The Founder Institute's four-month curriculum covers everything you would expect from an early-stage startup program, including topics like "Startup Legal and IP” towards the beginning, to “Fundraising” near the end. What makes the curriculum special is the Mentors that teach it, whose passion, feedback and support helps our companies avoid rookie mistakes and set the foundation for a meaningful and enduring company.
The Founder Institute carefully recruits approximately 25 Mentors per Semester, who are normally the CEO or founder of a successful startup. Rather than specialists or consultants, we prefer Founders and CEOs to give our companies "the entrepreneur's perspective." The mentors share their experiences, best practices, and mistakes, while also providing specific guidance and feedback on the Founder companies.
In addition, the Founder Institute's unique Graduate Liquidity Pool allows our mentors to share in the equity of companies formed in each program - and, their share is based solely on the anonymous ratings they receive from the Founders both during, and after the program. In this way, the Founder Institute incentivizes mentors to take a special interest in our startups, and provide as much assistance as possible after the program.
We have a great lineup of Mentors confirmed for the Winter 2013 Madrid Founder Institute, including many from out of town. See the full list below.
Adeo Ressi
Founder/CEO, Founder Institute
Adeo Ressi is the founder and CEO of the Founder Institute, the worlds largest startup-technology company accelerator. The Institute is the eighth startup that Mr. Ressi has founded or built, four of which were acquired and three of which are still operating. Mr. Ressi was also a Founding Member of TheFunded.com, an online community of 17,000 CEOs to research, rate, and review funding sources worldwide.
Alejandro Rivas Micoud
CEO, Userlytics Corporation
CEO Scaling Overseas Corp. Previously founded Userlytics (B2B User Experience Testing), Clearwire Spain (Wireless telco), Alo Comunicaciones (Fixed line B2C telco), and Mediafon SA (Audiotext/Automated Call Centre). Joined Young President Organization (YPO) in 2004 and World President Organization (WPO) in 2012, have an MBA from INSEAD, am a Nuclear Operations Engineer as well as an amateur novelist and filmmaker and have lived and worked extensively abroad (Japan, France and Spain).
Beatriz González
Managing Partner, Seaya Ventures
Managing Partner - Seaya Ventures Telefonica Capital - Head of the private equity program at Telefonica Capital and Telefonica´s Pension Fund ILPA (Institutional Limited Partners Association) Board Member 2008-2011 Investment Manager - Excel Partners Associate - Darby Overseas Investments Corporate Development - Qarana Morgan Stanley - Analyst, Equity Research
Carlos Sáez
Socio Director, Trebia Abogados
Carlos Saez is the Managing Partner at Trebia Abogados, a law firm that provides legal advice in business and specializes in the Right of Information Technology. Carlos has also held positions at Garrigues Abogados y Asesores Tributarios, and Anguiano&Asociados. He earned his DEA at Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Charles Ehredt
Group Director - New Ventures, ODIGEO Group
Charles (Chuck) Ehredt - Group Director of New Ventures and Innovation team at ODIGEO. Founder of RaceFansTV.com and former Managing Director of Bernaldez y Asociados and Nucleus Consulting. PDG at IESE in 2005 and 25+ years experience helping companies align business processes, teams, and technology with clearly defined business strategy. Private Equity investor in 23 entities including financial services, technology development, ecommerce, and manufacturing.
Enrique Hormigo
Advisor, äctucast, Inc.
Enrique Hormigo is Director Business Dev & Marketing at Professional Training and Advisor at äctucast. äctucast uses smart algorithms and big data to predict customer behavior. Advising as software industry expert, helping defining Go to Market Strategy and building core sales team. We have actionable solutions for cohort clustering that identifies buyer intent, hyper-‐buyers (whales) and supports granular segmentation resulting in more revenue and better CLV. Before this position, Enrique was Sales and Marketing Manager at THQ. THQ was a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software.
Enrique López De Ceballos
Partner, RHGR - Ontier
Specialties:Specialist in providing tax advice to finance companies, related to both their institutional taxation and the transaction of products and transactions typical of these types of companies. Tax advisory to high wealth individuals (Personal Income Tax, Net Wealth Tax, Family Business regime), and future income tax planning. Tax efficient structuring advice and planning for clients relating to company restructuring operations. Professor at CEF.
François Derbaix
Founder and CEO, Toprural.com
François Derbaix is Toprural Founder and CEO, Rentalia co-founder, and investor in Internet startups. He is Belgian, living in Madrid. He owns a Business Engineering degree from the Louvain School of Management. Before settling in Spain, François worked as a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group in Brussels and Paris. He participates as an investor and advisor in various Internet businesses as 11870.com, Vinogusto.com, Masquemedicos, Mumumio, o Zacatrus among others. It is also actively involved in supporting startups as a mentor at Seedrocket and Wayra, and is a partner in Bonsai Venture Capital.
Gonzalo Ortíz
Founder, Ediciones Globaliza
Gonzalo Ortiz is the Founder & CEO of Tadium, a company specialized in seed capital investments on technology start-ups. He has launched more than a dozen successful companies in 17 years in the technology sector. Most of these companies have reached TOP3 positions in their respective online business in Spain. Some of them are amongst the worlds leaders in their business, with operational sites in more than 30 countries and a dozen languages.
Jaime García Cantero
Independet Analyst
Jaime is an Independent Analyst and professor at EOI Business School as well as a consultant at Ayova Consulting, an international business consulting group that specializes in executive search, spain, germany and france recruiting, telecom consulting, top spanish engineers sourcing, user experience, new product launch management. Jaime formerly worked as Research Director for IDC and Strategy Consultant at McKinsey & Co.
Javier Ortíz
Business Development and Sales, Mitula.com
Javier Ortiz, is the Director of Business Development and Sales at the Spanish start-up Mitula.com, (an international verticaI search engine where he has helped make the company grow from 5 people to over 50 in just 3 years and expand to 33 countries and more than 25 million visitors per month). He is also the Founder of Jogo Consulting S.L. working to help companies get started and develop their markets. He holds a European degree in Business Administration, speaks 5 languages fluently and has worked and lived in 5 continents.
José Martin Cabiedes
Partner, Cabiedes & Partners SCR
José is a partner at Cabiedes & Partners SCR, a venture capital fund for early stage investments in internet ventures in Spain. He is also the founder of Fundación Hazloposible a non-profit organization aimed at fostering civic involvement in NGO causes by means of effectively using the ICT, namely internet and social networks. José has previously held executive roles in asset management and banking. He received a degree in industrial engineering from Universidad Pontificia Comillas and a MBA from IESE Business School.
José Miguel Herrero
Founding Partner, Big Sur Ventures
Founding Partner Big Sur Ventures a company that focuses its interest in innovative companies that produce breakthrough products and services that promise to provide transforming benefits to a market. We seek great businesses that can change the structure of the market. * Internet and new media * Technology enabled products and services * Information Technology * Greentech: clean water, clean power, clean transportation
Juan Leal
Founder, Seisdeagosto.com
Juan is the Owner and Founder of Seisdeagosto.com, and has over ten years of experience working on digital projects for desktop, mobile, tablet or any other digital display. He focuses on creating a better relationship between humans and technology as well as making Internet and electronic devices smarter, simpler, more user-oriented. Juan attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Sloan School of Management.
Justin Wilcox
CTO, Nimbus Health
Justin Wilcox started his first company at the age of 10, and hasn’t been able to stop. Graduating from Cal Poly’s Computer Science program, Justin worked at Microsoft for five years before leaving to start Nimbus Health – an electronic medical record company. In addition to running Nimbus, he’s launched a couple mobile apps in his spare time, including a top seller in the Travel Category and Bounce on Android. When Justin’s not entrepreneuring, he’s blogging at CustomerDevLabs.com about entrepreneuring or maybe doin’ a little dancing.
Mario Alonso
PRESIDENTE, AUREN
Mario Alonso Ayala is the President and Co-Founder of Auren Institute of Chartered Accountants of Spain. He is an Audit Committee Member - (ICAC), a Professor at the University of Alcala de Henares, on the Vocal Social Council of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid President of the Commission Fiscal Affairs, and CEIM Founder: UNIVERSE LINUX SET (ETT) DOUBLE SOUL (CALEDONIA) SAVEMEETING.
Ruth Puente
CEO & Founder, Biddus
CEO y fundadora at Biddus, empresa graduada por el Founder Institute Madrid. Arquitecta urbanista de profesión con 10 años de experiencia. Actualmente dedico todos mis esfuerzos a BIDDUS, un proyecto de ecommerce con el que proponemos un nuevo modelo de compra que empodera al consumidor.
Sébastien Chartier
Founder & CEO, Creaventure
Specialties: Emprendimiento / Lanzar start-ups / Venture Capital / Private Equity, Corporate Finance / M&A, Asesoramiento Estratégico, Interim Management, Financiación & Producción de Películas...
Sergio Sánchez
CEO & Founder, SSV Corporate
Socio fundador y CEO de SSV CORPORATE; Tesorero y miembro de la Comisión Ejecutiva de AJE Madrid. Sergio has more than 17 years of Investment Bank experience. While working for different financial entities (Citibank, Banesto, Fortis and Barclays), he handled Project Finance operations, leveraged buy-outs, IPO’s, debt restructuring and M&A in the energy, Internet, automotive, construction, food, environmental and services sectors. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Business (UCM) and specialised in Capital Markets at the Institute of Advanced Finance.
Silvia Varela
Founder y CEO, Sherpandipity
Silvia Varela - CEO en SHERPANDIPITY. Ingeniera de Telecomunicaciones y Master en Acción Internacional Humanitaria. Con una experiencia de más de 10 años, dividida entre gestión de proyectos IPTV a nivel global y tecnología aplicada a la acción humanitaria y el desarrollo social, en la actualidad ha decidido emprender un proyecto colaborativo con el que soñaba desde hace años. Sherpandipity, un proyecto de consumo colaborativo, que pone la tecnología al servicio de la ilusión y el intercambio cultural; viajar para vivir experiencias únicas, adaptadas a cada tipo de viajero y con una perspectiva local. www.sherpandipity.com
Víctor Sánchez
Founder and CEO, Elocuent
Professional and Professor in the Branding, PR/consulting fields. experience in advertising, marketing and Journalism (Radio, National TV, Press) From 2002 to 2012 leaded one of the most relevant independent PR and Comms group in Spain and spanish-speaking markets(ImageGroup.es). Now a relevant stakeholder and investor in several communications, technological and marketing companies. I have founded www.elocuent.com to bring the brand oportunity to the people and their SMBs Especialidades Speech, Speech writing, Personal Branding, Online, Expert in Corporate, Product, Tech and Crisis Communications. Journalism. Advertising. Marketing. Journalism, Media training. Coaching.
