Guest Author: Terri Brax, CEO, Women Tech Founders

Valarie King-Bailey is CEO of OnShore Technology Group, an independent validation and verification consultancy. Under Valarie’s leadership, the company has become one of the leading independent validation and verification firms in Chicago and beyond.

King-Bailey recently spoke with Women Tech Founders to share how she's built a career in tech and why it’s important to constantly seek opportunities to innovate, find one thing to do really well, and never stop learning.

Guest Author: Dan Giaime, Chief Marketing Officer at Delight Rewards

Hi, I'm Dan.

I used to work at Microsoft and Facebook, and now I work on my own startup. Even now, I constantly find myself thinking I need other ways to make money, and have to curb those thoughts. Today, I hope to share a perspective I've found helpful in the past that could help stop you from YASH (Yet Another Side Hustle).

Dear 1871 community, 

I’m reaching out to you today not just from my position as a CEO in the Chicago tech community, but also as a leader of a team who is distraught and fearful, and as a mom of a 7-year-old son who does not yet have the context or the experience or the language to understand why so many people are hurting.

Guest Author: Lisa Weiss, CEO, Storybeat Studio

If you’re among the hundreds of millions participating in Zoom or other video conference calls while working from home, video is likely a large part of your day. Despite so-called “Zoom fatigue,” more than 25% of the tech sector now wants permanent remote work, and that means more video calls and content in the future.

Entrepreneurs have an opportunity to elevate the quality of their video content while sharing their areas of expertise with a more engaged audience. This blog primarily focuses on inspiring entrepreneurs to create original video content on their own at home, but some of these tips and insights will also help improve the quality and composition of your video conference calls.

Guest Author: Kelly Bertog, Marketing Manager, Future Founders

“Founders often hold too tightly onto solutions and too loosely onto problems.”

-Michael Seibel, CEO of Y Combinator

During these trying times, how can startups ensure they weather the storm? I recommend focusing intensely on solving customer problems, and I argue that your customers' pain-points are more important than ever.

Guest Author: Aon

As entrepreneurial and growth-stage business communities grapple with the virtual workplace and remote work styles, connectivity has become necessary lifelines for business to continue in a pandemic environment. The heightened reliance upon technology escalates cyber security considerations and brings increased focus on the scope of cyber insurance and professional liability coverages in a dynamic global insurance market.

The 1871 team is sending our very best wishes to you across Chicago, Illinois, and beyond. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an upheaval of daily life for most everyone across the world and we’re all in this together.

During this time of change, we’re looking to bolster the ways the 1871 community is adjusting and engaging one another as founders, members, and partners. To support these goals, we are looking for experts to share their expertise via guest blog post submissions!

We’re invested in Chicago, beyond the walls of 1871. It’s in our community’s best interest and our own to keep seeking out ways to support and enable innovation from the outskirts to the epicenter and back, so that our impact is decentralized and, therefore, more inclusive to Chicagoland as a whole.

1871’s latest initiative - entitled “PYROS” - provides member companies and founders with multi-stage, tailored resources, tools, mentors, workshops, curriculum, and peer groups based on their startups’ business development needs.