Where are the crowds to cheer startups?

If you are old, like I am, you may remember Reggie Jackson playing for the New York Yankees. He would come to home plate in October and create heroics with a single swing of his baseball bat. It was magic (unless you were a Red Sox fan, which I am, but that story is for another day) and the term "Mr. October" was coined for his "hope-filled" performance in many Major League Baseball World Series.

There is nothing better than playing in front of your home crowd and getting on base. Hearing the crowd cheer is thrilling and inspiring. It enables young men and women to accomplish goals, often far above their natural abilities.

Many startups and small businesses resemble the struggle of a long baseball season as they hope to vie for the opportunity to swing for a home run, or even a base hit to start their business.

We have some incredibly bright individuals and many great new businesses in Nevada. These entrepreneurs want to stay and create heroics in Nevada. But when they come to play there are only a few diehards in the stands. Instead, they have had to travel out-of-state to find recognition and a cheering crowd.

We talk about supporting our young, energetic minds and helping startups get going. But talk is cheap. Is there real support here for these startups or is it apathy?

There is clearly evidence around to show signs of emerging and growing support. Gov. Sandoval, State Treasurer Kate Marshall, Mayor Bob Cashell, Commissioner Kitty Jung, John Berkich, and selected business leaders are doing their part. Maybe we are in the evolutionary process and what may appear as apathy is really a transition period. Or, maybe we are all too busy. Or, maybe it is someone else's problem. Or maybe it just isn't that important.

Regardless of how you view economic development or the growth that might follow change, the facts that we have real and prolonged unemployment over 20 percent, and our young people are leaving to find exciting work elsewhere, should cause us immediate concern. Back to the baseball analogy: If you plan to sit passively and watch our young companies struggle, then it would be better to stay home. If you want them to succeed, then stand up and cheer and let them know you want them to win!

Don't get me wrong. I love living here and there are some great people in Nevada doing whatever they can to make a difference. But, it greatly concerns me that we see entrepreneurs and young companies every day who have to go out-of-state to find adequate support and success.

As an example, the Cleantech Open runs the world's largest cleantech business competition a one-of-a-kind national program to find, fund and foster the most promising clean energy technologies. Over the past five years, the Cleantech Open has awarded over $5 million in cash and in-kind services to support clean-tech entrepreneurs and growth companies. A total of 473 alumni companies have raised more than $300 million in external funding and have created over 2,500 new jobs. This is real competition where real businesses with real jobs are at stake!

In the current Cleantech Open competition, seven innovative entrepreneurial teams were selected from an elite group of 39 startups that competed in the California Regional Semi-Finals, with the National Finals in November 2011. The best announcement is that two of these companies are based in Nevada. This is great news and congratulations to them both as they superbly represent Nevada in a national theater!

* In the Energy Efficiency category that deals with anything that saves watts, or deals in megawatts, LoadIQ of Reno won with its energy-management software that determines how energy is used in buildings, and itemizes energy bills to help ratepayers reduce costs. (See more at www.loadiq.com.)

* May-Ruben Technologies of Minden won the Regional Sustainability Award, an honor given to the team that most effectively incorporated a triple-bottom-line approach to scaling its business. The company has developed a thermally driven heat pump that can increase the energy efficiency of industrial processes such as process heating and cooling, drying, evaporation and distillation. (See more at www.mayrubentechnologies.com.)

As another example, Jodie Andersen, founder and president of JoDog Safety Innovations based in Reno offers innovative products designed to increase safety on the road and at the worksite. JoDog Safety couples their products with on-site training to identify and protect workers from incident or injury. JoDog Safety was Vendor of the Year in 2010 with the Maintenance Superintendents Association in Sacramento and is quickly becoming recognized by the U.S. Department of Transportation for its road safety solutions. Outstanding!

These are inspiring examples of three emerging companies ready to make a difference and build their businesses in Nevada. These, and many others, represent the type of people and businesses that we talk about every day and wonder why they are leaving. We need to ask ourselves, why do these companies have to travel out of-state to find a cheering crowd? What do the Cleantech Open judges see that we don't?

I enjoy writing articles like this one as it makes me stop and think about what I am doing and why I am doing it. It causes me to put my efforts in perspective. I see some people around town, who I consider heroes for their vision and commitment to the community. How did we let LoadIQ, JoDog Safety, and May-Ruben Technologies go to California without a strong support from Nevada? Maybe we have slipped into an apathetic coma. Maybe we have become complacent and all too willing to let "someone else" do the cheering. I don't know and frankly, I really don't care.

But, I do care about these young companies and giving them the best support possible. LoadIQ, May-Ruben Technologies, JoDog Safety, and others just like them are waiting on deck to come to the plate to swing the bat for a base hit. This is our home team. I have a good feeling about these guys!

Tell us what you think. Send your comments to Lynne.Keller@c4cube.com.

Ky Good is managing director of C4CUBE, a business incubator in downtown Reno. Contact him through c4cube.com.