Questioning assumptions is a necessary step on the path to success, but the Smart City Works (SCW) team has the talent to do it in a way that fosters growth and belief. SCW stewards companies through a results-oriented process that finds opportunity in weakness, clarity in confusion, and value hidden in noise. Datakwip entered the SCW program a vocal skeptic, tainted by previous experiences with so called “incubators,” and operating under the assumption that “actuator” was little more than a moniker. We were wrong. Datakwip graduated from the SCW program aware of our own differentiators and equipped with a short- and long-term plan that would have been impossible without SCW.

As co-founder Greg Sauter put it in describing Datakwip’s initial pitch, “I think there might be something here, but you’re not showing me.” This was the first of several healthy challenges we would face in the SCW program. Initially I wondered how others couldn’t see what I saw in Datakwip. Datakwip had all of the right features, but SCW showed me why technical capabilities are not a business. Solving problems is a business, driving value is a business. After three months I can describe my business with confidence: Datakwip has a world class go-to-market strategy, advisory board, and a network of investors and mentors to help us along the way.