FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Albany, N.Y. – The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) today announced that Rebecca Braun, President of JumpStart Ventures will be the keynote speaker at the 10th annual SmartStart UNYTECH Venture Forum, to be held May 17 and 18 in Syracuse, NY. Judy Albers, Chief Operating Officer at Excell Partners will also be a guest speaker at the event.
Rebecca Braun joined JumpStart with a wealth of knowledge and experience from a variety of entrepreneurial companies. She was co-founder and initial CEO of Supplier Insight, a company that offers supplier management services and software to corporations and government agencies and that was ultimately acquired by Ariba . Rebecca was formerly a Vice President at Kirtland Capital Partners (KCP), a $300 million private equity firm located in Willoughby Hills, Ohio. Prior to KCP, Becca was a principal at The Parthenon Group, a strategic advisory and principle investing firm in Boston, Massachusetts.
SmartStart UNYTECH is the premier Upstate NY venture forum where VC firms look to see the best that the state has to offer for deal flow. Now in its eighth year, SmartStart UNYTECH has to date highlighted 199 high-quality companies from throughout the state and beyond to the VC community, and their success speaks the quality of deal flow we select. Of these companies, 62 have raised over $361 M in equity financing, including over $70 M directly attributable to their participation in the forum. Additionally, this forum is marketed and recognized by many East Coast and Mid-Atlantic venture funds as the place to get Upstate NY technology deal flow. We recognize each year some standout presentations with Best Business Presentation, Most Promising Technology and Most Likely to be Funded awards.
“This year’s participants represent the best venture-ready companies from across New York state,” said F. Michael Tucker, president of CEG. “We look forward to showcasing a broad spectrum of early-stage start-ups, spanning the medical device, telecommunications, homeland security and clean energy markets, as well as other key growth sectors.”
This Years forum is in Syracuse, NY has strong backing from the regions innovation ecosystem including Syracuse University, Syracuse Tech Garden, Central NY TDO, MDA and MedTech.
Early registration ends May 3rd. For more information or to register please visit www.smartstartvf.com.
Current Forum sponsors include
Berkshire Bank
Bond, Schoeneck & King
CNY Business Journal
Excell Partners
Greenhill SAVP
HESLIN, ROTHENBERG FARLEY & MESITI P.C.
Hodgson Russ LLP
Hoffman Warnick, LLC
Marjama Muldoon Blasiak & Sullivan LLP
New York State Science & Technology Law Center
NYSTAR
Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach (STOR)
Pam Silverstein x
Pattison, Sampson, Ginsberg & Griffin, P.C.
RPI
Syracuse University
Syracuse University, Case Center
ULSTER SAVINGS BANK
UVANY
About the Center for Economic Growth:
The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) is a regional economic and business development organization dedicated to attracting high-tech talent and companies and to providing innovative services to bolster local businesses in New York state’s Capital Region and Tech Valley. CEG receives significant financial support from the New York State Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research (NYSTAR), New York’s high-technology economic development agency, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). CEG serves as NYSTAR’s designated Regional Technology Development Center for Tech Valley, one of nearly 350 MEP locations across the country assisting local manufacturing and technology companies with generating new sales, creating stronger operational infrastructure and overcoming barriers to growth. CEG is based in Albany, N.Y. and has a West Coast office in Cupertino, Calif. Visit www.ceg.org.
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