Posts by SPN Newsroom
Virtual awards ceremony a first for Omaha’s tech community
Last night, members of Omaha’s tech and startup communities attended the first-ever virtual version of the AIM Tech Awards, a celebration of local innovators and changemakers in the technology sector. A prerecorded ceremony streamed on a virtual stage, accompanied by a live chat constantly scrolling with affirmations, congratulations and commentary from attendees. Traditionally held in…
Read MorePK acquires Nuvem Consulting in bid to expand Salesforce practice
Like a lot of entrepreneurs, Matt Dillon comes from a family of founders. Also, like a lot of entrepreneurs, he has a wide range of interests. In college, he majored in sports management, information systems, marketing, business and economics. Possibly the only thing he didn’t study was acting. (That’s a different Matt Dillon.) After starting…
Read More“Like driving an aircraft carrier”: developing skilled workers in Nebraska a major challenge
The state of Nebraska needs skilled workers. Badly. University of Nebraska Provost Susan Fritz last year acknowledged that that state faces demand for 15,000 new workers in engineering and computer science alone by 2026. Speaking generally of the gap between supply and demand of skilled labor in early 2019, former NU president Hank Bounds called…
Read MoreCompanies find ways to fight hunger using technology in the Midwest
As food insecurity rates have nearly doubled in Nebraska since March, local food banks and community nonprofits have expanded their tech resources, and a new field of innovation is emerging to serve their needs. Since the onset of COVID-19 restrictions began in March, Nebraska’s yearly unemployment rate has risen from 3.1 to 5.2 percent, bringing…
Read MoreInfotec 2020 virtual conference connects tech talent and companies this Friday
In an era of remote work and major uncertainty, it’s time for the Silicon Prairie tech community to reconnect. But how? Attend Infotec 2020, for one. The AIM Institute’s longtime annual business technology conference is known for its ability to cultivate a sense of community between tech talent and companies with IT needs. “It’s a…
Read MoreUnion Pacific strengthens tech workforce with internships for first-generation college students
Omaha-based Fortune 500 company Union Pacific recently gave two young Omahans a unique behind-the-scenes look at the world of tech. This summer, after participating in a coding education program during their senior year of high school, Omaha South alums Suraj Poudel and Evelyn Espinoza Macias began working paid tech internships at the 158-year-old enterprise. The…
Read MoreAfter selling Omaha startup Median, co-founders set aim on their next idea
Two Omaha entrepreneurs are celebrating the sale of their first start-up, Median, while looking ahead to the next endeavor. Derek Homann and Ben Stevinson recently announced that Dallas-based telecommunications company Loup had acquired the co-browsing startup in late October. The sale, for an undisclosed amount, comes more than three years after the duo left their…
Read MoreRural Nebraska family winery’s cozy virtual wine tastings a hit with cabin-fevered connoisseurs and casual fans alike
The pandemic may have stopped many in their tracks, but the wine and beer continue to flow. Or at least that’s true of Mac’s Creek Winery and Brewery in Lexington, Nebraska. Faced with the challenge of their shuttered tasting room due to the COVID-19 global pandemic and subsequent lockdown, the family-owned winery and vineyard decided…
Read MoreOn Nebraska Innovation Campus, The Combine incubator hatches new agtech startups
Before Seattle-based Costco broke ground on its $280 million poultry operation in Fremont in 2017, Scott Niewohner remembers a conversation with his cousin about the pros and cons of building barns to raise chickens to supply the plant. Chief among the cons, according to Niewohner’s cousin: daily retrieval of the dead birds scattered throughout the…
Read MoreIO2020: the New Innovators’ Summit connects entrepreneurial community (and tickets are free this year)
Great ideas start with curiosity. Bringing those ideas to life is its own challenge. That’s what longtime entrepreneur Brian Ardinger believes, and that’s why he’s made it his mission to help Nebraska startup founders, business leaders and innovators solve those challenges. Ardinger is cofounder of InsideOutside.io, an innovation-focused resource network for startups, entrepreneurs, investors, enterprises,…
Read More