The top challenges these 5 local orgs can help entrepreneurs face

Technical.ly is a free news resource thanks to financial supporters like organizations appearing in this article, which are Technical.ly Brand Builder clients.

Running a startup entails overcoming a seemingly endless series of challenges. At each step, an obstacle arises to navigate around on the way to success. Luckily, entrepreneurs don’t have to face these issues alone.

A network of companies and organizations exists providing services geared towards the most common situations in which founders need help. Finding the right support can be a challenge in itself, but Technical.ly has trusted partners in a variety of areas that can accelerate your startup’s growth. Depending on your company’s needs, organizations like the ones below can help fill gaps related to legal guidance, smart hardware, fundraising, tech talent sourcing and more.

(If you like what you see, follow the links to their Directory Pages to learn more and explore ways to connect.)

Ballard Spahr

Ballard Spahr is a national, full service law firm with more than 600 attorneys spread across 15 offices. Its attorneys work with entrepreneurs and emerging companies from ideation through exit and understand how to provide expertise while offering a broad network to help businesses grow and achieve great heights. The firm’s emerging companies and venture capital (ECVC) lawyers also advise venture capital funds and angel investors to help seed ventures from the most nascent stages.

“One of the top challenges that our organization can help entrepreneurs and technologists with is navigating the complex legal landscape surrounding emerging technologies. Our ECVC group at Ballard Spahr LLP specializes in assisting startups and tech companies with legal matters such as fundraising, intellectual property protection, compliance and more.

Our team helps entrepreneurs stay organized and ahead of the curve by providing proactive legal guidance and support tailored to their specific needs. We help them navigate the ever-changing environment, protect their innovations and assets and ensure compliance with industry standards. By staying informed on the latest legal developments and tech trends, we are able to anticipate potential challenges and provide strategic advice (in many cases, off the meter) to help our clients succeed in a competitive market.” — Kimberly Klayman, partner

Morgan Lewis

Morgan Lewis’ team of more than 2,200 lawyers and legal professionals provides comprehensive corporate, transactional, litigation and regulatory services in major industries, including energy, financial services, healthcare, life sciences, retail and ecommerce, sports, technology and transportation. The company focuses on both immediate and long-term goals with clients, helping them address and anticipate challenges across vast and rapidly changing landscapes.

“The challenges that emerging companies and entrepreneurs face vary depending on the goals and aspirations for their individual businesses and what the current marketplace is demanding. Some clients are focused on establishing a solid legal foundation for growth, some are focused on securing financing, while others are primarily focused on internal issues such as employee and benefits matters, or protecting their trade secrets and intellectual property. Others may be further along in their life cycle and are looking at their global expansion plans, exits or IPOs. Knowing and understanding our clients’ businesses, their goals, their stage, their industry and what they deem as a ‘success’ helps us provide the necessary counsel to address their challenges and formulate strategies to achieve their goals. Morgan Lewis with its broad and deep subject matter, transactional and industry expertise takes a holistic approach to emerging company representations so that companies receive comprehensive legal guidance on all legal issues they may be navigating.” — Brian Slough, of counsel

NEXT powered by Shulman Rogers

Shulman Rogers is a full-service law firm with more than 100 attorneys working from offices in Maryland, Washington DC and Northern Virginia. The firm’s attorneys work collaboratively across practice groups to support national, regional and local clients and respond to all of their legal needs.

“The top challenge NEXT powered by Shulman Rogers is focused on through its mission of Empowering Startup Success is to provide access to sophisticated, affordable and predictable legal services for startups. NEXT is a trailblazer and national award winning legal practice recognized by Legalweek in 2024 as the best law firm in the US for enabling startup success. NEXT offers predictability around legal fees by productizing a broad range of Seed to Series A legal needs into fixed price packages. In addition to providing predictable and sophisticated legal services for startups, NEXT operates at the pace of a startup, offers a world class customer experience that includes regular access to senior attorneys and client relationship managers, a commitment to responsiveness and a customer-centric experience enabled by technology that promotes efficiency and collaboration. Next is also developing a platform to assist Startups to become investor ready through My Next Raise.” — Anthony Millin, founder of NEXT powered by Shulman Rogers, venture capital partner and serial entrepreneur

Rittenhouse Communications Group

Rittenhouse Communications Group (RCG) is a Philadelphia-based, minority owned and operated design build technology integration firm. Our core verticals include multi-family, mixed use and hospitality assets. As a boutique technology integration firm, RCG designs, implements and installs low voltage cabling, network infrastructure, IP cameras, access control, enterprise WIFI, smart building IOT solutions and A/V for our clients in multi-family, mixed use commercial and hospitality projects in the mid-Atlantic region.

“At Rittenhouse Communications Group (RCG), we recognize that one of the top challenges entrepreneurs and technologists in our industry face is the integration of new technology into their operations. Many struggle with ensuring their systems are future-ready and scalable without disrupting day-to-day functionality. The rapid pace of technological advancement often leaves property management firms grappling with outdated systems and the complexity of upgrading to more secure, effective and efficient solutions.

Our mission is to provide turnkey PropTech solutions that not only meet the immediate requirements of our clients but also anticipate future growth and the need for adaptable technology. We ensure a smooth transition from design through project completion, allowing property management firms to focus on innovation and growth without the worry of technical setbacks.

By offering services like structured cabling, unified communications and IP surveillance, RCG helps property management and hospitality businesses stay ahead in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

Our clients trust us to deliver not just immediate solutions, but also a foundation for long-term success. We’re committed to driving innovation and ensuring our clients are always prepared for the future.” — Sean Edwards, president and CEO

Zip Code Wilmington

Zip Code Wilmington’s mission is simple — train, place, repeat! Zip Code Wilmington supports the economic development of the greater Wilmington Region by providing accessible and affordable software programming training to high-potential individuals who have the raw talent necessary to become entry level software developers and data engineers.

“Zip Code Wilmington stands at the forefront of addressing a critical challenge faced by entrepreneurs and technologists: the talent gap in the tech industry. In a time where technological innovation drives business success, finding skilled developers who can hit the ground running is a significant hurdle. Zip Code Wilmington bridges this gap by providing intensive, hands-on training programs that equip individuals with the practical skills needed to thrive in today’s fast-paced tech environment.

The top challenge that Zip Code Wilmington can help overcome is the shortage of proficient software developers. Many startups and tech companies struggle to find employees who not only understand theoretical concepts but can also apply their knowledge to solve real-world problems efficiently while working seamlessly on teams. Zip Code Wilmington’s immersive coding bootcamp addresses this by offering a rigorous curriculum that focuses on in-demand programming languages, development frameworks and agile methodologies.

Moreover, because Zip Coders are such a heterogenous group who come from all walks of life, educational and professional backgrounds, they bring a great deal of diversity of thought to software development and the companies that hire them — a great advantage in the competitive start-up landscape. Zip Code also emphasizes experiential learning through projects and labs that simulate actual workplace scenarios, thereby producing graduates who are not just job-ready but innovation-ready. By doing so, Zip Code Wilmington alleviates the recruitment strain on companies, enabling them to scale quickly with competent talent. Entrepreneurs benefit from having access to a pool of highly skilled developers who can contribute to product development, accelerate time-to-market and ultimately drive business growth. This approach not only fills immediate talent needs but also fosters a thriving tech ecosystem in the region, ensuring long-term sustainability and competitiveness.” — Lossie Freeman, director of corporate partnerships

Looking to overcome challenges in your local tech community? Check out other companies in the Technical.ly network here to find out about their missions, cultures and initiatives.

And for more orgs dedicated to supporting startups, entrepreneurs and technologists, take a look at Technical.ly’s Preferred Partners list here.

P.S. If you’re curious about Technical.ly’s services for your own org, find more info here and connect with us.