The next XcellR8 meeting will be held Thursday, February 14th

XcellR8 welcomes Alice Turner, Founder and CEO of Urban Tekk

February 12, 2019, Tolland, CT. Nerac is pleased to announce that the next XcellR8 meeting will be held Thursday, February 14th at 8:00am at Nerac.

XcellR8 is a powerful advisory program designed to foster innovation in business and support entrepreneurs throughout Connecticut, particularly those originating out of UConn. Leveraging Nerac’s strong and far-reaching network of innovators and entrepreneurs, XcellR8 meetings assemble a comprehensive array of expert professionals who serve to advise and mentor entrepreneurs in all of the various facets of business and product development. The meetings are energetic, interactive gatherings wherein entrepreneurs present their ideas and concepts and gather feedback and guidance from experts in attendance.

Beyond the meetings, XcellR8 aids technology-based and other startups in developing and executing effective, big picture strategic plans by connecting them to relevant, up-to-the-minute resources, including CTNext – Connecticut’s go-to resource for entrepreneurial support. CTNext is partnered with Nerac in support of its XcellR8 and Incubator programs. As a member of the CTNext Partner Program, Nerac plays an important role in CT’s innovation ecosystem by introducing entrepreneurs selected for its XcellR8 program to resources and support systems that can help them carry out plans with success post meeting. An extension of the XcellR8 program, Nerac’s Incubator program makes ideal workspace opportunities available to Nerac’s strong network and community of entrepreneurs.

On Thursday, XcellR8 welcomes Alice Turner, Founder and CEO of Urban Tekk, a technology-focused social enterprise headquartered in Hartford.

Urban Tekk was founded in 2015 to meet the need for an innovative approach to educating and engaging the next generation of employees in STEM careers as employees and entrepreneurs. Since its founding, Urban Tekk teams have competed and placed in the top three in four regional business and technology competitions including Start-Up Weekend, CT Next EIA and the FedEx Junior Business Challenge, among other state-wide competitions.

After their CT Next EIA win, Alice and her team validated their intelligent job platform concept with potential users — young adults looking for entry-level careers in middle skill industries, especially manufacturing, healthcare and information technology. Middle skill jobs are those that require more than a high school diploma, but less than a college degree.

Alice has been advised by her mentors that she now needs to validate the business model with potential customers — those employers who struggle to fill vacant positions before moving forward with platform development. Since Alice works with youth and understands their strengths and challenges very well, the focus now needs to shift from the user to the buyer.

According to CBIA, over 56% of Connecticut’s manufacturers alone are struggling to find workers ready to fill job vacancies. HR professionals, recruiters and hiring managers are no longer concerned with a skills gap, but a “body gap.” Employers need new hires who are ready and motivated to work. Urban Tekk has developed an intelligent job matching platform that matches non-traditional new hires to new jobs through their AI inspired platform.

Alice needs help and guidance to identify and validate her business model and identify forward-thinking industry partners in STEM related industries who are willing to serve as beta testers and early adopters. Alice understands the challenges and obstacles of presenting employers with what they may think is another job-matching platform, yet she believes there is potential and opportunity for a win-win-win between new skill employers looking for new tools to augment their existing recruitment and talent management strategies. She’s open to suggestions and seeks feedback and recommendations.

“The Tolland/Nerac XcellR8 group continues to accomplish an amazing amount for our participants with just the volunteer talent and energetic people who attend the sessions,” said Kevin Bouley, CEO of Nerac. “It’s incredibly rewarding to see our members continue to succeed, and I look forward to having the group brainstorm ideas with the Urban Tekk team.” Contact XcellR8 to learn more today.

About Nerac
Nerac Inc. is a global research and advisory firm for companies developing innovative products and technologies. Nerac provides expert insights that equip clients with the knowledge to develop or refine a technology, explore market growth opportunities, evaluate intellectual property strategies and respond to regulatory changes. Nerac serves approximately 5,000 users worldwide and delivers over 12,000 research projects and custom alerts each year. Nerac has a long, successful consulting history in a wide-range of industries with significant expertise and extensive data resources supporting client requests in the areas of technology scouting, IP, medical device, engineering, chemistry and advanced materials.

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