Career And Business Advice From VC Investors And A Billion-Dollar Female Founder

Via Forbes

Written by Caroline Ceniza-Levine, Senior Contributor Careers

PS27 Ventures, an early-stage investment firm founded by Jim Stallings, hosted the Female Founders Forum on March 4, 2022, which among the speaker line-up, included a panel of venture capitalists, as well as Ellen Latham, founder of Orange Theory Fitness, an exercise franchise which hit $1 billion in sales in 2018.

There were multiple takeaways specific to entrepreneurship — from what makes a good pitch deck to how to appeal to investors. However, many of the insights were also relevant for solopreneurs who don’t intend to raise money or even in-house professionals who don’t plan to start a business:

Play to your strengths

“Focus on what you have, rather than what you don’t have.” – Ellen Latham

Latham repeatedly emphasized the importance of “shifting momentum up” by reminding yourself of what’s going well, instead of focusing on problems. She credits this attitude with enabling her comeback from being laid off from a dream job at a fitness studio to opening her own studio.

“On A Mission” with Emmanuel Fortune from PS27 Foundation

Each week on “On a Mission” talks to community leaders who are out to make a positive impact in the area. Today, host Wendy Norfleet talks with Emmanuel Fortune from PS27 Foundation.

The PS27 Foundation provides educational resources to early-stage companies and startups to help them achieve sustainable growth. They deliver training through experiential programs, virtual workshops, company site visits, comprehensive mentoring, and distance learning.

PS27 Foundation looks to double impact next year as it brings on its first executive director

Via. Jacksonville Business Journal

Written by Julian Hast - Reporter

Emmanuel Fortune

PS27 Foundation

A nonprofit spinoff of venture fund PS27 Ventures is ramping up plans to help train early-stage companies and startups, especially those founded by women, people of color and veterans.

The expansion of PS27 Foundation's entrepreneurial education programming — which provides educational resources and access to a wider network of business leaders, financial resources and other, more experienced founders — comes as the organization, which was founded in 2016, expands its funding and brings on its first executive director.

PS27 Ventures CEO Jim Stallings said the move to hire Emmanuel Fortune as executive director comes at a time of rapid growth for the foundation.

“We’re going to double, over the next year, the numbers of programs” from two to four large programs, he said. “We probably touch 400 entrepreneurs a year. We’ll probably touch over 1,000 a year from now.”

Orangetheory Fitness Founder to Keynote the Largest Celebration of International Women’s Day in Florida

PS27 Foundation is excited to announce the 7th Annual Female Founders Forum with keynote Ellen Lathem, Founder of Orangetheory Fitness, to be held in person and hosted at the University of North Florida on March 4th, 2022. Each year, the Female Founders Forum attracts women entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs from across the region who want to become better leaders and grow their businesses.

“We are thrilled to have Ellen Lathem share what it takes to create a billion-dollar business and inspire the next generation of female entrepreneurs. Last year we hosted this event virtually, so we can not wait to be in the same room again with women business leaders, innovators, and students to celebrate International Women’s Day,” said Whitney Meyer, PS27 Foundation Board Member and Senior Vice President and Chief Community Impact Officer for the Jacksonville Jaguars. “We are dedicated and excited to help create opportunities for women to continue to move the needle forward.” 

The half-day program will feature speakers who have started their businesses, raised significant funds, and are looking to network, share and learn from other successful founders as they grow to the next stage. The agenda will feature Melanie Lawson-Minor's motivational kickoff, an Emmy-winning journalist at WJXT, a venture capital panel hosted by Victoria Hajjar of SoGal Ventures, and an afternoon keynote yet to be announced.

The goal of the annual forum is to attract and inspire more women to become better leaders and build relationships with a community of female founders and innovators. This event is possible thanks to our supporting sponsors; The Jaguars Foundation, VyStar Credit Union, and JP Morgan Chase. To learn more about the PS27 Female Founders Form please visit ps27foundation.org.

PS27 Foundation Announces Emmanuel Fortune as New Executive Director

Emmanuel Fortune

Executive Director, PS27 Foundation

The PS27 Foundation Board of Directors has appointed  Mr. Emmanuel Fortune as the organization’s new Executive Director effective February 1st. This is a new role and comes at a time when the organization is rapidly expanding its entrepreneurial education programs that help empower startup founders and small business CEOs with leadership skills and experience. Mr. Fortune will use his years of experience to develop a long-term business strategy and powerful programming as it continues to grow and outreach to company founders that are women, veterans, and people of color. In addition, the PS27 Foundation has recently announced new funding and support from several major sponsors, including JP Morgan Chase, Black Knight, Cannae Holdings, VyStar, and Fidelity National Financial.

“Emmanuel is uniquely qualified for this role, and I feel extremely fortunate to have his skills and vision at the table to help guide this organization as we advance. He is smart, thoughtful, a great strategist, and very familiar with the life of an entrepreneur. He brings us a strong background in community relations and project management and is an outstanding leader.  We are so excited to have him on our team,” says Jim Stallings, Chairman of the Board of Directors. 

Emmanuel Fortune brings over fourteen years of experience working with non-profit organizations, including Teach for America, Flamboyan Foundation, and the Community Foundation for Northeast Florida. He specializes in organizational behavior and leadership, grantmaking, and deepening programmatic impact.

Since the foundation was formed in 2016, the goal has been to teach entrepreneurs how to build a “purpose-driven” company with a strong culture grounded in values. In recent years, all of the programs and events, including the Female Founders Forum and Leadership Week, have been sponsored by local companies and run by an all-volunteer board and staff.  

 “All of our success to date at the PS27 Foundation is a result of the enthusiasm that our sponsors have about creating a thriving tech, and startup scene focused on leadership,” says Shannon LoGiudice, Operations and Programs Manager at PS27.

About PS27 Foundation: 

PS27 Foundation provides educational resources to early-stage companies and startups to help them achieve sustainable growth. We deliver training through experiential programs, virtual workshops, company site visits, comprehensive mentoring, and distance learning.

PS27 uses advanced techniques and equipment to enable an environment that promotes continuous learning and team collaboration. In addition, PS27 Foundation is constantly working to form strategic partnerships with local and national organizations to promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and improve the community. To learn more about PS27 Foundation, please visit ps27foundation.org.

The PS27 Foundation Names Delores Kesler as the First Entrepreneur Award Recipient

The PS27 Foundation announced Delores Kesler as the 2021 PS27 Entrepreneur Award recipient today. The award was presented to Kesler by Jim Stallings, Chairman of the PS27 Foundation Board of Directors, with members of her family and staff present.

Delores Kesler is an extraordinarily successful entrepreneur and founder of multiple companies who has lived the journey of the PS27 motto: “Think Big, start small.” In 1978 Kesler started her company ATS Services, now a part of Adecco, when there were very few female business leaders. When Kesler retired as its Chairman in 1998, the company reported annual revenues of over $2 billion. 

Empowering others to reach for their highest achievement, Kesler was the first keynote speaker at PS27’s Female Founders Forum in 2016. Today over 250 women attend the annual event that celebrates, inspires, and connects female entrepreneurs to successful founders and resources. The Female Founders Forum has become the largest event in celebration of International Women’s Day in Florida. 

“We believe that Delores best exemplifies the spirit and success of the purpose-driven entrepreneurial leader. This award is a recognition of her business achievement and personal values,” said Jim Stallings, Chairman of the PS27 Foundation Board. 

A role model for purpose-driven leadership, Delores has been on Boards of Directors for several publicly traded companies including, but not limited to; the First Coast Chamber of Commerce, University of North Florida’s Foundation Board, Florida Council of 100, Alliance for World Class Education, St. Vincent’s Medical Center’s Community Board, and the Hospice Foundation for Caring of Community Hospice Northeast Florida. Delores now spends her time with her family and friends on the First Coast.

UNF alumni get boost from Slack in growing tech startup

Learn more about The PS27 Foundation’s newest Board Member Jordan Walker co-founder of Yac in today’s Jacksonville Business Journal.

Via The Jacksonville Business Journal by Logan Moore

Orlando-based tech startup Yac has gained some notable investors in the height of the pandemic, including business communication platform Slack (NYSE:WORK).

"Initially they reached out to us over Linkedin last summer, and we thought it was spam or something," co-founder Jordan Walker told the Business Journal. "They gave us an initial investment of $500,000 and said they'd been watching us and were interested in Yac for a while."

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Walker will join the board of directors at The PS27 Foundation and looks forward to helping shape other North Florida startups through his own experience. "(I'll be able to talk) about things like what the venture capital UNF alumni get boost from Slack in growing tech startup landscape looks like here, here's what folks are looking for or here's what deals are really hot," he said. "Or what markets are really interesting." He said bridging the gap between places like Silicon Valley and Northeast Florida is one of his main goals.

The majority Yac's investors are remote, he said, including some in Florida, Texas, New York and California. Other investors include Active Capital and Betaworks Ventures. Angel investors include Anthony Pompliano, Arlan Hamilton, Ankur Nagpal (the founder of Teachable) and Sahil Lavingia (the founder of Gumroad). Walker and McKinley have also leveraged their resources in Jacksonville, turning to UNF Coggin College of Business Dean Mark Dawkins and PS27 CEO Jim Stallings for guidance.

The PS27 Foundation Names Startup Founder Jordan Walker to Its Board of Directors

Via. Jax Chamber News

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., June 21, 2021 – The PS27 Foundation is pleased to announce Jordan Walker has joined its board of directors. The PS27 Foundation is a non-profit 501(C)(3) organization that provides training and development for entrepreneurs through its globally recognized programs such as Leadership Week, Peer-to-Peer Workshops, Female Founders Forum, Black Entrepreneurs Forum, and the Veterans Entrepreneurs Forum.

“Our Board of Directors is composed of a dedicated team of business leaders and entrepreneurs committed to giving back to our community by providing programs, resources, and mentorship to early-stage startups,” said Jim Stallings, Chairman of the PS27 Foundation. “We’ve had the privilege of getting to know Jordan since his time as a student at the University of North Florida and through his participation in our many programs. We are excited to channel Jordan’s talent, expertise, and energy into furthering our mission. He is a role model in so many ways.”

Over Jordan’s career, he has gained experience by working with small companies and startups as well as large companies such as Hilton, Margaritaville, and Marriott. After having worked in the agency world for many years, Walker and his co-founders decided they were well prepared to launch their own startup, Yac. Yac is an Orlando-based company that allows people to use voice and video messages to share designs, talk to their team, and reclaim their day. This audio-first messaging platform helps eliminate meetings with voice messages, searchable transcription, and async screen sharing. The company recently raised over ~$10M in funding from GGV Capital, Betaworks Ventures, Active Capital, and Slack and has been mentioned in TechCrunch, Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, and Fast Company. Walker holds a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing and Business Management from the University of North Florida.

Connect with Jordan on LinkedIn or on our website.

About PS27 Foundation:

PS27 Foundation provides educational resources to early-stage companies and startups to help them achieve sustainable growth. We deliver training and education through classroom lessons, company site visits, comprehensive mentoring, and distance learning.

Advanced techniques and equipment enable an environment that promotes learning and collaboration. PS27 Foundation is constantly working to form strategic partnerships with local and national organizations and the government to create jobs and improve the community. To learn more about PS27 Foundation please visit ps27foundation.org.