This season, we’re taking a deep dive into Tennessee’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
With Disrupt the Continuum, we bring you conversations about how, as a statewide community, we collaborate and provide the resources founders need to build, scale, and execute their businesses.
This season, you’ll hear from leaders at each of the entrepreneur centers across the state, as well as a few of Launch Tennessee’s other strategic partners. They’ll share some exciting stories about the ways entrepreneurship is thriving in Tennessee, and you’ll find out what makes this state’s ecosystem so unique.
Here’s a preview of some of the key themes and perspectives you’ll hear throughout Season 3 of Disrupt the Continuum, premiering September 15.
Jeff Brown, President of The Biz Foundry in the Upper Cumberland Region, will share his insight about what sets Tennessee apart in its approach to entrepreneurship.
“As I go to other states and attend meetings, I don’t think people have a clue how [big] entrepreneurship in Tennessee is,” he explained. “Most other states when we go there are astounded that Tennessee has done this. And the question is ‘How did you guys pull that off?’” Jeff credits LaunchTN, the entrepreneur center networks, and the statewide connectivity for the growth.
Marcus Shaw, CEO of CO.LAB in Chattanooga, will also discuss the power of that connectivity, and he’ll explain how Tennessee’s collaborative spirit is starting to gain global recognition, bringing new companies and opportunities to the state.
“Tennessee is an unbelievable state to build your business in because we’re at a phase where we all want to see all of these companies be successful. And when you have that type of collective support behind your ambition, it really places you in a position to succeed,” he said. “People across the country and across the world are seeing us for what we are.”
We’ll also be joined by Brynn Plummer, Vice President of Inclusion and Community Relations at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center. She’ll offer an inside look into the work Tennessee’s entrepreneur centers have done to build a structured, efficient network.
“The real emphasis over the past two to four years has been making our ecosystem truly structured,” she said. “What we’ve tried to do over three to four years has been to smarten up the ecosystem. So not only are we more aware of what’s out there, what’s available in the marketplace, but we’ve also put a lot of work into making sure that we know exactly what best fits an entrepreneur at what stage of their life cycle.”
And Sumeet Chahal, Regional Executive Director of Bunker Labs Tennessee, will explain how moving to Tennessee shifted his perspective on entrepreneurship and inspired him to build new partnerships.
“I heard about Tennessee as the volunteer state, and I hear about it as a beautiful state and just the geographical spans that it has from Memphis all the way up to Knoxville and Johnson City and the Tri-Cities, and just the spectrum of the state lengthwise. What I found was a state where people are willing to help each other,” he said. “Instead of a competitor, you’ve got connectivity and connections, you’ve got partners.”
Season 3 premieres September 15th. Please subscribe, rate, and review Disrupt the Continuum wherever you listen to podcasts. This season we’re sharing Tennessee’s entrepreneurial ecosystem story. It’s about how, as a statewide community, we collaborate and provide resources founders need to build, scale, and execute their businesses. It’s the power of our statewide network and the boots-on-the-ground startups that #BuildTN.
