In 2016 we launched VilCap Communities, a 26-city pilot to license our curriculum and investment model to accelerators, incubators and investors around the globe.
This report compiles lessons learned, based on survey data and interviews with >100 ecosystem leaders and entrepreneurs.
We found that many entrepreneur support organizations promise everything to everyone, and end up failing for that reason. We offer specific lessons on how to find, train and invest in entrepreneurs, including:
- Many entrepreneur support programs rely on philanthropic support – and that’s OK.55% of every dollar taken in by the 26 entrepreneur communities was philanthropic
-Entrepreneurs find more value in sector-specific programs. Entrepreneurs that participated in a sector-specific program reported 24% higher overall satisfaction
-The most common cohort size was six to ten entrepreneurs.The majority of programs had this cohort size, with an average of 40-60 applicants