This annual program features speakers and panel discussions to foster a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, share best practices, recognize excellence, and shine the spotlight on SE Wisconsin’s innovators and entrepreneurs.

Join us as we recognize innovators and entrepreneurs taking the southeastern Wisconsin economy to the next level. This year’s award winners will share insights on how they built their businesses, developed new products and overcame challenges.

Lifetime Achievement winner Wayne Oldenburg will discuss lessons learned from building multiple successful companies while Regional Spirit winner Theresa Nemetz shares how showing off the city and its dining options has translated into a fast-growing business.

The program continues with breakout sessions on strategies for securing your innovation and financing options for entrepreneurs. Attendees will leave inspired to pursue their own ambitions.

Innovation Winners:

• Advanced Ionics, Chad Mason, Founder & CEO (1)
• Rapid Radicals Technology, Paige Peters, Founder & CTO (2)
• Wearable Technologies, Deepak Arora, Founder, President & CEO (3)

Entrepreneurship Winners:

• Jeremy Fojut, Co-Founder, CEO, Like|Minded (4)
• Justin Nicols, Founder & CEO, Sift Healthcare (5)
• Glenn Reid, Founder, Marathon Laundry Machines (6)

Regional Spirit Award Winner:

• Theresa Nemetz, Founder & Chief Experience Officer, Milwaukee Food & City Tours (7)

Lifetime Achievement Entrepreneur Winner

• Wayne Oldenburg, CEO, Oldenburg Group Inc. (8)

Proceed with Caution: Strategies for Securing Your Innovation

Any successful entrepreneur or innovator understands the difficulties of preserving a business’ competitive advantage.  Attorneys Scott T. Reigle and James M. Sosnoski of Meissner Tierney Fisher & Nichols S.C. will discuss some of the challenges in protecting the “idea” of your business from both internal and external threats, and what protective legal measures, such as non-compete and confidentiality agreements with your employees and managers, agreements with third-party vendors, and careful marketing, that you can take to ease that stress. By crafting the proper internal practices, you can ensure that your “big idea” remains yours.

Financial Strategies To Help You Start, Manage and Expand Your Business

• 2021 Innovation + Entrepreneurship Forum

Interested in sponsoring an event? To reap the benefits of the ultimate in-person marketing opportunity contact Linda Crawford, Director of Sales, to discuss opportunities. Event sponsorships are limited.