Jay Norris has to be one of the busiest guys in town. He’s the founder and CEO of Guesst software, a retail sales intelligence platform, and the co-founder of BlackLight, the world’s first search engine for Black-owned businesses. He’s also a co-founder of StartUp Westport, an initiative to engage and build Westport’s tech community, a co-founder of the Westport 10, the social and networking organization for Black men and their families, a mentor with A Better Chance Westport (and recent host of their Dream Event), and he was just named a co-chair of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. Plus he's on the board of trustees for the Westport Library and on the board of the Westport Weston Family YMCA. (This isn’t even an exhaustive list of all of Jay’s gigs— and he’s a husband and dad of two!)
There’s a common thread through all of Jay’s roles, though: community. “I love to connect people, networks, and communities, ” he tells Westport Lifestyle. We recently sat down with Jay to have him walk us through the many (many!) things on his plate.
Westport Lifestyle: StartUp Westport recently celebrated its first anniversary. What are some of the things you’re most proud of from the first year?
Jay Norris: So many of the events— we had Dan O’Keefe, the first Chief Innovation Officer in the state of Connecticut. And our Diverse Entrepreneur event—to be able to recognize diverse entrepreneurs with successful ventures and tell their stories is a personal calling or purpose to me. It started with four or five of us, and now it’s 1200. Being able to inspire up-and-coming entrepreneurs is the core of what we're trying to do. Essentially, StartUp Westport is the new Silicon Valley East, between NYC and Boston.
WL: StartUp Westport also just gave out its inaugural Global Innovator of the Year award, to Jimmy Pitaro, the chairman of ESPN. How did you decide to launch this award?
JN: We realized it was time for us to do something that set the bar for StartUp Westport. This is our version of the Oscars, or the World Cup. The beautiful thing is, Westport has so much global talent. We’ve got Global Innovators of the Year for years to come.
WL: What’s happening with StartUp Westport in year two?
JN: The next step is to have mentor-mentee relationships, to help new businesses craft their ideas and infrastructure. And then phase two is tracking the relationship between the mentors and mentees with KPIs [key performance indicators] to see if they've hit certain performance metrics, so they’re growing.
WL: You’re also a mentor with A Better Chance Westport [a nonprofit that provides educational opportunities to young men of color], and hosted their annual Dream Event fundraiser. What is it like working with them?
JN: These young scholars have worked really hard, and I’ve gotten some of the guys in the Westport 10 involved, because many of the scholars didn’t have anyone who looked like them as a mentor. [Being at the Dream Event] was so exciting, because not only are these young men going off into the world, but they're able to keep these mentors throughout their lifelong journey. We’re the scholars' extended family.
WL: Speaking of the Westport 10, how has the group evolved since it started four years ago?
JN: We have about 69 members now. And it’s really become a place where we can share ideas, culture, and what’s going on locally. I would like people to be heard. I want people to feel comfortable. I don't want them to feel like they can't share their ideas and beliefs. Some of these guys didn’t have this outlet before– but we all feel comfortable sharing with the “10” (even though there are 69 of us!).
WL: Tell us about your new role at the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. What are your goals?
JN: I’ve been thinking about DEI [diversity, equity, and inclusion], and what we could do if we rebranded it as diversity, equity, and innovation. Innovation is something we all want, and that’s what I’m getting into at the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. BlackLight is a great example—where diversity meets innovation, to me, it is how we’ll really make a difference in regards to the social and economic disparities in all businesses.