Growing Our Own
“We have a commitment to be effective communicators of the value of business in general, and of our members individually.”
This morning I watched the State of Entrepreneurship Address on my iPhone via Livestream from Kansas City, Missouri’s Kauffman Institute. I was snowstorm, homebound, and feeling fortunate to have heat and wi-fi service. On reflection, I wonder which of these I valued most – being warm, or being connected. One absent the other may have made the other more important, but the idea that being connected was equally important had me thinking.
While few would question technology’s role in today’s enterprising economies, the prominent panel of entrepreneurial leaders leaned in heavily on the importance of building systems of interpersonal connectivity. It was in fact central to the grow-your-own message. It so happens that the experience of being homebound through a storm validated that value proposition for me.
While technology allowed for the convenience of working remote and being plugged in to the evolving news of the day, by snow day three I was feeling less connected and in fact less productive. Those immeasurable outcomes made possible only by exchanging ideas eye-to-eye and problem-solving with a team of diverse and critical thinkers are real, and I felt it. The remote working idea, while sufficient for a time, when compared with normal dayto-day Chamber business, proved not entirely satisfying.
It was a reminder of what it must be like for the small business owner who needs to work through a bothersome problem, and has no mentor to bounce it off of; one who has been there, who can listen, counsel, and help them navigate through the messy and glorious dream. It also offers a deeper appreciation for the lessons lost on the classroom or online learner in the absence of a workplace experience, an internship, apprenticeship, or mentorship where they might test creative problem-solving and critical thinking skills. And for the entrepreneur who has a fabulous business idea but isn’t quite sure what to do or where to go with it.
A grow-your-own or entrepreneurial ecosystem is a vision and formula for economic success, prosperity, and opportunity. It is one that requires a focus on providing innovative minds from diverse backgrounds and organizational cultures a place and opportunity to connect, and purposeful, collaborative efforts to develop local talent for local enterprising ventures. The Chamber community of members, community partners and leaders are innovators, and we can do this very well.
Not coincidentally, the Chamber has laid out two primary areas of focus to deliver a grow-our own vision: Foster Business Vitality and Cultivate Talent. One exists in support of the other, and each are given equally important priority and resources. We landed on these by convening a number of deliberative study sessions with business, government, and education leaders. If I was confident we were headed in the right direction before today (I was), I’m completely charged up now.
We will continue to deliver programs that wrap around the concept of convening and connecting innovative minds – the makers, doers, and dreamers in our community. We’re advancing on an all-out effort to foster our best local entrepreneurial ecosystem and to grow our own talent.
I’d encourage you to check out the well-examined thought leadership pieces by experts far more fluent on this topic than I at the Kauffman Institute’s website (www.kauffman.org). I also invite you to join with your Chamber as we execute a grow-our-own vision, building an ever stronger entrepreneurial ecosystem and healthy business climate.
