The Multiplier Effect

Edward Haddock, District Director for the Arkansas District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration is responsible for the delivery of all SBA programs and services as well as coordination between the SBA, the district’s Small Business Development Centers, SCORE chapters, and the Women’s Business Center throughout the State. And in this episode, he shares a variety of programs and service...

In episode 33, Mary Beth Brooks, director of the ASBTDC at the University of Arkansas, shares how in 2020, 5,876 Arkansans in our region received consulting, cutting edge market research, and educational events at no charge through resources at the ASBTDC. Mary Beth and her team are a go-to resource for founders in Arkansas to expand their expertise and scale their companies. 

In this week's episode, James Bell, Vice President of Entrepreneurship at the Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce, discusses the strategic and tactical approaches Northwest Arkansas has taken to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem through industry recruitment and how we support small businesses and startups as they scale. 

Today, we’re joined by Katie Thompson , Director of the Science Venture Studio and Founder of Rooted Startups to learn how her team helps early-stage science and technology companies prepare and submit Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) proposals. She shares with us the process of submitting the proposals, how University students and companies a...

Today we’re joined by Katie Milligan from Heartland Forward . Heartland Forward is a nonpartisan, nonprofit “think and do tank” focused on improving economic performance in the center of the United States. They believe that transformative research concentrates on factors that impact the American Heartland’s economy through innovation, such as research development and commercialization, human capit...

Ashley Wardlow is the Executive Director of the NWA Technology Summit hosted by the Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce. This annual event has something for everyone – from "adventurepreneurs" to C-suite executives – anyone interested in how technology can help businesses and communities collaborate to solve common challenges are welcome to join as they explore answers to the question, "W...

WeWork  launched its first Arkansas location in October 2020 on the second floor of the historic Massey Building in downtown  Bentonville .  WeWork Labs  is  WeWork's  global digital platform connecting and supporting early-stage startups and small businesses. And this week, we're joined by Carlos Estrada, Senior Manager of WeWork based out of Houston Texas, and Chand...

To wrap our three-part mini-series discussing 'the power of corporate partnerships' in our entrepreneurial support community, this week, we're joined by Greg Kessman, Managing Director of Plug and Play. Plug and Play connects the largest corporations to the world's best startups through industry-focused accelerator programs in Bentonville, Silicon Valley, and beyond. They run over 50 industry them...

To continue our three-part mini-series discussing 'the power of corporate partnerships' in our entrepreneurial support community, this week we’re joined by Wayne Miller, the Executive Director of The Venture Center. The Venture Center’s award-winning Fintech accelerator programs speed the growth of early-stage companies and help validate their solutions for real-world problems, fueling innovation...

As part of Season 2, we are launching a three-part series focusing on the impact of corporate partnership programs in our region and how they play a critical role in building a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem. To kick things off, we were joined by Becca Shaddox, Partner at i2iLabs and Founder of Anchor. She shares insights on where she sees the future of retail shifting amidst the Covid-19 cris...

In this episode, Yee-Lin Lai , Program Officer of the Home Region Program at the Walton Family Foundation , shares her inspiring journey to Northwest Arkansas from Singapore and speaks to us about how the Walton Family Foundation is helping to shape and empower economic development initiatives in the Heartland to support our regions scaling entrepreneurs.  

Emma Willis serves as the Director of the Heartland Region at Venture Noire. She supports the tech development for  Spectra , a group of black-owned venture studios with the collective mission to advance innovation for a better and more equitable world. And today, she shares with us how we can all work to close the racial wealth gap in the Heartland and elevate opportunities for empowering di...

Experiential learning has risen to the forefront of entrepreneurship education. It plays a critical role at the University of Arkansas in building a culture of innovation through programs at the McMillion Innovation Studio and Brewer Family Entrepreneurship Hub. In this episode, Sarah Goforth , Executive Director of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, shares her entrepreneurial journey...

Last week, our Northwest Arkansas community lost a dear friend and entrepreneur, Francis Hwang, to suicide. Words can not adequately describe this tragic loss. Entrepreneurs create new jobs, combat recessions, introduce useful products and services, and create prosperity. Through the ups and downs of innovating, they experience joyful celebrations but also suffer loss.  As entrepreneur ecosys...

In today’s episode, Jeff Amerine , Founder of Startup Junkie, and Jeff Standridge , Managing Director of the Conductor, share how their method of ecosystem-building has proven to be successful, helping Northwest Arkansas become a destination of choice for startups in the retail, software, and supply chain sectors, as medical, data analytics, FinTech, and manufacturing companies migrate toward cent...

Proof-of-concept funding is often one of the largest barriers entrepreneurs face when attempting to launch a company and access to high value mentors is a critical component of the success of any early-stage company. Winrock International's I-Fund provides both funds for technical assistance and training to enable entrepreneurs to make their ideas, research, and inventions a reality. In this episo...

In the middle of the American Heartland and headquarters, Northwest Arkansas has enjoyed national attention from Entrepreneur.com as an unexpected hub for tech startups, from DataFox as one of the best places to found a startup outside of Silicon Valley, and from FastCompany.com as a top place for minority-owned businesses. To kick off Season 2 , we are joined by Jeanette Balleza Collins , Entrepr...

And that’s a wrap for Season 1 of The Multiplier Effect! Join the Endeavor NWA team as they discuss their favorite moments from the Investor Series, books they’re currently reading, and what’s in store for Season 2!

According to experts, the coronavirus pandemic is already leading to greater adoption of ESG and impact investing principles. Among the new norms that may come into view when the all-clear sounds are that ESG integration is likely to be considered foundational to assessing any company’s ability to weather major disruption. Tom Groos , Partner at City Light Capital and Endeavor Detroit Board Member...

In the fifteenth episode of The Multiplier Effect, we are sharing exclusive content co-hosted by our team and the Northwest Arkansas Council. Each talk in the You Love series explores a point of passion, covering topics from art to culinary experiences to the outdoors, music, and our team’s favorite topic, entrepreneurship. Canem Arkan moderates this lively chat between three rockstar panelists, A...

In the fourteenth episode of The Multiplier Effect, Laura shares her unique perspective for companies navigating the crisis and offers insights specifically for SaaS companies on how to prioritize people over pixels through agile operations and strategic investment planning.

In episode thirteen of our Investor Series, Claire England discusses the assets she has seen women investors bring to the table and what programs are impacting entrepreneurial education for growing cities outside the coasts.

In episode twelve of our Investor Series, Mervin Jebaraj , Director at the Center for Business and Economic Research of Walton College, addresses the economic impact of COVID-19 on the State of Arkansas, and more specifically how this is impacting Main Street America. 

In episode eleven of our Investor Series, Linda Rottenburg, CEO and Co-Founder of Endeavor, interviews Kevin Ryan, Founder & Chairman at AlleyCorp. At AlleyCorp, the simple motto, "We Found Companies. We Fund Companies. We Pay It Forward," belies the incredible vision and fortitude Kevin Ryan has brought to his storied career as a serial entrepreneur. The results speak for...

In the tenth episode of our Investor Series, Founder and General Partner of Valor Ventures , Lisa Calhoun , discusses the power of habits being broken and how that creates more opportunity for entrepreneurs than ever before.