Program created by
You have been selected as a mentor in the EPIC Costa Rica Incubation program
Support and guide students in developing and scaling their social ventures.
The EPIC Costa Rica incubation program
EPIC (End Poverty Innovation Challenge) is the flagship program for Social Ventures Foundation, a US-based foundation that supports students in their journey of developing their social business. SVF and Bridge for Billions have now joined forces to develop ‘EPIC Costa Rica’ with one clear goal: to drive social and economic development in the country.
This program will help you make an impact by guiding social-driven entrepreneurs to develop their business ideas. Your mission will be to weekly accompany the founders while learning a validated entrepreneurship methodology and strengthening your leadership skills.
Why participate?
Mentor a social project you feel passionate about
Connect with a social entrepreneur working on what really interests and moves you.
Grow personally and professionally
Develop your leadership and coaching skills as you learn more about innovation.
Create a more inclusive and efficient society
Guide brave social entrepreneurs who are tackling the toughest societal challenges in Costa Rica.
Become that mentor
Think of all those mentors in your life and become that to someone who needs it.
Expand your network
Join a global network of +1.800 professionals that share your same interests.
Selection criteria
- You have a minimum of 5 years of post-academic professional experience.
- You are ready and have the availability to commit 1.5 hours per week for the duration of the program.
- Interest in supporting student entrepreneurs to develop their social business ideas.
Send your application before
Days
Hours
Minutes
DEADLINE: MAY 9TH, 2022
Timeline
Matching and training
From May 12th to May 19th, 2022
You will be paired with a team of social entrepreneurs developing their solution.
Training session
May, 10th at 5 PM (Costa Rica Time) and May, 11th at 9 AM (Costa Rica Time)
You will attend our Onboarding session where you will get all the details you need for a great mentorship: getting to know Bridge for Billions' online incubation platform, tips for your mentoring sessions, and much more!
The incubation program begins!
From May 20th to August 21st, 2022
- You will work weekly with your mentees in one-on-one mentoring sessions to review their work on the 8 business modules on the platform.
- You will guide them while they cover the most important parts of their business (from refining the value proposition to generating a clear growth plan).
- You will meet the other mentors of the EPIC program in our monthly sessions, so you can share learnings, challenges, and network!
The best incubation methodology
Entrepreneurship is a chaotic process by nature. That’s why Bridge for Billions’ methodology is based on a structured, hands-on learning approach. Our incubation program is based on developing a business plan from scratch while being surrounded by a supportive community: fellow mentors, entrepreneurs, and an incubation team.
Our 8 online business tools will support you and guide you during your mentorship process. In your to experiment, research and document your ideas step by step so that at the end of the program they will be able to download their own business plan in PDF and they will be confident that you are building a viable business.
Check our FAQs
What is the time commitment to the program?
Mentor applicants should show a passion for helping aspiring social entrepreneurs and should be ready to commit in order to ensure quality mentorship and a productive business relationship. Mentors can always choose when to work with a project or not, but once a commitment is made, the time requirement is approximately 1.5 hrs per week for the duration of the entrepreneur’s incubation program.
What technology will I need for the program?
You will need to be able to use a laptop or desktop computer (not tablet or smartphone) and preferably one of these browsers: Google Chrome, Safari, Firefox. We expect you to have a strong, reliable internet connection both for reviewing the mentees work on the platform and to participate in the weekly mentoring sessions via video call.
Why is this program sponsored?
Bridge for Billions and Social Ventures Foundation have partnered with the goal of bringing high-quality entrepreneurial support to social entrepreneurs in Costa Rica.
We believe that only by providing this program at no cost for these students, we are truly supporting them to unleash their potential and create solutions for all.
How will I work and communicate with my mentees?
Our platform has been built to facilitate collaboration. Once you have access to your mentor’s workspace you’ll be able to work together with them through comments on every aspect of their business plan, and you’ll also have access to your own team video room embedded in our platform, so that every week you can meet and talk as if you were in the same room, in just a few clicks.
You’ll also have one-to-one messaging with your mentee(s) available, and each team can decide (or not) to use alternative communication channels such as phone, WhatsApp, email, Slack, etc.
Lastly, you will have monthly online calls with all of the other mentors from your cohort to share articles and resources, ask questions, and overcome challenges together.
Do I get paid as a mentor?
Being a Bridge for Billions mentor is a 100% volunteer experience in which you’ll impact the life of the entrepreneurs when it’s most needed and learn top-notch entrepreneurship and innovation methodologies.
What will be my role as a mentor? On what subjects will I support the entrepreneur?
As a mentor, you will guide your entrepreneur throughout our structured program. You will be the person who can understand the ins and outs of their business and, week after week, help them to validate their strategy for each critical stage, from targeting the right customers, to building a 3-year growth plan.
You will support your entrepreneurs through virtual collaboration on the platform as well as video chats once a week. We also encourage any connection or extra resource that you can share with them. Our program is made of 8 business tools:
- Value Proposition
- Competition Map
- Stakeholder Map
- Business Model & Marketing
- Pricing & Business Viability
- Financial Projections
- Impact Plan
- Growth Plan
These tools will guide you as well as the entrepreneur in effectively covering and validating each critical aspect of the business planning process.
Do you provide help/training/material for inexperienced mentors?
Yes — once you have officially been accepted as a mentor, you will be invited to follow an onboarding training where we’ll explain our innovation-based entrepreneurship methodology and how our platform works. You’ll get the chance to meet other mentors, and of course we’ll be here to answer all of your questions! You will also join an online community of mentors to spark conversations, share extra resources, and keep learning!
Can’t find your question here?
Connect directly with Sebastián, Program Manager of the The EPIC Costa Rica incubation program to answer them all in a 20 min meeting. Whenever you see fit!
