What we’re about
Startup Founder 101 brings together aspiring and experienced tech entrepreneurs to discuss, meet, and collaborate to build great new startups, and to push the local startup ecosystem forward.\
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This group hosts numerous free events throughout the year where you can learn the best practices of starting a company from people who have been there and done that. You’ll have the opportunity to meet local founders and investors, exchange ideas with experts, get feedback on your idea, participate in startup workshops, and more.\
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Typical startup event topics include:\
• Coming up with a strong startup idea\
• Startup legal basics\
• How to pitch your startup\
• Starting a company without quitting your day job\
• How to raise funding for your startup\
• And much more!\
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Join the group to be invited to our next event!
Upcoming events (4)
See all- How to Come Up with Great Startup IdeasLink visible for attendees
Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to be inherently creative or experience a magical 'aha' moment to come up with a great startup idea. In reality, anyone can generate innovative business ideas by following a structured process. In this live event, Jonathan Greechan (Co-Founder & CEO of Founder Institute) will share a proven framework for crafting great startup ideas, drawn from his experience working with over 10,000 startups worldwide. Attendees will also have the chance to share their ideas and connect with aspiring entrepreneurs in their space. If you have rough ideas and aren't sure what to do next, this is the event to attend!
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❯ Who Should Attend:- Anyone who has an early-stage company or a startup idea
- Anyone who would like feedback on their idea or pitch
- Anyone that is interested in joining a new startup or looking for a co-founder
❯ What You'll Gain:
- Common mistakes and misconceptions around startup ideas.
- The methods startups use to consistently find great ideas.
- Six frameworks to come up startup ideas.
- Structured Networking and Idea-Sharing Session.
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❯ Featured Expert:- Jonathan Greechan - Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute - Jonathan Greechan is the Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute, the world's largest pre-seed startup accelerator. Since 2009, he has grown and scaled the organization to chapters in over 200 cities and 90 countries, producing over 7000 portfolio companies with nearly $2B in venture funding. In his long career in tech and marketing, Jonathan has advised thousands of startups on marketing, growth, and product strategy and has spoken at startup conferences on four continents.
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❯❯ This live, interactive online event promises valuable insights! Ensure your participation by RSVPing now at 👉 https://fi.co/startupwebinar/19857 to receive the link to join us live! - Product-Market Fit or Positioning: How to Identify What’s Holding You BackLink visible for attendees
Which comes first: your product or your positioning? The answer largely depends on your timing and dedication to turning your vision into reality. Your positioning can also help you achieve product-market fit, and vice versa. In this session, we'll lay out a method to determine whether you're facing a product-market fit problem or a positioning problem, highlight common mistakes to avoid, and provide a systematic approach to move from market research to marketing execution in the right direction.
❯ What You'll Learn:
- The Product Market Fit Problem - focusing on Cybersecurity Industry
- The key metrics and methodologies
- How Founders should navigate the current landscape and hit the ground running
❯ Featured Speakers:
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Josh Rosenthal - Founder & CEO at CloudSploit - Customer Success leader and startup operator with 20+ years helping cybersecurity and SaaS companies grow—from first users to acquisition. He co-founded CloudSploit (acquired by Aqua Security), where he built GTM and post-sales from scratch. At Contrast Security, he drove over $15M in total influence across CS, solutions architecture, and sales engineering—supporting global enterprises with DevSecOps adoption, training, and security strategy. Since then, he's led CS and growth at multiple startups, helping technical teams land enterprise logos, improve retention, and scale sustainably. Today, he supports early-stage companies as an advisor, fractional exec, and hands-on builder—solving adoption, onboarding, and GTM challenges that block growth.
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Guc Ozenci - Managing Director at Founder Institute Washington DC & Managing Partner at Connect-OP - Seasoned entrepreneur, technology professional and thriving leader with strong people skills and proven track record in connecting business needs with technology and innovation. Extensive consultative sales experience at global vendors. Co-founded a SaaS startup, raised two rounds of VC funding and recently exited by acquisition. Angel investor and advisor to multiple early stage ventures with 7x,3x and 2x markups. Mentor to social entrepreneurs, sponsor to social impact organizations.
❯ Event Partner:
A-Round | Leaders at Startups
An exclusive free community for startup leaders at funded software startups.
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❯❯ This is a live, interactive online event, so be sure to RSVP at https://fi.co/e/378445/meetup to receive the Zoom URL to join us live! - Co-Founder Networking: Find a Business PartnerLink visible for attendees
Building a great Co-Founder team is one of the most difficult yet important steps in founding a startup. While many founders may start alone, there are multiple benefits of having a Co-Founder, and taking the time to establish a quality team can mean the difference between failure and success. Join us for this fun and interactive event where you will learn best practices for building and formalizing a Co-Founder relationship. In addition, you will have the opportunity to network with other entrepreneurs who are looking for a Co-Founder at virtual tables and speed networking sessions.
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❯ What You'll Accomplish:- You will learn the best practices for finding the right Co-Founder
- You will meet startup enthusiasts and experts from around the world
- You will shortlist potential Co-Founders
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❯ To get the most out of this Co-Founder networking event:- Come ready for live video networking
- Prepare by visiting our Guide to Find a Co-Founder
- Fill out our Co-Founder Networking Worksheet
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❯❯ This live, interactive online event promises valuable insights! Ensure your participation by RSVPing now at 👉 https://fi.co/startupwebinar/19859 to receive the link to join us live!
