In honour of entrepreneur week, here is my list of the top startup networking events for entrepreneurs in and around the GTA. Sprouter has monthly events with guest speakers and networking before and after. They have had some great speakers recently including Mike McDerment from Freshbooks. At the sessions you will find there is a good mix of service providers and technology entrepreneurs. Sprouter also has a web site for entrepreneurs. I meet several great contacts at each meeting. The next meeting is Wednesday November 18.

MobileMonday Toronto
MobileMonday Toronto meets, as the name would indicate on the first Monday of the month, at MaRs with the focus on Mobile computing. I have met great contacts and been educated on many interesting mobile applications, marketing strategies, and companies. The sessions are a great mix of feature presentations and networking. The attendance is excellent and frequently reaches 200 people. The people that attend range from the large national telecommunication companies, startups, and people just interested in the mobile space. The next event should be the first Monday of December.

Third Tuesday Toronto
Third Tuesday Toronto is a social media meet-up. The recent meetings have not always been on the third Tuesday, but what they lack in predictability on dates they make up with speakers. The topic is social media with a big focus on Twitter. Recent speakers have included Shel Israel the author of Twitterville and Bob Pearson formerly of Dell a corporate leader in social media. There is ample time to network at the beginning and the end of the meeting. The attendees include PR firms, technology companies, and individuals wanting to learn more about social media. The next event is on December 1.

Communitech
Being in the GTA I also make the drive to Waterloo a few times a month, often for a Communitech event. If you are based in the Kitchener-Waterloo area you are very lucky to have Communitech and the Accelerator Centre. The leadership at both organizations is excellent and it really shows with the events. I regularly attend Peer-2-Peer sessions, their full-day event in May, and tech working events. They have a great agenda of events this week for entrepreneur week, too many to mention.

Have a happy Entrepreneur Week and good luck networking.

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