DevelopOhio

JobsOhio and Eficionado LLC, a Gahanna brand management agency, have joined forces to help make Ohio “the top destination for Black-owned technology startups and venture capitalists — turning persistent funding gaps into an opportunity to seize,” ColumbusInno reports. The two organizations have “convened a council of business leaders to form a strategy to evangelize for the state, and make the introductions to customers, state programs and investors that can help entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups succeed,” according to the article. Nationwide in 2021, Black founders raised “record amounts of venture capital,” $1.8 billion in the first half of the year, but still “did not budge from 1% of the total.” Terry Gore, JobsOhio senior director of financial services, said, “I know we can do better. . . . We can attract so many more companies to the state. If you are a founder of color, Ohio is going to be a welcoming state.” For more, read the full article.