Featured Partner

“Lean Startup- Lessons Learned”

Thursday, Aug 4 2011 1:30PM to 7:00PM

David Hauser, Sanjay Parekh, and 5 Startups
Tate Hall 2nd floor of the Overcash Building, Central Piedmont Community College 1206 Elizabeth Avenue, Charlotte

“Lean Startup- Lessons Learned”

Date:   Thursday, August 4, 2011
Location:   Tate Hall, 2nd floor of the Overcash Building, Central Piedmont Community College, 1206 Elizabeth Avenue, Charlotte
Parking:     Free Parking in Deck next to Overcash Building. 

Time:   1:30 pm to 5:30 pm, followed by a Cocktail Reception

Featuring 2 Serial Entrepreneurs who will share their “Startup Records” &
Showcasing 4 Charlotte Startup Companies (all BIG Members) with panel Q&A

The “Lean Startup” concept is very simple. It basically advocates that you fail as quickly and as often as you can early on in the life of your startup. Ask as many questions as you can, and learn from these mistakes. If executed well, this should allow you to develop a product or service that you know people want, need, and will pay for.

We have brought two serial entrepreneurs (David Hauser & Sanjay Parekh) here to Charlotte to talk a bit about their “Startup records”. They will share their stories and experiences with you and help you learn from both their successes and failures.

David Hauser from Boston, Co-founder of Grasshopper, Chargify, and Grasshopper Labs

David Hauser is co-founder of Grasshopper, Chargify, and Grasshopper Labs. One of the youngest co-founders of a company to be named to Inc.‘s list of “500 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America,” David is a passionate technologist. He was also co-founder of Return Path, an e-mail performance management company, and founder of WebAds360, an ad-serving technology provider for small and mid-sized businesses. David has been featured on CNN, named one of Boston Business Journal’s “40 Under 40,” and has been featured in the Boston Globe, Wall Street Journal and many other publications. David was born and raised in New York City. He enjoys long walks on the beach, and is passionate about helping entrepreneurs make their dreams a reality. Read his blog, Mindrift or follow him on Twitter:@dh

Sanjay Parekh from Atlanta, Founder of Startup Riot and Digital Envoy
Presenting with TripLingo, winner of Startup Riot in Atlanta


Sanjay is the founder and organizer of Startup Riot and a co-founding partner at Shotput Ventures. Previously Sanjay was a founder of Digital Envoy and the inventor of Digital Envoy’s patented NetAcuity IP intelligence technology. At Digital Envoy, he led the efforts of the company leading to $12 million in lifetime capital raises.

In 2004, Sanjay was named a 2004 American Marshall Memorial Fellow with the German Marshall Fund of the United States. In 2003, Sanjay was named to MIT’s Technology Review TR100 list as one of the top 100 young innovators of 2003. Sanjay was also named a Technology Pioneer with the World Economic Forum in 2002 and 2003.

Sanjay is the primary or co-inventor on six U.S. patents, a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and holds an electrical engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. Find him on Twitter at: @sanjay

You will also hear presentations from 4 Charlotte Startup Companies (all BIG Members) followed by a Q&A from our panel of experts:

Startups Presenting:

  • OtherScreen, Chris Halligan
  • AtoZ Companies, Lonny Bernath
  • iBid2Save, Brian Tompakov
  • BriteVerify, Matt McFee

Panelists:

  • David Hauser, Grasshopper
  • Sanjay Parekh, Startup Riot
  • Steve Amedio, Technekes
  • Rajeev Kulkarni, Investor
  • Tentatively, Mark McDowell, Launch Box

 Agenda:
1:30 – 2:00 pm    Registration and Networking
2:00 – 2:15 pm    Opening Remarks
2:15 – 3:15 pm    Opening Keynote Speaker: Sanjay Parekh (along with Trip Lingo)
3:15 – 3:30 pm     Break
3:30 – 4:30 pm     Startup Presentations and Panel Q&A
4:30 – 5:30pm      Closing Keynote Speaker: David Hauser
5:30- 7:00 pm       Cocktail Reception in Dale Halton Theater Lobby

Program Cost:   BIG Members free
                              Students $25
                              Guests $55 in advance, $65 at the door

Registration:    RSVP to terry@bigcouncil.com or register below.
Dress Attire:    Business casual