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10 people to grab coffee with if you’re new to Omaha’s startup community
While the Silicon Prairie may span across several states, include vastly different types of companies and entrepreneurs with diverse backgrounds (and football rivalries), supportive communities are one factor that tie them all together. Whether you’re in Omaha or Des Moines, Kansas City or Cedar Rapids, you’ll find people who really care about helping their fellow…
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Story offers close look at Bill Fisher, “Silicon Prairie’s Go-To Guy”
Financial services publication Bank Technology News on Tuesday published a profile of Bill Fisher, a veteran of Omaha’s tech scene. “You have heard of the Oracle of Omaha,” wrote BTN reporter Sean Sposito, who visited Omaha for the piece. “Well, Fisher, the founder of Treetop Ventures, a consulting and investment firm, is the patriarch of…
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Boulder-based MeNetwork closes angel round from Omaha investors
MeNetwork, a Boulder, Colo.-based mobile marketing platform, recently raised a second angel round of about $500k, a “similar range” to its first round one year ago, the startup’s CEO, Mike Corbisiero, said in a phone interview on Friday. Though MeNetwork’s headquarters aren’t in Omaha, one of its co-founders, Craig Paige, and two of its board…
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View from the FishBowl – Negotiation Series Finale: Set parameters, avoid a tie, negative sell and more
My final blog on negotiation includes several points that I wanted to make when thinking about how I appraoch negotiations and various lessons I have learned that helped me in my career. These points have to do with how to approach the negotiation table and how to manage yourself during the …
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Startup Weekend Omaha speakers announced
Startup Weekend Omaha, now just two weeks away (Sept. 16-18), has begun to round out its roster of organizers, judges and speakers. The latter of which we have the privilege to announce here. Kicking off the …
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View from the FishBowl: Old dog learns new trick
There is hope … even for an old dog like me. My kids (and even my grandkids) are loaded with iPods, iPhones, iPads and everything else technologically advanced that starts with a vowel. My oldest grandson, Jackson, (7 years old) laughs at me when he tries to figure out why I can’t manage to help…
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William Fisher on Nebraska’s Angel Tax Credits: Hats off to Abbie and team … good on you!
This past week, a colleague and I spent time reviewing the various application forms required to qualify for the Angel Tax Credit Program that was approved by the legislature in May of this year. I have to say that I was pleased with the overall clarity of the application process. This will clearly be a…
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View from the FishBowl – Negotiation Series: Know what you want … and what the other side wants…
It takes two to tango…and negotiate. Therefore, there are typically two sides any negotiation and if you are able to figure out both sides, you will be successful more often. Simple case; take a used automobile. Unlike a new car that has a sticker price, the used car is priced subject to a variety of…
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Silicon Prairie Feedback List, Version 1.0
In response to a post from William Fisher last week on the importance of honest and direct feedback, we put a call out to the community to help us spur connections and generate more feedback. Basically, we asked you, our readers, “Who’s looking for feedback and who’s willing to give it?” As expected, our community…
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Where do you go for honest and direct feedback?
In William Fisher’s post this morning, “Sorry…but your baby is ugly!”, the serial entrepreneur and angel investor made no apologies for the honest and direct feedback he regularly gives to entrepreneurs who pitch their ideas to him. “I try to inject humor; I try to be direct,” Fisher wrote, “I try to let them know…