Location:

Gangplank HQ
260 S Arizona Ave
Chandler AZ 85225
Free Parking in Garage Across Arizona Ave access behind Circle K

We asked Brian Solis if we could use the title of his new book as the theme for this year’s conference, because the biggest trend we see nationally and globally, affecting businesses of any size — startups or established enterprises — is the headlong movement of even staid, non technical businesses toward social.

You might ask what “social business” is, but you probably already know. It’s when your employees talk about your business in their social streams, both personal and professional. And your business must respond in real time. It’s when you realize your remote employees don’t know each other, and need tools to call on each other’s skill sets.

Learn about these and other factors that affect your business from leaders who have been there, and are doing it now. Talk to fellow entrepreneurs about your growth problems, financing problems, and scaling problems.

Meet people you need to know.

That’s the 7th Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference: one of the contributing factors to Arizona’s vibrant startup culture, now recognized by the Kauffman Foundation.

Don’t miss this year’s conference,

October 30, 2012 at Gangplank in Chandler.

It’s where Arizona Entrepreneurs gather to exchange ideas, share successes, and promote economic recovery the ‘old fashioned way’ through partnerships, innovation, and collaboration.

A Sneak Peak at Highlights on this year’s agenda

• Jacob Morgan of Chess Media talks about “The Collaborative Organization”
• Tom Curzon tells Arizonans what’s up with crowdfunding
• Bill Reichert gives the state of Silicon Valley VC
• Matthew Pittinsky talks about life after Blackboard — in Arizona
• Robert Scoble talks about the new contextual environment
• CJCornell announces Propel Arizona

You might ask what “social business” is, but you probably already know. It’s when your employees talk about your business in their social streams, both personal and professional. And your business must respond in real time. It’s when you realize your remote employees don’t know each other, and need tools to call on each other’s skill sets.

Learn about these and other factors that affect your business from leaders who have been there, and are doing it now. Talk to fellow entrepreneurs about your growth problems, financing problems, and scaling problems.

Meet people you need to know.

That’s the 7th Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference: one of the contributing factors to Arizona’s vibrant startup culture, now recognized by the Kauffman Foundation.

Don’t miss this year’s conference,

October 30, 2012 at Gangplank in Chandler.

It’s where Arizona Entrepreneurs gather to exchange ideas, share successes, and promote economic recovery the ‘old fashioned way’ through partnerships, innovation, and collaboration.

A Sneak Peak at Highlights on this year’s agenda

• Jacob Morgan of Chess Media talks about “The Collaborative Organization”
• Tom Curzon tells Arizonans what’s up with crowdfunding
• Bill Reichert gives the state of Silicon Valley VC
• Matthew Pittinsky talks about life after Blackboard — in Arizona
• Robert Scoble talks about the new contextual environment
• CJCornell announces Propel Arizona

Sixth Annual Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference:

October 30, 2012

Gangplank HQ

260 S. Arizona Avenue

Chandler, AZ

With a highly successful track record based on the last five Arizona Entrepreneurship Conferences, OTEF (the Opportunity Through Entrepreneurship Foundation) has an ambitious plan of projects for  2012 and beyond. These projects include the expansion of existing programs that help at-risk populations become entrepreneurs, our Blueprint for Survival Program aimed at laid-off Entrepreneurs, and the growth of our support system for emerging entrepreneurs and seasoned veterans through our partnership with Stealthmode Partners. All net proceeds from AZEC12 go to fund OTEF’s community work.  To learn more about OTEF, please visit www.OTEF.org.

OTEF is grateful to all of the individuals, companies and community organizations who have supported us over the last  SEVEN years.  Here is a listing of a few of these great organizations.

Don’t miss this year’s conference,

October 30, 2012 at Gangplank in Chandler.

It’s where Arizona Entrepreneurs gather to exchange ideas, share successes, and promote economic recovery the ‘old fashioned way’ through partnerships, innovation, and collaboration.

A Sneak Peak at Highlights on this year’s agenda

• Business Transformation
• Disruption in Education
• The Real Time Stream and Your Business
• The Lean Startup Revolution
• Women Explode onto the Entrepreneurship Horizon

Image via CrunchBase

Robert Scoble, Startup Liaison Officer, Rackspace

A star of “The Gillmor Gang” and a frequent blogger, social media content creator, and speaker at conference, Robert is a geek who grew up in Silicon Valley and has been building online communities since 1985. In 2000 he started his technology blog ,http://scobleizer.com, and in his own words.

“my life has been on a rocketship ever since. In 2003-2006 I worked at Microsoft as an evangelist and one of the five guys who started Microsoft’s famous Channel9 video community. I’m now working at Rackspace as Startup Liaison Officer (I go around the world to study and make media about world-changing startups).

The real-time streaming web is changing my life faster than I can imagine, and lets me keep in touch with thousands of technology and business innovators all around the world.”

 Matthew Pittinsky, CEO, Parchment, and Co-Founder of Blackboard

_{Matthew brings to his second company, Parchment, a unique background as both an education technology entrepreneur and a sociologist of education.  In 1997 he co-founded Blackboard Inc., serving first as Chief Executive Officer and then Executive Chairman. Millions of students across the world use Blackboard technologies.}

Matthew left Blackboard in 2008 to teach and conduct research as an Assistant Professor of Sociology in Arizona State University’s (ASU) School of Social and Family Dynamics. He remains a Research Assistant Professor at ASU today, with specializations in economic sociology, sociology of education, and social network analysis.  Matthew serves on the Board of Trustees of The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. He holds a BS in Political Science from American University, Ed.M in Education Policy from Harvard University Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. in Sociology of Education (with distinction) from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Dave McClure has been geeking out in Silicon Valley for over twenty years as a software developer, entrepreneur, startup advisor, angel investor, blogger, and internet marketing nerd. Dave currently runs FF Angel, a seed-stage investment program for Founders Fund, and ran the 2009 fbFund REV incubator program on behalf of Facebook, Accel Partners, & Founders Fund. Dave’s passion is helping startups with marketing, product strategy, and startup metrics, and he has been an advisor or investor for over 50 companies in the past five years including: Mint.com  (acquired by Intuit), CreditKarma, KissMetrics, Mashery, Simply Hired, SlideShare, TeachStreet, and Twilio. 

 Debra Johnson , CEO and Founder of EcoEdge,  is passionate about saving companies money while reducing environmental impact. She has turned that passion into an award winning company that provides solutions for improved fuel economy, reduced maintenance costs, more efficient and effective operation, and reduced environmental footprint.  Best of all, she is going to share HOW she did it.

Jeremiah Owyang Partner of Customer Strategy at Altimeter Group, a strategy consulting firm that provides thought leadership, research, and consulting on digital strategies. I work closely with my clients to craft and deliver successful, long-term strategies which integrate  customer/community needs, business objectives, and technology. See my post on The Three Spheres of Web Strategy.  Previously, Jeremiah was a Senior Analyst at Forrester Research, and has over 10 years experience as a practitioner on both the vendor and brand side. He is frequently quoted in the mainstream press, to speak at conferences all over the world, and serves as a regular columnist for Forbes magazine.

Stay Tuned for more great speakers to be announced soon!