Dear Friends of TiE DC -
Since I wrote to you in September, we have had very many exciting events and great roll out of initiatives this fall. Hopefully, you participated in one or all of these.
Our Big event - TiE DC GOVCON - in October was the most successful event with attendance of about 300 participants and about 40 speakers from various government agencies.
Since TiE DC is the seat of government consulting firms, GOVCON in DC is what TIECON is in other TIE chapters. The gain in our membership and sponsorship after this event is a testimonial to its success.
In November, we had another successful event with Rajat Gupta - an Indian icon well known for his success, global fame, and then the hard fall. He discussed his book Mind without Fear, that elaborates on his experience, which was fascinating to hear directly from him. The event was well attended by nearly 100 TiE DC members and friends.
In continuation with our increasingly fruitful relationship with the Embassy of India and their initiative of collaboration of US-India start-up initiatives,the TiE DC Board members were invited on Nov 15th for interaction with IIGP-Start-up Innovator Cohorts - 2019 and help them move forward and build business around their technologies through TiE networks and partnerships. Many follow-up actions are ongoing in the direction.
Early in December, we had a Fun Meet and Greet Event for all the Charter Members at my home, instead of the TiE Gala that we postponed for a later date next year. This was not only a very happy event with about 90 of us but a lot of good connections were made, bonding over food, drinks, dancing and singing till late night. 
TiE DC held our annual elections for the President-Elect in 2021 and new Board members for 2020. Congratulations to SUNDI NATRAJAN for winning the President-Elect seat for 2021 and all the new board members.
Our last Women Entrepreneurship effort that is closest to my own passion was held on Dec 21st - a mentoring session for women entrepreneurs from India, who are part of the TiE AIRSWEE program. AIRSWEE - All India Roadshow for Women's Economic Empowerment through Entrepreneurship is a successful TiE initiative for the past few years.
As we close the year, I want thank my wonderful board, especially Manish and Sundi for their hard work this year. They have all helped in enhancing the efforts, events, organization and partnerships that has set the stage and momentum in several dimensions of TiE-DC activities related to education, mentoring, networking, and investing. This resulted in the following 2019 accomplishments:
Congratulations to the TIE DC Team for a successful 2019!
As I end my tenure as the President of TiE DC this year, I am not only going to continue as a TiE DC board member for another year according to our bylaws, but I have also been elected as the TIE GLOBAL BOARD member for 2020 and 2021. I am looking forward to working with Manish Malhotra, the new TiE DC President to continue our momentum forward and working with the other 10 members of TIE Global to make a difference in entrepreneurship in various countries.
WISHING YOU ALL HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND A HAPPY, HEALTHY 2020!!!!
Dr. Smita Siddhanti
TiE DC President
Upcoming Partner Event: TiE DC PARTNERS with 5TH ANNUAL WHARTON DC INNOVATION SUMMIT
DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES: YOUR PATH TO THE FUTURE
TUESDAY, MAY 7, 2019, PINSTRIPES, NORTH BETHESDA, MD
Overview: Augmenting a successful track record of delivering four previous highly-rated Summits, the Wharton School Club of DC will host the 2019 Wharton DC Innovation Summit: Disruptive Technologies – Your Path to the Future. This full-day conference, open to the public, features two keynote speakers and a General Session.
Learn more on the TiE DC event page: https://hub.tie.org/e/wharton
TiE Tuesday: Emerging Technologies -- Navigating the Future
TiE DC's TiE Tuesday on March 12 was a very well-attended event! The event showcased many trending technologies being integrated into current and future business strategies. Thank you to our panelists and moderator for guiding this informative event.
Speakers included:
Moderated by: Sundi Natarajan, Co-founder @ Sparksoft Corporation
Charter Member Power Luncheon
Charter Members (CM) gathered for a networking lunch and an opportunity to learn more about the TiE Global Angel Alliance (TGAA). Knowledgeable CM speakers, Raj Rai, Paul Singh, Prem Bajaj and Sundi Natarajan shared their experience with Angel investing In Technology Ventures and TGAA. There were 20 CMs in attendance and the vibrant discussion clearly demonstrated a great interest in creating a mechanism to fund startups and additionally to bring our collective expertise in government client space. We also discussed hosting a Shark Tank-like event later this year where invited Charter Member investors and technology industries will have the opportunity to interact and potentially gain further exposure to the TiE Global Angel Alliance investing community. A small subcommittee is formed to take the next steps. If any of you are interested in joining this initiative, please contact Board Members Raj Rai and Sundi Natarajan.
Learn more at TiE Angels: https://tie.org/programs/tg-an...
In brief, 2018 has been a very active year for TiE Global Angels. TGAA hosted 10 separate investor calls, leading to $295,000 in additional funding for companies beyond investment from their local TiE chapters. In 2016 and 2017, TGAA have demonstrated the viability of a platform for cross-chapter investing. Since their pilot launch in 2016, TGAA has held 13 separate investor calls for companies across many different industries. TGAA are industry agnostic, although their recent activity has skewed towards medical technology and devices. TiE Global Angels seek to exploit the knowledge and experience of over 280 registered TGAA members from 35 chapters worldwide.
Charter Member Highlight: Raj Patil
Raj Patil is the founder and CEO at American Consultants (AEEC). American Consultants is a premier information technology and environmental engineering professional services firm.
AEEC was the subject of a case study written and published by Harvard Business Review. “AEEC: Becoming an Innovation Catalyst” was written by Professor Lynda M. Applegate, James Weber, and Sarah Mehta.
AEEC’s Harvard Business School (HBS) case study on innovation, that was published by Harvard Business Review in July 2017, was also taught at HBS campus three times to-date.
Additionally, Raj is also serving as a board member to BlockLAB at University of California, San Diego where he serves as co-chair of industry partners. https://www.clds.info/blocklab.html
Now is the Time to Join TiE DC
TiE is among the largest entrepreneurship organizations in the world, with a vast global network of 12,000 entrepreneurs, serial entrepreneurs, business leaders, domain experts and mentors. Membership for entrepreneurs is $200 per year and offers you access to educational, mentoring and networking opportunities for building and growing your business.
TiE Charter Members are successful, high profile entrepreneurs, corporate intrapreneurs and thought leaders, who have reached a stage in their professional life when they are ready, willing and able to contribute to fellow members. Charter Membership is $2,000/year and offers local and global benefits, with free and exclusive invitations to programs.
