Tag Archives: Jumpstart

Aug 22 2013
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Community of Entrepreneurs Share Their Experiences at Dingman Jumpstart

It’s been an exciting week so far at Dingman Jumpstart. We’re seeing some of the areas brightest entrepreneurs with some game-changing ideas. The participants have attended several workshops and panels but there are two that stand out: one with seasoned entrepreneurs and one with entrepreneurs fresh in the game. Take a look at who we lined up to inspire our group of Jumpstart participants.

Learning From the Mistakes of Successful Entrepreneurs
On Wednesday, we featured two of our Entrepreneurs-in-Residence, Jason Shrensky and Ed Barrientos. The entrepreneurs shared their experiences starting successful businesses as well as the mistakes they made along the way.

Untitled-2Jason Shrensky (@shrensky), Co-Founder, Uber Offices
Jason Shrensky is a local entrepreneur and angel investor who joined the Dingman Center team as an Angel in Residence in 2011. In addition to actively investing in early-stage companies, he splits his time between two startups that he recently co-founded: ÜberOffices and ComplexInterests. ÜberOffices provides co-working office space in the DC Metro area predominantly for early-stage technology and media companies. At ComplexInterests, Jason is working on developing a unique enterprise software package targeted at accounting, law, and financial services firms.

Elena Fine's Entrepreneur Roundtable with Ed and Jason, photographed for the Robert H. Smith School of Business at Van Munching Hall in College Park MD, 26 April 2013.

Ed Barrientos (@SnowCrash65), CEO, Brazen Careerist
Ed Barrientos is CEO and Chairman of the Board of Brazen Careerist, a career focused social networking site targeting Gen Y. He is also Managing Partner of Zeitgeist Holdings, L.L.C., an angel investment firm focused on investing in early stage technology companies. From 1996 to 2005, he was President and CEO of Arc Second Inc., a high growth market leader in the field of laser based, high-precision GPS. Barrientos led Arc Second to a successful exit (acquired by Metris NV of Belgium) at the end of 2005. He sat on the Board of Directors of Metris NV, and worked as an active Board member through the Company’s IPO (2006) and its acquisition by Nikon (Japan) in 2009.

Learning From Young Entrepreneurs
To close out the week on Friday, we will be joined by a group of young entrepreneurs still fresh in the game. Their startups have experienced success, but they are still knee-deep in the daily operations of running their companies. 

Justin Baer, Founder, Check In Easy (@checkineasy)
Justin Baer, New York University graduate and entrepreneur, has launched the guest list and event check in app Check In Easy. The idea was born from social business venture, CharityHappenings.org and CharityHappenings Ticketing clients who were fed up with the inefficiency of paper check-in. Prior to founding Check In Easy, Justin launched CharityHappenings.org LLC, a social business venture providing the non-profit sector with a web-based master calendar, ticketing service and supplier directory.

Aaron Epstein (@aaron_epstein), Co-Founder and CPO, Creative Market
Aaron Epstein co-founded Creative Market, a platform for hand crafted, mousemade  and easily accessible design content from independent creatives around the world. A designer, developer, jack of all trades and Robert H. Smith School of Business alumnus, Aaron claims to be fueled by avocados and cheerios. 

Rami Essaid (@ramiessaid), Co-Founder, Distil Networks
Rami began his career as the founder and CEO of Chit Chat Communications. After a successful exit, he consulted in mobile development. With over 11 years in communications, network security, and infrastructure management, Rami advised enterprise companies to help improve scalability and reliability while maintaining a high level of security. Rami attended North Carolina State University where he majored in computer engineering.

Kevin Lenane (@kevinlenane), Founder & CEO, Veenome
Kevin Lenane is an experienced project manager with a keen sense of how location, platform, and portability play in to the mobile experience for businesses and consumers. Kevin has worked with clients at PointAbout including OnStar, the Huffington Post, FEMA, and the ESRB. Prior to PointAbout, Kevin was part of the product management team behind the location management platform NAVTEQ.

Elise Whang (@elisewhang), Founder, SNOBSWAP
SNOBSWAP was first inspired by Elise’s hunt for a pre-loved Chanel handbag, when she found herself dreaming about a website where members could swap or sell their designer clothes and accessories. Elise, hailing from a highly successful law background, decided to join forces with her sister Emily, an MBA with a deep luxury retail background and passion for all things designer. Uniting complementary strengths, expertise, and vision made for a perfectly tailored business venture. 

 

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Jun 05 2013
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EnTERPreneurs, Events

Gearing up for Dingman Jumpstart

The Dingman Center team is excitedly preparing for another Dingman Jumpstart! This 5-day intensive entrepreneurship bootcamp allows students and alumni with a business idea  to take a deep dive into the exploring potential business models through hands-on workshops, interactive panel discussions and advising from successful entrepreneurs. Participants also get the added benefit of attending networking events with other entrepreneurial people, providing invaluable connections. Take a look at the pictures below for highlights from last year’s Dingman Jumpstart.

If you want to participate this year, apply and register soon to reserve your space. Apply by Friday, June 7 for a $100 discount on the registration fee! Looking for more information? Contact Alla Corey at acorey@rhsmith.umd.edu

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Sep 17 2012
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Dingman Jumpstart Recap: 50+ Students Participate in Entrepreneurship Bootcamp

Over 50 aspiring entrepreneurs, including students from the University of Maryland, The Guanghua School of Management at Peking University, and local professionals, took part in this year’s Dingman Jumpstart, which ran from August 20 – 24, 2012. Dingman Jumpstart participants underwent an intense series of workshops and seminars covering a variety of topics including, how to craft a perfect pitch, build a solid business model, understand startup revenue and cost structures, and navigate the legal landscape of the startup world. Participants also had the opportunity to form teams and work on new or existing business ideas culminating in a live investor pitch to a panel of expert judges from The Dingman Center’s community network. The weeklong event was a huge success with several teams being identified as potential seed funding opportunities for the Dingman Center’s E-Fund.

For those who missed this amazing opportunity, here are just some of the key takeaways from the 2012 Dingman Jumpstart sessions:

  • “When the time comes to pivot, it’s important understand where your company’s strength is really in and what you do right.”
    – John LaPides, Dingman Center EIR, on Business Model Patterns
  • “Identify the pain point, and then identify the person who can and will pay to relieve that pain point.”
    – Elana Fine, Dingman Center Managing Director, on Marketing Channels
  • “Technology is only a small component of the solution.  Solutions take an ecosystem in order to add sustainable value.”
    – Elana Fine on Marketing Channels
  • “Investors don’t bet on the horse (the company), they bet on the jockey (the entrepreneur).”
     – Sam Medile, Dingman Center Board Member, on Entrepreneurial Selling
  • “The sources of a company’s competitive advantage is how close their product is to being ‘perfect, free, and now’ or how it can ‘work harder longer.’”
    – Dr. Bob Baum, Professor Emeritus, on Organizing to Compete
  • “It is crucial to present a ‘fully baked’ idea to investors (Practice! Formulate! Iterate!).”
     – Swaroop Kolli & Pradeep Suthram, 2012 MBA Graduates, on How to Pitch
  • “The ultimate tragedy is to see a business succeed, then fail through their success.”
    – Mark Walsh, Dingman Center Board of Advisor Chairman, on The Art of Storytelling

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The Dingman Center would like to thank all of the speakers, advisors, and judges who helped make Dingman Jumpstart a success. The Dingman Center encourage this year’s participants to stay connected and apply for the EnTERPreneur Academy to grow your venture from idea to launch.

Interested in participating in next year’s Dingman Jumpstart?  Keep your eyes open for information next spring.  Learn more at: http://ter.ps/jumpstart

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