Video from Nebraska Entrepreneur on Vimeo.
Patrick Smith spoke at the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce‘s most recent “Face the Chamber” luncheon on Wednesday, and Nebraska Entrepreneur was on hand to film Smith’s talk. Smith, a principal and COO at Nebraska Global, delivered a talk on the investment landscape in Nebraska as a whole and on the activities at his company in particular, painting a picture that was, in his words, “a mix of good and bad.”
Smith established the need that exists in Nebraska for investment in software startups and the way in which Nebraska Global, among others, is trying to address that need. Smith’s presentation, in its entirety, is above. Below, we’ve included a few mileposts to help guide you through the talk.
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- 3:40 — Smith delves into the history of Nebraska Global. The company was founded, he says, with this question in mind: “What if we did more than just one company? What if could do a whole slew of companies and act as a major catalyst in our community and right some of the wrongs that we had realized that we missed those opps along the way?”
- 5:20 – Smith describes some of the landscape that Nebraska Global is trying to help change.
- 9:28 – Smith examines potential explanations for the lack of software investment and activity in Nebraska, setting up his juxtaposition of two different economic development methods — “chasing smokestacks” vs. “gardening.” Nebraska Global employs the latter.
- 13:30 – Smith explores a tenet central to Nebraska Global’s story: a belief in the possibilities created where nerds and money meet.
- 16:06 – Smith provides some specifics about Nebraska Global’s structure and strategy, including the fact that the company has “great news pending.”
- 17:55 — Smith offers insight into the sort of companies Nebraska Global funds, including that they’re “not stage-specific.”
- 19:35 – Smith dismisses the notion that Nebraska Global’s attempting to recreate Silicon Valley. “No,” he says of that idea. “We’re here (in Nebraska). That’s ridiculous.”
- 22:05 – Smith reflects on positive developments he has seen in the local investing and startup landscape. “Folks are talking about it,” he says, “more and more innovation, more and more entrepreneurial activity, more and more startup activity.”
- 23:50 – Smith concludes his remarks with a restatement of Nebraska Global’s goals. “We’ll do our best to plant plenty of seeds,” he says, “nuture, grow them, see that garden thrive amongst the many smokestacks in our state.”
- 24:25 – Smith opens the floor to Q&A.
