What Is Startup Weekend?

What is Startup Weekend?

Startup Weekend is a global network of passionate leaders and entrepreneurs on a mission to inspire, educate, and empower individuals, teams and communities. Come share ideas, form teams, and launch startups.

Startup Weekend Global Site

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Enterprise Zone, 210 Portobello, Sheffield, S1 4AE


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Ever wondered what it takes to be an entrepreneur?

The professional and personal challenges, the high and lows, the failures and the success?

Startup Weekend is a global grassroots movement of active and empowered entrepreneurs who are learning the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures. It is the largest community of passionate entrepreneurs with over 400 past events in 100 countries around the world in 2011.

The non-profit organization is headquartered in Seattle, Washington but Startup Weekend organizers and facilitators can be found in over 200 cities around the world. From Mongolia to South Africa to London to Brazil, people around the globe are coming together for weekend long workshops to pitch ideas, form teams, and start companies.

All Startup Weekend events follow the same basic model: anyone is welcome to pitch their startup idea and receive feedback from their peers. Teams organically form around the top ideas (as determined by popular vote) and then it’s a 54 hour frenzy of business model creation, coding, designing, and market validation. The weekends culminate with presentations in front of local entrepreneurial leaders with another opportunity for critical feedback.

Whether entrepreneurs found companies, find a cofounder, meet someone new, or learn a skill far outside their usual 9-to-5, everyone is guaranteed to leave the event better prepared to navigate the chaotic but fun world of startups. If you want to put yourself in the shoes of an entrepreneur, register now for the best weekend of your life!

Schedule

Friday

Jul 12
  • Arrive!
  • Pizza & networking
  • Welcome & speaker
  • Pitches
  • Attendees vote for the top ideas
  • Teams start forming. Be honest and direct about what skills are needed!
  • Formalise teams and get to work!
  • Midnight workshop: 'Focusing on a Minimum Viable Product' by Terracoding
  • Grab some floor and take a nap, or go home, or keep working! The building will remain open all night...

Saturday

Jul 13
  • Simple breakfast & coffee
  • Back to work! Coaches assist teams one-on-one.
  • Lunch
  • Call for help
  • Back to work! Coaches assist teams one-on-one.
  • Dinner
  • Mid weekend check-in, status reports, call for help
  • Back to work!
  • Midnight workshop: TBC
  • Grab some floor and take a nap, or go home, or keep working! The building will remain open all night...

Sunday

Jul 14
  • Simple breakfast & coffee
  • Call for help
  • Back to work! Coaches assist teams one-on-one.
  • Lunch
  • Back to work! Coaches assist teams one-on-one.
  • Dinner
  • Final presentations!
  • Break for judging
  • Awards!
  • Wrapup
  • Go home, or join us for networking in a local pub!
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Speaker

To be confirmed

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Judges

Jamie Shuker

Managing Director, alpharooms.com   |  LinkedIn

Jamie started a software development company after obtaining his software engineering degree from the University of Sheffield, partly out of fear of the responsibility gainful employment might bring. After some limited success he sold the company and worked for a digital marketing agency for two years, but then decided to give the software development business thing another go, this time working in the travel vertical.

In 2007, Jason Fry - main shareholder of alpharooms.com - and Jamie swapped shares in their respective businesses and since then the two have worked on growing alpharooms to a turnover of £90m a year. Travel is now very much a data-driven business and is technologically very challenging (or exciting depending on your point of view!)

www.alpharooms.com

Saul Cozens

Digital Technology Strategist   |  LinkedIn

Saul is a digital technology strategist with over 15 years experience in helping SMEs and corporates use the web to achieve their ambitions.

A good number of those years were helping to grow Technophobia, a digital agency based in Sheffield, from around 25 people to 90-odd and then positioning it for a buy-out by a large corporate. He has worked with small burgeoning businesses and startups as well as banks, government departments, local authorities and other public bodies.

Saul has a particular interest in how to make a positive difference to people's lives through including them in the process of designing technology products and services.

Silver Sponsors
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Coaches

Spencer Turner

UX/Design Heavy   |  

Hi I'm Spencer, I'm a primarily a Lean UXer and co-founder of Heavies (http://heavi.es), a lean, ux and development consultancy. I also write code sometimes. My passions are my wife and son, user centred design, helping people focus and test their ideas and 'small a' agile methodologies.

Chris Dymond

Digital producer, strategist and innovation specialist   |  

Chris has over 20 years experience in digital media, and has delivered projects for Intel, Zurich Group, Financial Times Electronic Publishing, The Technology Strategy Board and many, many others. He has studied both computer science and the humanities, and holds a masters degree in international politics.

He is now an independent digital producer, strategist and innovation specialist, helping organisations understand and employ new technologies and behaviours. He has a longstanding interest in new forms of media and digital lifestyles, and the dynamics of social and technological change.

Chris also co-produces the annual TEDxSheffield event and is a director of a new kind of school.

His top three skills are:
- Complaining about acqui-hires.
- Asking stupid questions.
- Making accurate lists.

http://www.chrisdymond.com

Rob King

Enterprise Coach   |  LinkedIn

An enthusiastic Enterprise Coach, Rob works for Sheffield Enterprise Programme. He delivers business coaching workshops to groups of potential entrepreneurs, helping people explore the idea of being their own boss and giving advice on how to run their own business. He supports and helps people to explore the business viability through business planning, in the hope of taking that idea through to start-up.

Before working as an enterprise coach, Rob successfully set up and ran his own business after having worked for eight years as a Regional Sales Manager for Proctor & Gamble, all valuable experience which all helps when advising somebody starting a new business.

Professor Guy Brown

Department of Computer Science   |  LinkedIn

Guy Brown has more than 20 years experience of University teaching and research and has taught on topics such as software engineering, legal and professional aspects of the software industry, Java technology, object-oriented design, mobile computing, audio signal processing and speech technology. He has a particular interest in iOS development.

Workshop by
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Organisers
Samantha Deakin
Chris Murray
Harriet Holman
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Upcoming Events
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Jul 12-Jul 14 2013
Past Events
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Nov 9-11 2012