When I first joined the team building our social news startup, Pinyadda, I was absolutely clueless as to what the Boston startup scene had to offer. How big was the scene? Who were the influencers? Which big guys were actually approachable? What companies were hot? Which meetups and groups were most beneficial? While I was lucky to have a great team already plugged in to help get me on my way in answering some of those questions, I did most of the fleshing out on my own – and I did it using social media, fearlessly.
This weekend BostInnovation and Microsoft N.E.R.D. have partnered for a weekend of mentorship and community for college students interested in entrepreneurship, dubbed “ShutUP and StartUP”. Many participating students find themselves in the same position as I was, with lots of questions about what exactly this Boston startup scene and “startup renaissance” is all about. Following suit, Saturday afternoon from 3-5pm will be filled with a breakout panel discussion on landing a job at a startup as well as ample time to get to know some of the hottest startups here in Boston.
The “How to Use Social Media to Navigate the Boston Startup Scene and Land a Job” presentation and panel discussion will be held from 4-5pm. It has been exciting organizing this breakout session, because we made sure to fill it with recent grads like me who have lived the experience of using social to land their job or navigate the scene. This promises an incredibly real and beneficial conversation:
Kristin Dziadul will lay the groundwork, sharing a presentation on the power of personal branding and how she used social media to land her job at Backupify. I’ll be sharing how I used Twitter to navigate the Boston startup scene to help build Pinyadda. Ali Powell will then share her experience coming from working at UPS to then land the job she really wanted at Hubspot. Finally, Jonathan Kay, the Ambassador of Buzz at Grasshopper will share his experience of leveraging social media to navigate and reach entrepreneurs (his customers in this case). We will then open the floor for questions and a great discussion.
Many students coming to ShutUP and StartUP want to connect with area startups for potential internships and jobs, as their career centers tend to focus on recruitment for larger corporations who have built relationships with the colleges. While many mentors from area startups will be working with and getting to know students all day Saturday during work sessions, to cap the weekend off we are also holding a startup fair to answer that “What companies are hot right now?” question. Fifteen startups will be manning tables, networking, and showcasing how awesome their culture is to area students from 3-5pm and include:
AisleBuyer
The world’s first virtual shopping assistant and mobile self-checkout
Backupify
Provides daily automatic backups, archiving, and export for all your social media and SaaS data
Buzzient
A next-generation solution for social media analytics that includes integration with enterprise applications
getZazu
The smartest damn alarm clock, using voice to wake you up with weather, calendar and the news
Grasshopper
Virtual phone system designed especially for entrepreneurs
HubSpot
Provides inbound marketing software and consulting to help you get found online
HuddleHub
Application that allows you to manage all your fantasy sports team in one application
I Am Hungry
Mobile app that gives you access to deals at hundreds of restaurants in your city
Peekaboo Mobile
Location based mobile app that delivers all the best deals in your area to your phone
RelayRides
The world’s first person-to-person carsharing service
SCVNGR
The game layer of checkins, challenges and treks on top of the physical world
StarStreet Sports
The sports stock market that allows you to buy and share virtual shares of players and teams for real money
Visible Measures
The independent third-party measurement firm for Internet video publishers, advertisers, and viral marketers
Webiva
A cutting-edge platform that helps websites and companies optimize SEO, drive and convert leads, and increase profits
Are you an area startup interested in joining the startup fair? We can probably work some magic and squeeze in a few more tables, so please contact cheryl[at]bostinnovation.com for interest!
