The SBA Innovation Ecosystem Summit is curated to connect organizations across sectors to learn from one another as we work together to build a thriving national innovation ecosystem that promotes equitable access to capital and resources for innovators nationwide.
What to Expect:
Representatives from programs that support innovators, including:
Hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration
Created in 1953, the U.S. Small Business Administration continues to help small business owners and entrepreneurs pursue the American dream. SBA is the only cabinet-level federal agency fully dedicated to small business and provides counseling, capital, and contracting expertise as the nation's go-to resource and voice for small businesses.
Kick-off your 2024 Innovation Ecosystem Summit by connecting with fellow Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs). This fast-paced (90-second) video networking experience offers a great way to meet new leaders who are active and passionate about the ecosystem building environment.
Brittany Sickler
Director of Ecosystem Development, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Bailey DeVries
Associate Administrator of Investment and Innovation, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Investment and Innovation
Brittany Sickler
Director of Ecosystem Development, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Cecilia Wessinger
Director for Global Community, Global Entrepreneurship Network
Andy Stoll
Executive Director, Ecosystem Building Leadership Network (EBLN)
Hear from leadership from SBA's Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development, the Ecosystem Building Leadership Network, and the Global Entrepreneurship Network for an in-depth discussion on the history of ecosystem building and where the U.S. and global innovation ecosystems stand today.
Chelsea Lindler
VP Innovation & Entrepreneurship, TechPoint
Indiana has been ranked the #1 state to start a business by Forbes in 2023, and #2 in 2024. Join us for a rapid-fire presentation on the strategies used to attract and increase investments in startups and small businesses in Indiana, highlighting successful partnerships between the public and private sectors.
Steve Tobocman
Executive Director, Global Detroit
Jim Newton
Export Finance Manager, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of International Trade
Roger Howard
Director, Global Trade and Federal Engagement, Indiana Economic Development Corporation
Brigitta Miranda-Freer
Executive Director MWTC, Director of Operations for MonTEC, Montana World Trade Center
From global supply chains, to trade missions, to attracting and retaining talent locally and abroad, ecosystem builders and their small businesses face a variety of pressures to ensure they remain competitive on the local, national, and global stages.
Learn about programs at the federal and state levels that are being leveraged to support small businesses and ecosystems on the global stage.
Learn about ARPA-H and its network, including the Investor Catalyst (IC) Hub, are an exciting, modern example of a model that proves how strong coalitions can fast track innovation.
Leigh-Ann Buchanan
President & CEO, Miami-Dade Innovation Authority
Ann Peterson
Program Director, Montana Innovation Partnership powered by MSU TechLink Center
Allison Forbes
Senior Vice President, Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness
Amy Sturdivant
President & CEO, 58 INC | Shelby County EDC
Do you know the economic strengths of your region? Who are the people and the organizations driving innovation in your region?
If you want to understand how to answer these questions, join us for a conversation with ecosystem builders who have leveraged different tools and processes to conduct regional asset mapping to determine and build upon their region's competitive advantage.
Jason Rittenberg
Principal, Excel Regional Solutions
Dana Catron
Interim Director and CEO, Arrowhead Center at NMSU
Melissa Roberts Chapman
President & Regional Innovation Officer, KC BioHub
Over the past decade, there has been a growing acknowledgment of ecosystem building as a profession. As ecosystem building grows, our industry continues to professionalize, and we are learning what jobs and organizations make for successful ecosystems.
Learn from organizations about how they hire for key ecosystem roles, the skills on their teams, and overarching strategy for how they manage coalitions to best serve the ecosystem and their small businesses.
Patrick Delehanty
Director of Economic Research, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy
Beto Pallares
General Partner, Audaz Capital
Joseph Williams Jr.
Managing Director, The Community Foundation Mission Investments Company, The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven
Navigating funding options and structures is a never-ending challenge for innovative startups and growing small businesses. How do you know what capital is appropriate for your company and how do you gain access? How can a business be prepared to attract and close on outside investor capital?
Learn about different financing options and structures and hear from capital providers themselves on what they look for when investing in companies.
Ify Aduba
Executive Director, Entrepreneurship Funders Network
Keishla Tirado
Director of Federal Programs, DECA
David Van Siclen
Project & Operations Director, American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative
Iain Reed Hyde
Director, National Economic Research and Resilience Center & National Preparedness Analytics Center, Argonne National Laboratory
Metrics are critical to tracking the impact of your ecosystem. They can also be foundational to your ecosystem story.
Hear from storytellers and ecosystem leaders on how they collect and incorporate metrics into telling the story of their work, including when applying for funding from private, public, and philanthropic sources.
Alison Evans
Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Development Specialist, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Closing remarks for the day, what to expect on Day 2
Stay tuned for more details on this networking experience.
Kick-off Day Two of the 2024 Innovation Ecosystem Summit by connecting with fellow Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs). This fast-paced (90-second) video networking experience offers a great way to meet new leaders who are active and passionate about the ecosystem building environment.
Jennifer Shieh
Chief Scientist and Program Manager, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Recap of Day 1, what to expect for Day 2
Julie Lenzer
Chief Innovation Officer, Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute
Bailey DeVries
Associate Administrator of Investment and Innovation, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Investment and Innovation
Arjun Gupta
Founder and Chief Believer, TeleSoft Partners, and Chair, SBA's Investment Capital Advisory Committee (ICAC)
The technologies needed to support society's most pressing problems require significant coordination and alignment by all stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem. Traditional capital providers and private investors often have difficulties investing in critical technologies because the risk is high and time to return is long.
Hear from government, capital, and industry leaders on how they are changing this formula and aligning capital to support industries and technologies critical to our nation.
Conrad Holloman
Ecosystem Development Analyst, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Ian Johnston
Director of Emerging Ecosystems, The Engine
Brenna Teigler
General Partner, Activate
Hard technology development requires significant capital and time. Learn from local and national organizations that are specifically working with hard technology entrepreneurs. Hear the challenges they face and how their programming is designed to support entrepreneurs throughout the long haul.
Melissa Antman
Deputy Director, PATIO, ARPA-H
Chelsea Schiller
Director, ARPA-H Investor Catalyst Hub
Aaron Miller
Director, International Business Development Program, Virginia SBDC - George Mason University
Coming soon!
John Bittman
Interagency Policy Specialist, NIST
Christie Funk
Manager, Technology Transfer Expansion (T2X) Program, NASA
Vanessa Pena
Director, Technology Transfer Policy and Practice, US DOE, Office of Technology Transitions
Megan Holcomb
Chief Operating Officer, LabStart
Federal agencies can have a robust portfolio of vetted technologies and many are working to have more user-friendly licensing terms to further support the commercialization of federally-funded research.
Learn from federal agency leadership and entrepreneur support organizations that are supporting the tech transfer.
Kathryn Rudloff
Executive Director, weVENTURE WBC at Florida Tech
Lucy Brennan
Director, Founder's Team, P33 Chicago
Nikki Powis
Director, Small Business Programs, National Disability Institute
Louisa Schibli
Director of Impact and Engagement, RuralWorks
Entrepreneurs are diverse, with their technologies and businesses informed by their knowledge and experiences. Local innovation ecosystems need to reflect the diversity of their entrepreneurs.
Hear from a panel of ESO leaders who are intentionally building programming to reach diverse entrepreneurs, including women, people of color, those in rural areas, and those with disabilities.
Alison Evans
Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Development Specialist, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Amanda Kosty
Program Officer, U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA)
Annette Finsterbusch
Acting Section Head for Small Business (SBIR/STTR), NSF (Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships)
Diana Bauer
Deputy Director, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, Department of Energy
Did you know that there are Federal dollars specifically designated to support ecosystem builders? Join this informative readout to learn what federal programs are available to ESOs from across the federal government. Leave understanding which opportunity is best for your ESO and why you should participate.
Steve Nakagawa
Cenfluence Program Director, Florida High Tech Corridor
Stephaney Bolden
MACRP Program Manager, Urban League of Greater Atlanta
Rebecca Kaufman
VP, Regional Innovation Clusters, AgLaunch
Kelly LoBianco
Director, LA County Department of Economic Opportunity
Have you determined the competitive strength of your region? What is the next step?
Hear from ESOs and city leaders on how they utilized their local and regional competitive strengths to inform and develop new programming and small business support services.
Four participants in the 2024 Innovation Ecosystem Summit will share their key takeaways and one action item they are taking back to their region or organization.
Brittany Sickler
Director of Ecosystem Development, U.S. Small Business Administration Division of Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development
Closing remarks for the Summit and call to action.
SBA’s participation in this activity is not an endorsement of the views, opinions, products or services of any other person or entity. All SBA programs and services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis.
Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance of this event. Contact Sharon.Hoffmeyer@sba.gov.
For general questions about the Summit and program, contact ecosystem@sba.gov.