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July 18By Comments OffRead more...

Massive One-Time Tax Credit for Startups

Starting a business under “normal” circumstances is a journey but if you started a business in 2020 or 2021 it was grueling. How about some free money to take the sting out of it?   The CARES Act, introduced on March 27, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, contained a variety of programs designed to get money out to individuals and businesses and to stimulate the economy. One of these programs was the Employee Retention Credit (ERC), which allowed employers to receive a tax credit for qualified wages paid to their employees. The Cares Act was subsequently modified to include ERC...

July 1By Comments OffRead more...

Life Lessons from Pitching

As my life has morphed over the past ten years (from uber-domesticated mom to career woman for starters), I've discovered a passion for pitching, coaching and judging competitions. Over the COVID-19 shutdown, the things I missed most were:  random hugs  my cousins  pitch competitions  As we have re-emerged into an event-friendly world and pitch competitions are back in action, I've realized that many of the things that make pitches great are also pretty useful life skills. So, here's my take on ways you can elevate your business pitch to the next level—and also just be better at life.   Are you surrounded by seasoned investors, potential...

June 28By 0 CommentsRead more...

An Indicator of Innovation: SBIR Grants

Innovation can be hard to measure. One way to track it is through Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants from the US government. The number of SBIR grants awarded in Fort Worth is far below the level it needs to be for our community to foster an innovation-led economy. Recommendations on how to address this issue are included.

May 3By Comments OffRead more...

Startup Champions Network Wrap-up Durham, NC

From April 4-6, members of the HSC Next team attended the Startup Champions Network conference in Durham, NC. This group convenes twice a year to collaborate on this burgeoning career field of entrepreneurial ecosystem building as an economic development strategy.  At this Summit, the content was focused heavily on DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion). The Durham, NC, entrepreneurial ecosystem has done an incredible job supporting DEI initiatives. The leading ecosystem resource organizations are all bought in on the concept and it defines their approach to economic development and ecosystem building. It is baked into their approach from the start as opposed to...

March 28By Comments OffRead more...

The Age of the SHE-cosystem!

Have you ever heard the term “women rule the world”?  Of course you have, and if not, tadaaahhh, today is your day!  What an awesome time to be a woman!  As we look at the landscape and how the professional scope is changing, it is important for us to know and understand how we fit into the fold of what some may call….The SHE-cosystem.  As life evolves and the landscape of the workplace changes, taking on additional tasks, assuming higher positions and taking on life’s everyday challenges can become a bit overwhelming at times.  As tradition would have it, women tend...

March 24By Comments OffRead more...

Women and Mentorship

Mentoring is widely considered critical to career advancement as well as success as an entrepreneur. This is even more true for female business owners and professionals. Mentoring is a key element that when utilized more frequently, we would advance more women in the workplace and help more women take their businesses to the next level.   There are stereotypes about women competing and rivaling each other as professionals. However, according to the  Women as Mentors: Does She or Doesn’t She?, A Global Study of Businesswomen and Mentoring, the number one reason cited for why women mentor is because they want to be...

March 7By 0 CommentsRead more...

4 Most Asked Entrepreneur Questions

Launching and growing a business is one of the most difficult things a person can do. Every entrepreneur needs help at some stage and many of the questions they ask revolve around similar topics. Here we provide four of the most asked questions and responses that will help save you time and headaches.

February 23By Comments OffRead more...

5 Things to Know About the New Techstars Accelerator in Fort Worth

As you may have seen in the news recently, Fort Worth is now the home of a Techstars accelerator program that will bring startup companies to Fort Worth to help them grow and bring innovations in physical healthcare. This is big news for Fort Worth as our city was the largest city in the country that did not have an accelerator program like this, which invests directly in the companies and recruits the best of the best companies from around the world. But, accelerator programs are not well-known in our area. And, Techstars has not had much of a presence in...