IMPACTREPORT · “I got to really understand the growth plan for supermarkets like Giant and Peapod. We had ten weeks to work with industry insiders. Not at a lot of programs give

IMPACTREPORTVirtual Thursday Gatherings

March-June 2020

Table of Contents

THURSDAY GATHERINGS

OUR TEAM

TRANSITION TO VIRTUAL

TIMELINE

CUMULATIVE IMPACT

COMMUNITY

CONTINUING PROGRAMS

OFFICE HOURS

WORKSHOPS

DEMOS

NETWORKING

CONFERENCES

SEED PROGRAM

NEW PROGRAMS

CLINICS

YOUTUBE

3

4

5

6

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

SPONSORS

MEDIA

FUTURE PLANS

20

21

22

Thursday GatheringsConnecting Innovators to Make Things Happen.

THURSDAY GATHERINGS

Networking Office Hours Workshops Conferences

Venture Café Thursday Gathering

Since 2010, Venture Café Cambridge has welcomed, connected, and celebrated over 200,000 people as members of our community. By offering free mentoring, world-class networking, informative workshops, and immersive conferences, we’ve helped innovators connect, build, and grow.

Over 200,000 have entered Venture Café Cambridge over the past ten years.

Our Cambridge Team

RUTH SAUNDERSActing Director VC CambridgeVP of Partnerships VC New England

SHAHEEN HAKIMISenior Program Manager

YULIYA POKHYLKOConference and Program Manager

FRANK POBUTKIEWICZOperations Manager VC CambridgeDigital Content Manager VC New England

CLAUDIA CHICA DIAZMarketing Coordinator

Transition to Virtual Venture Café

In four days, our team developed a digital version of Venture Café that now brings together over 300 people each Thursday.

Staying true to mission: Venture Café Cambridge continued to offer programing to educate and connect the innovation community.

Redefining the experience and process: While there’s never going to be a way to replace the physical Café, our team designed a new digital-first experience for community members and presenters.

Virtual Thursday Timeline

MARCH 12, 2020: Virtual Venture Café Week One

MARCH 19, 2020: Virtual Networking on Remo

In the span of four days, Venture Café Cambridge transitions from hosting in-person Thursday Gatherings to its first entirely virtual event. Over 300 people check into the inaugural Virtual Venture Café Cambridge to participate in five sessions. The team managed the virtual event from the Venture Café for the last time before stay-at-home orders were issued.

The team manages the first virtual session from their homes and introduces Remo as a virtual networking tool. Over 150 peoplereconnect and soon the Venture Café Global Network adopts Remo.

MARCH 26, 2020: First Virtual Conference Night

Conference Manager Yuliya Pokhylko organizes the first Virtual Conference. The annual SheConnects event attracts over 600 participants who attend seven sessions with women innovators.

Virtual Thursday Timeline

APRIL 2, 2020: International Pitch Event

APRIL 9, 2020: Founders over 55 Affinity Group

Venture Café hosts Chile Mass and organizes Venture Café Cambridge’s first virtual pitch event. Five teams in Chile pitch their businesses to the broader New England and Venture Café community.

Teaming up with AGENCY, Venture Café hosts its first virtual affinity group, Founders Over 55. Over 70 people attend the digital get-to-together and discuss how founding a company isn’t limited by age.

APRIL 16, 2020: Marketing & New Media Featured Session

Keith Cline, founder of VentureFizz, and Conrad Paquette of AmericanInno hold a webinar on the future of media.

Virtual Thursday Timeline

APRIL 23, 2020: FinTech Connect Virtual Conference

APRIL 30, 2020: Reopening Offices & Labs

MAY 7, 2020: Arts Nights powered by CIC

We host our largest single session with over 100 people join the discussion on reopening labs and office spaces with CIC CEO Tim Rowe, LabCentral CEO Johannes Fruehauf and The Engine CEO and Managing Partner Katie Rae.

Venture Café Cambridge hosted its second virtual conference with 5 demo companies, nine sessions, and 17 presenters and judges.

Hundreds of artists join six sessions designed to empower and support innovation in art and technology and reimagining the future.

Virtual Thursday Timeline

MAY 14, 2020: Corporate Innovation Series

MAY 21, 2020: Food&Beverage Series Launches

MAY 28, 2020: Digital Health Virtual Conference

Carrie Allen, Managing Partner of CIC Captains of Innovation, continues her series speaking with leaders in corporate innovation. Her fireside chat series features presenters like Boston Globe columnist Scott Kirsner and Verizon Acting Director of Technology Strategy Tunde Akindele.

With restaurants facing unparalleled circumstances, Venture Café Cambridge kicks off a five-part series on innovating the Food and Beverage economy.

Participants from eight countries sign-in to participate in our Digital Health Virtual Conference, powered by Sompo.

Our Cumulative Impact: March to May

Community Engagement and Program Innovation

3 65 95 15 17 7

4,003visitors

61sessions

117presenters

220office hours

4virtual conferences

from across New England, the US, and

the world

panels, fireside chats, workshops, &

pitches

experts, founders, investors, & connectors

connecting community with

experts

SheConnects, Arts Night, FinTech

Connect, & Digital Health

new skill clinics visitors per session

visitors per networking event

virtual pitches from startups

virtual company demos

expert AMAs

Our Community by the Numbers

TOTALS: 12 Thursday Gatherings 1,521 first time visitors

38%

62%

New Members

Returning Members

4,003 total visitors

5%

19%

19%

25%

20%

12%19-24 25-30

31-40 41-50

51-60 61+62%22%

7%

7%5%

Caucasian/White

Asian/Pacific Islander

Hispanic

Other

AfricanAmerican/Black

12%

5%

20%

16%

41%

6%

Corporate Innovator

Investor

Other

Service Provider

Startup

Student

20%

7%

16%

11%

24%

6%

16%

Concept

Funded

Growth

Mature

Not applicable

Other

Seed

Office Hours

Volunteer Expert Advisers50

Office Hour Sessions Booked123

Workshops and Sessions

Marketing – New Media – COVID Resources – Financial Projections – Financial Technology – IP Strategy – Business Modeling – University Spinouts – Emotional Intelligence – Remote Team Management – Quarantine Hobbies –

Corporate Innovation – Pitch Deck Construction – Equity Crowdfunding – Digital Health

Venture Café Cambridge continues to offer hard and soft skill programs, fireside chats and workshops. We've featured sessions to help startups pivot their business model and survival strategies, develop corporate partnership processes & relationships, and build leadership qualities for founders, managers, and beyond.

Delivering Value to the Community

32

workshops

5

affinity group meetings

65

avg NPS from participants

Company Demos

"Thank you for taking the time to organize the event this afternoon! That was the best run zoom conference I've been in so far.”

-Josh Ouellete, CEO and Cofounder of Raven Black

Seventeen participating startup companies demoed their technologies and products in our virtual networking space, talking to other community members, mentors, and investors to get critical feedback on their work.

Virtual Networking

Remo is a virtual networking tool that allows participants to move around a virtual room with several tables. Just like an in-person event, people can enter new conversations by moving around the room.

Venture Café Cambridge has used Remo as a solution for networking, AMAs, and company demos. There are also use cases for it to be used for classroom teaching, founder matching.

“Connecting corporate innovators with the startup ecosystem is even more critical in these challenging times, and Virtual Venture Cafe Cambridge is one of the best places I know to do this.”

Carrie Allen, Managing Director of Captains of Innovation

Virtual Conferences

VIRTUAL CONFERENCESConference Nights at Venture Café Cambridge focus on key sectors and themes driving innovation and growth in Greater Boston. Conferences offer sponsors and partners opportunities to build deeper relationships with the innovation ecosystem.

Summary of Our Virtual Conferences

1500+

conference participants

17

pitch competition participants

45

expert speakers and presenters

Supply Chain SEED Program

“I got to really understand the growth plan for supermarkets like Giant and Peapod. We had ten weeks to work with industry insiders. Not at a lot of programs give you that exposure.”-Tiffanie Stanard, Founder & CEO of Stimulus

Venture Café Cambridge again teamed up Ahold Delhaize's Retail Business Services to offer an immersion program designed to equip supply chain startups with practical mentorships and industry access.

Startups apply for acceptance into the

SEED program.

RBS accepts five companies

Selected companies go through a 10-week intensive program

Companies pitch investors during our

Supply Chain Conference

New Program: Skill Clinics

SKILL-BUILDING CLINICSRecognizing our community’s need to develop new skills, Venture Café Cambridge has designed a new educational experience: skill clinics. Clinics are led by experts and take place over multiple weeks so that community members can ideate and work on developing a new skill with continued guidance, support, and accountability.

Goals & Objectives:• Build connections between smaller groups of

community members and mentors

• Set achievable, actionable goals and measure success against building something

• Educate the community on hard skills they can use to start or grow their businesses

Pitching & Fundraising

Over two weeks participants learn the fundamental approach to pitching investors and practices building slide decks.

Podcasting

Over four weeks, participants learn how to set up hosting, design cover art, and record their first podcast episode.

Ecommerce

Over four weeks, participants learn how to evaluate ecommerce solutions, manage shipping & returns, and build their first ecommerce stores.

YouTube Channel

Live from the Café Podcast Venture Café YouTube Channel Resources Library Original Content

Most of the sessions at Virtual Venture Café are uploaded to our YouTube channel, giving additional access to our community and additional exposure to our sponsors.

Venture Café Cambridge Media Strategy

30+ Hours of Video

Uploaded

Averaging 3 Videos/

Week

Sponsor & Community Value

The Consulate General of Canada in Boston sponsored an individual session during the SheConnectsconference night.

ChileMass sponsored our first virtual international pitch competition, bringing startups from across Chile together with judges and investors from New England.

SOMPO Digital Lab powered our Virtual Digital Health Conference, giving them exposure across all nine sessions and social media.

Retail Business Services powers a ten-week Supply Chain SEED program, multiple AMAs, and an annual conference night to showcase participating companies.

CIC sponsors the annual ArtsNight at Venture Café Cambridge, showcasing innovation in technology and arts.

In the News

From live to livestream: Venture Café shifts weekly networking to the netMarch 12, 2020

BostInno Approved: June’s top virtual startup and tech eventsJune 2, 2020

Venture Cafe teams up with Ahold Delhaize USA Services Company to host Second Supply Chain Immersion ProgramApril 29, 2020

Future Plans

CONFEERENCE NIGHTS

BioConnectJune 25, 2020

DefenseInnoJune 11, 2020

Energy&CleanTechAug 20, 2020

PetInnoAugust 27, 2020

SupplyChainInnoSeptember 10, 2020

GET INVOLVED

Attend & Participate

No registration required! Every Thursday atVencaf.org/signin

Sign up for free mentoring sessions at

Vencaf.org/bookofficehours

Apply to Speak

Panelists, presenters, and pitchers needed!

Vencaf.org/speakerapp

Contact us today at [email protected]

Book Office Hours Sponsor