Interview with John Hartnett about new cofounder dating event

Check out the following interview with John Hartnett (@John_Hartnett_) over at Innovation Factory (@itbeginswithIF) where he talks about the new cofounder dating event taking place this Thursday.

 

Tell me about yourself.

I am a born and raised Hamiltonian, former McMaster Varsity football player and Economics BA now doing a coop term at Innovation Factory as part of my MBA candidacy at McMaster’s DeGroote School of Business. I decided to pursue a coop at Innovation Factory because since taking Economic Development in my undergrad, I have had a great passion for promoting Hamilton to the business world. We are a proud city that is located in a pivot point for travel and delivery from the U.S. to Toronto but for one reason or another Hamilton has not seen the booming success I believe should be a natural progression for such a promising location. In my opinion this city is on the brink of mass growth but I want to see it grow in an ideal fashion, from the center outward. We have already seen so much change in the past few years but it is not enough, it is time for Hamilton to be recognized for its technical abilities and events like the Cofounder Dating are channels to push that development.

 

What’s your favourite thing about working with startup companies in Hamilton?

I really enjoy the variety of ideas and applications the start up community in the Hamilton brings to the table. We see a vast array of innovations ranging from tech, social and health science fields and the city hosts both the resources and location to be able to bring these innovations into realization. Being a ‘Steel City’ that now has more jobs in health sciences than any other field there is a lot of change going on and embracing these changes has lead to positive growth within the city. People who see the start ups at our events and workshops are often blown away, easily becoming interested in learning more about them while offering connections and encouragement.

 

How did you get the idea for this event?

After noticing that while many start ups come to the Innovation Factory with a great, unique idea, and an understanding of either their target customer and business model, or their product capabilities, many are in need of a missing piece. Often small start-up companies will have people with the business skills while lacking a programmer, or all the software skills necessary to create a product but no one who knows how to approach the market effectively. After seeing this issue arise time after time, and hearing about the success of the start up weekends and cofounder dating sessions all over North America, my manager Tammy Hwang and I discussed the idea of hosting a less formal, introductory opportunity for people interested in finding a cofounder in the Hamilton area specifically.

 

What is this Thursday night’s co-founder dating event all about?

This event is all about introductions and connecting on a personal level, the business/software expertise are a given based on our screening process, leaving plenty of time and room to find a cofounder who fits in with your team on a more personal level. To allow this natural fit we will start with networking over snacks and refreshments, move into a structured round robin where all start ups and anyone else who wants to get a chance to introduce themselves very briefly with a time cap of about 3 minutes. During this time anyone interested in meeting that person can signal interest and he/she will be put on a list to be sent contact information of the speaker following the event (that way there is no risk of missing your chance to connect due to shyness or networking hogs). Finally, we will conclude with about an hour or so of casual networking and we may or may not head over to a pub to get to know one another over a beer or two!

 

 

What sorts of companies will be their pitching? Can you tell us anything about the types of ideas / problems they are working on?

We have a variety of companies looking for a new cofounder coming to the dating event. I am not able to publicly share all of their ideas but there are innovations in the health services area for improved treatment, social gaming, modifying restaurant systems through technology, advanced manufacturing products, and several other innovations that are very different from the above, and one another. They’re definitely all worth checking out, and no further commitment beyond attending Thursday is necessary!

 

Why should software developers come out to this event? What’s in it for them?

This is their opportunity to be part of a success story from the grass levels! Having said that, it was very important to the organizers of this Cofounder Dating event to ensure that the applicants are high quality start ups that have clarified, prior to registration, that they are willing to offer up equity, cash, or some other substantial return to a cofounder. Furthermore, most of the companies attending are in direct need of a software developer to create or improve their software or application. Of those companies, we have selected start ups that have a unique offering to the market in order to guarantee anyone who is brought on to a team some minimal chance of success following the event with their new found team.

 

How can they register to attend the event?

Anyone interested in applying can email me at coop@innovationfactory.ca with a brief summary of their qualifications. This process ensures that the business and software registrants are also qualified in the same matter that the start ups looking for a cofounder were screened. We don’t want to waste anyone’s time at this event. Our goal is to foster growth and success by pairing ideal start ups with new cofounders that have great potential.

Thanks for the heads up, but this event isn’t for me…

Can’t make it? Don’t like the idea of a networking event? Feel free to contact me anyway! Innovation Factory is always looking to meet Hamilton’s young professionals and software guru’s. Come in and meet our team, join our mailing list or request a contact in the case that a certain idea or entrepreneur ever comes by! We’re ready to believe (in) you!

 

Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Great football team… or the greatest football team?

Oskie Wee Wee, Oskie Waa Waa, Holy Mackinaw, Tigers … Eat ’em RAW!!

As I said, I was born and raised in Hamilton, that means I have had front row seats to many of the major secrets that the Hamilton community has to offer, including the pride and love for our beloved Hamilton Tiger Cats. I remember the Ron Lancaster era as if it was yesterday. The heartbreaking grey cup loss of ’98 followed by our last Grey Cup win of ’99 with arguably the best Tigercat squads of all time! What a team that was, featuring the likes of Danny McManus, Darren Flutie, Ozzy Osbaldiston, Joe Montford, Morreale, Rob Hitchcock, Akins, Ronald Williams and Amerson… Wow nostalgia overload… Now we are all set to take back the Grey Cup again this year with Burris at the helm. After years of struggling our secondary is flying around making some big hits and our offense is ready to bring some noise against the Argos this weekend. And in case anyone supporting Toronto is reading this, get ready for Sunday, you’re about to realize that NOBODY BLOWS LIKE THE ARRRRRRGOS!!!