For the first time in its recent history, startup catalyst group Cintrifuse is polling the community, and the feedback it receives along the way will help improve its programming and fill any gaps that currently exist within the city’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The brand survey, which launches May 1, will allow business, nonprofit and university leaders; community and government officials; and startup founders and their financial backers to give their feedback to the group.
Kate Hursh-Wogenstahl, marketing and communications manager for Cintrifuse, said the goal is to better understand how the community perceives the organization. There are 30 multiple-choice questions in total. For example, is Cintrifuse competitive or collaborative, or exclusive or inclusive, or how helpful are the resources it provides?
The feedback will help identify areas it can improve services and programs, Hursh-Wogenstahl said.
The group hopes to wrap the study June 5. Cintrifuse is hosting the survey in a Google doc.
"Cintrifuse is continuously looking improve our services and programs,” Hursh-Wogenstahl said. “Our goal is to understand what resources we provide that are most valuable, and any gaps that we can address in the startup community to better serve our ecosystem.”
Cintrifuse, currently a staff of 18, was founded in 2012 with the goal of making the region the No. 1 startup ecosystem in the Midwest and a top innovation hub in the nation.
It offers a wide variety of services, networking and more, including its anchor event, StartupCincy Week, an annual weeklong celebration that includes workshops, panels, happy hours, pitch competitions and more. In 2022, it launched the first citywide "litter hackathon," which returned April 28 with backing from Procter & Gamble, Kroger, Fifth Third and others.
Cintrifuse also has more than $180 million in assets under management through its two previous “fund of funds,” which it uses to invest in venture capital funds and companies. The organization also owns and operates Union Hall on Vine Street in Over-the-Rhine, an office and coworking space.
