Changing Perceptions eMerge Americas builds on its mission to establish Miami as a global technology hub. By Ron Mann | Photography by Eduardo Schneider
“
Photo by Eduardo Schneider
X
There’s a technology ecosystem in Miami that is constantly evolving. Our goal with eMerge from day one was to have as much of an impact as possible. — Xavier Gonzalez
avier Gonzalez chuckles after recounting a brief meeting with an attendee at last year’s eMerge conference. “He told me he loved the event and has been coming for the past five years. I appreciated the comment very much, even though it was only our second year,” says Gonzalez. “It actually shows we have built significant brand awareness in a short period of time, which is something we have looked to accomplish from the beginning.” Gonzalez, who was recently tapped as CEO of eMerge Americas, has been involved in Miami’s homegrown technology conference since its inception in 2014. Before joining eMerge he worked closely with founder and chairman, Manny Medina, at Terremark for five years, culminating in the sale of the data services company to Verizon Communications in 2011 for $1.4 billion. One of South Florida’s most successful tech entrepreneurs, Medina built Terremark from its humble beginnings into one of South Florida’s most successful companies. “The fact that it happened to be in the technology sector in a city not really known for this industry was even more astounding,” says Gonzalez. Medina had a vision that Miami could be more influential as a technology hub, but needed to take a more active role in moving things along. He envisioned a conference or series of events that would act as a catalyst for awareness and growth among the global technology community. After taking some time off after the sale of his company, he approached Gonzalez and the two started the planning process for the first eMerge Americas conference in 2014.
”
“I was essentially employee number one,” says Gonzalez, “But it was the Knight Foundation that really made eMerge happen. Their early support from a financial standpoint was a key component, but what was more important was the credibility that came along with the investment.” Back in 2012, we launched an effort to help support Miami startups and entrepreneurs,” says Matt Haggman, Miami Program Director for the Knight Foundation. Our aim was to focus on attracting new interest to Miami’s rising startup community and we saw eMerge has a key collaborator in that effort.” Having Knight on board also made it easier to get local government to buy into the event. Miami-Dade County, and more specifically, Mayor Carlos Gimenez, saw the immediate impact that an event such as eMerge could have on the community and came on board in the beginning as a founding partner. The first year even included a Mayoral Innovation Summit with mayors from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe taking part. The eMerge team is comprised of 12 full-time employees throughout most of the year and grows as it gets closer to the conference. Among a core group of staffers is Melissa Medina, VP Business Development who remembers her father talking to her about transforming Miami’s tech ecosystem back in 2011. Both Gonzalez and Medina were involved in the initial challenges of “selling a vision” before there was anything to show. “Planning the first conference was challenging, because every detail had to be created from scratch,” says, Melissa Medina.” There were no events of its kind here in Miami and we initially relied heavily on our contacts and relationships. We saw the positive trend with technology in the region and we wanted to tap into that market.” MAY/JUNE 2016
37