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Driving Innovation and Growth
Press Release
September 7, 2021 


GLOBAL MIDWEST ALLIANCE TO HOST THE 6TH MIDWEST CORPORATE VENTURING PROGRAM, 
CORPORATE VENTURING: EMERGING CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

CHICAGO – On September 23, Global Midwest Alliance and sponsors, the Allstate Strategic Ventures, Consulate General of Canada, K&L Gates and Polsinelli, will host the 6th Midwest Corporate Venturing Program in Chicago. This year's half-day program will focus on current thinking from key leaders in corporate venturing on the opportunities and challenges for corporate venturing in the post pandemic world. 

Corporate venturing is an important and growing part of the innovation ecosystem in the Midwest and throughout the world. The number of corporate venture companies has more than doubled since this program began six years ago. While Covid-19 has changed the corporate venturing landscape, it is clear that the innovation economy has emerged from the pandemic alive and well with a new sensitivity to the changing business economic and social landscape. After a pause in investing at the outset of the pandemic, venture deal-making has continued to grow. 

Now more than ever, a company’s ability to recognize and extract value from innovation will separate success from failure. Corporate venturing continues to offer companies a direct path to reap strategic and financial rewards from new business models, emerging technologies and disruptive innovation. Startup companies increasingly view corporate venture companies as important partners in building value. Areas to be covered include:

    •    Managing successful corporate venture programs in turbulent times;
    •    Accessing new opportunities in innovative technologies and solutions;
    •    Supporting entrepreneurs in scaling their businesses, both in the Midwest and globally;
    •    Investing in early-stage technologies and driving innovation; and
        Achieving a strategic and financial return.

The program will include discussion of the current state of corporate venturing and the opportunities and challenges of corporate venturing in the post pandemic world. The Innovation Panel brings a global perspective with international companies bringing promising, novel technologies to the energy, health care and logistics sectors. This year, we have selected senior executives from revenue-positive, emerging companies from the United States and who will be showcasing their technology solutions and are looking to enter or build their U.S. market presence via investment and or partnership opportunities. The Corporate Venturing Panel will provide insight into the relationship between corporate venture companies and their portfolio companies and how these relationships help the portfolio companies grow. The panel includes a diverse group of individuals with experience leading corporate venture capital firms that invest across the spectrum of emerging technologies.

To register, please visit www.globalmidwestalliance.org on or before September 20.




Global Midwest Alliance is a business-led, region-wide organization dedicated to transforming the Midwest into an internationally-recognized leader in innovation and business growth. The Alliance aligns and integrates resources throughout the Midwest helping businesses to grow by leveraging existing resources to develop new products and find customers throughout the world. The Alliance is the Private Sector Liaison Office for the World Bank and a member of Global CONNECT. Through these and other affiliations, the Alliance facilitates access to global business opportunities for Midwest business through 160 groups in 107 countries around the world. The Alliance offers educational and networking opportunities through a variety of programs and resources designed to promote innovation, technology development and access to global opportunities in the clean technology, energy, food, logistics, manufacturing and water industries.  For more information, visit www.globalmidwestalliance.org.





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