Call for Proposals: Submit Your GEWKC 2020 Prime-Time Event That Anyone Can Watch Anywhere

Global Entrepreneurship Week – Kansas City, the metro’s largest annual celebration of entrepreneurship, is seeking event submissions from the community in defined topic areas to help aspiring entrepreneurs and existing small business owners get what they need to build their operations and be more resilient for the future.

This has been an unprecedented year for our businesses, so GEWKC 2020 (Nov. 17 – Nov. 19) will offer an exciting virtual format. Events will help our entrepreneurs with key areas of assistance as well as provide plenty of virtual networking opportunities to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, experts and other contacts who can help move small businesses forward.

Submissions for events are open Sept. 15 through Sept. 25. Those interested in hosting can visit gewkc.org at that time to see what event topics and times are available. This year, prospective event hosts will sign up for events in specific topic areas that surveyed business owners have requested. Defined event topics include:
 

• starting a business
• developing a marketing strategy
• pivoting
• preparing for funding and financing
• mental health and wellness for entrepreneurs
• and more

Explore the full list of event topics here.

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“This new, three-day virtual platform is designed to help people start businesses and help existing business owners rebuild, especially during the challenges COVID-19 has presented, but we also want it to be a space for community members to connect from anywhere,” says Jenny Miller, GEWKC organizer and senior director of regional ecosystem development at the UMKC Innovation Center. “The GEWKC team hopes to create a ripple effect that fuels relief, allowing entrepreneurs to forge new pathways to resilience and prosperity.”

This new GEWKC virtual format not only allows for social distancing and safety but also invites speakers beyond Kansas City’s regional entrepreneurial community. Each of the three days will feature online GEWKC Prime-Time slots broadcast for anyone in the world to see. Prime-Time events will also be recorded and made available to anyone after GEWKC.

Those interested in presenting are also asked to submit a basic abstract of their event to include learning goals and outcomes. Hosts selected for GEWKC Prime-Time events will be notified in early October.

This virtual format also features interactive GEWKC breakout sessions and keynote events, along with virtual and in-person events throughout the community, so even more people can attend (wherever they are) to network, interact, connect, learn and have fun.

Interested speakers can visit gewkc.org on Sept. 15 to submit a proposal for a GEWKC Prime-Time event.

The 2020 GEWKC organizing committee is:

• Lauren Conaway, InnovateHER KC

• Sheila Forrester, U.S. Small Business Administration – Kansas City

• Edgar Galicia, Central Avenue Betterment Association

• Donald Hawkins, KC Collective

• Kira Hopkins, Entrepreneur Business Basics

• Jenny Miller, UMKC Innovation Center

• Gabe Munoz, Forward Cities

• Daniel Smith, The Porter House KC

• Carolina Vargas, U.S. Small Business Administration – Kansas City

• Donnetta Watson, The Black MasterMind Group

• Suzanne Wheeler, Mid-America LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce

• Ben Williams, Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation