“It’s All Here” for Entrepreneurs in Massachusetts

One of the most inspiring things about being an entrepreneur is to connect with other entrepreneurs and learn from their successes & failures. In Massachusetts, we were given an exhilarating boost of inspirational support last week. To mark National Entrepreneurship Week (February 20 – 27) and the groundbreaking of the newly expanded Cambridge Innovation Center, Governor Deval Patrick declared February 23rd as “Entrepreneurship Day” in Massachusetts and announced a new Massachusetts: It’s All Here initiative to highlight the diverse resources available to entrepreneurs and small businesses throughout the Commonwealth.  The venue was packed with the Who’s Who of New England’s Entrepreneurial scene from VCs & angel investors to academia & government officials and a high concentration of many talented entrepreneurs who were very excited that “it’s all here in Massachusetts.”

The initiative was designed in partnership with the New England Venture Capital Association, Flybridge Capital Partners, the Massachusetts Innovation Technology Exchange, MassChallenge, the Massachusetts Office of Small Business Entrepreneurship and the Massachusetts Office of Business Development.  There is a great lineup of new opportunities, events, and access for small businesses, innovators and investors of Massachusetts that entrepreneurs can take advantage of.  Check out the Open House Series, where entrepreneurs get to visit & learn from other successful start-ups such as HubSpot and Kiva Systems.

I especially enjoyed learning from the panel of Massachusetts entrepreneurs who discussed the unique, rich and diverse environment that the Commonwealth offers start-up companies. Panelists included Sheila Lirio Marcelo, Founder and CEO of Care.com; Brian Halligan, CEO and Founder of HubSpot (and one of our very own thought leaders at AuthorsGlobe!); Jesse Gossett, Partner of Emergent; Laura Fitton, Founder and CEO of oneforty.com & Pistachio Consulting; and Sophie Vandebroek, CTO of Xerox.

I encourage everybody to listen to Laura Fitton’s Cinderella story ( or read the transcript) from single mom to mega-blogger,  author of Twitter for Dummies and venture backed entrepreneur at oneforty.com. (BTW, Laura was credited by Guy Kawasaki, who originally slammed Twitter, as someone who convinced him to tweet.)

Synergy between AuthorsGlobe’s Vision & Gov Patrick’s Proclamation about Innovation

I had the opportunity to meet with Governor Patrick and share AuthorsGlobe’s vision. There are interesting synergies between our venture and how the state is positioning itself as a “knowledge and innovation hub” in the global economy.  AuthorsGlobe is about making it easy for the global community to learn from visionary thought leaders to be empowered and innovate in expanding, creative ways.  “The Massachusetts spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship and opportunity has benefited the state, the nation and the world,” said Governor Patrick. “This campaign will translate into business and job growth in the Commonwealth and help the state maintain its global competitiveness.”

How About You?

Were you at the Massachusetts Entrepreneurship Day event? It would be great to hear your views.  If you’re from another state, how did your state celebrate National Entrepreneurship Week?