We run a lean, clean, startup enabling machine here at StartupSac. We’re funded primarily by sponsors and grants but to supplement that we also provide contract services for hire.

In April, the UC Davis STEM Strategies group contracted with us to organize two student tours of startup companies and startup gathering places in Sacramento and West Sacramento. This was a follow-on to the Aggie Innovation and Startup Symposium event held in February to accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship across the UC system.

We identified candidate startups to visit, contacted the startups and founders to line up speakers and agendas, organized the destination details, coordinated with venues and speakers, and prepared the schedule for each day.

The first of the two local startup tours took place on April 10 with a diverse group of 8 students. Throughout the course of the day the students visited Molecular Matrix and Trifecta Systems in West Sacramento, Skyslope in downtown Sacramento, and finished up the day at the Urban Hive touring the coworking space, chatting with startups, and attending Startup Grind with featured guest Kwame Anku.

UC Davis students learn about startup life from Molecular Matrix COO Jim Keefer

 

The second of the startups tours on April 18 saw a smaller turnout as the group visited the KPMG Solutions Center to learn about “intrapreneurship,” stopped by coworking space Cowo Campus to tour the space and hear from Dermveda cofounder Venita Sivamani as well as Witan Law attorneys, Jan Roos and Ryan Norman. The midtown tour continued with a stop at Gluware, followed by a tour of Hacker Lab and a chat with resident startup White Koat. The day concluded with StartupSac Happy Hour at Hot Italian Pizza in Midtown with a AMA featuring Homezada cofounder Beth Dodson.

Students learn about “intrapreneurship” from the KPMG Solutions Center team

Through the tours, the students had a chance to get a firsthand glimpse of what it’s like to start a startup and what it’s like to work for a startup from several local founders and their teams. We received feedback that the tours were a great success and that students were very appreciative of having an opportunity like this. Not only did the students learn about working at a startups but the startups themselves loved hosting the students as well.

 

For us, it was great to see the interest in entrepreneurship shown by the students and to see local startups giving back to the community and helping to lend a hand to potential future entrepreneurs. Part of growing the Sacramento startup ecosystem includes getting our successful startup founders engaged with the community and helping other startups and entrepreneurs who aren’t as far along.

If you’d like help organizing similar tours, workshops, or events, be sure to check out those and other services that we provide and let us help you grow our startup ecosystem.