Detailed Plan
<u>Main Deliverable:</u>
A 6-week bootcamp for future proposers on communicating their ideas effectively within Catalyst, obtaining the business skills needed, and finding the rights teams to implement.
–––––IMPACT———–
<u>How does the proposal fit into this challenge?</u>
Bootcamps are a common feature in the start-up world. By giving teams and individuals access to training, guidance and mentorship, we create an environment that can foster high-quality proposals by well-informed and competent teams.
<u>How will this campaign add value to our ecosystem?</u>
By drawing upon the wider start-up community, we can onboard talented entrepreneurs into the Catalyst ecosystem, as well as training those already familiar with Catalyst but lacking the skills needed to get their proposals successfully funded.
<u>Outlook and future challenges?</u>
An initial program of 20 individuals and 5 teams will be invited by application to participate. After a series of lectures, training sessions and demos, the 5 teams will be assigned a Catalyst mentor each and the 20 individuals will be put through a 6-week bootcamp aimed at taking them from 'Zero to Funded'. At this bootcamp, they will be pitching ideas, creating teams and at the end will be presenting to a panelist of experts and mentors. We will be following the Startupbootcamp (https://www.startupbootcamp.org/) model for this, applied to a virtual setting, with the help of WADA and their partners.
–––––FEASIBILITY———
<u>Reference (Past Successes):</u>
Having joined Startupbootcamp as a team leader on several of its programs and gone on to be an organizer for an enterprise accelerator, I have experience delivering such programs and am well-versed in curriculum development, session facilitation, and journey-mapping of the participants. In collaboration with WADA and its partners, we have at our disposal:
- A membership platform in development for onboarding and virtual training sessions
- A learning management system in development to track progress and usage of the materials created
- Several networks of interested participants for future bootcamps as we scale
- Mentors and experts willing to support both the goals of WADA and Cardano
<u>Roadmap:</u>
After voting takes place and funding is successfully secured:
Pre-bootcamp:
- 40 days - Curriculum development, mentor and expert outreach, platform development
- 20 days - Marketing campaign, applications open
- 7 days - Applicants are chosen, onboarding and pre-reading material is distributed
Program launch (Jan 15th):
- 6-week learning program of lectures, training sessions and demos
- 6-week bootcamp, taking the individuals and teams from 'Zero to Funded'
Post-Program:
- Proposal submission to Catalyst (with workshops, https://bit.ly/F6Workshops))
- Ongoing proposal and mentorship support (where applicable)
- Program survey and report creation
- CVSB Round 2 Proposal Submission (Scale-up)
<u>Core Team & Roles:</u>
Josh Fielding - Program Lead + Finance Lead @ WADA
Sidney Nicholas - Advisory Lead + Diaspora Lead @ WADA
Mercy - Community Organiser + Coordination Lead @ WADA
Megan - Events & Central Africa Regional Lead @WADA
+WADA team
Main Stakeholder: WADA (https://wadalliance.org)
Other Stakeholders:
Catalyst Swarm who are the foremost leaders in Catalyst collaboration and can assist us in team creation, brainstorming, dynamic virtual gatherings and conference-style presentations
Blockchain Education Network (BEN), who has a network of thousands of students that could be trained and onboarded as this program grows
PATF - Our long-term partners who have been delivering blockchain bootcamps and providing legal advice since early 2020
<u>Budget breakdown:</u>
- Team fees $12000
- Experts and Mentor fees $9000
- Curriculum development and materials cost $5000
- Platform costs $3000
- Incentives $3000
- Marketing $2000
———–AUDITABILITY————
<u>What success looks like:</u>
Over 50% of CVSB-approved proposals get funded. After a successful program, we will have created the curriculum, set up the online learning platform, have a pool of mentors and experts to draw on and resubmit for a second round.
- 3 months: Curriculum developed, experts confirmed, program launched
- 6 months: Program completed, DeFi teams submitted proposals, with the help of CVSB
- 12 months: Funded DeFi teams identified, second iteration of the bootcamp launched, with an established learning pathway and entrepreneur toolkit available
<u>Key Metrics:</u>
-
No. Submitted proposals
-
No. New Catalyst Proposers
-
No. Funded Proposals
-
% Proposals Funded
-
Total funding generated from the program
-
Approval rating from participants:
-
Would recommend 0-10
-
Value of the training 0-10
<u>Risk Management:</u>
Education Quality: Experienced teachers, educators and start-up coaches within the WADA network that can ensure a high standard of education and training is delivered throughout the program.
Proposal Quality: WADA and partners are long-time Catalyst members with several successfully funded proposals, as well as assisting others on their Catalyst journey.
Future sustainability: After the tipping-point of demand and value-creation is reached, we can then seek out sponsors, investors and partners for continued financial sustainability outside of Catalyst.
<u>Affiliated Proposals:</u>
DeFi For Cardano - Learning Portal:
<https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/DeFi-for-Cardano-Learning-Portal/366756-48088>
WADA Proposor Workshops:
<https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/WADA-Proposer-Workshops/366968-48088>
Africa/Diaspora Dev Tools & Events:
<https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Africa-Diaspora-Dev-Tools-Events/366952-48088>
Scale up WADA's Outreach Program:
<https://cardano.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Scale-up-WADA-s-Outreach-Program/366982-48088>
Project brief:
<https://docs.google.com/document/d/1C6iU-YN8QORzkQsVw1hu9ODWcwrFsI8zyvWsFcKV83c/edit?usp=sharing>
---------------------------------------
Interested in contributing or partnering? Get in touch by sending a private message
---------------------------------------