Village News

Simple, Beautiful Scheduling- Calendly

October 8, 2014

We all know the pain point of back and forth emails trying to find just the right corresponding time to meet or have that telecon that works for all parties involved. Well, what if there was a scheduler that simply rested on top of your gmail calendar that allowed people to instantly see the times you are available and schedule themselves? What if it was easy to use and had a great looking UI?Folks, Calendly is your solution- convenient, efficient, and it's just so darn pretty. We can't wait for you to try it. World, meet Calendly.

Building a Company with Devon Wijesinghe - VIDEO

September 25, 2014

Coming from a long line of entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka, Devon Wijesinghe understands what it is like when a family builds a successful empire, loses it to Civil War, and must begin all over again in the US. Devon believes being an entrepreneur is in his blood, and his passion, drive, and no nonsense approach to building his own companies continues to lead to success.Currently he is the founder of Insightpool, a 7 figure social engagement tool specializing in enterprise clients. They have been in the Village since we first opened our doors and have grown their team to 40+ in the past year and a half. Integral to our community, competitive, and hard working- Insightpool operates off a Work Hard, Play Harder mentality that is inspiring to be around.So sit back, relax, and get some real insight on what it's like to be an entrepreneur, and how Devon approaches building a startup.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yN4lZlXr3Cg&feature=youtu.be

Relational Equity

September 22, 2014

Shh…ListenTruth or Myth: There are millions of people that are waiting on your company to post your next great Tweet, Post, IG or Pin about your product or service that will motivate them to buy said product or service?If your answered Truth, consider this:

AJC's Inside Look at the Village with David Cummings

September 19, 2014

We were excited to welcome the AJC team to Atlanta Tech Village last week. They toured the building, chatted with our founder, David Cummings, and got some great footage of our space and energy. With over 650 members and 200+ startups, their goal was to get an inside look at our community and find out- what makes the Village a mecca for entrepreneurs?As David shared, "The Tech Village, the idea behind it, really came from my personal desire to have a community of entrepreneurs in the same physical place. Bring lots of smart people together, have a lot of chaos happen, and at the end of the day, the chance of any of them succeeding goes up because of the community."We love this inside look- the energy, the space, and the people behind it. On a personal note, I couldn't be more proud to be a part of this community. It's a special place. Keep an eye out for many success stories happening within these walls, and if you haven't come by yet for a tour or a coffee at Octane- you should. We hope to see you soon.Watch the VIDEO here.

5 Ways Startups Can Maximize Resources

September 18, 2014

Every business relies on great employees to build success. And great employees are especially important for startups. Startups and small businesses have limited time and resources when it comes to finding new talent, and many can’t afford the high costs that come with employee turnover. Luckily, there are many ways for businesses to make the most of their human capital, without causing burnout or creating undue stress. Create a work environment where employees feel productive, energized and excited, and you’ll have a more successful, happier team.Use these 5 tips to build a positive work environment, and get the most out of your human capital.

Work Hard. Play Hard.

August 28, 2014

The Village is a 24/7 facility that has 630+ members and close to 200 tech startups within our walls. Building your own company means long hours, lots of risks, and many ups and downs. It is hard. It can have incredible highs, and lots of stress. So when you see game rooms, razor scooters, nap rooms, and yoga classes in our community- don't be fooled. It's not all play.Our members often have heads down, and are kicking ass and taking names. But they are doing that with folks who are like minded, supportive, and within an environment that encourages finding balance, community, and connections where you can. We work hard, but we play hard too. It reenergizes, stirs creativity, creates friendships, and forges new paths. The Village is a place where folks want to be, successes happen, recruiting is easy, and yes... epic ping pong games take place. Who doesn't want that?Work Hard. Play Hard.

Being a Startup Founder in the Village

August 25, 2014

In the past year I have experienced the thrill of seeing our service used by customers for the first time and the feeling of accomplishment when potential investors said "yes" to our pitch and agreed to give our little startup its very first round of funding. I've also experienced the sinking dread of seeing my inbox fill with alerts as wave after wave of our servers went offline and wondering if replacements could be brought online quickly enough that our customers would not experience a disruption in service.

Groundfloor- a Microlending Community for Real Estate

August 20, 2014

Today the Atlanta startup community welcomed another great company to our city! Groundfloor, a FinTech startup that lets you invest directly in real estate projects, recently closed $1 Million in seed round funding and announced it’s HQ move from Raleigh to Atlanta Tech Village. We are excited to welcome them to the Village, and can’t wait to see them achieve even more success. Check out my interview with the team below.

A Drone's View

August 18, 2014

When our good friend Jon Glass at Armstrong Lambert Associates offered to get some footage of our 103,000 square foot building under renovation with a drone, I simply couldn’t say no. With some superb flying skills, Max Armstrong did a drone flyby last week. Seeing the transformation of our building from 1986 to 2014 is (and has been) an amazing journey. As our most sassy and savvy Atlanta tech reporter Urvaksh said, the Village is becoming “the MacBook of Atlanta office buildings”. We’ll take it.Check out the drone’s view here.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6gJlfLdbC8&feature=youtu.be

Quick & Dirty A/B Testing Hacks for New Blogs

August 14, 2014

Today's guest post is written by Andrew Littlefield, an Atlanta resident working at a healthcare private practice who has a strong interest in content marketing, growth hacking, and tech startups. You know what I love about football?Statistical noise.There’s a lot of randomness in football. It’s played outdoors in all types of weather: from sweltering heat, to monsoon-like rain, to white-out blizzard conditions. Even the ball’s shape plays a role in the randomness of the game; it can bounce any which way. Then there’s the fact that NFL teams only play 16 games a year in their regular season. That all adds up to what’s known in the stats world as a small sample size.

PATH400 Trail Paving the Way for Buckhead

August 11, 2014

Unless you’re new to the city or have been living under a rock, you’re probably familiar with the growth of transportation opportunities in Atlanta. From MARTA to the Beltline, Atlantans have options for getting around and making streets and business districts safer for pedestrians. This has been a top priority for city leaders. And it’s not just happening downtown; Buckhead residents are getting ready to trade their Bentleys for bicycles, because the new PATH400 project is underway! Sitting at one of the most highly-trafficked intersections in the city at the corner of Lenox Rd and Piedmont Rd, Atlanta Tech Village members know what a challenge it can be to try to walk or bike to places in Buckhead.

360 Degree Look at Building the Village Roof

August 7, 2014

How do you shoot an aerial 360º photo sphere view of the construction of Atlanta Tech Village's rooftop patio, when you don't have a drone, helicopter or plane ... and you're not Superman?No problem. Just duck tape a Ricoh Theta 360 degree 1-click camera to a "headache ball" attached to a ginormous crane and use the Ricoh Theta iPhone app to trigger the photos remotely. That's what Villager Dan Smigrod with We Get Around did this summer as we began our rooftop patio construction.Check out this 360º photo showing off the Atlanta Tech Village 'Steel Week' and the beginning construction of our rooftop. Expected completion date? This September.Thanks to Dan for leaping tall buildings in a single bound.

Spotlight on Innovation: Atlanta Startup Village #95 Welcomes Four Dynamic Tech Startups