Traditional business education programs can prepare students for the grind of entrepreneurship.
Structured instruction combined with real-world experience gives students a strong base from which to launch.
But budding entrepreneurs can also learn from the people who go through the lessons.
Interstate 4 through downtown Orlando has been a pain to drive as construction pushes forward.
But at least the light at the end of the tunnel is promising.
Once complete, the highway that bisects Orlando will be one of the most technologically advanced roads in the country.
Central Florida has become a top destination for the fast-growing esports industry.
The area added Full Sail University’s esports-specific venue last year to hundreds of hotel ballrooms.
Add in the Amway Center and you have a variety of venues for event hosts to consider.
Every year, Orlando hosts one of the largest military tech trade shows in the world.
The weeklong celebration often sees the debut of innovations that eventually make their way to the warfighter.
I/ITSEC’s decision long ago to come to Orlando helped form a robust defense industry cluster.
Each of the military branches’ tech research teams have a presence here.
Some of the largest companies, including Lockheed Martin and Cubic Corporation, have a workforce here.
Those companies’ presence here also has created an ecosystem that includes hundreds of contractors, as well.
They wanted to be close to the action to bid on high-value contracts.
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Consumer technology has grown in Central Florida.
As more businesses emerge in business sectors like hospitality and finance, it has created some positive momentum here.
Fattmerchant, which builds financial tech for banks, has attracted attention from several investors.
Meanwhile, its CEO Suneera Madhani, meanwhile, has emerged as one of the city’s more-respected entrepreneurs.
UniKey, meanwhile, has created technology for the city’s robust hotel industry.
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Central Florida has the ingredients to establish itself as a virtual and augmented reality hub.
That’s because several university programs, a strong gaming community and manufacturing training sites could push toward that.
As more industries come around to the technology as an effective training tool, Orlando’s potential will grow.
That’s good news for Orlando.
Orlando’s indie video game scene has become one of the most-cohesive communities in the city.
Part of the reason is Indienomicon, which has organized game builders here for more than five years.
The organization has helped organize a series of events that have built the community’s camaraderie.
Central Florida ranks high on any list that comes out about video game development every year.
The reason?
Full Sail University, Valencia College, DAVE School and, of course, University of Central Florida’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy.
That school came out of Electronic Arts’ effort to build a game hub here in 2005. It now produces a regular stream of talent to its Maitland game studio.
Now, as Electronic Arts prepares to move downtown, the skillset will be even more valued.
When the NBA wanted an arena to host its 2K League’s mid-summer event, it turned to Central Florida and Full Sail University.
For one weekend, every team sent its esports squad to the arena to battle it out.
It was essentially a home game for the Orlando’s Magic’s squad, which was one of the teams in the league’s inaugural year.
By all accounts, Full Sail executed a slam dunk.