Through the efforts of Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, the city has created a task force that seeks to not only make the local government become more effective with the help of startups, but also put the region on the map as a hub for innovation.
The mayor announced the task force Wednesday afternoon, which is comprised of Embarc Collective CEO Lakshmi Shenoy, Synapse Florida President Brian Kornfeld, Tampa Bay Wave CEO and founder Linda Olson, Florida-Isreal Business Accelerator director Rachel Feinman and Bunker Labs' city leader Valerie Levin.
"I'm just getting back from Charlotte and one of the issues I saw is there is the thought they didn’t have capability and capacity to provide workers for high tech jobs," Castor said. "There's this notion they're not the innovation hub, and we suffer that to a degree as well. We need to show that is an incorrect assumption: we have the individuals to get it done and we have the ability to get it done in Tampa Bay."
The task force has yet to meet, but Vik Bhide, smart mobility manager for the city's transportation and stormwater services, said he is hopeful the task force will meet before the new year.
He added the innovation initiative, titled "Intersection of Innovation" will play into Castor's larger "Transforming Tampa's Tomorrow Initiative." Intersection of Innovation has tentatively three facets: customer immersion, reverse innovation and pilot projects. After the task force meets, those could be changed completely.
"We’re open minded and know this program will likely change and we want it to change to reflect the needs of the innovation community better," he said. "And we want the innovation community to have a certain degree of comfort, that there's an avenue for their projects and services."
Customer immersion will allow startups to pitch to a panel of city employees, which range from water management to marketing officials. It is unknown how often the pitches will occur — Bhide said that is one of several decisions the task force will make.
The first installment of customer immersion kicked off immediately after the announcement. Embarc Collective, Tampa Bay Wave, Dreamit Cohort and FIBA all had startups pitch to the panel.
The reverse innovation will come from the city employees: they will work horizontally to come up with solutions and identity pain points that are often overlooked within the silos of City Hall.
"Don't underestimate the power of introspection; that's not something government agencies do easily," Bhide said. "And that's why, programatically, we’re doing it deliberately. A lot of value to citizens can be found working horizontally between departments. So the first part is listening to the innovation community, the second is giving cues of 'Do you do this? Well, no, but that’s a good idea.' It's a two way value."
The pilot projects are a continuation of what the city has been doing for three years — working with startups to implement change and help alleviate current problems in the city. However, Castor wants this to go deeper and farther than ever.
"If you are a startup, or have anything you want to start, we want to be the place in Tampa and the Tampa Bay region," Castor said. "Clearwater, St. Pete, Hillsborough County, Pinellas, Pasco — all of us together, we should lift this innovation up. We have what it takes."
