August 21st, 2009
PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE AND PUMP CELEBRATE ELEVENTH ANNUAL “40 UNDER 40”
PITTSBURGH – PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE and Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project (PUMP) celebrate the eleventh annual “40 Under 40” with a special event at the August Wilson Center on November 6.
“40 Under 40” recognizes 40 talented individuals under the age of 40 who are making a positive impact on the region’s development.
Developed in 1999, “40 Under 40” helps highlight Pittsburgh and southwestern Pennsylvania as a place where young people can make a difference.
“Each year it is exciting to read the nominations and realize the impact that the nominees have on our community.” said Erin Molchany, executive director of PUMP. “Honoring young people for their personal and professional contributions to improving our region is something we at PUMP look forward to every year.”
Selected from a nomination pool of nearly 300 candidates, this year’s honorees were chosen by an independent panel of twelve judges, comprised of former winners, business professionals and civic leaders. Winners were chosen based on their passion, commitment, visibility, diversity and overall impact on the region.
“The judges were challenged this year with scrutinizing a record-breaking number of nominations,” said Betsy Benson, publisher of PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE. “The 40 people who rose to the top are community leaders noted for their intelligence, caring and drive.”
The 40 winners will be guests of honor at a celebration on Friday, November 6 from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. at the August Wilson Center. The event, sponsored by Carlow University and First National Bank, includes a tribute to this year’s “40 Under 40” honorees, music, entertainment, and food and drink from local restaurants. The winners will also be featured in the November issue of PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE. Tickets are $50 in advance and $60 at the door. Group rates available. To reserve tickets, visit 40Under40Pittsburgh.org or call 412-338-2133.
The 2009 “40 Under 40” Honorees are:
Khalif Ali- Community Organizer, Operation Better Block
Regina Anderson- Director of the Regional Internship Center, Coro Pittsburgh
Armen Arevian- MD/PhD Student, University of Pittsburgh; Founder, Open Science Initiative
Danielle Bacco- Owner/Practicing Attorney, Bacco Law, LLC
Erin Baker- College Recruiter, PNC Financial Services
Kelly A. Barcic- Executive Director, Pittsburgh Regional Business Coalition for Homeland Security
Charlie Batch- Quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers
Dr. Mary C. Burke- Director of Doctoral Program in Psychology, Carlow University; Executive Founding Director, End Human Trafficking
Carlos Carter- VP and Senior Portfolio Manager, Fifth Third Bank
Robert Chambers, III- Business Development, Massaro Corporation
Dana Davis- Founder/President, The Open Door
Jennifer DeFazio- Founder, Stacking the Odds; Shareholder Relations Coordinator, First National Bank
Victor Dozzi- Partner, Crawford Ellenbogen
Matthew Erb- Director, Urban Forestry for Friends of the Pittsburgh Urban Forest
Cara Erskine- Artist
Heather Fiedler- Professor, Point Park University; Founder, Pittsburghmom.com
Rachel Filippini- Executive Director, Group Against Smog and Pollution
Marissa Gallagher- Special Education Teacher, Manchester Academic Charter School
Dennis Geary- Founder/President, Focus Pittsburgh Consulting Group; CEO, Pittsburgh Business Center
Deborah Gilboa, M.D.- Family Medicine Doctor, The Squirrel Hill Health Center; Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh
Tyra Good- Director of Education, Youth Places; Founder/CEO, Good Knowledge Connections
Bob Grayson- Founder, Cancer Corner; Manager, Pittsburgh Business Center; Manager, Focus Pittsburgh Consulting Group
Justin Gunther- Curator of Buildings and Collections, Fallingwater/Western Pennsylvania Conservancy
Daisy Klaber- Founder/Director, Household Harmony; Manager of Communications, The Simplex Group, Inc.
Robert Daniel Lavelle- Chief of Staff, State Rep. Jake Wheatley
Felix Brandon Lloyd- CEO/Founder, Skill-Life, Inc.
Allyson Lowe- Chair, Department of Political Science, Carlow University; Assistant Professor of Political Science, Carlow University
Mayada Mansour- Program Director, A+ Schools
Sylvia McCoy- Founder, Burgh Bits and Bites Food Tour
Piyush Seth- Shareholder/Immigration Attorney, Tucker Arensberg, P.C.
Jason Ross- Senior Vice President, Allegheny Valley Bank of Pittsburgh
Natalia Rudiak- Consultant, Civic Capital Consulting Collaborative; Democratic Nominee, Pittsburgh City Council District 4
Luke Skurman- Founder/CEO, College Prowler
Janera Solomon- Executive Director, Kelly-Strayhorn Theater
Melissa Swauger- Assistant Professor of Sociology, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Steven M. Toprani- District Attorney, Washington County
Kristy Trautmann- Program Officer, FISA Foundation
Stephanie P. Walker- Vice President and Director of Talent Acquisition Programs, The Bank of New York Mellon
Robert Wilson- Financial Advisor, Blazer Capital Management
Dr. Barrett Ivory Woods- Orthopedic Surgeon, UPMC
Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project (PUMP) makes Pittsburgh a more dynamic and diverse place to live by giving young and young-thinking people a voice and inspiring them to affect change in our community through civic engagement, professional development, recreation and social networking.
PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE is the leading, most-read publication in the region celebrating the people and places that make Pittsburgh the nation’s most livable city. Launched in 1969, PITTSBURGH MAGAZINE covers the best the city has to offer in the worlds of art and culture, business, dining and entertainment, nightlife, politics, sports, travel and style. To subscribe, call 
800-495-7323
or visit pittsburghmagazine.com.
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August 12th, 2009 | Tags: AlphaLab, CentsCity, Customers, Felix Lloyd, Financial Education, Financial Literacy, Finovate, Media, Pilot Partners, Pop City Media, Press, WYEP
CentsCity is featured in this week’s issue of Pop City. Check out the article here. Also pasted below:
Skill-Life launches real-life financial game for tweenagers; founder named to 40 under 40
Skill-Life, an Alpha Lab startup, has quietly launched a new online game that teaches life skills and financial literacy to tweenagers.
Founder and CEO, Felix Lloyd, is also making a splash as a local celebrity, having been recently named to the Pittsburgh Magazine list of 40 under 40 and chosen as one of 32 companies in the world to attend Finovate 2009, a showcase of the hottest new startups and best new financial and banking technology.
The decision to move to Pittsburgh was a no-brainer, Lloyd says.
He and his wife, both former school teachers, considered San Francisco but Pittsburgh made more sense on many levels. His wife works for Google while Lloyd pursues his entrepreneurial dream. The goal, he says, is to build healthy communities and educate young people to be smart money managers through gaming technology and real-life awards.
Skill-Life began as CentsCity in January 2007. Seed funding came from Echoing Green (see the Pop City story here), Innovation Works’ Alpha Lab, the Technology Collaborative, Idea Foundry and local foundations. The software was initially tested with the help of students in Mt. Lebanon and Fox Chapel.
Designed for students ages eight to 14, CentsCity is based on the 70-10-10-10 principle of spending, savings, investing and charitable sharing. Players navigate through a world of landmarks and work their way up to financial guru. Hopes to add a nutrition and citizenship component too.
“This is something we don’t teach in schools,” explains Lloyd. “It’s intimidating to most of us. I was going over the limit on my own credit card, doing all this teaching, and I realized that I needed to learn these things as an adult.”
WYEP is running a pilot program with CentsCity for local youth, giving kids an opportunity to earn concert tickets and prizes by racking up points in the game. To receive a Passport and gain access to the online world, smail here.
Writer: Debra Diamond Smit
http://www.popcitymedia.com/innovationnews/skilllife0812.aspx?utm_campaign=Hot%20Date%20in%20Pittsburgh&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_term=Skill-Life%20launches%20real-life%20financial%20game%20for%20tweenagers%3B%20founder%20named%20to%2040%20under%2040
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August 9th, 2009 | Tags: Beta, CentsCity
Over the last week, we have quietly taken CentsCity.com live. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be continuing to develop on the existing platform. Our initial pilot partner, WYEP 91.3 FM’s “Your Money, Your Future” Initiative, will begin distributing 600 CentsCity Passports to youth this week. We’ve already seen a steady uptick in visitors and customers at CentsCity.com. The site has operated smoothly as intended.
With our recently having been invited to demo at Finovate 2009, we’re planning to use that stage to launch CentsCity at a higher volume. At Finovate, on September 29th, we also expect to introduce new features not presently available online.
Stay tuned. Much more to come.
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August 6th, 2009 | Tags: Beta, CentsCity, Demo, Financial Education, Financial Literacy, Finovate, Investment, Media, Press, Product Development
Skill-Life has been chosen as one of 32 companies to demo at Finovate 2009, which showcases “the best new financial and banking technology innovations from leading established companies and the hottest young startups.”
These companies will be showcased to an audience of senior financial/banking/credit union executives, influential press, industry analysts, venture capitalists, bloggers, tech companies and entrepreneurs. A few of the organizations already committed to attend include: Bank of America, Citibank, WSJ, Microsoft, HSBC, Wells Fargo, American Express, Dow Jones, the Financial Times, E*Trade Financial, SunTrust, ANZ, Capitol One, Financial Insights, Discover, Sybase, Cardinal Venture Capital, Intuit, Consumer Reports, DataMonitor, Canaan Partners, The Economist, BusinessWeek, and Aite Group.
Skill-Life will demo our CentsCity product and will introduce an expanded set of features to our current beta while on stage at Finovate this September 29th. More info appears on the Netbanker blog, the text of which is also included below.
Finovate 2009 Demoing Companies Revealed
By Eric Mattson on August 5, 2009
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September 29th, 2009 is going to be a memorable day in the history of financial technology. Why? Because on that Tuesday, dozens of leading fintech companies will take the stage in NYC at
Finovate 2009 to debut and demo their latest and greatest product innovations. The quality of the ideas that will be demoed on stage is very high this year and we’re incredibly excited to showcase them to you.
The demoing companies selected (that we can reveal so far) are:
These companies will be showcased to an audience of senior financial/banking/credit union executives, influential press, industry analysts, venture capitalists, bloggers, tech companies and entrepreneurs.
A few of the organizations already committed to attend include: Bank of America, Citibank, WSJ, Microsoft, HSBC, Wells Fargo, American Express, Dow Jones, the Financial Times, E*Trade Financial, SunTrust, ANZ, Capitol One, Financial Insights, Discover, Sybase, Cardinal Venture Capital, Intuit, Consumer Reports, DataMonitor, Canaan Partners, The Economist, BusinessWeek, and Aite Group.
We’d love to have you join us at the fall event and watch the future of finance/banking unfold onstage. If you register today you’ll save $200 via the very-early bird ticket discount. Please note that those prices expire on Friday August 7th at midnight.
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August 6th, 2009 | Tags: Beta, CentsCity, Echoing Green, Entrepreneurship, Felix Lloyd, Financial Education, Financial Literacy, Investment, Media, Press, Tech Collaborative
Skill-Life CEO Felix Lloyd is featured in this month’s Black Enterprise Magazine. The article appears below and at BlackEnterprise.com.
- BLACK ENTERPRISE – http://www.blackenterprise.com -
Spend Less Money on Your Startup Budget
Posted By Marcia Wade Talbert On July 29, 2009
Felix Lloyd received consulting services and startup capital from Echoing Green, a social venture fund, to help launch his company Skill-Life Inc.Finding capital to launch your business might be the hardest part of entrepreneurship. An examination of census data [2] shows that black-owned businesses have very low levels of startup capital relative to white-owned businesses and these differences persist across all major industries.But don’t let that dissuade you. There are a plethora of organizations, universities, and companies that provide pro bono or professional services at a reduced fee, ranging from accounting to information technology and from human resource management to marketing. When such services are free, this practice is often referred to as skills-based volunteering.
“When you are capacity constrained thinking outside of the box in terms of pro bono services and volunteer support is a really smart and effective way to add capacity to your organization without adding to your expense line,” says Cheryl Dorsey, president of Echoing Green [3], a New York-based social venture fund that provides capital to support social entrepreneurs.
When Felix Lloyd was looking for backing for his startup, he turned to Echoing Green, which had provided financial support for a former employer. Lloyd, a former educator, needed funding for an online game that would help high school students develop financial literacy and math skills. As an Echoing Green fellow he received consulting services and startup capital to help launch Skill-Life Inc [4].
Echoing Green also reimbursed Lloyd for healthcare expenses, paid him $60,000 over a two year period, and matched him up with free and reduced cost legal services.
“Echoing Green provided my company with critical legal support, branding expertise, and an extensive professional network while challenging me to think and act strategically in building my business,” Lloyd says.
At AlphaLab, a small business accelerator, Felix Lloyd received $25,000, free office space, and an opportunity to network with other tech entrepreneurs.Another entrepreneur introduced Lloyd to AlphaLab [6], a Pittsburgh-based small business accelerator. An accelerator generally includes a group of investors who help expedite the start-up or expansion of a company. In exchange for 3% equity in his company, AlphaLab provided Lloyd with six months of free office space in Pittsburgh, access to software consultants, and $25,000 from AlphaLab’s parent company Innovation Works [7].So far, an estimated $400,000 in money and services has been invested into Skill-Life. Of that only $10,000 came from Lloyd’s personal funds. Although he has never had to take out a bank loan, 27% of Skill-Life equity will be distributed among investors and employees. He owns 43% of the equity and his wife owns 30%.
His first client, a Pittsburgh public radio station, paid Lloyd $3,000 to give 600 students access to CentsCity [8], his online game that launched this month. Lloyd’s accomplishment can be duplicated. If your business budget won’t stretch far enough, use these three steps as a road map to finding and efficiently utilizing pro bono and skills-based volunteer services.
Do your homework. Not every pro bono provider is going to be the right fit for your start up. “The single most important thing that we are looking for are people that have a clear picture of what they need and how our skills will fit with their needs to develop,” says Gaute Ellingsen, an MBA student and vice president of clients at the Small Business Consulting Program [9] at Columbia Business School.
Doing research on what kind of services each kind of pro bono organizations offers will pay off because it will enable you to tailor your requests to what is most beneficial to you and also to the priorities that the pro bono organizations have.
Network, network, network. Existing relationships (with investors, supporters, or friends) can open doors to different pro bono services.
Through an acquaintance, Lloyd learned that Pittsburgh had a strong technology community. At AlphaLab Lloyd shared ideas with his peers and he gained exposure to the breadth of Pittsburgh’s entrepreneurial, investment, and software expertise.
It was through these interactions that he was recommended to advisors and more free office space at Idea Foundry [10], another non profit in the city that specializes in launching information technology and engineering related enterprises.
Check with your local university’s business school for resources and possible skill-based volunteer organizations. Lloyd used the Technology Collaborative [11] at the Tepper School of Business [12] at Carnegie Mellon University and sought free services at the Small Business Development Center [13], a Small Business Administration program housed at Duquesne University [14]. Students at the universities did market research for him without charge and helped him create cash flow projections.
Demonstrate an ability to produce results. Organizations and individuals that offer skills-based volunteering want to be certain that they are not wasting their time and resources. Demonstrate your talent by building a strong Website and public face, says Echoing Green’s Dorsey.
“We have to have some sense that the entrepreneur can execute an idea because essentially ideas are a dime a dozen,” she says.
However, she also emphasizes that a charismatic personality is just as important as a strong business plan.
Article printed from BLACK ENTERPRISE: http://www.blackenterprise.com
URL to article: http://www.blackenterprise.com/entrepreneurs/2009/07/29/spend-less-money-on-your-start-up-budget
Copyright © 2009 BLACK ENTERPRISE. All rights reserved.
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