Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I N O. X X I V ainebiz: How does your work for Startup Maine and Live + Work in Maine mesh? Katie Shorey: Live + Work in Maine is focused on attracting and retaining the talented people Maine's employ- ers, economy and communities need to thrive into the future. We collabo- rate with employers, nonprofits and the government [Maine's Department of Economic and Community Development] to achieve our goals. e same goes for Startup Maine. We want to promote Maine's robust startup scene so that individuals consider working for tech companies and companies consider starting or growing their company in Maine. e state's entrepreneurial community is a part of our culture and a huge talent attraction angle. MB: What did you learn at People's United Bank and WEX that you're applying in your current roles? KS: WEX taught me how a corpora- tion can start thinking about innova- tion as a way to diversify products and services. e bank introduced me to the important role of service providers and how critical they are to the ecosystem. Lawyers, accoun- tants, consultants and bankers are an integral part of a startup's life cycle. Banks can't (or won't) always lend to startups because of their risk profile, Maine's startup champion Helping entrepreneurs reach their full potential B y R e n e e C o R d e s A force of nature in Maine's startup community, Katie Shorey is president of Startup Maine and director of engagement for Live + Work in Maine. She has also worked at corporate payments company WEX Inc. and at People's United Bank. Katie Shorey Katie Shorey President Startup Maine, Portland P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY The state's entrepreneurial community is a part of our culture and a huge talent attraction angle. O C T O B E R 5 , 2 0 2 0 24 Katie Shorey, president of Startup Maine and Live + Work in Maine, is often the first point of contact for startups. Here she talks to the team at HighByte, an industrial software development firm.

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