In the dynamic realm of startups, mentorship takes center stage in driving ambitious ideas to fruition. The mentor-founder connection goes beyond advice, bringing empowerment, inspiration, and a shared commitment to overcoming obstacles on the path to success.
When Founder Institute Eastern Europe mentor Victor Schiller founded his first business back in 1982, he was a freshly minted MBA with an engineering undergraduate degree. He thought he knew everything, so he started building all facets of his computer software startup from scratch - company vision, business plan, product lineup and positioning, marketing plan, etc. Then, he met two seasoned entrepreneurs who were 30 years older than him and made him realize he knew nothing.
By leveraging their expertise, Victor, turned that software startup into an industry leader. Today he's the president of R Cubed Group, a private equity fund investing in equities, fixed income, real estate, and strategic investments including early-stage companies.
''I learned so much from my mentors - stuff they don’t teach in the classroom, their mentorship was essential.’’ he recalls. And continues: ‘’Now, I’m the one with 40+ years of knowledge and experience, and I feel it is my responsibility to pass that on to the next generation. My reward? Seeing an entrepreneur materializing their vision and relish all the benefits they bring to themselves, their family, and the larger community.’’
The value of accelerator mentorship
Mentorship has the power to transform raw concepts into validated products. In her study What do Accelerators Do, Susan Cohen outlines mentoring as a major component differentiating accelerator programs from other business training courses. In later research on the design of startup accelerators, she shares another important finding: the more the entrepreneurs met with mentors, customers, and various stakeholders, the more open they became to new ideas.
''They often joined the accelerator thinking they were ready to launch a product or scale delivery strategies, but the concentrated interactions helped them determine where they needed to change their plans.’’ Susan Cohen testifies.
Although the structure of accelerator mentoring sessions varies widely in different programs depending on the startup stage, availability, and matching mechanisms, mentors always provide an additional layer of support. Not only do they play multiple roles, but they serve as role models - founders get motivated by other accomplished entrepreneurs who, in their eyes, have made the leap, stood up to the challenge, and succeeded. In many cases, mentors have, in fact, pivoted in their own startup journey, but they learned from events and can now offer a shortcut or warn newbies about the pitfalls they may encounter.
Based on recent interviews data, mentoring delivers on six aspects crucial to entrepreneurial success:
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entrepreneurial human capital
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network building
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fundraising skills
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legitimacy
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psychological development
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the venture’s immediate operational progress
Long term investment
When Founder Institute graduates give us feedback on the FI Core Program they rank the highest the opportunity to meet professionals who have been where they are today. In our curriculum, we prioritize Office Hours, so founders can book as many sessions as they want and they can fit into their schedule.
However, no matter how present and proactive founders can be, to effectively apply the knowledge they gain during the program, they need ongoing support. Fostering a strong community is a top priority; therefore, regular check-ins and postgraduate initiatives such as Funding Lab and participation in various Alumni events, are vital.
Mentors act as the backbones of their startup ecosystems. Last but not least, they carry with them the contacts of hundreds of industry leaders - startup founders, investors, speakers, experts, and officials.
For so many of our Alumni, the real tangible prize for their efforts comes after the end of the program. Our graduate Mariana Velasquez, founder of Branddu illustrates this point with her personal story:
''I think that the most valuable thing about mentorship is being matched with a great networking group.
Through FI, I connected with one VC fund that has now invested in Branddu. I met a mentor that is an ex Country Manager at Amazon in Australia, and he has been really helpful to us. Overall, FI mentors taught me a lot about fundraising and introduced me to interesting people in the startup ecosystem who had an interest in my company.’’
Beyond guidance
Without underestimating the significance of the above-mentioned benefits, the most potent driver of growth offered by mentoring lies within the unique relationship shared between the mentor and the mentee. The convergence of the novice embarking on a startup adventure and the experienced entrepreneur creates a distinct, vibrant entity, and it is within the connection between them that magical shifts occur. In a sense, the interaction itself is the most fertile aspect of mentorship.
We have observed three factors occurring in this relationship that can have a meaningful impact:
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Accountability - sets short-term milestones, forms habits, promotes reflection, develops organizational skills
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Creativity - one step further than gathering information from free and paid resources, testing of new ideas and approaches, builds up an innovation mindset
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Objectivity - an outsider view, a sensible perspective, minimizes excessive self-criticism
The combination of the three improves entrepreneurs' judgment and productivity. After years of watching talented founders losing touch with reality and underestimating their worth, FI Silicon Valley mentor Russell Brand created The Hidden Gems Project - a checklist of questions covering all achievements of a startup. The purpose of this initiative is to assist founders in accurately representing themselves, describing what they do, and explaining where are they headed. Ultimately, moral support outweighs solving common issues.
''Most of the stories I can tell are about founders not realizing how truly impressive and wonderful are the things they have already done.’’
Russell Brand, founder of Responsible Solutions
Sometimes entrepreneurship tasks are heavy, but they can also be surprisingly uncomplicated. For example, here’s a sample of a mentoring framework for removing startup pitching hiccups.
- Victor Schiller’s 8 words exercise
'’I ask them to tell me what they do in eight words or less…And inspire, intrigue, and delight me. Make me ask for more information. Getting that eight words (or less) right is essential.It is the hook that helps people really understand what the founder is doing and eases us into the pitch. If that is all I can remember and it has influence, you have won. The catch? To get the eight words right you need to test your idea on a lot of people.Change it up until people get excited and beg you to tell them more.’’
Keeping up with trends and changes
Balaji Gopalan, FI Canada mentor and founder of the digital health platform MedStack, is excited about innovation, particularly at the earliest stages. His inspiration and biggest reward is to witness the process by which someone courageous has identified a problem and committed to trying to solve it. But he also admits that cultivating a new generation of founders can be tough because the market fluctuates and trends are coming and going.
Apparently, Balaji believes that this challenge enhances the privilege of being a mentor. He defines it as a chance to road-test theoretical constructs, advice, and academic ideas in the real world.
To the question has a founder ever made him change his perspective, he replies:
''The trickiest conversations usually have to do with navigating the intricacies of a multi-sided market, knowing who to talk to or go after when there's a dependency on another market. The answers are never that obvious, and I've been challenged by my counsel more than once, but in the back and forth, I feel that typically the founder and I come away with newer perspectives on how to balance what's easy or more feasible vs. what is academically ideal.’’
Curiously enough, even when a mentor and a founder don’t immediately click, the differences in their perspectives on the current business landscape will likely compel them to broaden their horizons.
The mentor and the mentee are the same person
If you’re asking yourself whether you’re the mentor or the mentee, you’re probably both. At Founder Institute, we’re constantly scouting for startup experts to join our cohorts, and you can be the next one. Don’t miss the chance to meet face-to-face with aspiring founders, reset your watch, and convey the wealth of experience and wisdom you have generated so far. Furthermore, you will also learn in the process, not just train but get trained as well.
Want to know more about Founder Institute’s global network of mentors and register? Click here
See which Founder Institute mentors got awarded at the 2022 Global Startup Mentor Awards
On the other hand, if you have a business idea and need help testing and validating it, as well as for building your company and fundraising, apply for the FI’s Core accelerator
Find out what other graduates say about Founder Institute
The Founder Institute is the world’s most proven network to turn ideas into fundable startups, and startups into global businesses. Since 2009, our highly-structured accelerator programs have helped entrepreneurs raised over $1.75BN in funding across over 200 cities worldwide.
Learn more about the Founder Institute at FI.co, or join an upcoming startup event at FI.co/events.
