Blake Jennelle

"Blake Jenelle is one of the more versatile CEO's I've ever had the opportunity to work with.

I worked with Blake at DreamIT in the summer of 2008. Probably one of his most prized skill sets is that he is a great listener. His ability to listen to those around him helped him build both a great development team and a product that is quickly taking off. "

"Blake is a master of networking as well as a CEO/founder of a startup company. His time management abilities, considering these very intensive activities, are a source of amazement for me. It's a fact very well known to myself and many others that it's not a matter of if Blake will make his ventures greatly successful but when. "

"Blake is a brilliant, dynamic individual who is blessed excellent verbal communication skills and quick, incisive analytical skills. A confident public speaker, he is fearless about forging his own path rather than following the prescribed, predictable ones taken by his peers. I can bet he will be one of the key note speakers at his 25th Harvard reunion!"

"I've worked with Blake at Philly Startup Leaders (PSL) and at Anthillz.com. I've found Blake to be a true entrepreneur, full of passion, drive and an intuitive understanding of business in general. Blake is an all around great guy, a true leader and a charismatic speaker. Blake will undoubtedly do big things. "

"Blake is a powerhouse and an inspiration. He is a tireless worker and has a spirit for adventure that I think the whole Anthillz team finds rare and refreshing. When he's not innovating with the many friends and colleagues he already has, he is forging new and exciting relationships all around Philly. I often get the sense that Blake is the only person, save for mayor Nutter, that really is pushing our 'little engine-that-could-town' of Philadelphia to compete with those other towns. Get to know Blake if you have not already!"

"Blake is always looking for new ways of improving the lives of freelancers & entrepreneurs. As an entrepreneur himself, Blake is in the unique position of understanding the joys and hardships of having a great idea and struggling to get others to adopt it. Blake is tireless – always thinking of ways to improve Anthillz and the organization he founded (Philly Start Up Leaders). Blake is an excellent writer (birthday cards and investor presentations alike) and an excellent communicator (as a former high school orator I can be a tough critic- Blake has great oral presentation skills). He’s an asset to any company because he’s ridiculously smart and is capable of communicating his keen intellect to anyone he needs to."

"Blake is amazingly smart and innovative. I lived with him for four years, and I learned so much from him. He saw so many things in me that I never saw in myself, and I was able to learn and grow from his insight. And Blake was always there to support me during difficult times. He trusts me, and I trust him."

"Blake's passion and leadership has enabled the creation of Anthillz, which promises to be a great social networking site."

"Blake is an intent listener who has the rare gift of grasping the essence of a conversation and translating it into a logical and coherent solution. This ability to take complex and abstact thoughts and put the message into simple and easily understood language allows you to deal with difficult problems without getting lost on peripheral issues. Blake is a twelve on the ten point scale."

"Tell us why you trust and respect Blake. Feel free to keep it short and sweet."

"I've gotten to know Blake over the last few months while working with Anthillz and have been impressed with his collaborative spirit, risk tolerance, and leadership. Looking forward to working more together."

"Eloquent, thoughtful and insightful, Blake makes a lasting impression-- and will no doubt do the same for the Philadelphia entrepreneurial community. "

"Blake is a smart doer. He makes things happen--good things that help other people. "

"Working with Blake has been great. He is a hard working, smart, and creative entrepreneur."

"Aside from slamming into each other during ultimate frisbee, or uh...filling his cubicle with plastic bags... I've gotten to know Blake through working on our respective startups at DreamIt Ventures.

Blake mentored me early in DreamIt and helped me think through important questions for my business. Working late in the evenings, Blake always had time to listen and think hard about my dilemmas as if they were his own. Months later I can take a step back and say what I admire most about Blake: his tenacity, his vision, yet simultaneously his adaptability and sense of humor.

Blake is a long-term thinker who invests himself in individuals and community. After writing that, I realized there's not a lot of people like that. Blake's vision for Philly, for Anthillz, and for his community has taken him very far and I have no doubt will see him much, much further."

"Blake's an incredible leader, speaker and businessperson. I've received incredibly useful, direct and (most importantly) consistent advice and have watched him transform the direction of Anthillz to meet the needs of the communities he seeks to serve. I'm confident that Blake will become a big name in the Philadelphia -- and national -- entrpreneurial community."

"I trust this site to be useful for job seekers because it is so labor intensive on the front-end an employer already has quite a bit to work with when deciding on a possible contractor."

"A great leader and visionary, Blake is taking not only his company but an entire entrepreneurial community to a new level. Respected by everyone, I had the pleasure of working closely with Blake for months and I have been impressed with his ideas, confidence, tenacity and candor. Anthillz will be an enormous success without question because Blake is at the helm."

"Blake has impressed me since day 1 with his focus, leadership, energy and vision. He is passionate about his work and helping others succeed. Blake is a unique talent comprised of intellect, charisma and a work ethic that is contagiously inspirational."

"I've seen a lot of Blake at work since joined Anthillz and I'm constantly noticing things he does well. Blake does a great job leading organizations; be them companies or entrepreneur networking groups. Blake is very receptive to feedback and suggestions which is great because I know I can always get an interested audience when I have something to say. He's got entrepreneurial spirit and is great to brainstorm with for new features or problem solving."

"I've been most impressed with Blake's herding skills. He's great at bringing a distributed group of talented individuals and steering them toward a single goal."

"Spending time with Blake has taken two forms: casual interactions while involved with Philly Startup Leaders, and focused and driven goal setting while working on the latest version of Anthillz. In all settings, Blake is always on the ball and working his hardest to encourage positive forms of collaboration and teamwork. His willingness to turn to peers for advice when he knows it's necessary is an asset, as well, and Blake is able to call some extremely well respected industry professionals his peers."

"If you want someone who’ll work hard to get a job done right, Blake is your man. We were roommates for two years at Harvard and friends since freshman year. It didn’t take me long to see that Blake is someone who cares about his reputation and takes great pride in his work. From building Web sites to writing his senior thesis, Blake always puts in the time and effort to create a top-notch product. He also has a real knack for communicating his ideas clearly and persuasively. This skill helped him write an award-winning newspaper column, and it means his friends can always count on Blake for an enlightening conversation. "

"We have really appreciated Blake's help, and today would not have our CTO if not for Blake's efforts. Thanks Blake! "

"I have worked very closely with Blake through the emergence of the PSL group. This group quickly galvanized the Philadelphia startup ecosystem, and demonstrates clearly what this man is capable of doing. Blake knows how to identify social/technical problems, has the ambition to solve them, and knows how to manage the execution throughout. We worked together to implement a number of mechanisms in PSL, and I have observed his decision-making through many divisive issues that effected a lot of people (building a community is divisive business). Blake is very humble and respectable debate is a given.

Through the DreamIt Ventures program I have had a window into Anthillz. Blake follows the "Getting Real" ethos, and is heavily focused on identifying and addressing real problems. He has been an excellent resource for my company, and is very candid with feedback. Much of the advice I get from Blake comes without asking, and it is always timely, relevant, and sincere."

"In a fast-paced environment with very little guidance, Blake was able to conceive and implement efficient and effective solutions to complex problems, add clarity to critical processes that were not well defined.

Blake identified ways for our organization to increase profitability and his work product proved to be a large key to the puzzle."

"Blake has expended significant time and energy in his founding of Philly Startup Leaders. He accurately identified a strong need to better connect the startup community in Philadelphia and has followed through with his plan to make Philadelphia a startup-friendly environment.

In the process of dramatically growing the PSL membership, Blake has exhibited various leadership, organizational, time management and networking skills. He has become a "super connector" in the Philadelphia area. He has a great understanding of the Web 2.0 space and seems inspired to make Anthillz a success.

I cannot think of anything negative to say about my experiences with Blake thus far. "