On June 23, 2022, Centralina hosted the first working group committee meeting for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. The committee was established to understand opportunities and challenges of entrepreneurs and those with fast growing businesses.  The chair of this working group is Devin Collins, the director of Ventureprise at UNC Charlotte.  Forty-four participants represented Centralina counties in higher education, economic development and non-profit. The working group held interactive brainstorming activity to create discussion and comprehensive themes.

A follow-up meeting for the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Working Group was held on August 11, 2022.  Attendees further discussed the themes of

• Capital and Funding: pursue specific tactics that enhance access to capital, e.g. web interface, resource maps, funding metrics for start-ups.
• Accessibility: ensure strategies address equitable access to business supports, networks and investment.
• Engagement & Collaboration: focus on creating durable and impactful regional relationships that enable ecosystem stakeholders to engage and collaborate effectively.
• Industry & Partnerships: ensure a constant feedback loop between marketplace, corporations, and individuals.
• Services & Support: support ecosystem with educational enrichment based on regional needs, support business start-up and expansion needs, provide grant writing and administrative support, and identify funding connections

Click the link to see the slide presentation from this meeting: Entrepreneurship & Innovation Working Group 8.11.2022