What is the IDEA Venture Team?
As one of the most tenured student-led organizations in the Mosaic community, IDEA has built a reputation for its role in venture acceleration. It is powered by multidisciplinary collaboration among a group of Northeastern students who share a passion for entrepreneurship, professional development, and making an impact on the world. IDEA helps young ventures develop their businesses from concept to launch by providing them with educational, monetary and community-based resources. At the heart of IDEA’s impact is its Venture team: This article will give you a rare glimpse into how they work with ventures.
The Build Up of the Team
The Venture Team consists of 17 student members from diverse backgrounds and fields of study. The 17 members are divided into 4 teams: Ready, Set, Go and Investments. Each of these teams has 3 Venture Analysts assigned to them and is led by a stage coordinator. The entire Venture Team is led by a Venture Director.
The Ready, Set and Go stages act as stage gates in the IDEA program with each stage helping an entrepreneur develop different parts of their venture and providing access to unique stage specific resources. The Investments Team directly manages the funding resources at IDEA and is supported by members from all teams.
The Venture team is also supported by a diverse group of people; including but not limited to other teams within IDEA, our Program Manager - Gwen Corner, 20+ Venture Coaches who represent a diverse range of industries and 4 experienced Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIRs).
Different Stages at IDEA + Resources
The Ready Stage focuses on customer validation which includes understanding the scope of the problem, designing a solution, and conducting initial competitive analysis. Some resources that are available in this stage include coaching office hours, IDEA workshops and events, templates and guides, and the Prototype Fund.
The Set Stage helps ventures build their business models which includes establishing their initial product or service, considering revenue models, and creating a go-to-market strategy. Some resources that are available in this stage include business model guides, access to service providers and being connected with an IDEA coach for a one-on-one relationship.
The Go Stage helps ventures bring their business to life which includes executing on business milestones to scale their companies in preparation of raising external capital, joining another accelerator, or becoming self-sustained on revenue. Some resources that are available in this stage include the gap fund of up to $30,000 in non-equity grant funding, and access to the McCarthy(s) Venture Mentoring Network.
Other Resources
Apart from the resources mentioned above there are a number of other resources available to IDEA ventures as well in different stages.
These include access to a ton of educational resources, getting advice/mentorship from EIRs and coaches, knowledge shared with 400+ ventures in our ecosystem through the Venture Slack, lots of discounted and free resources like legal help, AWS credits, etc. The team also provides ventures with more exposure by sharing interesting events/pitch competitions, working with Marketing to share various venture updates and highlights and exposing them to the IDEA investor network at Pitchathon and Nexpo.
The team continuously works with other Mosaic organizations and on campus resources to fuel the entrepreneurship ecosystem on campus. Example we work with the Husky Startup Challenge at Entrepreneurs Club and the WeBuild program at WISE to incorporate young founders into the idea program. We work with Scout and Generate, the on campus student led design and product development studio to connect IDEA ventures to them as potential clients. We work with Huntington Angels Network to share resources where IDEA ventures can go for funding.
Funding Resources
One of the most unique parts of IDEA is that it not only operationally supports ventures but is also able to provide a couple of non-equity based educational grants for founders to further build on their ventures. The 3 funding resources are:
- GAP Fund (managed by IDEA): A $10,000 non-equity educational grant available to ventures in the Go stage of IDEA’s process. Grants are available for applicants on a bi-monthly basis. Applications are reviewed by IDEA’s student Investment Committee before being selected to pitch in front of members of IDEA’s Advisory Board. Ventures can receive a total of $30,000 in grants.
- Prototype Fund (managed by IDEA, Generate and Origin): A $1,500 non equity educational grant fund available to ventures in all stages with particular use cases. Grants are available for applicants 5 times a year (every even month except June). Ventures can get the Prototype Fund upto 2 times for 1 concept.
- Alpha Fund (managed by IDEA, Generate, Origin and Marc Meyer): A $5,000 non educational grant available to ventures in STEM-related fields with particular use cases. Grants are available to applicants once per semester (at the end). Ventures can receive up to $10,000 in grants.
The Venture Analyst Experience
Professionally, if you are an aspiring entrepreneur, the role provides a strong understanding of how to be successful from the early stages of a new venture. If you aspire to work in venture capital or become an angel investor in the future, this experience is a great way to learn about investing in ventures without having to risk your own money.
The team also provides you with an extensive network of ventures, coaches, EIRs and other students who share a passion for entrepreneurship. IDEA is also an amazing community and being in a leadership team at one of the largest university accelerators is a superbly fun and unique experience.
Who Can Start an IDEA Venture
Any student team who has a connection with Northeastern can join IDEA as a venture. IDEA founders can be current students or alumni from Northeastern and the program is open to both students currently living in America and those residing internationally. If you have an idea for a venture or have a pre-existing one, IDEA is the go-to place at Northeastern for you. With a community of 400+ ventures, a ton of educational resources and access to lots of mentors and other tools that can accelerate a venture, IDEA has a lot to offer.
How to Join as Students
Working alongside the Venture on the leadership team are the tech, events, community, marketing and rotational associates teams integral to the daily functioning of the organization. If you are interested in joining IDEA, we open applications to join the IDEA management team at the end of every semester. Please learn more about our management team here.
By Jacqueline Zhao
For more inquiries regarding the Venture Team, please contact idea@northeastern.edu.
From founding WISE to starting a student business accelerator called Envision, Eliana is asserting herself as a young business leader in Massachusetts and beyond!
