The Innovate 608 podcast is for professionals on the go. It’s about entrepreneurship — the journey, the community and a place to hear about bold new things happening in Madison and Wisconsin.

Hosted by Nora Roughen-Schmidt and produced by StartingBlock, Madison’s local hub for creative startups, the Innovate 608 podcast will tell the stories of incredible Wisconsin innovators. Listeners will hear from startup CEOs about their successes and failures, plus experts in every facet of creating a successful business, from turning an idea into an effective investor pitch to launching and running a thriving operation.

StartingBlock is Wisconsin’s largest community of entrepreneurs, startups, investors, accelerators, and entrepreneur support organizations.

Our MISSION is to create the meaningful intersections that cultivate entrepreneurs, accelerate startup growth, drive innovation and build a startup community that gives back.

Our VISION is to galvanize Madison into a nationally recognized leader in entrepreneurship.

Our CORE VALUES

Think Big.  Success requires thinking big, even when the company is still small.  StartingBlock helps entrepreneurs find and actualize big ideas into successful companies by connecting, pushing and challenging them (and us) constantly. 

Fear Less.  Turning dreams into reality demands tackling obstacles fearlessly.  StartingBlock empowers entrepreneurs to fear less by creating meaningful support networks, connecting entrepreneurs to resources, and understanding that failures are temporary. 

Listen Deeply.  Making a difference means listening deeply—to yourself and to others.  StartingBlock creates inclusive conversations and opportunities for like and unlike-minds to collaborate and support each other.

StartingBlock is Wisconsin’s largest community of entrepreneurs, startups, investors, accelerators, and support organizations. At StartingBlock, we create the meaningful intersections that cultivate entrepreneurs, accelerate startup growth, drive innovation and build a startup community that gives back.

Sign up for StartingBlock’s community newsletter. Published 2 times a month, this is Madison’s most comprehensive, curated source of entrepreneur focused programs, announcements and startup news. We make staying connected easy.