Connect 3.0: Building the Front Door to San Diego’s Innovation Economy featuring James Zanewicz

Tune in to listen to the coolest CEO in San Diego talk about the 3 Ps. What are those, you ask? Tune in to find out more.

Welcome to The Connect Current, the flow of innovation in San Diego. We bring you the founders, investors, and leaders building the future across life science, tech, climate, defense, AI, and more. This is where San Diego's next chapter takes shape.

Welcome to the Connect Current, the flow of innovation in San Diego. I'm Trey Brackett, Chief Brand and Engagement Officer at Connect. Today we are doing something a little different. I am flipping the script on our usual host, James Zanewicz, and putting him in the guest seat. James joined Connect as CEO at a pivotal moment in the organization's history. Connect has been part of San Diego's innovation story for more than 40 years. And now the organization is entering what we've been calling Connect 3.0. That means honoring Connect's legacy, but also reimagining its role for the future as a front door to the ecosystem, a trusted conduit across sectors, and a platform that helps San Diego's innovation economy become more visible, more connected, and more globally competitive. So today we are going to talk about where Connect is headed, what Pathways, Proof, and Platform really mean, and why founders, investors, universities, and companies— Board members and sponsors should think differently about how they engage with Connect. James, welcome to your own show. Goof.

Thank you, Trey. It's a pleasure to be here.

And I think I'm lucky enough to get to see James on a pretty regular basis here. So I hope that this is something a little bit more enjoyable for everybody. To really kick things off, going back to that Connect 3.0 concept, why now? Why does Connect 3.0 really matter?

I think it's interesting. And, you know, Craig, you've been a big part of the evolution here. And we arrived at a moment where we were at our 40th anniversary, and you step back and Connect has kind of had 3 distinct phases. And it was some of our board members and founders who originally said, oh, this is the 3.0 of Connect. So they kind of coined that for us. You had Connect kind of in its first phase in 1985 when it started inside UCSD. You had Dr. Mary Walshock, Irwin Jacobs, a whole team. of folks, of 7 people who really came together to found Connect. And it was at a point where there was nowhere to help innovation entrepreneurs anywhere. And if they found Connect, they learned how to do a business plan, they learned how to do intellectual property, they learned how to do all the basic things that academic centers, SBDCs, a lot of places teach them now, but it didn't exist anywhere. And if you were an innovation entrepreneur and you found Connect, you found the help. And that was kind of the 1.0 year. Then you kind of flash forward about 20 years to 2005, the Duane Roth years, where— Duane really expanded what it meant to take that original accelerator before accelerator was a word. And he kind of created the first intentional ecosystem builder before that was a word, before ecosystem was a word, where he was developing other organizations like BioComm, like the Cleantech Group, the Sports Innovation Council, Athena, spinning those out of Connect, or else people who had worked with or around Connect saw what had happened and focused on building up organizations that could support the innovation ecosystem themselves. And you kind of went through this teenage growth spurt of San Diego seeing multiple support points for innovators coming out, which kind of led to where we are now, 41 years in, technically 40 years when I got here. And the fact that if you're an entrepreneur coming out between accelerators, innovators, academic centers, your service providers, individual contractors, whatever there is, you probably have 300 possibilities of support for you. And that's if you're in life science, tech, climate defense, AI, binational health, kind of whatever innovation vertical you're in. But it's confusing. And how do you know where to go? And it's the moment where, for the most mature, intentional ecosystem on the planet, we say intentional because San Francisco will argue they were first. It just happened. I think it's a little more competitive up there and a little less community collaborative and supporting because of the way San Diego was built intentionally. And honestly, I think that's a lot of Mary Walshock's work in there, where you have a PhD sociologist crafting the ecosystem. But that's why it's the right moment, because 40 years in, incredibly mature, An entity that's been copied around the globe. How do you evolve to be what the world needs next and what San Diego needs next to lead the world?

I love hearing that. And, you know, the idea of the legacy that Connect has and what we've been able to bring into the future with us, I think is something that's really important for us because we have that credibility and the proof of what we've been able to really get behind over the past 40 years. So I think when we look across our actual ecosystem here, you know, I think a lot of people know Connect through events. Cool companies, Springboard Venture Summit, Summer Social, and those types of events maybe have put a picture in somebody's mind of like Connect, the event company. But just to make that clear, Connect is not an event organization. And what's really the difference between Connect and being that event organization and really being that organization that really helps be fostering, you know, that next step of like ecosystem infrastructure and this idea that, you know, you're investing into this ecosystem ecosystem and growing San Diego by being involved with Connect?

I think events are a tool in our toolbox that we're focused on. But what we really want folks to think of is that Connect is the connective tissue of the ecosystem, and we exist solely to help entrepreneurs on their journey and to amplify their story. And that kind of boils down to our pathways, proof, and platform mantra that we have now. But when someone is looking at being part of and supporting Connect, whether that's through a board capacity, A sponsorship, something else. What we really want them to look at is, is an investment. And it's not just an investment in San Diego and the companies, but it's an investment in themselves and their ability to support, contribute, and interact with that ecosystem in the highest level and with the maximum credibility they possibly could because they're affiliated with Connect.

So, I mean, how should a partner really be like thinking about that value of Connect beyond a logo or a table or just like a speaking slot kind of thing?

Yeah, I think it's— you get out of it what you put into it as much as anything else. And our role as the folks who are fortunate enough to be able to work for and steward those relationships inside Connect is to help people make the connections, to let them do that. But we can't do all the work for them. We need them to be active participants. And we're trying to create the moments where they can do that, where it may not just be large events, it may be small inter-board things or As simple as, hey, reach out and I want to meet this person. Can you make a warm intro? And we can do that for them and step back. But our job again is look at us as the connective tissue and how you leverage that connective tissue to advance what you need. But don't just sit back and wait for it to happen. Take an active role, be a partner, bring us your ideas. Tell us when you don't like something that we're doing here, or tell us when you love something we're doing and we should do more of, or something you wish you think we were doing. Like, we've been hyper-responsive to things like that. And I think that's where We're fortunate to be at a moment in time where the board has challenged us and given us the grace to meet that.

I think you came in with a really great vision, and one of those things you came in with was the 3 Ps: pathways, proof, and platform. So let's unpack kind of that first part of this framework here. When we're talking about pathways, you know, and building the front door to San Diego, what does that look like? What does that mean to you?

Yeah. And so at first I want to clarify, like, I came in with some thoughts and vision and then the team worked with me and we all came up with Pathways Freeform Platform together. I think it's great that you're giving me credit, but yeah, I'm just fortunate to work with a lot of people who are smarter than I am every day and they give me credit as the leader. And I just want to be really clear, it is the team that worked together to put this together. This is not just me. But when we talk about Pathways, it really does boil down to the fact that Connect had kind of grown to only fill the area where we were in late seed and Series A and really actively assisting companies. And a lot of what we had done earlier, other folks have stepped in, like the Brink at USD, which is doing a lot of what, quite honestly, Connect was 40 years ago. They fill that role now, so we don't need to. And then you have folks like BioComm or Evo Nexus who are doing some of the later stage things that we haven't done in a while. But what those entrepreneurs need is that guidance, that pathway, that where do I go next from a trusted voice? that isn't taking cash from them, isn't taking equity from them. And as we're beholden to multiple board members, we're not beholden to one, we're able to give really unbiased advice and not be pushed in any one direction. And so what we can do is we can transform Springboard from a program that was originally hands-on, how do you form your company, and then became very focused on, okay, how do we help people through that Series A kind of late seed into Series A round? We can keep those active hands-on programs around Series A, but blow that program back up and make the entirety of San Diego the program where every single innovation support entity, company, accelerator, whatever they are, they're a piece of that program. And so there's never a moment now where we say Connect doesn't do that. We say, hey, let's make the introduction for you to the people who do. And we follow up a few months later and see where they need to go next. And it is, again, it's getting back to the entrepreneur as the core. You know, 40 years ago, we were founded for entrepreneurs, and it's re-cementing our commitment to them.

I think it's one of those things like let Connect help find your solution kind of thing, you know, like find the right person at the right time. And that's, you know, the Connect role. And I think the second pillar of what we're looking at when we look at the 3 Ps is proof, you know, and showing San Diego that innovation's actually happening here and this stuff is in our own backyards. So what does proof really mean when we talk about Connect 3.0? And like when it comes to some of our programs of the past, how do they help amplify that to you?

And so I feel this is where Proof is all about credibility. It all boils down to that. And credibility is twofold. It's credibility for the companies we support that Connect has— not that we haven't had a brand, but that our brand is again globally recognized and that we really are pushing that, which we'll talk about again with our 3rd P in a moment. But that when an investor sees that a company is affiliated with Connect, they know it's a company they should at least take a look at, that they do get that instant look of credibility of, oh, this is somewhere where I should take a pause and should accept the warm intro, because hopefully they've gotten that through us or someone in our network. Or even if it's a cold outreach, they see Connect kind of on there that they've been through cool companies or they've worked with Springboard or they were a part of the VC Roadshow, or maybe they met them at Venture Summit, that these are the reasons why they should take that meeting. But it also flips for our board members and our board members who, you know, they're not funding events, they're investing in Connect and investing in themselves. But the board does self-select, not Everyone just gets to be on the board because they are willing to financially support. The board actually looks, are they ethical? Do they work with companies well? Are they a true supporter of the ecosystem who's willing to be a partner and give as much as they get back? And I think that gives board members instant credibility where if you're a startup company and you look and you see someone is on the Connect board, you don't have to do as much diligence because, you know, the board has done that for you and you can trust that they are someone that you should be willing to work with.

And closing off these 3 Ps is platform. So amplifying San Diego to the world. So when we talk about Connect and helping bring the world to San Diego and take San Diego to the world, what does that look like in practice?

Well, I think it's your favorite P. It's the platform.

Yeah, maybe a little bit. One of my favorites.

It's sort of your thing. Yeah. But, you know, it is. It's helping entrepreneurs tell their story. And that's through this podcast, The Connect Current, where we do our little short soundbites. It's through the press releases that we've been doing. I mean, it was really cool, Trey, that you got to release Reefhaven Ventures' first press release about their fund and who they've invested in, that they entrusted Connect to be the entity that did that for them, that folks like Liz on our partnerships team are negotiating with all these conferences, conferences that are in San Diego or around the globe, to get discounts for our entrepreneurs and to try and negotiate stage presence for them, whether that's a panel, a moderating slot for either someone from the Connect team or someone from one of our ecosystem partners, that we're able to amplify voices on stages that are local, regional, national, and global. And when we do that, when we give people the platform, it draws more attention. And we've talked about many times how a lot of venture capital that invests in San Diego is not from San Diego. If you don't give them access to our stories, how can they know that they should be coming here to invest? And that's really what the work that you're doing and whoever your new hire is are doing. And why it's so important is as much as helping entrepreneurs form their companies and craft their journey through the ecosystem, if we don't tell the story about how they're doing it and what their impact on the world could be, they're not as likely to get investment. And that's where that's so important.

I think the 3 Ps are one of those things everybody can wrap their head around. And it's one of those things that sounds nice too.

3 Ps. Mm-hmm. So, which I did, I won't lie, I actually went through some training on this and I did not have 3 Ps. I had 3 different words and I'm an English minor. I know how important alliteration and consonants are. You have, yeah, assonance and consonants. And I remember these things. And did I remember them in the moment when you need it most? No, but luckily I always go get coaching outside, just like everything else. I mean, I encourage people to do that and look outside and get those ideas because I got that from somebody else saying, that's great, but it'd be more effective if—

So, I mean, let's talk directly about some of these partners and board members that we get to see across the ecosystem. You know, you've said that board members are not just donating to Connect, they are investing in themselves and their own role in the ecosystem. You know, I think that that's something that is a little difficult to wrap your head around at times. What does that mean?

Yeah. And so it's not just supporting events. And that's where I've heard that from people too, is, oh, you know, I'm supporting this event, I'm supporting Summer Social, supporting this. What you're actually doing is enabling the support for and your access to the companies and ecosystem of San Diego, the greatest ecosystem in the world. The greatest companies in the world in multiple verticals— life science, tech, national security, AI, binational health, you name it, we have it here in ways that other ecosystems don't have. And so while you're investing in developing that ecosystem, you're also investing in your own presence, whether that be for your organization or yourself personally in that ecosystem, as somebody who is able to step into that with that proof because you're affiliated with Connect, you're working with Connect. People immediately recognize that. It is that investing in your own future as much as investing in the future of San Diego. And that's the way I don't think we've talked about that with our board members before. And we're moving more and more to is here is how you're not just supporting our region, but you're supporting yourself as well.

That's great. And I think, you know, to close on a very classic Connect current note, we always ask all of our guests, as you know, what gets your innovative flow going? What are those juices, you know, that get you up in the morning and make you happy to show up to work every day?

Yeah. And it's, it's funny because folks who have known me for years never thought I would leave New Orleans. New Orleans was like my city. It fills my soul still, everything else. But it's interesting. It's the team at Connect. It's the city of San Diego. It is the most New Orleans but non-New Orleans place I've ever been in my life. And the fact that people here are just so amazing. You look at our amazing team at Connect and I encourage everyone, look at the website, find those people on LinkedIn, get to know them. You look at our amazing board. You have our board chair suite of James Mackay. You have Ashley Van Zeeland, Denise Bevers, Rick Valencia, getting to work with those folks every day and some of the smartest minds in the world. And then the people in the community, you have your Misty Kanes, your Jonah Peakes, the folks at Evo Nexus, Tim Scott at BioComm. Just, it's such a collaborative environment that just every day I wake up excited to go to work and every night I go to bed worried I'm going to screw it up. And just that encourages me to come in excited the next day all over again. And that's what does it. It's San Diego, quite honestly.

I know it's one of those places where you're lucky to be here and it's just the cherry on top of everybody's life once you are here.

Yeah.

And it's been a true pleasure having you, James, and being able to flip the script this time around and have you on this other seat. It was a little bit different of a podcast today, but an important one altogether.

Yeah.

So, you know, Connect 3.0 is really about helping San Diego's innovation economy become more connected, more visible, and more effective. That means building better pathways for founders and partners, creating stronger proof around the companies and ideas emerging here, and using Connect as a platform to amplify San Diego's innovation story to the world. It also means asking board members, sponsors, and partners to think differently. This is not just about supporting events. It is about investing in access, relationships, visibility, and the connective infrastructure that helps the entire ecosystem grow. Thank you, James. This was an amazing opportunity, and I love this little bit of back and forth that we were able to have on here.

We have to get you to do this more and more, Trey. Well, maybe you have to do all the team podcast interviews and I can take a break.

And for everybody at home, thank you for listening to The Connect Current. To learn more about Connect, our programs, our board, and the ways we are helping strengthen San Diego's innovation economy, visit connect.org. And if you're a founder, investor, partner, university, company, or community leader looking for a better way into the ecosystem, Let us connect you. We will see you next time on The Connect Current, where San Diego's innovation story keeps moving forward. This podcast was edited and produced by Resonate Recordings.