Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: January 10, 2013

The Florida Venture Forum (http://www.floridaventureforum.org) has selected 21 Florida companies to present at the 22^nd annual Florida Venture Capital Conference, to be held at the Sawgrass Marriott Resort & Golf Club in Ponte Vedra, FL. on January 31 – February 1, 2013. Registration to attend is still open on the website at www.floridaventureforum.org.

The 21 presenting companies, some of Florida’s best early-stage prospects for equity financing, will make 8 minute presentations to an audience of venture capitalists, private equity investors, angel investors, investment bankers, financial intermediaries, service providers and entrepreneurs. Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: June 19, 2012

The Florida Venture Forum is calling for participating sponsors and outstanding private companies in all industries from the state of Florida interested in applying to be presenters at its 22^nd Annual Florida Venture Capital Conference, to be held January 31 through Feb 1, 2013 at the Marriott Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, Florida.

The principal purpose of the Annual Conference is to showcase approximately 20 – 25 later stage, high growth private companies before an international audience of venture capitalists, private equity investors and investment bankers. These entrepreneurial companies should have talented management teams, proprietary technology and high growth potential. Although presenters are typically seeking later stage funding, they are encouraged to present at the Conference even if they are not seeking funding, so they can showcase their company for marketing purposes. The selected presenters are not only profiled before an international venture capital audience, they also receive substantial and valuable education in areas such as business plan writing, public speaking (and “pitching”) and venture capital negotiations.

The presenters of the last 21 Florida Venture Capital Conferences have been very successful from a funding standpoint, raising a total of $2.6 billion to date. Approximately 700 people attended the 2012 Conference, of which 200 were venture capital firms from across the U.S., Europe and South America representing billions of dollars to invest in Florida. The Florida Venture Capital Conference has become a “must attend” networking opportunity for venture capitalists and other investors interested in emerging Florida businesses. Read more here.

Publisher: BusinesWire
Date: June 15, 2012

John Duffy, founder and CEO of 3Cinteractive in Boca Raton, was named the 2012 Ernst & Young Florida Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winner in the technology category. He was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award recipients, leading CEOs, private capital investors and other regional business leaders. 3Ci, a provider of cloud-based mobile software and services, was founded by Duffy in 2005. Under Duffy’s leadership, 3Ci was ranked 28th on the 2010 Inc. 500 list of Fastest Growing Private Companies in the U.S. with three year revenue growth of 6,844%. 3Ci has also been recognized as the Fastest Growing Technology Company in South Florida and one of the Best Places to Work by the South Florida Business Journal. Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: June 11, 2012

The Florida Venture Forum, the oldest, largest and most prestigious statewide business organization for venture capitalists and entrepreneurs, today announced the appointment of its new Executive Director, Kevin Burgoyne.

Kevin joins the Forum with more than 20 years of corporate and private investment industry experience, including senior level sales, marketing and corporate communications roles with the Walt Disney Company, PanAmSat and Global Crossing. Most recently he has worked in staff and consulting roles for several start-ups and private investment groups with holdings in real estate and technology. Kevin holds a BS from the University of Florida and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

Richard Maclean, Board Chair, stated, “It’s going to be an awesome new chapter for the Florida Venture Forum and I along with the rest of the Board of Directors look forward to working with Kevin.” Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: June 4, 2012

Research released today by Dell and Intel reveals a bright local outlook for Atlanta and Miami startups and small businesses despite the tough broader economic environment. The optimistic picture shows a favorable view of the local economy and local organizations supporting businesses as well as healthy expectations for growth.

“The confidence of entrepreneurs gives us good reason for optimism, even while everyone worries about the national economy,” said Jonathan Ortmans, senior fellow at Kauffman Foundation and president of Global Entrepreneurship Week. “We must look past doom-and-gloom headlines and remain focused on strengthening local entrepreneurial ecosystems to support startups and small businesses.”

The release of the Dell-Intel survey findings kicks off a nine-city Small Business Think Tank tour aimed at understanding the state of small business at the local level. Through listening and dialogue, the research and tour will examine the prospects, perceptions and priorities of startup and small business owners in Atlanta, Miami, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle and Austin over the coming months and help inform recommendations for the tools and resources they need to grow both at home, nationally and globally. The events are hosted in collaboration with local chambers of commerce and national partners including Global Entrepreneurship Week and Startup America Partnership. At the conclusion of the tour, Dell and Intel will publish a comprehensive report on the state of U.S. small business based on the quantitative and qualitative data gathered from the nine cities. Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: May 15, 2012

On May 10, 2012, the Florida Venture Forum hosted its Second Annual Statewide Collegiate Business Plan Competition and Fifth Annual Early Stage Venture Capital Conference at the Reunion Resort in Orlando, Florida.

The Collegiate Business Plan Competition hosted six great competitors representing six great universities from throughout the state of Florida. Competitors pitched for 10 minutes followed by a Q & A session in front of a panel of judges. The students made exceptional pitches which was indicative of the caliber of competitors and the coaching that each university provided. Pat Schneider, Program Director with the Florida Venture Forum stated, “The competitors represented today have practiced extensively and really touched on the key points in their presentations.”  Read more here.

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Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: April 2, 2012

The Rollins MBA Center for Advanced Entrepreneurship announced today that flexReceipts has been named the winner of this year’s Rollins Venture Plan Challenge. The company is awarded a $20,000 cash prize, as well as additional services beneficial to growing the company. The competition is coordinated annually by the student run Rollins Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization (CEO). Participants compete for a cash prize pool of over $30,000 to invest directly in the business. Winners are chosen by a panel of distinguished judges, all of whom are successful investors and entrepreneurs.

“Completing an MBA has given me the necessary skills and network to build flexReceipts into a successful company,” Sachin Jaitly, CEO, flexReceipts and Rollins MBA alumnus. “This infusion of capital and in-kind services will surely help us achieve the next stage in our growth. The support from Rollins and its network has been tremendous.”  Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: March 7, 2012

Florida International University’s College of Business Administration will host the 2012 Americas Venture Capital Conference: An International Summit of Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship, Nov. 14-15, 2012.

This third annual conference, presented by FIU’s Eugenio Pino and Family Global Entrepreneurship Center, will take place at the JW Marriott Hotel, 1109 Brickell Ave., in Miami.

“The Americas Venture Capital Conference is one of FIU’s signature events,” said FIU President Mark Rosenberg. “We are proud to host first-rate speakers, innovative firms, and venture capitalists who will ensure a conference of high visibility and great value to attendees.”

Entrepreneurial firms doing business in Latin America and South Florida are invited to apply to present their businesses to an audience of leading venture capitalists and other strategic investors. Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: March 1, 2012

The Florida Venture Forum announced today that Robin Lester resigned after serving nine years as its Executive Director. During Ms. Lester’s tenure, the Forum’s annual flagship Florida Venture Capital Conference showcased emerging ventures, assisted entrepreneurs and enabled growth companies to raise millions of dollars of capital. The Forum also added a successful annual early stage capital program that is now in its fifth year. Richard Maclean, Board Chair, stated: “We are very appreciative of Robin’s accomplishments and dedication to the Florida Venture Forum, wish her the best and are confident she will have continued success in her future endeavors.”

The Board of Directors of the Florida Venture Forum has formed a search committee and initiated a search for Ms. Lester’s successor as Executive Director. Pat Schneider, Program Director at Florida Venture Forum, will serve as Interim Director and manage the Forum’s day-to-day operations pending the appointment of a new Executive Director. The Forum’s next major event is its Fifth Annual Early Stage Venture Capital Conference, which will be held on May 10, 2012, at the Reunion Resort in Orlando, Florida. For additional information about the Florida Venture Forum, please visit the website at www.floridaventureforum.org.  Read more here.

Publisher: BusinessWire
Date: February 28, 2012

On May 10, 2012, the Florida Venture Forum, a not for profit organization established in 1984, will host its second annual statewide collegiate business plan competition to coincide with its fifth annual Early Stage Venture Capital Conference at the Reunion Resort in Orlando, Florida. The Florida Venture Forum is now calling on graduate level universities in the state of Florida to bring their best candidate to compete before a panel of judges to win placement as a presenter in the 2012 Early Stage Conference.

Participating universities will be asked to make a small donation to help defray the cost of hosting this event. For further details and to get your university registered please e-mail pat@floridaventureforum.org or call the Florida Venture Forum office at 813-335-8116.

Participating universities will be asked to submit their chosen graduate student’s PowerPoint presentation to the Florida Venture Forum before the final cutoff date of Friday, April 20th . There will be an established FTP site to upload the presentation.  Read more here.