The fourth annual Tampa Bay Synapse Summit—this year designed as a four-day virtual business community gathering—was a major catalytic event in the pursuit of transforming Florida from the Sunshine State to the Startup State. The event was orchestrated by Tampa-based Synapse Florida—a nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect and mobilize the Tampa Bay and greater Florida entrepreneurial ecosystem which includes entrepreneurs, startups, corporations, nonprofits, local and state government, universities, community leaders, and private investors including venture capital and private equity firms. The Summit clearly illustrated how it really does take a village to ensure the progress of innovation and dynamic business growth.
I will be sharing highlights from my thoughts and experiences from the Summit, which will hopefully inspire you to explore similar entrepreneurial activity and efforts you can support in your community.
Pillars Of The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
While there was a massive amount of startup business topics, virtual knowledge sharing sessions, and entrepreneurial support organizations (ESOs) illustrating their strategic services for entrepreneurs throughout the four days of the conference, there seemed to be some core themes that could be grouped together as key pillars supporting entrepreneurial activity throughout the state:
Pillar #1 — Mindset And Process
As we state repeatedly at the Institute, “innovation” does not equal or is totally defined as technology. Technology is the greatest tool of innovation but this mental shorthand by many misses the fact that innovation is primarily a mindset. It is a distinct way of thinking and behaving; it challenges assumptions, asks tough questions, and experiments incessantly.
As such, the Summit offered many sessions supporting entrepreneurs around the topics of mindset and process including mindfulness, culture, agile, leadership, and collaboration showing how to make these needed skills more than just buzzwords. Advice from successful entrepreneurs, like Daymond John from Shark Tank, emphasized the importance of being present, focused, and driven in your entrepreneurial journey, especially during the disruption of trying times.
Pillar #2 — Data
Technology and digitalization have propelled and opened the floodgates of data but now also offers data science and data management tools to make sense, draw out insights, and provide direction for new innovations and client engagement strategies.
Sessions were designed around the latest in data science, data management strategies, cybersecurity advances, artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, and support organizations that can leverage entrepreneurs’ efforts in these areas. Highlights:
PwC — a panel of PwC's forward-thinking data analysts shared how they transformed from a reporting group into "Analysts of the Future" and the success they have realized from learning how to tell the story of a business through their data and partnering with customers to leverage the data to generate insights and help with decision-making to drive strategic outcomes.
Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) — as a methodology, analytical framework, and technology agnostic approach, OSINT allows practitioners to validate reliable information and transform that information into actionable intelligence. The power of OSINT is immense with applications ranging from identifying threats to national security, recovering missing children, evaluating, and managing corporate social risk, and making more informed business decisions.
Cybersecurity — Florida is becoming a cyberhub and national leader in cybersecurity with robust cyber programs and cyber-related degrees from local universities, extensive training and research from organizations like CyberFlorida, and talent transitioning from Florida’s 22 military facilities.
Pillar #3 — Funding And Investing In Innovation
Capital is the lifeblood of entrepreneurial efforts and in creating a more diverse and vibrant regional economy. The Summit helped map out the financial infrastructure, pathways, and the players for business innovation investment for a geographic region—from partnership with accelerators to private investors to local/state business growth initiatives to increasingly democratized access to capital from the general public.
Many sessions were offered on understanding the different sides of this equation—for entrepreneurs on how to locate and engage with potential sources of startup and ongoing capital, as well as educational efforts for accredited investors and others wanting to invest in these entrepreneurial efforts. There were how-to’s on angel investing, crowdfunding, and private equity and venture capital with leading Florida early-stage investment firms like Florida Funders, Las Olas Venture Capital, PS27 Ventures, Kirenaga Partners, Miami Angels and, recently relocated to Florida, Blumberg Capital from Silicon Valley and Zelkova Ventures from New York.
Pillar #4 — Engaging With Key Community Partners
Awareness of the important role and critical support of entrepreneurial activity from local/regional community partners was another key topic highlighted throughout the Summit. These resourceful partners include local/regional educational institutions (universities and community colleges), nonprofits, and local and state governments, including city, county, regional and state initiatives targeting business development and entrepreneurial support.