SPN Team

  • New Intersect series brings together a diverse set of innovators and entrepreneurs

    New Intersect series brings together a diverse set of innovators and entrepreneurs

    Intersect with new and existing members of the innovation community. This new, monthly series from the InsideOutside.io team will host a meetup that brings together startups, corporate innovators, industry leaders, and curious people interested in new trends, tools, and tactics for building in today’s fast-paced world. The first meeting in the series will take place…

  • SPN Top 10: Must-read startup books

    SPN Top 10: Must-read startup books

    During the process of creating our list of top startup books, we discovered that many of the books that are most often referenced are from Silicon Valley or San Francisco. This geographical preferencing creates a distortion in markets where entrepreneurs believe something they read, rather than local information that they have self-generated. The problem with…

  • Building a Business, Part 3: Sometimes it takes a very bold move

    Building a Business, Part 3: Sometimes it takes a very bold move

    If you’ve been following the story of the building of my business, then you know that, for me, the very bold move was bringing my company headquarters to America. This may not sound so bold—many have made moves like this. But for me it was quite different. I was over 50-years-old, and in my country…

  • SPN Top 10: Can’t-miss startup events from around the world

    SPN Top 10: Can’t-miss startup events from around the world

    Battlefield showdowns, German beer gardens, plank walks, and a prime minister. Our list of the top ten coolest, craziest and most inspiring startup events from around the world has it all covered. Did we miss your favorite conference? Let us know what amazing events to include in our next conference roundup. 10. Thought For Food…

  • Top Ten Nerdiest STEM Cities on the Silicon Prairie

    Top Ten Nerdiest STEM Cities on the Silicon Prairie

    When it comes to number-crunching, these 10 cities have got it nailed. Now, as many of you bristle and prepare to send declarations of nerdiness on behalf of your own city, keep in mind the following: all rankings presented in this list are based solely on a single dataset, i.e., the ratio of STEM graduates…

  • Gross-Wen Technologies sees algae as the solution to wastewater treatment

    Gross-Wen Technologies sees algae as the solution to wastewater treatment

    The Midwest has some major water quality issues, and it’s spreading. Nitrogen and phosphorus used to fertilize farms runs off into rivers, resulting in a record “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico resulting in massive toxic algae blooms that feed on the chemicals. Gross-Wen Technologies, an Ames, Iowa, startup, wants to use algae to…

  • Microsoft’s Kathleen Dollard and Don’t Panic Labs’ Doug Durham to speak at HDC 2018

    Microsoft’s Kathleen Dollard and Don’t Panic Labs’ Doug Durham to speak at HDC 2018

    AIM Heartland Developers Conference is a 3-day software development event for tech professionals, consisting of hands-on workshops, keynotes and other speakers, breakout sessions and networking events. Attendees learn from national industry experts plus regional and local leaders, who share the latest knowledge and demonstrate new techniques. SPN caught up with this year’s keynote speakers Kathleen…

  • Building a Business, Part 2: Build the right team

    Building a Business, Part 2: Build the right team

    As noted in the first article in this series, to build a company you need a vision. In our case, we found a crucial need: salespeople all over the world had a resounding complaint: “CRM sucks!” Our vision was to build a CRM application that actually empowered salespeople. The First Requirement Having our vision, we…

  • FinLocker secures third patent and $2.25M in funding lead by Cultivation Capital

    FinLocker secures third patent and $2.25M in funding lead by Cultivation Capital

    FinLocker, a financial data and analytics company, announced the approval of a third patent in July and is in the process of developing additional techniques for securing data – both at rest and during transactions. FinLocker received a $2.25 million venture capital round from Cultivation Capital earlier in 2018. The firm, headquartered in St. Louis,…

  • Healthcare software platform HIPAATrek closes angel round

    Healthcare software platform HIPAATrek closes angel round

    St. Louis-based HIPAATrek closed an angel round last week for an undisclosed amount, from undisclosed investors. At a glance… HIPAATrek is a software platform that provides compliance tools to healthcare organizations seeking to comply with HIPAA. The firm makes the process of compliance easier through its proprietary platform that creates both a secure workflow and…