Welcome Chris Shaw to the Think Big Team!

This winter, Chris Shaw joined the Think Big Partners team at its first Entrepreneur-in-Residence.  Learn more about Chris below and see what he’s going to bring to the Kansas City startup table: 

When I decided to move back to Kansas City with my wife and daughter late last year, I didn’t know what to expect. We knew we wanted to be close to home, but we weren’t sure what kind of turn our careers would take.

Chris Shaw of Think Big Partners.

I had spent the last few years working in venture-backed technology companies in Boston, Massachusetts, and eventually starting my own, LexSpot.  I felt like there wasn’t a comparable fit back in my hometown, in KC.

I’d spied the addition of Google Fiber in the KC ecosystem and chatted with some early-stage founders, but was worried that the enthusiasm, world-changing vision and networking that I had become accustomed to in Boston still wouldn’t be instilled in the startup Kansas City scene. 

I was wrong.

After spending the last few months meeting founders, service-providers, scientists and early-stage employees, I can see that Kansas City is readying itself for a boom. When I was deciding what to do next, I looked to the place that I felt like could be the epicenter.

After meeting with Herb Sih, I could see that Think Big Partners had been positioning itself as the epicenter of the Kansas City startup boom for a few years now. As Herb said, “We are willing to be misunderstood by those around us.”

Herb told me that Think Big could use my help working with the CEOs of the portfolio companies, bringing investment capital on board to help fund them and being a helpful community member in Kansas City, with the goal of helping everyone in the city win.

Perhaps most importantly, Herb said he didn’t want to limit me. He wanted me to start another company, do some consulting—essentially do whatever I needed to do to feel like I was having an impact and staying intellectually challenged.

In my experience, wherever I’ve been, there aren’t very many places where leadership is that astute.

Think Big does some amazing things.  It provides a great coworking space, holds fantastic community events, provides support services for companies big and small, and really when you think about it, does whatever it can to be an idea factory.

As someone who’s had experience working in nearly all of those space—my addition made a lot of sense.

So when Herb asked me to join Think Big as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence, I jumped at the chance. In my role as an EIR, I assist Herb and Tyler with operations of the Think Big companies, I work with Blake on helping the portfolio companies grow and most importantly, I serve the Kansas City area as a connector and advisor.

Having grown up here as an area paperboy—my first real job was delivering the Kansas City Star—I couldn’t be more excited to be part of the city’s transformation into a 21^st century technology hub.

My wife, Kristin and I live in Waldo with our 6-month old daughter, Harper, and our labradoodle, Truman. Feel free to get touch. I’m @MOChrisShaw on Twitter and my Think Big email address is chris.shaw@thinkbigpartners.com

Happy Thanksgiving! What We're Thankful For (As Entrepreneurs)

Happy Thanksgiving from Think Big Partners! 

Sometimes, we move so fast that we don't take the time to sit down and realize everything that we have to appreciate in life.  Lucky for us, Thanksgiving is just a few days away, and is the perfect time for us to say "thanks" to those who have helped us grow, succeed and have fun throughout our very own startup journey.

As a way to say "thanks", we will be making daily shoutouts to some of our biggest supports on Facebook for 40 days straight starting on November 22, 2012.  Although it's not much, it's our way of sending appreciation from our crazy world to yours.

What are some of the things we're thankful for this year?  We're so glad you asked...

• We're thankful for our entrepreneurs.  The people who show up to bizperc, call us for advice, meet with us for coffee and partner with us on projects.  If it weren't for these passionate, driven and sometimes crazy people, we would not be in business.
  
• We're thankful for bizperc, our coworking space.  With its incredible view of downtown Kansas City, killer coworking amenities and super fun (and frequent) parties, we are truly spoiled with an amazing workspace. But most importantly, we're thankful for the different people we meet in bizperc every day.
  
• We're thankful for coffee.  If it weren't for coffee, we would not have productive days, checked-off to-do lists and 2:00am conversations that often make or break our next idea.
  
• We're thankful for partners who have always believed in us and supported us throughout our startup journey.  If it weren't for our incredible support system, we would not be where we are today.
  
• We're thankful for our gadgets.  From our iPhones to our laptops, from our Windows Surface tablets to our electronic whiteboard, these gadgets make our chaotic days a bit more organized.
  
• We're thankful for humor--it's what gets us through our not-so 9-5 days.  From office pranks, team bets, wearing prom dresses to work, and caricatures drawings on our windows, we're thankful that we can build something incredible and have fun while doing it.
  
• We're thankful for our team.  Although we've been referred to as "an Island of Misfit Toys" or a "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" company, we are the glue that holds Think Big together--and even though we may be a bit nuts, we believe that we are doing big things that wouldn't be possible without every single team member's involvement.

A BIG thank you to you all.  And happy Thanksgiving.

- The team at Think Big Partners 

(Ahhh..that's more like it.)