If you’ve been a part of the entrepreneurial scene in Austin at all, you’ve probably been part of a RISE event. The Relationship and Information Series for Entrepreneurs (RISE) has brought together thousands of entrepreneurs over the past five years to come together and share information and knowledge at their annual event in Austin. They keynote speakers have been tremendous, including Roy Spence and Red McCombs.

In its first year in 2007, RISE held 40 peer-led sessions and engaged with 500 entrepreneurs. During the 2011 RISE week in Austin, the program featured 350 sessions with approximately 3,500 attendees. Now appears to be the time to grow the program to other cities. RISE is expected to announce a new initiative, RISE Global, this week with it’s first expansion city being New York City. RISE Global targeted New York City as its first location outside Austin, Texas because of the diversity, scale, and attention it represents across small, medium, and large business communities globally.