Pipeline Entrepreneurs accepting applicants for 2017 fellowship
August 26, 2016 | Bobby Burch
Ahead of its first adventure abroad, Pipeline Entrepreneurs is accepting applications for its fellowship program that not only affords entrepreneurial education but also a network of powerful business leaders.
The 2017 class will mark the organization’s 11th-annual program in which Pipeline accepts at least 10 entrepreneurs from the around the region to participate in a rigorous, yearlong leadership development program.
Kansas City-based Pipeline — which is led by CEO Joni Cobb — will accept applications from Sept. 1 to Oct. 19.
“Over the last ten years, Pipeline has helped 100 high-growth founders in building global businesses, right here in the Midwest,” Cobb said in a release. “We’re continuing to expand our network both nationally and internationally. There’s never been a better time to apply to Pipeline.”
The 12-month program includes workshop modules, mentorship from national experts and — perhaps most valuably — a place in the Pipeline family, which is comprised of dozens of successful, Midwestern business leaders. A few Kansas City-area Pipeline grads are EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush, Rawxies founder Callie England, VideoFizz founder Laura Steward, Farmobile CEO Jason Tatge and many more.
Rush said that Pipeline has allowed him to more quickly grow his firm.
“Pipeline is one of the best ways to reduce risk and accelerate the chance of success that we have,” Rush said in a release. “It’s been here for me for the last ten years and it’s an honor to share the opportunity.”
The 2017 program will feature modules in Kansas City, St. Louis, Nebraska and a yet-to-be-determined location. After the application period closes, Pipeline will invite applicants to interview for a chance to enter the program. Those accepted to the fellowship program will be announced on Jan. 26 at Pipeline’s annual culminating gala “The Innovators,” which previously was known as “Innovator of the Year.”
In addition to its applications announcement, Pipeline recently launched a new website and logo to celebrate its first decade. In September, Pipeline will be traveling to Ireland as part of a module workshop that also will celebrate its 10-year anniversary.
Check out the video below regarding Pipeline’s applications.

2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Frustrated by the fit, this traveler-turned-swimwear founder crafted 10 pairs himself; now his trunk show is going global
Opening a popup swimwear store in one of Atlanta’s most upscale malls represented a surge of momentum for Tristan Davis’ high-end brand that began not on a beach or a runway, but in Kansas City’s tight-knit startup community. “We’ve gone from an idea in a handmade bathing suit to a high fashion mall in less…
Harvesting opportunity: How a KC chicken chain turned a strip of parking lot into its latest ingredient
Months before snow blanketed Kansas City this week, Todd Johnson transformed a weed-filled, unusable portion of parking lot at his Lenexa restaurant into a flourishing garden that serves up fresh produce used in kitchens at all three of his Strips Chicken and Brewing locations in Johnson County. In its first season, Moonglow Gardens — as…
AI evolved faster than rules to protect people; this founder wants to code ethics back into the tech
Amber Stewart sees what many overlook in artificial intelligence, she said: the human cost of unregulated technology that can manifest as anything from sexist and racist outcomes to outright theft from willing and unwilling members of the public. “I’m not afraid of the tech,” said Stewart, founder and CEO of GuardianSync. “I’m afraid of unfettered…
A romantic hideaway (for you and a book): Entrepreneur’s heart for reading opens store on Independence Square
America Fontenot didn’t plan to launch her new Independence bookstore on national Small Business Saturday — the busiest shopping weekend of the year — but renovation delays just kept pushing back the opening, she said. So while many small shops were offering Black Friday-adjacent deals to get customers in the front door, Fontenot’s The Littlest…
