(L-R: Loni Stark & Rebekah Bastian)
Largest angel conference in the Pacific Northwest will feature speakers from Zillow and Adobe October 13-14.
Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) announced that the 13th Annual Bend Venture Conference (BVC) will feature two keynote speakers– Rebekah Bastian of Zillow and Loni Stark of Adobe, on Thursday, October 13 and Friday, October 14, respectively.
The new Social Impact Competition, taking place on Thursday afternoon of the conference, will feature keynote speaker Rebekah Bastian, vice president of product at Zillow. Bastian was one of Zillow’s first employees, coming over from Microsoft in 2005, and has led the development of several areas of the site since its launch. She currently drives the strategy and execution of product teams focusing on advertising, financial systems and connecting real estate buyers with agents. Always searching for ways to connect her personal values to her technology career, Bastian launched the Community Pillar program to help connect low income renters with affordable housing. She also serves on several local boards related to rising housing costs and homelessness.
“We felt like the addition of the Social Impact Competition on Thursday warranted its own keynote,” said Brian Vierra, EDCO’s Venture Catalyst. “Having Rebekah speak on how she has used her position at Zillow as a platform to discuss social issues like affordable housing will provide terrific context for this new competition.”
Friday’s keynote is Loni Stark, senior director of strategy & product marketing at Adobe. In her role, Stark leads business growth and go-to-market strategy and execution for Adobe’s digital experience management business. Stark is also a mentor at Alchemist Accelerator, named one of the top five accelerators in the U.S., where she advises founders of start-ups and frequently speaks at industry conferences. In 2015, she was recognized as a Silicon Valley Business Journal Top 40 under 40.
“Loni brings a wealth of experience in global product positioning and go-to-market strategies,” said Vierra. “Combined with her work at one of the top accelerators in the country, she brings a unique perspective to those companies working their way through early product iterations. We are lucky to have her at BVC this year.”
Call for Applications
Companies interested in applying to present at the 2016 Bend Venture Conferencecan now choose from one of three competition categories: Social Impact, Early Stage and Growth Stage. The deadline for application materials isAugust 12, 2016. For more information, visit http://bendvc.edcoinfo.com.
Ticket Sales
Tickets to the 13th Annual Bend Venture Conferenceare now available https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2016-bend-venture-conference-tickets-26607353310.
About the Bend Venture Conference
The Bend Venture Conference (BVC), hosted by Economic Development for Central Oregon, is the largest angel conference in the Pacific Northwest. This year, the conference is divided into three competition categories that consist of Social Impact, Early Stage and Growth Stage companies vying for investment and cash prizes. In 2015, more than 465 attendees, 50 prominent investors and 65 companies joined us for a celebration of entrepreneurship and close to $1 million was awarded to multiple winners. For more information, visit www.bendvc.com.
About Economic Development for Central Oregon
Celebrating its 35th year, Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) is a non-profit corporation supported by private and public members and stakeholders, whose mission is to create middle-class jobs in Central Oregon by recruiting new employers to move to the region, helping entrepreneurs start new, scalable businesses, and working with businesses that are already here to grow their operations. For more information, visit www.edcoinfo.com.
