Exploring Entrepreneurship: Let’s Get Gig-y

Description

Exploring Entrepreneurship is a partnership between the City of Austin’s Small Business Program and the Austin Young Chamber.

More and more people are becoming gig workers full-time or as a supplement to full-time work. But where can you find gig work, and how can you be successful in the gig economy?

Join us for this new series of exploring entrepreneurship as we share ways that the gig economy has changed since the pandemic began, new trends in the sector, and tips on how to find steady gigs. We will start with a panel of gig economy experts for 45 minutes followed by 30 min of expert-facilitated round table discussions to help you navigate the new gig world.

• Hear from gig economy experts on the current landscape and opportunities for gig workers
• Share challenges with experts and learn tips to find success in the gig economy

Have a question for our panelists? Submit your question in advance by emailing events@austinyoungchamber.org.

What is the Gig Economy? 
The gig economy is based on flexible, temporary, or freelance jobs, often involving connecting with clients or customers through an online platform. The gig economy can benefit workers, businesses, and consumers by making work more adaptable to the needs of the moment and demand for flexible lifestyles

Panelists

• Celina Zisman | Co-Founder, Dug Fresh Productions
• Shelby Stephens | Co-Founder and CEO, Jolly
• Rachel Losh | Director of Product, Favor Delivery
  
  
• Moderated by Kelsey Hitchingham | Founder, The Hitchingham Group; AYC Board Member

Thank You to Our Partner

About the Panelists

Celina Zisman founded Dug Fresh Productions in 2015 with her husband as a resource for the creative community in Austin and beyond. Having both grown up in family-run businesses, their commitment and work ethic developed into an instinct for entrepreneurship. Working alongside makers, musicians, and solopreneurs, DFP acts as a guide for crafting professional practices. DFP offers one-on-one consulting, workshops, event planning, and organizational tools which empower artists across disciplines with the information to establish, grow, and maintain their businesses.

Celina received her BFA in Fine Art, and has been an active member of the Austin art community since 2008, having worked in non and for-profit galleries, as well as a nationally recognized craft academy. Zisman serves her community as a member on the City of Austin's Arts Commission (2019 to present).

Shelby Stephens is co-founder and CEO of Jolly (jollyhq.com), a Techstars-backed startup based in Austin. Jolly is a simple online tool that helps freelancers get more monthly repeat clients by instantly creating a personalized page where they can sell freelance services—even recurring subscription packages—to their clients, with zero commission fees. Shelby has been an entrepreneur for over a decade, working as a freelancer and also growing multiple businesses that rely on freelancers. Through Jolly, Shelby envisions a world of human awesomeness where we are able to find meaning by serving others in ways that are synchronistic with our personal values. This is why he co-created Jolly and why he believes in breaking down barriers to usher in the age of the Trust Economy.

Rachel Losh joined Favor in 2018 to oversee the Texas-based on-demand delivery company's consumer apps and help implement iterative, agile product development methodologies. As Director of Product, she leads Favor's product team — spanning product management, product design and product operations — and is responsible for the planning, delivery and success of the company's product roadmap. With over a decade of technology product experience, she previously held product roles at Aceable and Macmillan Learning, and has also worked in a variety of other functions, including business unit leadership, content strategy, product marketing and sales.

Kelsey has dedicated her life and career to uplifting nonprofits. She originally wanted to be a chef and started working in restaurants at 16, until she left the industry and moved to community organizations in her early 20s. In 2009, Kelsey moved to Austin from South Florida and worked at Foundation Communities while she completed her BA in Economics at the University of Texas at Austin. After spending a semester studying abroad in Paris, Kelsey graduated and joined a global environmental nonprofit, where she worked until 2018. In February of 2019, Kelsey launched The Hitchingham Group consulting company to help local nonprofits form and scale in Austin in order to meet the needs of local citizens.

Kelsey completed the New Leaders Council fellowship in 2018, which she credits with helping her find her leadership voice and introduced her to a network of lifelong friends and colleagues who share the goal of creating progressive change in Austin. She is now Co-Director of the NLC Austin Chapter, sits on the Board of Directors of Austin Young Chamber and Lone Star Victims Advocacy Project, and chairs the Young Chamber’s Economic Development Committee. In February of this year, Kelsey launched Engaging Austin, a podcast dedicated to sharing the work of Austin’s nonprofit and civic engagement leaders. 

When not working, Kelsey can be found cooking for her friends, sharing a bottle of rose on a patio bar in East Austin, or catching up on the stack of books she plans to read.