Upstart was delighted to host an event last night attended by in excess of 40 people representing local startups, city council, NZTE, University, Polytechnic and Upstart alumni. The guest for the evening was Dr Mike Reid of Innovative Learning Ltd during his return to the city prior to returning to California where the business is gaining momentum rapidly.
Dr Reid shared his story of the ups and downs of Innovative Learning including how the recession had made it more difficult to raise funds, while also creating additional opportunity for the business as Innovative Learning Ltd provides a cost effective and efficient means to educate those who interact with people with autism as part of their work – such as teachers, nurses, doctors.
When asked by a member of the audience what he’d do differently if he could do it all again, Dr Reid said he’d have stopped “chasing rainbows” earlier. The so called big opportunities had not panned out the way they had expected, and they had wasted a lot of resource wooing them for far too long. Best to get to a yes or no as quickly as possible. Dr Reid also stressed the importance of having a narrow focus when doing business in the States as it’s easy to spend a small fortune without making a dent if you’re not careful.
After four years hard slog it seems that much of the hard work is beginning to pay off and the future looks very promising. Murray Downes and Murray Lawrence, and the team at Upstart were all acknowledged for their contribution over the past five years as Innovative Learning Ltd went from Dunedin startup and incubatee, to Upstart alumni with a successful US presence.
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