In an effort to create a center of engagement for entrepreneurs in the Capital Region, the Research Park Corp. is launching on Friday a new arm of its organization called NexusLA.
NexusLA, which will debut with nexus-la.org on April 1, will act as a trade name for the RPC and also function under the corporation’s umbrella, similar to the Louisiana Technology Park and Innovation Catalyst, a Baton Rouge-based nonprofit venture development organization.
Since he arrived in Baton Rouge last spring, Clayton’s goal has been to identify and connect the pieces of the region’s entrepreneurial system, convening any and all stakeholders and resources from business incubators to universities, business leaders and economic development leaders like the Baton Rouge Area Chamber and Louisiana Economic Development.
“Economic development is a big competition,” Clayton says. “We have to view it from that context.”
The only way to compete, he says, is to connect key pieces such as incubators, universities, business leaders and organizations, venture capitalists and small business associations.
NexusLA is the culmination of that effort. The website is designed as a tool for entrepreneurs to plug into any and all local resources they might need for their business. The site also serves a dual purpose because it promotes the success of entrepreneurs in the region.
“When you go to regions that do really well, there is help everywhere,” Clayton says. “If they need money, coaching, co-working spaces, mentors, it is just everywhere. They trip over help. We need to get there.”
Through the NexusLA Â website, RPC will first focus on the Baton Rouge area, facilitating how entrepreneurs and economic development professionals navigate through the innovation community by implementing regional initiatives that strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
There will also be a focus on connecting Baton Rouge’s resources to other innovation hubs around the state so that Louisiana can compete on a national level.
“Once we are all patting ourselves on the back about how good we are and we’ve connected and things are so much better, we want to take that knowledge and be an asset to other regions around the state,” Clayton says.
The site will include a map of resources in the entrepreneurial ecosystem like capital providers, lists of companies organized into target innovation sectors, and news about innovation happening in the area.
Clayton also stresses the importance of metrics to measure and evaluate the success of entrepreneurial efforts in Baton Rouge. NexusLA also will take the lead on new initiatives for Baton Rouge Entrepreneurship Week in 2016 and convene a new organization called the Alliance for Regional Cooperation to gather stakeholders in the innovation community to further drive entrepreneurial growth. Another initiative of NexusLA is a national fundraising effort to bring funding dollars into Louisiana from around the country.
—Gabrielle Braud
