About
Guidewire Group, in a unique partnership with Innovate Ventures s.r.l. , The City of Zaragoza, Zaragoza City of Knowledge Foundation and Informatica El Cortes Ingles, established Innovate!Europe in 2005 to identifyand support Europe’s highest potential startup companies. Now, in its fourth edition, Innovate!Europe has set on a new course to be a year-round resource for European startups.
Guidewire Group, Inc.
Guidewire Group is a research-based advisory firm, focusing exclusively on early stage companies in emerging markets. Guidewire Group’s analysts meet with hundreds of innovative companies each year to assess their market potential and help them develop and drive their strategies. In addition to its Advisory Services for startups, Guidewire Group operates Guidewire STUDIO, an in-residence business accelerator in the heart of Silicon Valley.
Innovate Ventures
Innovate Ventures was founded in 2006 as the guardian of the Innovate!Europe brand in Spain and as co-producer of the Innovate!Europe program. It is a privately-owned company, uniquely focused on fostering economic development through entrepreneurship and technology innovation. The company is based in Madrid with partners in Zaragoza and Silicon Valley, USA. For further information, please contact: Tina Cassano at +44 (0)121 288 3766.
The city of Zaragoza, capital of the Aragon region in Northeast Spain, is in the midst of a transformation that includes demographic, urban and economic growth. Connected to Madrid and Barcelona through a new high-speed train, Zaragoza is an important hub in Southern Europe—blending privileged location with international manufacturing and a prestigious University that specialises in computing, telecommunication, and the sciences. This past summer, Zaragoza was host to the World’s Fair Expo Zaragoza 2008: “Water and Sustainable Development.”More than two thousand years of history, a high quality of life, and innovative city projects blend to make Zaragoza a dynamic city for work, pleasure, and investment.
Zaragoza City of Knowledge Foundation
The City of Zaragoza and Telefónica, Siemens, Endesa, Ibercaja, and Caja Inmaculada have united to create the “Zaragoza City of Knowledge Foundation.” The Foundation—whose motto is innovation, science, technology— supports the development of the Information Society in Zaragoza. Actively promoting the scientific and technological culture among the underprivileged, the Foundation organises and promotes related national and international events. The Mayor of Zaragoza chairs the Foundation and the Board includes Spanish luminaries such as Luis Oro, one of the brightest scientists in Spain, and Mateo Valero, who’s responsible for Spain’s supercomputing project.
Aragon is made up of three provinces: Huesca, Zaragoza and Teruel. The capital of the region is Zaragoza. Aragón became a Kingdom in the 11th Century, although its origins date back to pre-Roman times. The historical path of the Independent Community of Aragón, from its beginnings as a political organization in the 8th century in valleys of Echo and Canfranc to the present day, is laid out in a series of crucial events which apply as much to Aragón as to the rest of Europe: the Commitment of Caspe, the expansion of the Aragonese Principality to the Mediterranean, the political leadership of Fernando II the Catholic and his grandson Carlos I, the Moorish culture, the ‘Ilustración española’, the War of Independence, and the Spanish Civil War. Nowadays Aragón’s leadership is comparatively autonomous and has been one of the pioneers in statute reform. Aragón has also given the world politicians, philosophers, scientists, and artists, representatives of a rich and universal culture: Martial, Avempace, Miguel Servet, Gracián, Goya, Ramon and Cajal, or Buñuel, Carlos and Antonio Saura.
Founded in March 1988, Informática El Corte Inglés, S.A., belongs to El Corte Inglés Group and is the leading distributor group in Spain. Its main activities range from distributor, reseller, manufacturer to consulting and systems integration in Public Administration and large and medium-sized companies in the finance, insurance, manufacturing, and retail sectors. Its activities are based on both its own products and solutions as well as integrating third party products and solutions. It is the leading Spanish private capital company in IT and Communications in Spain.
Informática El Corte Inglés owns a computer factory in Madrid which manufactures the INVES brand of products where it assembles more than 70,000 computers each year. Its presence in all of the country’s major cities and regions means that Informática El Corte Inglés covers the whole of the national territory with 18 branches. Responding to current market demand, Informática El Corte Inglés has divided its organisation into two large divisions with the aim of offering its clients the best service with guaranteed quality. One of these divisions is Technology Infrastructures, whose business lines are geared to providing hardware, software, and broadband services. The other division is Consulting and Services. This division provides projects and services related to Expert Document Management Centres, CRM, Call Centre, ERP, Human Resources, and Internet.
MEDIA INQUIRES
Public relations and media outreach is provided by Innovate!Europe partner, Ballou Public Relations.
Ballou PR provides strategic public relations services for European and U.S. clients that go far beyond traditional media relations. Specialised in high technology, biotechnology and related industries, including VC and business services companies, the firm’s Paris-based agency helps clients optimise their business strategies and establish global public relations campaigns. In doing so, Ballou integrates all techniques of communications, both traditional and emerging, to develop proactive, aggressive public relations programs designed to increase the sales and value of a company, not just “raise awareness.” Ballou’s multi-cultural and multi-lingual team helps bridge cultural and language gaps by meeting PR needs for clients of all nationalities whose needs transcend borders into a foreign market, whether French, American, or elsewhere in Europe.
For more information, please contact Colette Ballou at colette@balloupr.com
Innovate!Europe Past Events
To see what happened in Innovate!Europe’s first three years, please visit the 2007 event site.
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