200. Neil Soni: Author of The Startup Gold Mine - The Startup Playbook For Partnering With Big Business

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Neil Soni is the author of The Startup Gold Mine: How to Tap the Hidden Innovation Agendas of Large Companies to Fund and Grow Your Business.

Neil spent years with startups, focusing on the sales and marketing side, trying to sell into large organizations. He then moved to Estee Lauder, where he specialized in external innovation. After seeing both sides, Neil wanted to create a resource to help startups understand the corporate side and corporations to understand the startup side. Brian Ardinger, Inside Outside Innovation Founder, spoke with Neil about how to succeed through corporate/startup collaboration.

Previously, Neil led the growth team at MomTrusted.com, a social marketplace for early education with over 3 million users. Prior to MomTrusted, Neil founded CollegeZen, a social platform for high school students, peer mentors, and colleges. This effort caught the attention of The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which named CollegeZen one of the worldwide winners of the College Knowledge Challenge. Neil was named a Finalist for Entrepreneur Magazine’s College Entrepreneur of the Year award for his work at CollegeZen.

Neil works with a variety of groups in the innovation ecosystem, including startups, venture funds, accelerators, and large brands. He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University’s Chemical Engineering program.

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