The Homeward Stretch - Part 2

I spent 2 days in San Francisco and met some fantastic people and saw some more great programs before heading to Washington DC.

Youth Business America
Henry Rogers has set up YBA in Oakland just outside of San Francisco and is affiliated with the successful Youth Business International (YBI). From their web site:

"If you are 18 to 35 years old, committed to starting your own business and have received training from one of our Community Partners, you may be eligible to become a YBA Entrepreneur. Youth Business America’s mission is to Find, Fund and Mentor young entrepreneurs who need help to start-up or expand their own businesses which would generate employment and promote the economic health of low and moderate income communities."

Henry is entheusiastic about assisting young business, he rattles off the names of their entrepreneurs and clearly know their businesses in detail. The core of the program is lending and mentoring, two of the things that are most in need for startups. We discussed internal processes, their business model and admin/IT automation.

ANZA Tech
Viki Forrest provides the inside scoop for Australian businesses wanting to plug into the valley and beyond.

"ANZA Technology Network assists innovative Australian and New Zealand technology and biotechnology companies with global commercialization in the US and China. Through our webinars, workshops and Gateway and Fast Track programs we work with committed companies to determine the right foreign marketplace and what it will take for successful business expansion."

After a few minutes with Viki I was convinced that if you want to set up in the valley you would be crazy not to access her program. The information and extensive network will cut time off of your journey and increase the chance of success. Viki will be in Adelaide (plus Sydney and Brisbane) in May to present G/Score:

"The G/SCORE is a standardized method to assess a startup as it grows from initial concept to scalable enterprise. Developed by Guidewire Group’s Chris Shipley and backed by the National Science Foundation, the G/SCORE is the most comprehensive tool for understanding the state and growth of innovation around the world."

If you are keen to grow your startup and access the US market and beyond this session may clarify the steps that are needed.

Clint Walker and Alisdair Faulkner
Clint and Alisdair are aussies setting up or basing their businesses in San Francisco. Clint runs Roar Engine, an up and coming social gaming engine (create your own games using their system) and Alisdair is the Chief Products officer at ThreatMetrix providing online fraud protection. Both of these were really great meetings to get the aussie take on how things compare to back home. Additional information popped out that would have been unlikely in other meetings on topics such as investment, making contacts and assistance available to get rolling when you land.

Next stop on the way back to a conference in New York was Washington DC for a meeting at the Australian Embassy.

Austrade
I met with Brendhan Egan, Trade and Investment Commissioner. This was a great meeting to have towards the end of the trip because I was able to draw on some earlier conversations regarding the role of government in assisting startups. We discussed Austrade programs, investment and entrepreneurial culture in the US and Australia.

Thankyou to Henry, Viki, Clint, Alisdair and Brendhan for their time.
Only one meeting day left, back to New York for Startup 2011...