Since 2018 I am a mentor and advisor for CZECHINVEST (CzechInvest, the Agency for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship and Investment) https://www.czechinvest.org/cz/Sluzby-pro-startupy
This results from my biggest professional achievements: transition from employee-attorney, to CFO, to co-owner of an IT company with almost 200 employees, after my exit I went to the bar, where I work for private clients, especially investors, and use my experience in litigation management and planning
Typical mentoring is therefore a situation where a startup "builds a company" around a product (usually because its team includes technology experts and it has already found or negotiated its first customers, but has not defined what exactly to promise them, what to commit suppliers to, and what risks to take) - so that what it introduces for one customer is a sustainable product, a commodity.
Startups don't usually think about the exit, but at the outset, we build everything from the perspective of a potential investor or sale of the whole business, so I also emphasize the overlooked aspect of transparent finances and financial plan/model.
In addition, as a prementor from the Czechinvest perspective, I go through the business plans and pitches of the applicants for the program (World from Space, 24VS, Gogrou, Softvision, Geneea Analytics), I also checked their business plans thoroughly (beyond their pitches and applications), I did not recommend them uncritically.
I also see mentoring as an opportunity to expand my own horizons and contacts, so I welcome shorter collaborations and prementoring.
Let me help your startup succeed and thrive.
References:
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UGET: mentoring on setting up the legal regime of business terms and training their customers in the field of consumer law in the Czech Republic and the EU, protection of personal data in the GDPR and safe harbor regimes, automated conclusion of orders even in the form of "smart contracts" secured by blockchain
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biomed: solving a specific problem in relation to a potential investor: through mentoring, I identified the risks for the CEO of a startup, quantified them, and outlined possible solutions
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fintech: valuation of the company and consultation on investor entry or company acquisition (methods: accounting value, sum of assets, discounted cash flow, EBITDA multiple, acquihire), workshop: simulation of negotiations with investor - possible expected scenarios
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smart solution for sports equipment/esports: I began working with the startup at the moment it entered into cooperation with an external technology supplier and when the CEO had a clear idea of where the startup was heading; we identified the values that it made sense to protect and identified the risks, we set up a fair and balanced relationship with the key technology supplier (Letter of Intent: business continuity, guarantees), offer for customers (business models incl. their definition), specification for software development and for SLA (operation, support), division of income with the supplier (or fee), exit conditions
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smart cities: definition of the product as a basis for a tender or customer contract, evaluation of the product in terms of handling personal data (adjustment of the product to avoid processing under GDPR), investor relationships (principles of Letter of Intent, principles of Shareholders Agreement), security of relationships with hardware suppliers (requirements for business continuity and IP rights)
Typical mentoring is therefore a situation where a startup "builds a company" around a product (usually because its team includes technology experts and it has already found or negotiated its first customers, but has not defined what exactly to promise them, what to commit suppliers to, and what risks to take) - so that what it introduces for one customer is a sustainable product, a commodity. Startups don't usually think about the exit, but at the outset, we build everything from the perspective of a potential investor or sale of the whole business, so I also emphasize the overlooked aspect of transparent finances and financial plan/model.
I have brought an investor to several startups and connected others to each other.