Program to encourage new technology development and commercialization to support innovation economy Shari Ford Named as NYC Tech Connect Executive Director
Melinda Thomas Named as First Entrepreneur-in-Residence for NYC
New York, NY – City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and the Partnership for New York City today launched NYC Tech Connect, a public-private partnership whose mission is to foster a stronger entrepreneurial ecosystem in New York City in the hard sciences, specifically life sciences, engineering, material sciences and financial services technology. In collaboration with universities and other strategic partners, NYC Tech Connect will organize and run programs that connect researchers and entrepreneurs to each other and with funding, mentorship and other support services. NYC Tech Connect will work with entrepreneurs in science-based industries to help them advance innovative research and technologies into profitable businesses that create jobs.
“The digital media sector in New York City is evidence that we can create a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “Working with NYC Tech Connect and our partners in the private and public sectors, we will encourage this same kind of activity in the hard science sectors. We will link start-ups with the resources they need to commercialize technology, find capital, and get mentors to guide them along the way to creating new ventures. Our main goal is to create a thriving innovation economy and create lasting, good jobs here in New York City.”
“Establishing a forum for aspiring entrepreneurs to meet, collaborate and get exposure to New York’s business leadership will strengthen the fabric of the city’s entrepreneurial sector,” said Kathryn Wylde, President & CEO of the Partnership for New York City. “NYC Tech Connect promises to accelerate the creation of new companies and jobs across the five boroughs.”
“NYC Tech Connect is the latest effort to harness the enormous job-creating potential of New York’s science and technology sectors,” said Maria Gotsch, President & CEO of the New York City Investment Fund. “By leveraging NYC’s unparalleled R&D and entrepreneurial assets, we’re helping grow entirely new knowledge-based industries in the city, such as bioscience, cleantech and other new and related fields.”
“The future of our economy in NYC rests in information systems, science and technology. We in government and private industry need to come together to find innovative ways, such as NYC Tech Connect, to stay on the cutting edge of this field. I applaud Speaker Quinn and the Partnership for New York City on this creative venture and will work hard as chair of the Economic Development Committee to help promote science based entrepreneurship programs,” said Economic Development Committee chair Karen Koslowtiz.
“We need to continue to grow and expand these innovative industries throughout the five boroughs. Through NYC Tech Connect, we are putting the necessary steps in place to increase visibility of the opportunities surrounding the technology space. I thank Speaker Quinn and the Partnership for New York City for their tireless efforts in making this program possible. As chair of the Committee on Technology, I will work with the Economic Development Committee and the Council to ensure these programs continue to create new job opportunities in our City,” said Technology Committee chair Fernando Cabrera.
Shari Ford has been selected as the Executive Director of NYC Tech Connect. In her career spanning 25 years, Shari has worked as a corporate executive and an entrepreneur focusing on innovation and commercialization. Most recently, Ms. Ford has worked on multiple initiatives for the Kauffman Foundation, the world’s largest foundation devoted to entrepreneurship. Previously, she was President and CEO of New York Technology Accelerators LLC, a unique for-profit, public/private venture establishing a network of five university-based development centers for early stage technology companies in New York City. The initiative was led by the New York City Investment Fund, the City University of New York and several venture capital firms.
Said Ms. Ford: “I’m thrilled to lead this venture which will have a positive and sustainable impact on the entrepreneurial landscape of New York City. One of our first initiatives is to establish an Entrepreneur-in-Residence for New York City program. This is a prestigious opportunity for experienced entrepreneurs to help seed the ecosystem while looking for their next start-up.”
The first Entrepreneur-in-Residence, with a focus on bioscience, is Melinda Thomas. Ms. Thomas is a serial entrepreneur who launched and ran several successful life science companies in the San Francisco Bay Area, including CardioDx and ParAllele BioSciences (acquired by Affymetrix). These companies were backed by prominent venture capital firms. “There are so many amazing scientific ideas and people within the five boroughs. I look forward to helping connect the talent with the resources which can lead to the creation of more start-up bioscience companies based in New York City,” said Ms. Thomas.
The EIR program is just one example of how NYC Tech Connect will work with New York City’s academic community and other strategic partners to provide programs, expertise and resources to help entrepreneurs launch and grow their start-ups. Additional NYC Tech Connect initiatives will include:
a collaboration with the New York Academic Consortium to expand their emerging technology summit series beyond bioscience to other hard science disciplines;
a venture mentoring service to give entrepreneurs guidance in navigating the many challenges of launching a new venture;
targeted networking events to foster the development of cross disciplinary teams necessary for start-up formation;
and speaker and panel series focused on challenges entrepreneurs face, such as attracting funding, marketing/PR, legal, etc.
“We are excited to partner with NYC Investment Fund, the NYC Council, and our other local institutions to promote tech entrepreneurship within the city,” said Robert Kasdin, Senior Executive Vice President of Columbia University. “We are extremely proud to already generate over 10 start-ups based on Columbia technology every year, as well as many others based on ideas from our students and alumni. We look forward to working with NYC Tech Connect to create an even more hospitable environment for such companies to start and grow within NYC.”
Said Kathleen A. Denis, Associate Vice President for the Office of Technology Transfer at The Rockefeller University, “The NYC academic institutions have become one of the leading sources of new products and innovations in this country. As we ramp up efforts to showcase our available resources and technology on a regular basis, we are delighted to have the expertise and experience of NYC Tech Connect to draw on. We look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration.”
Richard Kosman, Director of the Office of Business Development at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, commented: “We are looking forward to working with Melinda and Shari at NYC Tech Connect to access the additional resources necessary to enhance the entrepreneurial spirit at Einstein and, ultimately, to further advance promising innovations by attracting and connecting with additional industry and financial partners.”
NYC Tech Connect was first announced in Speaker Quinn’s 2010 State of the City address and is inspired by similar efforts in San Diego, California and Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The New York City Investment Fund (www.nycif.org) is the vision of Henry R. Kravis, founding partner of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., who serves as its Founding Chairman. The Investment Fund has raised over $110 million to mobilize the city’s world financial and business leaders to help build a stronger and more diversified local economy. It has built a network of top experts from the investment and corporate communities who help identify and support New York City’s most promising entrepreneurs in both the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors. The Fund is governed by a Board of Directors co-chaired by Russell L. Carson, General Partner of Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe; and Richard M. Cashin, Managing Partner of One Equity Partners. The Investment Fund is an affiliate of the Partnership for New York City (www.pfnyc.org), an organization of the leaders of New York City’s top corporate, investment, and entrepreneurial firms. They work in partnership with city and state government officials, labor groups, and the nonprofit sector to promote the interest of the city and its neighborhoods. The Partnership carries out research, policy formulation, and issue advocacy at the city, state, and federal levels, leveraging the resources and expertise of its CEO and Corporate partners. Partnership companies account for nearly 7 million American jobs and contribute over $740 billion to the national GDP.