Welcome to the next Q&A in our series highlighting people from various pathways along the entrepreneurial technologist journey in Arkansas and the nation.
Marla Johnson is the first tech entrepreneur-in-residence at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Named to the post in December 2024, she is focused on expanding UA Little Rock’s entrepreneurship, business innovation, and artificial intelligence technology programs for the business community, students, and faculty.
Find out what she has to say about research commercialization, entrepreneurship, innovation, and more.
Meet Marla Johnson
Q: You’ve been involved in the Arkansas startup ecosystem for years. What changes have you seen, and where do you think we’re headed?
A: When I first started Aristotle, Inc. in 1995, there were many supports for small businesses, but the term “entrepreneurship” wasn’t used.
Now there is A LOT going on! There are a head-spinning number of programs.
In more recent years as a tech company founder, I engaged in many programs that were helpful, but none tailored to my specific type of business. Lately, I am seeing more targeted opportunities in Arkansas, which is great. Plus, I’ve been volunteering at some youth conventions as a judge for the elementary, middle, and high school levels and the students are blowing my mind!
So, I’m excited about these trends of (1) growing the pipeline of entrepreneurs at younger levels and (2) creating more targeted programs for types of companies, such as service, SaaS, fintech, AI, etc.
Q: What role does UA Little Rock play in supporting tech-driven startups and entrepreneurs?
A: Through the Tech Launch department, we provide coaching and networking to tech students and faculty who want to start a business. We also provide programs that give students, faculty, and industry partners the opportunity to connect and share ideas about the intersection of research, technology, and business. For researchers, we focus on how their discoveries can be applied to make a real impact with a clear financial strategy.
We are developing extended education programs for industry so they can upskill their teams with AI-related skill sets. We are also building teams on campus to apply technology, specifically AI, to solve real problems.
Finally, we are working to connect UA Little Rock faculty and students to other entrepreneurial programs, competitions, and funding. We are committed to growing the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Little Rock region.
Q: How can university-based programs better connect with and support tech entrepreneurs?
A: I want to see more intentional connection with the business community. Since UA Little Rock has over 100 corporate partners, and a lot of passionate and talented faculty and students, I hope we can facilitate more uplifting connections.
Although the courses at the university are great, I know from experience that you need long-term coaching, not just courses, to really make it as a tech company founder, so we are now considering how we can deliver more coaching services.
Another challenge that tech founders face is that they must have a diverse set of skills and knowledge in a world where those are rapidly changing. Since the university has experts in many different fields, we are exploring how we can make all that expertise available to our entrepreneurs, including product design, product development, finance, accounting, and investment management.
Q: What are some of the biggest gaps in resources for early-stage tech startups?
A: Right now the entrepreneurs I am working with need pre-seed funding and micro-grants. In some cases, they only need $2,000 or $5,000 to get some equipment and hire an attorney to set up their company. They need to connect to companies that will pay them to create pilot programs, also.
They need passionate and skilled co-workers who will go on this learning journey with them. Some founders I meet have a wide circle and the leadership skills to build a team. They are the same people who volunteer to run clubs on campus. But others have been taking mostly virtual classes and have not built up a great team of like-minded friends who care about their ideas.
Q: If you could give one piece of advice to a first-time tech founder, what would it be?
A: I have several pieces of advice. It would be hard to pick only one! Start by finding out what ASBTDC can do for your startup. Their support is essential, especially for companies seeking non-dilutive funding.
In addition:
- Get a coach like me, someone who has been there and really cares if you are successful.
- Get an honest assessment of what you are good at and find out what skills you need that you are not good at. Bring others into your company as early as possible and clearly spell out the commitments to specific actions and expected rewards if you succeed. Set action plans for everyone for 30, 60, and 90 days. Show your team the path to success.
- Bring potential customers into the process immediately, seek their feedback, and reward them for their contribution to your company.
- Get ready to work and commit to the process, which is a long one. Don’t get discouraged easily; rather reapproach over and over again from other angles.
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