Black Tech Week is coming to Cincinnati and Blue North will be in attendance, offering their guidance and expertise to budding entrepreneurs through office hours.
Blue North is a resource for entrepreneurs in the 11 Northern Kentucky counties who need help figuring out their footing when starting a business. The company acts as a “thread” to the assets required to create and grow a business in Northern Kentucky, said Executive Director Dave Knox.
Part of that thread is attending events that help Northern Kentucky entrepreneurs be a part of the broader entrepreneurial community.
“We got this amazing activity going on in Cincinnati; that is part of our overall ecosystem,” Knox said. “Our job is to figure out how Northern Kentucky plays a role in the broader ecosystem that we’re part of. Black Tech Week is one of the first examples of that.”
Black Tech Week is a national conference focusing on inclusion and ecosystem building among investors, entrepreneurs, and techies. This year the meeting is being held at Union Hall in Cincinnati from July 18 through July 22.
Knox will be attending the conference on behalf of Blue North to show entrepreneurs why Northern Kentucky is a great place to build their business.
Office hours will be held by investors and founders and are meant to serve as mentorship for attendees. The idea is to share their experiences and lessons and give feedback on business ideas.
Knox said he is very familiar with office hours. He attends them every month at various conferences.
Most questions asked during office hours relate to the early development stages of business where an individual needs investment or concept-based guidance.
“A lot of times, the folks that participate in the office hours are at the very early stages of their journey for the most part,” Knox said. “They are really trying to figure out; I call it a high level of where do I even start. Should I apply for an accelerator? Should I go raise venture capital right now? How do I even meet angel investors?”
Or they have an idea or just started their business venture, and they’re looking for feedback on things like their idea, if they should do something different, their target audience, etc.
The selected founders and investors will attend office hours at Black Tech Week in person between July 19 and July 21.
Knox will also be speaking at the Accelerator Panel on July 19 at 4 p.m.
Serena Williams is the event’s keynote speaker. Williams is Managing Partner of Serena Ventures. The company’s strategy is “Play To Win,” merging Williams’s champion mindset and network to support innovation in industries like fintech, e-commerce, and others.
Black Tech Week includes 60-plus sessions and presents 50-plus tech influencers, minority innovators, and ecosystem builders as featured speakers. In addition to Serena Williams, featured speakers include Kimberly Bryant, Founder of Black Girls Code, Arlan Hamilton, Founder of Hire Runner and Backstage Capital, Janeen Uzzell, CEO of National Black Society of Engineers, and others, sharing their experience and guidance around tech and startups.
Click here to register for this year’s Black Tech Week in Cincinnati, view the schedule, and learn more about the speakers.
