Jason W. Taylor will tell you that 2001 may not have been the best year to start a software development business. It was the year after the dotcom bust—a period of vast deflation in technology brand development—and the same year as the terrorist attacks of 9/11, which also hurt the economy.

Still, Taylor said he had a vision for a company that would be different from other software developers. “I started Code Authority so that we could build a brand around being a team that you could hire to build something on a leading edge at any time,” he said. Nearly 15 years after Taylor started Code Authority, his company has garnered clients ranked in the Fortune 500 company list and started its own technology startup competition. Code Authority helps early-stage technology startups get recognized by investors through an annual competition called CodeLaunch. CodeLaunch allows software entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas to potential investors during a Pitch Day event. Entrepreneurs must first submit an application for their business ideas and, if selected, pitch their plans to Code Authority. CodeLaunch winners receive custom software design, a business development plan package and website visitor tracking licensing. “The best thing about CodeLaunch is it’s one of the only venues for people off the street to get seed funding for their startup,” Taylor said. Since starting CodeLaunch five years ago, Code Authority has helped start six businesses, including one that was bought out by a larger company earlier this year. Taylor said things such as CodeLaunch and the company’s business philosophy set Code Authority apart from other software developers. “We offer a real team that you can walk into the office and talk to, from your architect to your [quality assurance] tester, your user interface designer,” he said. “We offer a true business relationship.”