NetWork Kansas Celebrates The First Anniversary of VentureDash

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
July 26, 2021

Contact:  Amara Kniep                                   
316-425-8832
akniep@networkkansas.com

NetWork Kansas Celebrates The First Anniversary of VentureDash

Entrepreneurship Competitions Made Easier with Innovative Software

Wichita, Kansas, --- NetWork Kansas is celebrating the one-year anniversary of their first online entrepreneurship business software system, VentureDash. VentureDash is an online platform that provides a modern framework for facilitating entrepreneurship competitions that are held nationally.

VentureDash began beta testing in March 2020 and was officially launched in July 2020. VentureDash provides solutions that make running an entrepreneurship competition easier. “As our programs grew, we encountered challenges with finding adequate technology to support the unique elements of our events,” said Chad Jackson, Director of the Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship at Kansas State University. VentureDash has been able to fill the gaps and offer world-class experiences to students who utilize the program.

The results for the first year were phenomenal. There were 87 competitions hosted with 1,719 entrepreneurs participating, 625 judges, and 107 mentors. It was a successful first year and it’s clear that VentureDash is thriving and growing.

“VentureDash made our competition run seamlessly. Using VentureDash allowed us to keep all of the competition pieces organized and on track before, during, and after the competition. Thank you for helping to make Barton County, Kansas' first Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge a success!" - Sara Hayden, Great Bend Economic Development

Kansas universities that held competitions were: Fort Hays State University, Wichita State University, and Kansas State University. The list of out-of-state clients is growing rapidly and has expanded to include: Light Up The Lakeshore in Wisconsin, EntreEd in the Appalachian Region, West Virginia University, and Boise State University in Idaho. “We anticipate continued growth in 2021 having VentureDash be utilized at many more colleges and universities across the country and excited for the future of the program.” - Amara Kniep, NetWork Kansas

“I think a virtual competition on VentureDash played to our favor this year as we set a record for most teams and individual participants.” - Dave Dukart, Startup Hutch.

To celebrate the first anniversary, VentureDash is offering 25% off the platform fee through September 17th. Use coupon code “1YEAR”. For additional details about the program, visit www.goventuredash.com or reach out to akniep@networkkansas.com.

NetWork Kansas, a 501c3 nonprofit organization, is dedicated to making entrepreneurship a priority for economic and community development in the State of Kansas.  NetWork Kansas connects aspiring entrepreneurs, emerging and established businesses, to a deep network of business-building and community development resource organizations across the state.  NetWork Kansas is also the home of e2 Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (e2).  e2 provides best practice solutions to entrepreneurial ecosystem building in Kansas and nationally.

NetWork Kansas facilitates the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem within participating communities through the E-Community Partnership. Contributing factors to successful development include the availability of financial capital, support by local leadership, and the development of educational resources. All of these factors combine to increase entrepreneurial activity in participating towns, leading to increased startup activity, business expansion, job creation, and more.

For more information about the Entrepreneurship (E-) Community Partnership, visit www.networkkansas.com/ecommunities, or call 877.521.8600

To learn more about VentureDash, or how to host an entrepreneurship competition, contact Amara Kniep at akniep@networkkansas.com, or visit www.goventuredash.com.