Chicagoland Chamber sees event as growth opportunity for B2B, B2C corporations

Chicgao, IL -- (SBWire) -- 07/21/2011 --The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce today announced its support of the largest horizontally-focused technology event to hit the city since the Consumer Electronics Show left in 1994. TechWeek, July 22-29, includes all the trappings of tech conferences held on the coasts, but it expands the cultural experience beyond start-ups and investors by involving corporations, which are starved for innovation as a means of improving profitability and efficiency.

“TechWeek is an opportunity for corporations, not just start-ups and investors, to find innovation that fuels growth for the next decade,” says Gerald Roper, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce president and CEO. “Everyone in the technology and investment community from coast to coast knows Chicago is experiencing a technology renaissance. The corporate community would do well to take advantage of this groundswell of activity centered in Chicago. This event is a microcosm of the influx of talent, technology and capital flowing into Chicago because of its extremely diverse corporate ecosystem not found elsewhere in the United States.”

Former Google executive and now Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center CEO Kevin Willer characterizes TechWeek as a bridge between start-ups, technology, talent, investors and corporations. As part of TechWeek, the CEC will host a panel discussion on "Why Chicago is the best place to start a company.”

“TechWeek takes a broad view of future technology as a means of building high-growth, sustainable businesses that serve as platforms for economic development,” Willer says. “This is consistent with our mission and the reason why we believe corporations stand to benefit from engaging in TechWeek as a means to connecting with innovations to improve profitability and efficiency.”

“If you’re a tech company with a goal of building a profitable company that appeals to a diverse economy, there is no better place than Chicago,” says Jonathan Pasky, president of TechWeek’s production company, midVentures. “Chicago has the most diverse corporate economy in the United States and that diversity presents opportunity for tech companies and corporations alike in both business-to-business and consumer markets.”

For more information on TechWeek, please visit http://techweek.com./

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1904 as a private, non-profit business assistance and economic development organization. With 2,600 members, representing over 1.3 million individual employees in the six-county Northeastern Illinois region (Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry & Will), it is the largest Chamber of Commerce in Illinois and one of the largest in the nation. Our mission is to make Chicagoland the most business-friendly region in America and to enhance our members' success through aggressive programs in advocacy, member benefits, services, and actionable information.