Social Innovation Incubator 2022
You can help empower women entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color to develop their social venture ideas here in North Texas.
What is the Social Innovation Incubator Program?
For the second year running, the Social Innovation Incubator will focus on the historical opportunity and resource gaps to address systemic racial and gender inequities in the social innovation sector in North Texas.
This incubation program will provide early-stage social ventures, all led and staffed by women and people of color, with organizational and leadership development skills. The selected entrepreneurs will work on implementing new creative solutions to the most pressing problems facing North Texans in the areas of education, income, and health.
We are looking for professionals and community volunteers who...
- Are involved in or passionate about social innovation as well as identifying and developing new solutions to pressing problems facing North Texans
- Are excited about supporting an idea or an early-stage social venture with a culturally-informed lens
- Are passionate about addressing historic opportunity and resource gaps by supporting female entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color
- Can commit 2-4h every week (mentorship varies depending on the week, and includes reviewing the entrepreneur's work, meeting weekly with them, and attending the different mentors training sessions)
- Are located in the US, preferably in Texas
We are looking for professionals and community volunteers who...
- Are involved in or passionate about social innovation as well as identifying and developing new solutions to pressing problems facing North Texans
- Are excited about supporting an idea or an early-stage social venture with a culturally-informed lens
- Are passionate about addressing historic opportunity and resource gaps by supporting female entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color
- Can commit 2-4h every week (mentorship varies depending on the week, and includes reviewing the entrepreneur's work, meeting weekly with them, and attending the different mentors training sessions)
- Are located in the US, preferably in Texas
THIS WAS THE EXPERIENCE OF OTHER MENTORS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE SOCIAL INNOVATION INCUBATOR.
Now it’s your turn!
Mentors impact and development
0%
Of our mentors would like to repeat the experience and mentor again
0%
Of our mentors are likely to recommend the Social Innovation Incubator to other social entrepreneurs in the region
The deadline to apply is in…
JULY 23rd, 2022
You can learn more about the program by attending one of our info sessions taking place every thursday.
program timeline
Mentors Selection
United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and Bridge for Billions will review the applications and select the mentors to participate in the program.
Onboarding Session
Once selected, Bridge for Billions will host an onboarding session where, as a selected mentor, you will get all the details you need for a great mentorship: getting to know Bridge for Billions' online incubation platform, the methodology, tips for your mentoring sessions, and much more!
Mentors and Entrepreneurs Match
You will take part in our matching process! You will have the opportunity to meet online with the participant entrepreneurs. Once you have met several of them, both you and them will submit your rankings in order to let us know who you want to work with.
Based on the rankings, we will make the best mentor-mentee pairs and, afterwards, the entrepreneur and mentor pairs will be formalized.
the Incubation Program Begins!
- You will work weekly with your mentee 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 in our monthly sessions, so you can share learnings, challenges, and network.
Closing of the program
As a participant, you will attend a closing session where we will cover the whole program journey and reflect on the experience.
The methodology
Entrepreneurship is a chaotic process by nature. That’s why, Bridge for Billions’ methodology is based on a structured and hands-on learning approach. Our incubation program helps entrepreneurs develop a business plan from scratch while being surrounded by an international community with other founders, fellow mentors, and an incubation team.
Our incubation platform and our eight online business modules will help you during your mentorship journey, making it easier for you to know what’s next. By the end of the program the entrepreneurs will be confident that they are building a viable and validated business.
Ready to start?
Frequently Asked Questions
Applicant mentors should show a passion for helping aspiring entrepreneurs and should be ready to commit to ensuring quality mentorship and a productive business relationship. Once paired with an entrepreneur, you’ll commit to meeting 60-90 minutes per week for 4 months.
As a mentor, you’ll have a positive impact on someone’s life. You’ll meet and connect with North Texans entrepreneurs and develop your mentoring skills, exposing yourself to the latest innovation and entrepreneurship methodologies while helping a startup business grow and impact on our community.
We advise you to have a laptop or desktop computer and preferably one of these browsers: Google Chrome, Safari, Firefox. However, our platform is also suitable for cell phones.
Also, we expect you to have a stable and reliable internet connection for your weekly review on the platform, to participate in the video calls with your entrepreneur, and to attend the monthly sessions.
Once accepted into the program, you’ll enter the Matching Phase. During that time, you will have access to basic information about all the projects, and you will be able to have initial meetings with the founders so you can get to know each other.
You can invite as many entrepreneurs as you want, but eventually you’ll have to choose your preferred mentee by submitting a ranking. After that, we will make the best mentor-mentee pairs.
Your task as a mentor will be to guide your entrepreneurs throughout the Social Innovation Incubator 2022. You will help your entrepreneur validate their strategies throughout the program and support them through virtual collaboration once a week, either on the platform or over video chat.
You will use the online business modules as your guide. These tools will guide you as well as the entrepreneur in effectively covering and validating each critical aspect of the business planning process. The modules cover:
- Value Proposition
- Competition Map
- Stakeholder Map
- Business Model & Marketing
- Pricing & Business Viability
- Financial Projections
- Impact Plan
- Growth Plan
Yes. Once selected, you’ll be invited to a virtual training session. You’ll also have to attend to 4 training sessions specifically done for mentors. Plus, you’ll be member of an online community of mentors to spark conversations, share resources and learn from others.
Yes! However, we ask that you be realistic with your time commitment. We don’t want anyone to overcommit or set expectations that they won’t be able to meet.
All of the mentors for the Social Innovation Incubator Program are volunteers. At the end of the program you will get a Mentorship Certificate ready to be shared.
Can’t find your question here?
Submit a question or request an introductory call with Jasmine Hillman, the Program Manager for the Social Innovation Incubator.
Do you need technical
help with your application?
If you are experiencing tech-related issues with your application, let us know and we will help you.
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