Chicago is a fantastic place to build a company, but many of the early-stage entrepreneurs we speak to are not aware of the local startup ecosystem resources available to help them.
With applications for the Chicago Founder Institute now open, we are excited to share these testimonial interviews featuring Founders, Mentors, and Directors from across the FI Chicago community. These videos were produced by the Chicago Founder Institute local leaders Jason Jacobsohn and Jason Randolph with videography and assistance provided by local partner Anshar Labs.
Graduates:
Elizabeth Adams - DateNight
The Founder Institute helped me validate my idea, and even get my first customers. Another thing they did was do a lot of mental preparation for the journey - they didn’t sugarcoat what you’d be going through, they really helped prepare you for what’s to come.
Elizabeth Adams is the Founder & CEO of DateNight, an FI Chicago portfolio company.
Joe Lee - Gamerjibe
I joined FI because I wanted to build a solid foundation in Chicago, and to build my network with the best entrepreneurs in Chicago. What I got out of the Founder Institute was a network of like-minded entrepreneurs and mentors who gave really great feedback on my business.
Joe Lee is the Founder & CEO of Gamerjibe, an FI Chicago portfolio company.
Mentors:
Bill Furlong - SquareStack
As an entrepreneur in the local [Chicago] community for over two decades, there was no such resource for myself when I started my business. So to be able to give back to up-and-coming entrepreneurs was something I always wanted to do. In the local community, you build a local network. This is a tribe, and we share things amongst each other, and it extends well beyond graduation.
Bill Furlong is a Serial Entrepreneur, and SVP of Business Development for the founding team of Bizo, a Business Audience Data Management Platform that was acquired by LinkedIn in 2014. Currently, Bill serves in a variety of advisor, investor, and consultant positions in a handful of startups, while also developing a new Chicago-based SMB marketplace, SquareStack. Bill was previously the Founder and CEO of B2BWorks, the first B2B online ad network, which was acquired in 2004. Prior to B2BWorks, he was Managing Director of BtoB, and held various management roles for the Advertising Age Group at Crain Communications.
Reva Minkoff - DigitalGroundUp
I graduated from the Founder Institute in Fall of 2012, and it was really important to be to become a mentor so that A) I could give back to the program, and B) because I felt like it was really important for the women in the program to see other female mentors - I know it meant a lot to me when I was in the program, and I wanted that for everyone else in the program.
Reva Minkoff is the Founder and President of Digital4Startups Inc. and DigitalGroundUp Inc. DigitalGroundUp is an interactive technology platform that teaches digital marketing through short interactive online courses. Digital4Startups is a digital marketing consulting firm, currently serving over a dozen clients in industries ranging from media to consumer packaged goods to logistics to technology. Prior to starting her own firms, Minkoff ran digital marketing for companies ranging from Hewlett Packard's Commercial Printers business to Poggled, a nightlife deals and events startup. A Harvard graduate, she has also worked for Google, Sears Holdings Corporation, and Resolution Media.
Directors:
Jason Jacobsohn
We’ve been running Founder Institute here in Chicago for the past 7 years. We’ve seen incredible growth and demand in the entrepreneurial community; in fact, over the last year, we’ve had the most applicants ever in our program, and we intend to build the largest cohort we’ve ever had here in Chicago over the next year.
Jason Jacobsohn is a master connector and true advocate for the entrepreneur, and has led the FI Chicago chapter for 7+ years. Proactive and congenial, Jason possesses deep expertise in relationship building. He has provided trusted counsel and mentoring across the Chicagoland entrepreneurial and business communities, including working with several hundred emerging businesses on investor readiness, strategic resource alignment, business development, strategic advisory services, and capital formation, across firms in more than 14 different industries.
Jason Randolph
One of the goals of Founder Institute this year is going to be supporting the female founder community here in Chicago, which is actually the largest of any city in the entire United States. Even in the last 2 cohorts, 40-50% of our classes have been female founders - so growing that support is one of our key objectives.
Jason Randolph is an entrepreneur and seasoned marketer of 13+ years that has built both companies and brands. He elevates brands from great to extraordinary through unapologetically passionate marketing and product development leadership. Jason has lead marketing and co-founded technology firms for nearly 15 years, and focuses on the intersection of marketing and human behavior.
The Founder Institute is the world's premier pre-seed accelerator, with chapters across 200+ cities and Graduate companies that have raised over 2BN in funding. The company's mission is to “Globalize Silicon Valley” and empower communities of talented and motivated people to build impactful technology-enabled companies worldwide.
Learn more about the program at FI.co/overview.
