A Pitchfest is a structured, one-day (or less) matchmaking event that gives agency staff from local government a platform to pitch real challenges and “match” with regional experts—primarily university faculty—to work together on six-month projects with measurable impact. At the Pitchfest event, agency staff deliver short, two-minute problem statements. Qualified experts then express interest in working with agencies on their problems, and matched teams can apply to an optional funding pool to support project execution. The format is designed to surface bottom-up ideas from within local government and then rapidly connect agencies to free, community-based expertise and resources.

We believe major metro areas are full of “public entrepreneurs” trying to introduce new ideas to improve how their home city operates. Many of these entrepreneurs work for the government directly. But there are many other entrepreneurs in academia and civic society, who, if given the opportunity, would jump at the chance to work with the government on discrete projects to improve the places in which they live. The Pitchfest aims to offer light-weight matchmaking infrastructure to bridge the divide between these various groups, enabling local governments to more effectively draw upon the immense talent already found in their communities. At a high-level, we judge the success of a Pitchfest by how many matches are made—and then by the outcomes of the projects on which matched teams deliver.

There are three distinct groups who may participate in a Pitchfest:‍

‍Agency staff at all levels of seniority are invited to pitch problem statements. In the past, we have had everyone from first-year data analysts to Deputy Commissioners to uniformed sanitation workers on stage. We believe a broad, bottom-up funnel helps surface the best range of concrete problem statements.  

‍University faculty are invited to respond to problem statements. The Principal Investigator must reside in the Pitchfest region and/or be affiliated with a regional university. Our goal is to build enduring partnerships, an outcome we believe is more likely with geographic proximity. 

‍(Optional) Some cities have chosen to open the Pitchfest to members of local civic society, who want to participate but may not have a formal academic affiliation. These members then become “Fellows” of the Pilot City program. This additional track is entirely optional; it is up to the local host organization to determine whether to pursue it. 

The Pitchfest is not intended to produce for-profit companies. Our expectation is that any intellectual property generated is offered open source. Exceptions to this practice may be permitted if mutually agreed upon by all parties.