by Stephanie Goodman
For our newsletter, our team compiles a list of all the events we will be attending for the upcoming month, as well as some additional events we believe useful to the start-up and small business industry. If you missed our newsletter, we will be posting a blog with featured events the first week of every month.
The events we focus on are primarily in Toronto, the GTA, Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo Niagara/St. Catharines and Hamilton. Take a look through the events we are suggesting for this month. If you’re hosting an event or have come across one you think we should mention, please feel free to contact us with your suggestions.
Silicon Halton: Reaching the 800 Million
When: January 10 @ 7pm
Where: Emmas Back Porch, 2084 Old Lakeshore Rd, Burlington, ON
This Silicon Halton event will feature Founder of PinPoint Social, Daniel Patricio, who will discuss howa company can reach 800 Million Facebook users via a Facebook application. The following key points will be addressed at the event:
- What are the challenges and opportunities that come with building on Facebook
- How to build and integrate applications on Facebook platforms
- What tools and technologies are at your disposal
When: January 12th, 6pm – late
Where: The Winking Judge, 25 Augusta St., Hamilton, ON
Startup Drinks provides an open space for entrepreneurs and small business owners to connect and share ideas. There are no presentations or pitches, just conversation and networking. To meet some of the up-and-coming people in the startup community, this is a great event to attend.
Mobile Accelerator Program (MAP)
When: Starting January 19th, running once every two weeks
Where: Toronto, ON
Cost: $250/per company
The Mobile Accelerator Program provides opportunities and challenges for startup companies to find their place in the marketplace. MAP is a workshop that contains a six-part series of half-day workshops and networking events offered to help entrepreneurs in the ever changing market place.
The program starts on January 19th and runs once every two weeks.
Program Schedule:
- Market Trends – January 19, 2012
- Business Models – February 2, 2012
- Accessing Markets – February 16, 2012
- Financing – March 1, 2012
- Attracting and Retaining Talent – March 15, 2012
- Sales Strategies – March 29, 2012
When: January 25th, @ 6:30pm
Where: eBar
The format of DemoCamp is as follows: Keynote speaker along with 5 software demos (each one 5 minutes), along with 5 minutes of Q & A. After the presentations conclude, there will be a chance for general socializing. Information about keynotes and presenters is TBA.
If you wish to connect to someone on our team, Mark Elliott will be attending
MaRS Discovery District: Financial Planning
When: January 25th, 6-7pm
Where: MaRS Auditorium, 101 College St. Toronto, ON
Are you familiar with the basic tools of financial planning, such as income statements, cash-flow forecasts, expenses statements and balance sheets? This session offered by MaRS will help you build a realistic financial plan for your start-up.
You only need to register once for the Entrepreneurship 101 lecture series. The session are held every Wednesday from 6-7pm.
When: January 26th @ 6pm – January 29th @ 7pm
Where: TBA
Cost: General Admission $299, LSM Alumni $99
Lean Startup Machine is a weekend long competition where teams will identify the key risks in their business model through hands-on mentorship and a framework of tools. Over the course of the weekend, start-ups will:
- Ideate a startup or work on the one you have now
- Practice Customer Discovery
- Research your Target Market
- Practice Customer Development
- Test your Assumptions in Iterations
- Understand your Business Model
- Iterate and Pivot (when necessary)
- Build something you can Launch
- Present your Validated Learnings
The event is for anyone startup team that does not have a Product/Marketing Fit or for any aspiring founder that wants to learn Lean Startup methodologies from the ground up.
Communitech, Titan Learning Event: Outside In – Where Sales and Strategy Meet with Adrian Davis
When: February 1st, 2012, 8:00-10:15am
Where: Waterloo Inn – 475 King Street North, Waterloo
Communitech events are focused on being engaging and interactive sessions that provide useful information for companies of many sizes. This session will focus on sales, and more specifically teach you how to:
- Categorize and organize customer accounts
- Put a strategy in place to ensure you are making the most of your best accounts
- Improve your sales’ team performance with advanced strategic selling skills
If you’re looking to connect with someone on our team, Mark Elliot will be attending.
Golden Horseshoe Venture Forum
When: February 8th, 7:15am-10am
Where: Burlington Golf and Country Club, Burlington ON
The GHVF provides a space where ideas and resources connect. Whether you are a business owner, angel investor, or simply interested in business, the GHVF suits all different professional backgrounds. The event starts out with a breakfast buffet, following by 3 featured firm presentations and a presentation by the guest speaker. Featured Firms and Guest Speaker TBA.
If you wish to connect with someone at VA Partners, Stephanie Goodman and Steve Gruber will be at this event.