Tampa Bay Innovation Center
Events
Tuesday
May 15, 2012
8:30 - 10:30 am
Tampa, FL
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Partner Events
Florida Venture Forum2012 Early Stage
Venture Capital Conference
May 10, 2012
Orlando, FL2012 Business Growth Expo
May 17, 2012
2:00 - 6:00 pm
Tampa, FL
Raising Money for Your Business Growth
May 22, 2012
9:30 am - 1:00 pmClearwater, FL
Sales & Marketing Workshop
May 26, 2012
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Tampa, FL
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 WELCOME
Things are heating up at the Innovation Center! More than 120 members have joined Entrepreneurs' Hub within its first month and a lot is happening on the client side.
First, we have three new incubator clients -- ALPS, 3D Practice and Doorell - all focused on various aspects of healthcare. This is an exciting commentary on the growing importance of the healthcare technology industry in the Tampa Bay community. Learn more about them in the following article.
Two other clients have made news. Talent Sprocket was selected as a participant in the Department of Commerce's Igniting Innovation (IČ) Capital Acceleration Program and was named a finalist in the BizTech Summit Awards for Best Use of Social Media, presented by Tampa Bay Business Journal. In addition, MilitaryParts.com has been selected as a prime vendor for the Florida League of Defense Contractors.
Want to learn more? Join the eHub for a front row seat and an opportunity to "get social" with other entrepreneurs.
Tonya Elmore
President
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 | Innovation Center Welcomes Three New Clients
| Welcome to our three new incubator clients. Here's a little background information on each of them.
ALPS develops and manufactures medical devices and advanced gel-based products, with a goal of delivering innovative products to customers and patients. Founded in 1988, ALPS holds more than 50 patents across several product categories and has seven locations worldwide. The company's four divisions include prosthetics, orthotics, silicone and patient care.
3D Practice creates high quality 3D patient education products for chiropractors, orthopedists, osteopaths and physician therapists. Designed to help these professionals educate their patients interactively about their condition, the software provides powerful computer-based consultations, website content and reception room video on DVD format.
Doorell is a spinoff of Altorr Freedom Technologies, an Innovation Center accelerator client. Doorell designs automatic door openers and peripherals that benefit the elderly and disabled populations, featuring the Freedom 700 automatic door opener. This is the first such door opener on the market to use Altorr's patented multi-sensory control that allows users to control entry and exit access through a combination of speech recognition and motion control.
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TECH Talk Insights
| JOBS Act: Is it the answer for startups and small businesses looking for funding?
By Nathaniel Roland, Trenam Kemper
 Many small business and startup business owners are familiar with the broad strokes of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act signed by President Obama in early April. One of the stated goals of the JOBS Act is to reduce securities law burdens on startups and small businesses and to make capital more accessible to them.
"Crowdfunding" is a term that generally describes a group of unaffiliated people who pool their money, usually via the internet, to support the financing needs of another person or organization. Prior to the JOBS Act, a company could not promote its stock publicly or raise money from a large number of "unaccredited" (i.e., not wealthy) investors without first registering its stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and becoming a publicly-traded company - that is, without "going public." And, because the costs of going and remaining public are prohibitively high for most small companies, they were effectively barred from raising investment dollars from the public at large.
Enter the JOBS Act, and, in particular, Congress's directive to the SEC to draft a set of rules and regulations to permit companies to raise money via crowdfunding: that is, allow companies to advertise that they are selling their stock, and take lots of small investments from a large group of people, including unaccredited investors.With crowdfunding, a company will no longer be confined to raising funds quietly among wealthy friends and acquaintances (or hiring a registered broker-dealer to do so on its behalf). (More...)
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| TECH Talk
|  Presented by Tampa Bay Innovation Center, TECH Talk is the area's only free monthly breakfast, networking and education event developed specifically to meet the interests of the local technology community. Attendees include new and start-up technology companies, as well as entrepreneurs and those interested in the growth and success of technology innovation and entrepreneurism in the Tampa Bay area.
Our May TECH Talk presentation will be held Tuesday, May 15, 2012 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at USF's Center for Advanced Medical Learning & Simulation (CAMLS) Center, 124 S. Franklin St., Tampa, 33602. Dr. Stuart Hart, medical director of the Tampa Bay Research & Innovation Center, will discuss how the new 90,000 square foot, $38 million center is using the latest in simulation technology to train health professionals. The program will conclude with a tour of the state-of-the-art robotics suite, trauma operating room and surgical stations.
If you haven't yet attended TECH Talk, we hope you'll put this on your calendar. There is no fee to attend, but space is limited.
Click here to register.
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| StartUp Xchange | Have questions about your next steps in entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurs at all stages are invited to attend the next StartUp Xchange from 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 22 at TAPS Wine & Beer Merchant, 777 N. Ashley Dr., Tampa, 33602.
This is a great informal opportunity for entrepreneurs, talent in transition, scientists, funders, innovators, technology professionals and engineers to make connections in the Tampa Bay area innovation marketplace and learn from each other and from the Tampa Bay Innovation Center mentors whose experience can help further their idea or startup company.
Our mentors will be Mike Eitler, Group125; Chris Paradies, Fowler White Boggs, and Chuck Papageorgiou, Ideasphere Consulting
Follow the StartUp Xchange Meetup Group here.
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| Innovators Digest | In case you missed them, here are some recent articles and blog posts for innovators and entrepreneurs.
What Venture Capitalists Want: 4 Tips
By Matthew Swyers for Inc.com
Venture capitalists look for very specific items when determining whether to invest in a business. Use these tips to make sure you have a leg up on securing their funding.(More...)
So Why Haven't You Started Your Business Yet?
By Michael Gerber for Inc.com
Let go of the belief that entrepreneurs are born, not made. Here are four steps to turning your pipe dream into an action plan. (More...)
Startup Basics: How to Master the Fundamentals
By Brad Sugars for Entrepreneur.com
Stick to these four proven principles to keep your business growing -- and successful. (More ...)
Steve Blank Teaches Entrepreneurs How To Fail Less
By Derek Andersen for TechCrunch.com
This article is about Steve Blank, who wrote the book on customer development with "Four Steps to the Epiphany." Now, Blank is co-authoring another reference guide called "The Startup Owner's Manual." (More...)
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Have you joined the eHub yet?
Connect with other entrepreneurs and innovators to share ideas, inspiration and opportunities in a unique online community that is accompanied by topical forums and networking programs.
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Based in Largo, Florida, Tampa Bay Innovation Center is an innovation and entrepreneurship center that assists emerging and entrepreneurial technology companies in accelerating their success.
If you'd like to learn more about our services, click here for our website, email us or call 727-547-7340.
Tampa Bay Innovation Center
7887 Bryan Dairy Road, Suite 220
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