ATLANTA-BASED PINDROP SECURITY WINS PRESTIGIOUS BUSINESS COMPETITION

Four companies competed for a combined $450,000 in cash and services

ATLANTA (May 24, 2010) – The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) and Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) today announced that Atlanta-based start-up company, Pindrop Security, has won the 2011 GRA/TAG Business Launch Competition and will receive $50,000 cash and over $200,000 in donated services from the Atlanta business community to help the company grow. Pindrop Security offers a unique Caller ID technology that authenticates callers through the “fingerprint” of the phone call making financial and other transactions over the phone more secure.

“The GRA/TAG Business Launch Competition gets more competitive every year and we applaud Pindrop Security for winning this year’s competition,” stated TAG president and CEO, Tino Mantella. “Georgia is one of the top states in the nation for entrepreneurism and we are pleased to support the growth of new business. Pindrop Security is a great example of the kind of innovation that makes Georgia a leader in financial technology and information security.”

The other finalists Soket, AuditMyBooks and ViscidTech will split the remaining $200,000 in pro bono services, a first for the competition. Services include legal counsel, professional consulting, marketing, software and even real estate space. They have been donated to the final participants in a way to not only help ensure their success, but to assist in connecting the Atlanta entrepreneurial community with established businesses.

“It is exciting for us that all of the companies are able to walk away from the competition with a great experience and a package of services vital to a new company,” stated Sid Elliott, director for the GRA. “This has always been a public, private partnership and this year’s support and participation proved the strength of that partnership.”

This year’s event also featured a ‘People’s Choice Award.’ The over 130 participants that took part in today’s final competition voted using the TAG Entrepreneurs Mobile App for their favorite presentation. Soket, a company that focuses on online promotions that offer local organizations a place to manage, monitor and make sense of promotional efforts on the web, was the proud recipient of the first annual People’s Choice Award.

Judges for the final round of the 2011 Competition included Ron Vern, former CEO of Sage Software; Allen Moseley, General Partner at Noro-Moseley Partners; Wayne Hunter, Managing Partner, Harbert Venture Partners (Roanoke, VA); John Glushik, Investment Team, InterSouth Partners (Durham, NC); and Tripp Rackley, Technology Entrepreneur and 2010 Inductee to the Georgia Technology Hall of Fame.

The competition, now in its sixth year, facilitates connections between the younger entrepreneurial community and the more seasoned entrepreneurs, with the initial applications being screened by an experienced panel of entrepreneurs, and the most promising applicants being assigned a mentor for the duration of the competition. Participants are also connected to the investor community, with out-of-state venture capital companies being represented among the judge’s panel and a multitude of angel and venture capital investors in attendance at the event. For more information visit: http://www.tagonline.org/businesslaunch.php.

About Technology Association of Georgia

The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 13,000 members and hosting over 170 events each year. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 30 industry societies, each of which provides rich content for TAG constituents. TAG’s mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy. The association provides members with access to networking and educational programs; recognizes and promotes Georgia’s technology leaders and companies; and advocates for legislative action that enhances the state’s economic climate for technology. Additionally, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAG’s charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive. For more information visit the TAG website at www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at http://www.tagthink.com. To learn about the TAG-Ed Collaborative visit http://www.tagedonline.org/.

About Georgia Research Alliance

A model public-private partnership of Georgia's research universities, business and state government, the Georgia Research Alliance helps build Georgia's technology-rich economy in three major ways: through attracting Eminent Scholars to Georgia's research universities; through helping create centers of research excellence and through converting research into products, services and jobs that drive the economy. To learn more about GRA, visit www.gra.org

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Capital and Innovation Topics of May 26th TAG Health Meeting

Fireside Chat plus Social Media Format Encourage Participation

ATLANTA (May 23, 2011) – Two of the hottest topics in the Health Information Technology (HIT) field are finding capital and supporting innovation, and they will be the focus of a May 26th meeting of Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) Health. TAG is the state’s leading association dedicated to the promotion and economic advancement of Georgia’s technology industry.

A “fireside chat” with industry leaders will be followed by an interactive discussion that will include text and tweet input. During the Town Hall portion of the meeting, audience input will be projected on the big screen with the opportunity to participate onsite and remotely. The meeting will be held from 7:30-9:00 AM in the Metro Atlanta Chamber Boardroom.

This community meeting is a prelude to the 2011 Health IT Leadership Summit, which will include program modules on capital and innovation, two key building blocks for success that can also be insurmountable obstacles. These topics were identified based upon feedback from the highly successful 2010 Summit, which attracted 500+ participants for the daylong conference.

Speakers for the May 26th TAG Health meeting include Mark Reiboldt, Vice President, Coker Capital Advisors, and H. Morgan Crafts, Jr., PMP, MBA Chief Information Officer, Public Health, Health IT, Northrop Grumman Corporation. Moderator will be Dan Rivera, Area Director, Government, Education and Medical Region, Enterprise Solution Sales, Intel Americas, Inc.

The Twitter hash tag will be #GAHealthIT, and anyone can participate by going to Tweetchat and typing GAHealthIT in the search box. Beginning at 7:55, announcements, questions and comments will be posted to that everyone can chime in. Messages or questions can be sent to @gahealthit in advance of the meeting.

Registration and additional information are available here or on the TAG website at www.tagonline.org.

About The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)

The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 13,000 members and hosting over 170 events each year. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 30 industry societies, each of which provides rich content for TAG constituents. TAG’s mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy. The association provides members with access to networking and educational programs; recognizes and promotes Georgia’s technology leaders and companies; and advocates for legislative action that enhances the state’s economic climate for technology. Additionally, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAG’s charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive. For more information visit the TAG website at www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at http://www.tagthink.com. To learn about the TAG-Ed Collaborative visit http://www.tagedonline.org/.

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TAG Education Collaborative Announces 2011 WEBChallenge Scholarship Winners

9th Annual WEBChallenge focused on Engaging Students in S.T.E.M. Learning

Atlanta (May 11, 2011) — TAG Education Collaborative, the charitable arm of the Technology Association of Georgia that is focused on science, technology, engineering and math (S.T.E.M.) education initiatives, is announcing the winners of its 9th Annual WEBChallenge Scholarship Program. The WEBChallenge program engages teams of high school students in a competition to build an application of their choosing (simple game, tutorial, etc.) that teaches other students a topic related to science, technology, engineering or math (S.T.E.M) in a new and engaging way.

This year’s challenge attracted nearly 200 students from 14 high schools throughout the state and included two virtual teams of home schooled students from as far away as Connecticut and New Jersey. TAG-Ed awarded scholarships totaling nearly $25,000 to 25 of those students in a special awards ceremony held at the offices of McKesson Corporation. Robert Hendricks Jr., SVP, Program and Portfolio Management, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, addressed the students on the opportunity for students interested in pursuing technology careers.

Winning teams were evaluated and received awards based upon their ability to develop a Web-based application using a systems development process that is typical of a real-world development, though on a smaller scale. Students developed plans and tracked progress in the planning, constructing, testing, and implementation phases of the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC).

For the first time, faculty members that supported the winning teams received a stipend for their supply budgets. “We wanted to recognize the teachers that supported these teams with a few more resources for their classroom. This stipend is a small appreciation for the tremendous time and energy these teachers put into their students.” said Michael Robertson, Executive Director of TAG Education Collaborative.


Final web applications were judged by members of the business community, educators and other students. Scholarship prizes were awarded to the top 2 teams in the following categories:

• Best Concept
  
  • Team R & R – Collins Hill High School
    
    • Students – Renee Crozier, Rachel Crozier
      
    • Faculty Advisor - Stacy Byous
  • Commented Out – Virtual Homeschool Team based out of Mt. Pisgah Christian School
    
    • Students Nathaniel Pawelczyk, Nicholas Ward
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Derek Otieno
• Most Effective Implementation
  
  • Team ICE – Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science & Technology
    
    • Students – Insiya Ahmed, Courtney Jackson, Esther Tonea
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Patricia Caldwell
  • The Masterminds – Johns Creek High School
    
    • Students - Sudarshan Muralidhar, Anish Narayanan
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Michelle Morris
• Best Documentation Package
  
  • Geodaesia Labs – Virtual Homeschool team based out of Mt. Pisgah Christian School
    
    • Students – Jeremy Bartz, Jonathon Page, Kai Ninomiya
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Derek Otieno
  • Team Voyager – North Cobb High School
    
    • Students – Logan Genet, Steven Welday, Ariel Scott, Tiffany Zhang
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Pam Shattles
• Judges Prize for Best Overall Creativity
  
  • The Mountain View Bears – Mountain View High School
    
    • Students – Brian Abbott, Robert Compton
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Rosemary Lengsas
  • Bones R’ Us – Fulton Science Academy High School
    
    • Students – Diana Mathabela, Amina Madhlom, Lauren Hall
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Tahir Duzyol
• Grand Prize for Best Overall Entry
  
  • Mango Farm – Meadowcreek High School
    
    • Students – Quang Vo, William Goonsantiviboon, Breana Ma, Briyick Sibrian
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Pintu Thaker
  • Team ICE – Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science & Technology
    
    • Students – Insiya Ahmed, Courtney Jackson, Esther Tonea
      
    • Faculty Advisor – Patricia Caldwell

The TAG Education Collaborative is dedicated to strengthening Georgia's future workforce by uniting Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) resources with leading education initiatives while emphasizing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Tino Mantella, President of TAG added, “I continue to be amazed at the quality of work that high school students can produce. The WEBChallenge program is intended to give students an opportunity developing technology and gaining valuable skills to better prepare them for future technology careers.”
For more information on the WEBChallenge, visit www.tagedonline.org or contact Michael Robertson, Executive Director of TAG Education Collaborative at mrobertson@tagonline.org .

About TAG Education Collaborative
 
TAG Education Collaborative initiatives include a student internship program, the WebChallenge competition for high school students, and the Vine Event, a fundraiser launched in 2009 which has raised more than $80,000 to support STEM education. The TAG Education Collaborative provides middle school and high school programs designed to provide these students with hands-on activities that enable them to gain an appreciation for the opportunities available in STEM careers. For additional information, visit TAG Education Collaborative or contact Michael Robertson at (404) 920 – 2038 or mrobertson@tagonline.org

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TAG and TechAmerica Foundation Name NanoLumens a Finalist for American Technology Awards

ATLANTA (May 9, 2011) – The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) and TechAmerica Foundation today announced that NanoLumens, the Atlanta-based developer of the world’s largest and lightest flexible video displays, has been selected as a finalist in the Breakthrough Technology category for the American Technology Awards, also known as “The Termans.” The Termans bestow the only national “Best Of” awards recognizing all technology products and services throughout the nation. Winners will be announced on June 15 at TechAmerica Foundation’s Ninth Annual Technology and Government Dinner in Washington, D.C.

“We are honored to be a finalist for the Breakthrough Technology Award,” said Rick Cope, NanoLumens CEO. “NanoLumens unique innovations have created the world’s largest, lightest, flexible displays. NanoLumens’ thin, lightweight displays represent years of breakthrough R&D by some of the brightest minds in the global display industry. The result is a product that introduces countless new possibilities for out-of-home media, architects, exhibit and environmental design firms.”

NanoLumens was selected as one of four prestigious finalists in the Breakthrough Technology category from numerous companies across the nation for its Flex Display Technology. The finalists also include VQ OrthoCare for its BioniCare Knee System & OActive Brace, Microsoft for its Kinect gaming device and Agilyx for its Plastic to Fuel Process. Nominations for The Termans are vetted by industry experts and TechAmerica Foundation leadership.

“This year we saw a number of nominations from many companies new to the competition” said Dallas Advisory Partners Founder, and TechAmerica Foundation Chairman, David Sanders. “We congratulate all of this year’s finalists, and look forward to celebrating their achievements with them at the Technology and Government Dinner.”

The Termans are presented every year at TechAmerica Foundation’s Technology and Government Dinner, which is a premier Washington, D.C. networking event bringing hundreds of industry, congressional and government leaders together at one venue to celebrate the partnership between industry and government. They were named after Frederick Terman who was credited as being the father of Silicon Valley. For more information, please visit http://www.techamericafoundation.org/technology-government.

TAG is the Georgia regional office for TechAmerica.

About NanoLumens
NanoLumens is a display technology innovator that has combined a comprehensive portfolio of patented technologies to create thin, flexible, lightweight digital video displays. From trade show booths or indoor events to massive airport ceiling drops, NanoLumens video displays can be adapted to just about any application, shape or size – and rolled to pack and transport easily. The versatile displays are a cutting edge solution to fundamentally enhance any space through digital architecture. With over 20 patents issued or pending, the firm’s technical advisors include some of the brightest leaders of the global display industry. The company’s headquarters, engineering and contract manufacturing facilities are all located in the metro Atlanta region. (www.nanolumens.com)


About The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)
The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 13,000 members and hosting over 150 events each year. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 30 industry societies, each of which provide rich content for TAG constituents. TAG’s mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy. The association provides members with access to networking and educational programs; recognizes and promotes Georgia’s technology leaders and companies; and advocates for legislative action that enhances the state’s economic climate for technology. Additionally, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAG’s charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive. For more information visit the TAG website at www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at www.tagthink.com.


About TechAmerica Foundation
TechAmerica Foundation educates executives, policymakers, opinion leaders on the size, scope, outlook, and impact of the technology industry and on policies that enable and promote technological innovations to advance prosperity, security, and the general welfare. Launched in 1981, the Foundation is a 501c(3) non-profit affiliate of TechAmerica, which is the leading voice and resource for the U.S. technology industry. The Foundation disseminates award-winning industry, policy, and market research covering topics such as U.S. competitiveness in a global economy, innovation in government, and other areas of national interest. It also organizes conferences and seminars to explore pertinent issues with government and industry representatives and to share the Foundation’s findings. Learn more about TechAmerica Foundation at www.techamericafoundation.org.

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Alyssa Lane Fowler Of Mckesson Wins First Annual TAG Diversity Leadership Award

Atlanta, GA, May 3, 2011— Alyssa Lane Fowler of McKesson was the winner of the First Annual Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) Diversity Leadership Award presented at a dinner ceremony April 26th at Villa Christina. Lisa McVey, CIO of McKesson nominated Ms. Fowler for her outstanding leadership of internal diversity initiatives and made the introduction at the event. Alyssa shared her passion for her efforts by making an impromptu speech after receiving her award that inspired all attendees.

Ashley Crepsac of Intercontinental Hotels Group was one of three finalists and was introduced for his outstanding work with developing global online communities by Li Yu Lo of IHG.

Rosalia Thomas of IBM was the third finalist and was nominated and introduced by Genelle Betterson of IBM for inspired leadership of IBM Atlanta Metro Area Diversity Council.

“This was a very tough decision and we spent a great deal of time reviewing all the finalists” said Greg Parker, Co-Chair of TAG Diversity. “We were overwhelmed with the quality, passion and dedication of all the nominees but particularly the dedication of our finalists and the impact they had on their organizations” Rebecca Hoke, Co-chair TAG diversity board added.

The award is presented to an individual who proved to be a superstar leveraging differences within their organization to increase productivity, efficiency, profits, revenues and employee morale. The award is given in April of each year.

Photos from the event are available online at http://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.10150178159396409.302997.133288386408

About The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)

The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 13,000 members and hosting over 150 events each year. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 30 industry societies, each of which provide rich content for TAG constituents. TAG’s mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy. The association provides members with access to networking and educational programs; recognizes and promotes Georgia’s technology leaders and companies; and advocates for legislative action that enhances the state’s economic climate for technology. Additionally, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAG’s charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive. For more information visit the TAG website at www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at www.tagthink.com.

TAG Diversity provides a collaborative environment for professionals in the technology community for education and increased awareness on the benefit to business goals when differences are leveraged within their organizations. Our focus is on helping professionals manage creative, intellectual, cultural, ethnic, generational, gender & lifestyle diversity to achieve positive outcomes.

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TAG Announces Launch of Data Governance Society

ATLANTA (April 27, 2011) – The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) today announced the formation of its newest society, TAG Data Governance. The mission of the society is to raise awareness of data governance as a transformational business function and to foster a collaborative non-competitive environment for data governance professionals to share their experiences and showcase their successes. TAG Data Governance is holding a formation and interest meeting on Wednesday, April 27 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Defoor Centre.

“Given the pervasiveness of data leaks and countless new opportunities to optimize data usage, a new area of management has transpired—data governance,” said Tino Mantella, president and CEO of TAG. “Because many organizations still struggle with organizing and securely managing their data, we are proud to add TAG Data Governance as our 30th society. As with our other societies, we believe this will be an invaluable resource to help educate, inform and unite Georgia’s stakeholders in this space.”

Among many definitions in the marketplace, data governance is defined as the formal and informal process of managing data within an organization. What is done to control the data – good or bad – is data governance.

By joining the TAG Data Governance, members will gain the opportunity to network with others in their industry and discuss strategies of building a world class data governance office. The Data Governance Society will create the kind of coordinated, industry-wide approach that is required for data governance to grow beyond its IT roots and take its proper place as a core business function that helps to drive businesses into new markets and grow revenue.

The Data Governance society is chaired by the Senior Director of Data Governance at McKesson Corporation, John Eisenhauer. The society board consists of Rick Young and Niki Rabren at 3 Sage Consulting, Steve Strout and Mario Brenner at Black Watch Data, Johannes Dorsch at JD Consulting Group and Holly Starling at McKesson Corporation.

“Data is an elusive concept that underlies everything we do and controlling it takes discipline and focus,” said John A. Eisenhauer, senior director of Data Governance at McKesson Corporation. “The most successful businesses sense this and build business intelligence and data management practices. Few, however, have recognized to the true strategic power of governing their data proactively. The Data Governance Society seeks to evolve data into a foundation for operational effectiveness and a platform for strategic agility and unique competitive positioning.”

The TAG Data Governance society formation meeting is open to the public with light hors d’oeuvres and cash bar. TAG members may attend for free and non-members will have a nominal entry fee. The meeting will be held at the Defoor Centre, located at 1710 Defoor Avenue, NW, Atlanta, GA 30318. For more information visit www.tagonline.org/tag-data-governance.php


About The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 13,000 members and hosting over 150 events each year. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 30 industry societies, each of which provides rich content for TAG constituents. TAG’s mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy. The association provides members with access to networking and educational programs; recognizes and promotes Georgia’s technology leaders and companies; and advocates for legislative action that enhances the state’s economic climate for technology. Additionally, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAG’s charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive. For more information visit the TAG website at www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at http://www.tagthink.com.

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Next event of TAG Education Collaborative

Look for Exciting Upcoming Events with the TAG Education Collaborative

www.TAGthink.com – May 3, 2011- With its overall goal to support the state’s technology industry, the Technology Association of Georgia – TAG – is investing in promising students via its TAG Education Collaborative. The collaborative's mission is to make tomorrow's leaders in technology today.

The education collaborative is dedicated to ensuring that science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education thrives.

"Georgia, with its growing technology community, needs to enhance, upgrade and develop new activities, processes and programs to ... elevate the effectiveness of schools to produce more students pursuing STEM-specific majors in institutions of higher education," TAG think said.

“Through TAG, Georgia's leaders, in all related technology fields, offer professional discussions and connections to our most promising young minds,” TAG think continued. “Our number one goal is to strengthen the state's workforce of the future.”

TAG Education offers summer internships to a number of deserving high school seniors. These internships give seniors hands-on experience in their particular areas of interest.

Additionally, this 501(c)(3) organization awards five scholarships. This year's scholarship competition challenges offers students to develop a new technology-inspired Web-based application. Last year TAG awarded $21,000 in scholarships.

Tax-free contributions to any TAG program or scholarship can be made through the TAG website, http://www.TAGthink.com. (Click the “donate” button.)


ABOUT TAG: TAG is a leading technology industry association dedicated to economic advancement and promotion of Georgia's technology industry. TAG offers leadership by driving initiatives in the areas of capital, policy, giving and education, and by bringing the technology community together through events, networking opportunities and initiative programs. TAG serves as an umbrella organization for 27 special interest groups, or societies. Please see http://www.tagonline.org or TAG’s community website at http://www.TAGthink.com.

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TAGthink Excalibur Awards

TAGthink is a great place where ideas are developed and new ones are given out. It is important for people to stay up-to-date with the technology community and they will be able to do this on a regular basis and see the latest developments, inventions and alerts. They will be able to make connections in the TAG society and learn firsthand the latest and most innovative information in the world.

Having all this type of information available is very beneficial. Without a place to find out the latest that is happening the less informed the public will be. It is imperative to have good information in the business world so that a company can remain competitive and with TAGthink they will be able to.

TAGthink also has the Excalibur awards and will keep everyone updated on that, too. This is also beneficial for the public and business people especially. Having this information will keep them in the “know”. The more that they “know” the better they will be able to place themselves in the business sector always staying competitive.

The technology community is a chance for others to stay informed. Technology has changed so drastically in the last ten years and especially in the last couple of years and it is imperative to stay informed about what is coming and how the changes will affect people of all ages. Having this knowledge on a daily basis is very important.

As the world evolves and is ever changing, the business sector must continually strive to improve itself. It must adapt to the changing technology and implement new and time saving components into its companies and better train its personnel. Having the latest information on the changes and the new innovations is extremely important. Without this knowledge a company may find itself behind the times or simply fade out. TAGthink will have it. It is a place that will allow for the continuing updating on the technological field and what business owners and professionals need to in order to stay current.

Belonging to a technology society is an excellent choice for business owners and professionals alike. Being able to communicate with others and listen to their experiences is very important. It can make the difference in whether a business will be able to survive and how a professional keeps themselves competitive. Making sure that they get the information that they need will keep them in the game. It is all about competition and when a business or professional has all the ammunition they need to stay in the game, they will most likely succeed.