner, social entrepreneur and humanitarian with over 20 years experience across the for profit, nonprofit and social enterprise sectors. She is the founder and CEO of Pure Impact, a social impact consultancy that focuses on systems change. Prior to launching Pure Impact, Lindsey served as the Chief Impact Officer at Pluralsight, a fast-growing enterprise technology learning platform, as well as founder and Executive Director of Pluralsight One, Pluralsight’s social enterprise and foundation. In her role, Lindsey developed and implemented the strategy for all global philanthropic initiatives, including the creation and management of a $40M+ foundation with $5M+ in annual grants.
Prior to joining Pluralsight, Lindsey served as the Chief Impact Officer at Cotopaxi, the first social enterprise to incorporate as a Public Benefit Corporation and receive venture funding. While there, Lindsey developed and oversaw the company’s global philanthropic strategy, including all giving, supply chain initiatives and community engagements. Under her leadership, the company launched a successful and thriving model, proving to investors that an integrated social impact strategy created positive value for both the business and the world.
Lindsey also held senior positions at several notable nonprofit and private organizations, including Salesforce.com Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation--the largest community foundation in the world, and Nuru International. While at Nuru, Lindsey lived in Kenya and designed education programs to improve literacy rates among primary school-aged children experiencing extreme poverty in rural communities.
Lindsey is an active member of the philanthropy community and serves as a member and advisor on several national and international boards. She has been acknowledged for her outstanding work on several occasions. Lindsey was awarded the Leigh Stillwell Award for Excellence, recognized by Utah Business as one of 30 Women to Watch, listed by the Community Foundation of Utah as an Enlightened 50, received the Women in Tech Award, was a finalist for EY Social Entrepreneur of the Year, was recognized as a Utah Community Hero awardee by Silicon Slopes, and more.
NEWS AND NOTES
PITCH DAY APPLICATION PERIOD OPENS MAY 15th
We're pleased to announce that the the finalist application period for Pitch Day will open May 15th and run until June 28th.
Pitch Day will be held at the Center for the Arts on the evening of Wednesday, October 9th. Silicon Couloir's signature event of the year, Pitch Day features local entrepreneurs showcasing their innovative and creative businesses to a panel of esteemed judges and a live audience. Cash prizes will be awarded in three categories: the Panelist Choice Award, the Audience Choice Award, and the Bob Arndt Community Caretaker Award.
Selected entrepreneurs will have four to five coaching sessions with a team of successful and experienced business experts leading up to the main event. A critical and high-value feature of the program, coaching helps entrepreneurs hone their delivery and synthesize their concept, financials, and presentation.
Pitch Day is a celebration of the highly successful entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Teton region. We hope to inspire audience members and others in our community to dream up or begin their own entrepreneurial journey.
If your company meets the following criteria, we welcome your application.
Stage: Pitch Day applicants will be considered in the following stages of their business cycle: developmental, pre-revenue and post-revenue.
Funding: Companies should be actively raising a pre-seed, seed or series A round or plan to do so in the next 6 months.
Growth potential: Priority will be given to ventures with a business model that has potential to scale and experience significant growth.
Industry: We do not accept tourism-based or real estate development companies.
Geography: Preference will be given to ventures with the greatest potential for impact in the Teton region.
Values-Based: SC is a values-based, mission-driven organization, and applicants will be required to provide a description (not more than 250 words) of how their venture relates to SC’s guiding principle of “Profit. People. Planet.”.
SC Ecosystem: Previous participation in other SC programs may be considered as a factor by the Selection Committee.
Key dates for finalists can be found HERE. Stay tuned for more details on how to apply.
Tana Hoffman on the Center stage. Griffin Post speaks with attendees at the reception.
NOONTIME KNOWLEDGE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19th
BASKING IN EXCITEMENT & DISCOMFORT: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF INNOVATION FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL TEAMS
Speaker: Tom Thorsheim, PhD - Leadership Coach & Psychologist
When we venture into new and challenging terrain in our professional or personal lives, we often feel both fear and excitement; it’s usually not either/or. It's both. Whether you are sharing a new product innovation with a VC, starting a business, undergoing a merger, getting a promotion, or beginning or ending a personal or professional relationship, crossing these thresholds can stir potent feelings. As team members and leaders, we can create work cultures that support these emotional experiences and promote growth, creativity, and healthy risk-taking. This talk will explore how we can become more compassionate, playful, and productive as teams, and more courageous and fear-tolerant at work and home. You don’t need to be fearless to be brave!
Registration is free and required. Register by clicking the button below.
Extended Experiential Workshop
With Tom Thorsheim, Thursday, June 27th
Hansen Hall at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 10am - 4pm
Fee: $250 per person (limited sliding scale slots for those in need - call to inquire or reserve your place)
This experiential group-format workshop will help people explore areas where they strive to undertake an important personal or professional venture but may be procrastinating or holding back because of discomfort. This workshop is for those interested in enhancing open communication, stress tolerance, and creative problem-solving as individuals, growth-minded couples, entrepreneurs, or work groups. The workshop will involve a talk and a facilitated group experience.
To learn more and reserve your place, contact Tom Thorsheim at 864-421-0098 or email tom@drthorsheim.com.
GET EXPERT MENTORING WITH TEAMS
TEAMS, Silicon Couloir's world-class mentor program licensed by MIT, is now accepting new ventures and encouraging those interested in receiving mentorship to apply. Certain criteria is required and listed on the application. "This is an exciting opportunity for local founders," says Brittney Ziebell, Silicon Couloir's Director of Entrepreneurship. "Historically, the program has been in very high demand, causing a multi-month waitlist for businesses and nonprofits to join. Right now, we're excited to share that our volunteer Applications Committee has caught up with the high demand, and we're encouraging those interested in mentorship to apply!" TEAMS has served 58 ventures in the program since 2018 with 94 volunteer mentors. TEAMS completed 127 mentor meetings in 2023 and grew to it's largest size in history. It's recognized statewide as a world-class mentor program, and serves entrepreneurs as far as Pinedale, Cody, and Tetonia, Idaho.
Questions? Email Brittney Ziebell at britt@siliconcouloir.com
Ready to Apply? Click HERE for more information and to access the entrepreneur application
WELCOME TO NEW SC TRUSTEE MICHAEL EDWARDS
A warm welcome to new Trustee Michael Edwards. Thank you, Michael, for your commitment to supporting entrepreneurship in the Teton region.
Dr. Michael Edwards is a retired cancer surgeon and former healthcare executive. He currently serves as a full-time Visiting Professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany, in the Department of Molecular Biology, chaired by Dr. Erich Gulbins. For the past 15 years, Dr. Edwards has worked in research collaboration with Dr. Gulbins. The two have recently partnered to form Snake River Bioscience, Inc., a company headquartered in Wilson, Wyoming, that is on track to develop a novel drug therapy for major depressive disorder.
INTRODUCING NEW SILICON COULOIR SPONSOR
LOCAL FLOW
Local Flow Marketing: Your Path to Local Success. Enhance your online presence and dominate the local market for your products and services with our cutting-edge digital marketing services. Our expert team specializes in local and organic search engine optimization, search engine marketing, and digital health and website design. Our strategy ensures your business stands out in local search results, to in turn, convert clicks to sales. We craft personalized campaigns that captivate customers and deliver tangible outcomes. With transparent reporting and measurable results, we empower you to stay ahead in the digital landscape. Unlock the full potential of your business by working with a mountain-minded team, and a fresh approach to being found by customers who are actively searching for your products and services.
BEYOND EFFICIENCY IS HIRING
Beyond Efficiency, A TEAMS company participant, is seeking a licensed mechanical engineer with 8+ years experience in mechanical design to manage, grow, and lead our HVAC and plumbing engineering design work. Applicants based in Jackson WY, Northern MI, or the San Francisco Bay Area preferred. Applicants should be skilled with project management, Revit, design review, and construction administration. We are looking for a whole-systems thinker who understands how buildings and systems are put together and recognizes that thoughtful enclosure design improves occupant comfort, reduces heating and cooling loads, and saves owners energy and money.
Please apply directly through the jobs page on our website at https://beyondefficiency.us/jobs. Direct your cover letter to Annette Hartsfield.
ANNOUNCING MAY 9th SBDC WORKSHOP IN JACKSON
The SBA Wyoming District Office & Wyoming SBDC Network will take you behind the scenes and share what it will take for you to get ready to approach a lender, and how you can increase your chances of getting an approval on your loan request.
We’ll share best practices for ensuring that your personal financial situation – the foundation for the success of your business is as strong as possible, and we’ll go over:
• preparing a personal financial statement
• checking your credit score
• what your safety net looks like if it takes longer than you expect to achieve the revenues you’re projecting
• a hands-on case study to review cash flow projections for a loan application, so you will better understand how to evaluate a potential deal from a lender’s perspective.
You will also have an opportunity to schedule a free one-on-one appointment with your SBDC Regional Director to assist you with developing cash flow projections for your business, to help you explain to your lender where the money to repay your loan will come from, in the format they will understand.
gBETA ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR SUMMER COHORT
gBETA is a free, seven-week hybrid accelerator for early-stage companies with local roots. Each program is capped at five teams, and requires no fees and no equity. Applications are due May 20th. The program runs from June 6th to July 26th.
LEARN MORE ABOUT SILICON COULOIR
HAVE NEWS TO SHARE?
As always, please feel free to send news of your company's press, events, successes, and milestones to Hello@siliconcouloir.com and we'll do our best to feature them in our newsletters!
ARE YOU A COMMUNITY CARETAKER?
Silicon Couloir strengthens our Teton regional community by empowering the entrepreneurial ecosystem. More than just business development, we believe in enriching our community character and enhancing our mountain town culture. Help us support business pioneers in the Tetons by becoming a community caretaker!
To offer your time or talent, please email us at Hello@siliconcouloir.com.