Roanoke Blacksburg Technology Council

Who We Are The RBTC is a member-driven association working to promote the growth of the Roanoke-Blacksburg technology community. We are the essential business resource for technology entrepreneurs and companies seeking to achieve greater success. Our membership ranges from emerging technology firms to the largest employers in the region. The RBTC is building a community that is a catalyst for innovation, inspiration, success, and leadership within the Roanoke-Blacksburg region. The RBTC works hard at building community for the region’s technology sector through meaningful relationships. We are unifying the region through intentional programing and focus on developing a regional innovation ecosystem. The RBTC operates at the highest levels of integrity and we are honest, transparent, confidential, and supportive. We are dynamic and bring energy and excitement to everything we do. As thought-leaders, we are never content with the status quo and are always looking towards the future. The RBTC strives to always add value in the greater work of building a strong region. We believe our future is a bright one and that our region can be recognized globally for its innovation, entrepreneurship, and talent assets and consistently rank as one of the leading technology hubs in the nation. Our Mission The RBTC exists to promote the growth of the Roanoke-Blacksburg technology community. Our Vision Our vision is for the Roanoke-Blacksburg region to be globally recognized for its innovation, entrepreneurship, and talent assets. Strategic Objectives Deliver programs and services that promote the recognition of and provide substantial value to our members. Provide opportunities in which technology-focused organizations can exchange ideas and information, and capitalize on business opportunities. Participate in activities that drive visibility and awareness of the RBTC, its members, and the region. Serve as an advocate for the region on a broad range of technology issues at the local, state, and federal level. Offer assistance to our local government partners in the recruitment of new technology companies and the development of programs that enhance services to existing companies. Foster relationships with our higher-education partners that lead to new avenues for collaboration and the development of a healthy innovation ecosystem. Create an environment for sustainable K-12 programs that enhance Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and Healthcare career choices. Facilitate the growth of services within the region that support technology-focused entrepreneurship, creating an environment that champions entrepreneurial success. Promote the success stories of our members and our technology community to a global audience. Engage with thought leaders and influencers that help us shape the future of our technology community. Core Four The RBTC strategically focuses its resources into four key areas that we call the “Core Four” and have developed member teams that are actively working on a number of initiatives in each area. Talent Development & Recruitment: We seek ways to increase talent development and recruitment efforts collectively across the region for technology-focused companies. From developing a future workforce with a focus on science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and healthcare to recruiting knowledge workers from across the globe, we believe our region has a lot to offer and want to find ways to strengthen our collective efforts. Entrepreneurial Development: We seek ways to enhance the entrepreneurial climate in the region by first diving into what exists already and then by identifying what is needed. We seek to enhance existing efforts and define what exactly the RBTC can offer that will make the greatest impact. Marketing/Communications: We continually work to identify all of the existing messages about the region’s technology story. Working with a number of other regional organizations, we seek to collectively ensure we are telling the story that drives growth across our technology sector. Member Engagement: We continually work to identify types of events, topics, and speakers of greatest interest to our region’s technology community. We also seek partnerships with other organizations in the region to leverage opportunities to collaborate on events and bring in speakers from across the globe. We are continually developing new events and retooling existing ones in order to offer the best possible experience for our members and guests. _________________________________________________ Our Motto “CONNECT – GROW – LEAD” What do we mean by this? The RBTC is a dynamic and growing organization and we are very excited about the future of our technology community. We stay focused on that future by embracing three major concepts: Connect, Grow, and Lead. CONNECT The RBTC connects and unities our technology community through a variety of engagement opportunities for our members, from access to thought leaders, peer roundtables and community forums, to the largest networking events held in the region. GROW The RBTC seeks to grow talent, expertise, and new business opportunities within our technology community through collaboration, training, and professional development for all of our members through a wide variety of events and resources. LEAD The RBTC is leading the way in the development of our region’s innovation ecosystem and is developing future leaders through access to our community’s most successful entrepreneurs via our mentoring and leadership development programs.