Chris Heivly, the co-founder of MapQuest met with local tech founders today to share his entrepreneur journey and to discuss ways to develop a thriving startup community in Billings. Chris is part of a cohort of successful entrepreneurs at Techstars- a global platform for investment and innovation, that have adopted a philosophy they call, “GiveFirst.” Chris explained that creating a give-before-you-get cultural norm in Billings is a critical step to attracting talent and creating a vibrant, entrepreneurial culture.
Chris also encouraged each founder to band together and take on a leadership role. He shared how facilitating regular meetups that bring entrepreneurs together to help each other will have an incredible impact on their own companies over time. “Spend 1 to 2 hours each week meeting and building the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Billings.” Chris said. “It will benefit your companies in more ways than you know.”
After spending almost an hour discussing challenges and opportunities in Billings, the founders ended by sharing why Billings is the right place for them. “I like that Billings is built on a strong foundation, there’s a lot of hard-working people who live here” they said. Andrew Korf, a business student at Rocky explained how being a part of this entrepreneurial community inspires him to stay here instead of going back home to Boise after he graduates.