On November 17, we hosted Jim McKelvey, a serial entrepreneur, inventor, philanthropist, artist, and author of The Innovation Stack: Building an Unbeatable Business One Crazy Idea at a Time. He is the cofounder of Square and served as the chairman of its board until 2010, and still serves on the Board of Directors. In 2011, his iconic card reader design was inducted into the Museum of Modern Art.
Linda Rebrovick never envisioned she would start her own company, let alone spend time serving as a director on multiple boards. Looking back, however, it’s clear that the seeds were sown early, as she began taking on intrapreneurship roles earlier in her career, such as leading business units within companies like IBM and Dell. Linda would go on to be the CEO of start-up, Consensus Point, a Nashville-based prediction market and market intelligence technology firm. After that, she was presented with numerous opportunities to serve on boards and recognized that many lacked diversity.
John Ingram knows a lot about business. Having worked for decades in different roles in his family’s company, Ingram Industries, he’s seen what it takes to successfully run a large, profitable organization. But his perspective isn’t only that of someone who leads an established, mature company—he also identifies with the entrepreneurial spirit, whether that’s through disruption and reinvention in the publishing industry or through his efforts to bring a Major League Soccer team to Nashville.
When Dr. Michael Burcham first became involved with the Nashville Chamber of Commerce initiative that would ultimately lead to the formation of the Entrepreneur Center, he didn’t intend to become the fledgling non-profit’s founding CEO. He started by supporting the cause financially and as a board member, motivated by the fact that he had started three companies but never been able to raise capital in Nashville because the ecosystem wasn’t sufficiently mature. But when asked to lead the EC as its CEO because of his own entrepreneurial experience, he agreed—even though he knew what hard work it would be—because of his passion for the mission.
Unlike many Nashville natives, the increasing traffic and constant construction in the city doesn’t bother Bill McCleskey much. For one, he says, the traffic isn’t even all that bad. Perhaps more importantly, though, the growth is a sign of opportunity, both for his entrepreneurial pursuits and for his love of meeting and engaging with new people.
Be Our Guest is a feature on the EC blog highlighting thought leadership from our community - advisors, entrepreneurs, members, and more.
Today’s post is by EC advisor Kevin Christopher. Kevin Christopher is the principal of Rockridge Venture Law, Tennessee's first B Corp® law group and a 2018 Best for the World Honoree for community impact. Kevin is a registered patent attorney, active entrepreneur, and National Science Foundation (NSF) advisor for the research hub Center for Green Solid-State Electric Power Generation and Storage (CEPS). His practice areas include: patent and trademark prosecution, licensing and litigation; corporate law, with an emphasis on benefit corporations, socially responsible businesses and high-growth emergent companies; government contracts, with an emphasis on innovation funding; corporate and investor financing; and, technology commercialization. Kevin is a Tennessee Bar Association Leadership Lawyer, and board member to several environmental and social impact nonprofits.
Be Our Guest is a feature on the EC blog highlighting thought leadership from our community - advisors, entrepreneurs, members, and more.
Today’s post is by EC advisor Greg Born. Greg began his career as an Air Force Pilot, then held leadership roles in both Operations and Mergers and Acquisitions at businesses such as GE, Oracle, Comcast, as well as a in health and health-tech businesses – including Change Healthcare in Nashville. In all roles, his focus has been improving operational teams, connecting strategy and growth, and leading transformation. Helping it operate better. You can read his other entrepreneurship and leadership articles here.
It’s the true story of sweet success, and if you were among the hundreds of hopeful entrepreneurs who joined us at the Entrepreneur Center a few weeks ago for the official launch party of our Navigate podcast, you could just about taste it in the air.
As she took to the stage, Mignon Francois, the woman behind the Cupcake Collection, one of Nashville’s most successful startups, we knew we were in for a real treat. “I don’t know, Clark,” she teased as she slipped a pair of headphones over her ears, then released the first of many wide smiles she would share with us that evening. “This is messing with my afro!”