Time to Adapt

I had a chance to attend the 2014 Global Accelerator Network Conference shortly following Straight Shot’s most recent Demo Day. I took many things away from this event, but the one that struck closest to home was the realization that Managing Directors leading accelerators of various ages worry about the same three things:

How do we generate quality deal flow for our program?

Can we differentiate our accelerator in an increasingly crowded (and diluted) market?

Does our network include the type of resources – capital and strategic partnerships – that graduates need most to maintain the momentum they build during the 90 days?

On one hand, this was comforting because it likely means Straight Shot isn’t as far behind an accelerator that’s been around for five years as we may have thought.

The catch-22, however, is that it also means that accelerators just entering the market aren’t as far behind us as we’d prefer. This creates a sense of urgency to explore ways to take our organization to the next level and find novel ways to assist new ventures get off the ground.

As I’ve thought about the ways to evolve the traditional accelerator model Straight Shot has employed in its first two years, it struck me that developing closer ties to our community’s existing economy has inherent advantages for a program like ours.

Additionally, as Omaha’s fledging startup ecosystem continues to define itself, there’s a synergistic opportunity to bring these two conversations together to ensure we’re properly leveraging our collective potential.

We will never be better at being Techstars than Techstars.

A trailblazer in the accelerator industry has been and continues to be the Techstars organization. Not only did they lead the way in establishing the 90-day, mentor-driven approach that’s been copied by many, they’ve also begun to launch vertical-focused accelerators with their Powered by Techstars model.

While they deserve credit for both successful endeavors, it would be a fool’s errand for Straight Shot to simply try to beat Techstars at their own game.

Top tier accelerators like Techstars and YCombinator have built brands based on high-quality results that have generated interest from startups and investors without the need for significant outreach or effort.

Due to their success the nation has seen similar programs pop up in each state, and we’re now experiencing increased segmentation between those in rare air and everyone else who’s left competing for the startups who don’t get accepted to the premier programs.

We here in the Midwest have a reputation for being modest and having an aversion to bragging about our strengths. However, this can often mask that we are at the same time a prideful sort that has an inability to accept mediocrity. As long as I’m the Managing Director of Straight Shot I similarly refuse to accept that our inevitable fate is to be an afterthought accelerator.

The next Boulder is Boulder.

Techstars is also relevant to this discussion because of it being headquartered in Boulder, the sleepy college town that over a short period of time became a powerhouse within the national startup community. Boulder’s path to its spot today has been often editorialized both by observers as well as by those who actively lead the successful community building efforts.

While the story of Boulder validates that it’s possible for thriving startup ecosystems to be created and cultivated, it would be a mistake to simply try to carbon copy their blueprint. By the time our community could perfect their model it will have already evolved, and we’ll remain playing catch up.

The Boulder experiment was successful because it was authentic and tied to the strengths of those with the desire to build a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem.

For our community to have the same type of success we should aim to copy not their efforts but instead their process. We must examine our history and existing economic strengths with an eye toward opportunities to create something truly unique.

The Omaha Model

Omaha is a relatively small metropolitan area that enjoys a disproportionately large presence of Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 companies. Its size and history have also cemented a business culture that’s collaborative, charitable, and relationship based.

It’s these ingredients that lead me to believe Omaha is uniquely qualified to connect the old and new economies by building mutually beneficial bridges between startups and large corporations. Additionally, we’re blessed with strong higher education institutions that already have strong talent pipeline to the community’s largest employers.

Both staple stakeholders – corporations and universities – are also currently faced with a new generation of workers and students who are both quicker to challenge the status quo and intrigued by starting or working for a technology startup. This creates a present that is ripe for the community to rethink the way we work together and to create a model that leverages our best assets to set us apart.

Straight Shot is advancing this conversation by vetting deeper partnerships with key members of our business community to form creative opportunities for startups and corporates to come together. Like other programs in Omaha, our accelerator has provided various members of the community with an opportunity to dip their toes into the entrepreneurial waters.

I hope you’ll join us as we look for others who are willing to double down, dive in headfirst, and begin charting our own path toward becoming a unique and admired entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Born and raised in a small Western Nebraska town, David Arnold moved to Lincoln to pursue a Business Administration degree from Nebraska Wesleyan University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Nebraska College of Law.

In 2010, David took a position as the Deputy Communication Director for the Omaha Mayor’s Office where he got a first hand look at the inner workings of municipal government. In 2011, David was hired as the seventh employee of MindMixer – a civic tech startup founded by two Omahans – in the role of Account Manager where worked with clients across the nation. Over the next two years, David helped create and lead the Client Services division which was tasked with the company’s onboarding, support, and customer experience management responsibilities.

David saw Straight Shot as an opportunity to bring together his two passions – business and community building – and became the Managing Director in 2013.