Join Us at Packard Place Public House on Jan. 20th

Don’t miss the next Packard Place Public House virtual event and the opportunity to learn how to use your entrepreneurial and start-up skills to serve our community! Our CEO Patti Weber joins fellow panelist Eric Gorman of Wily and moderator Kristin Beck of Social Venture Partners Charlotte for a lively, fun and educational gathering.

Learn more and register!


Seed20 OnStage!

Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” Today, we focus on an upcoming event dedicated to those in the Charlotte community that are “doing for others” each and every day…SEED20 OnStage!

SEED20 is the annual program of Social Venture Partners Charlotte (a nonprofit organization) to identify, highlight and connect the community to the region’s most promising social entrepreneurs tackling pressing challenges.

Croixstone’s Mark Weber is serving as the Lead Partner for this year’s powerful program, best known for its high-energy SEED20 OnStage event where ten members of the SEED20 class compete to win cash awards by making three-minute “pitches” to a panel of judges and a community audience.

This year’s event takes place at the Bechtler Museum and Knight Theater in front of an audience of 1,000 guests on April 16, 2018.  We invite you to view the SEED20 video and website to learn more.

Tickets for the event are now on sale.  To purchase tickets, Click Here


Freelancing in America

Did you know that 36% of the U.S. workforce are freelance workers?  This equates to 57.3 million workers earning an estimated $1.4 trillion annually. By 2027, the majority of the U.S. workforce will freelance, according to findings in the “Freelancing in America Study: 2017” released in mid-October. The study conducted by Upwork and Freelancers Union defined freelancers as “individuals who have engaged in supplemental, temporary, project- or contract-based work.”
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To learn more about freelancing in America, check out the following:
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  • Click here for a complete guide from entrepreneur.com to the highest-paying jobs, companies, freelance jobs and more.
  • Prepare for the future as a freelancer by following these 3 tips here.
  • Want to quit your job to go freelance?  Here is a list of 10 skills that are in hot demand now.
  • Are we all fated to become “solopreneurs”?  Read here about the four key criteria needed to stay competitive and successful as freelancers.

Is Flexible Work Driving the Future of the Workplace?

Will the day come when we all work as our own boss? 

The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting earlier this month and the future of work was a key topic of discussion.  The organization’s Global Future Council on Education, Gender and Work is presently crafting a document that addresses the question of how we facilitate the transition from the traditional form of work to the future state where work is more flexible.

Stephane Kasriel, CEO of Upwork and co-chair of the Global Future Council on Education, Gender and Work, recently shared the following perspectives on the future of work:

  • Entrepreneurs and freelancers represent the future of the workplace as traditional office jobs become less and less relevant
  • Lifelong learning is more important than ever before as skill requirements are constantly changing
  • There is a constant need to be reskilled and you need some kind of job renewal every five years or so
  • The workplace is moving towards more flexible arrangements where individuals are working with multiple companies at the same time
  • “Knowledge” work is especially aligned with more flexible work arrangements and can be done from anywhere, thereby creating more value than the traditional work model
  • The future of work is not going to be about full-time employment

Learn more about the future of work here.