Unlike many others, INNOVentures takes Mentoring very seriously. We assign a specialist mentor (or two) with real experience of building a company in a relevant domain to each venture.  We take this so seriously that we would not admit a venture into the accelerator – no matter how promising it may seem – if we cannot find a mentor from amongst our credentialed list to help build the venture.

VentureLab’s partners and mentors take personal responsibility of taking an idea/founder to investment and scale and to align their incentives, they get a small percentage (2.5%) in the venture.

Do you have what it takes to become a Mentor? In addition to having built a startup before, here are a bunch of qualities of

Great Mentors recommended by Forbes Magazine:

Self-reflection:  If you want someone to share their wisdom with you, they need to have wisdom to share. Some people simply don’t spend much time thinking about their own experience; a person can be quite knowledgeable and successful without having reflected much on how they got where they are today.

Honesty: If you’re brave enough to ask your mentor for advice, he or she needs to be brave enough to give you a straight answer. If you’re contemplating taking a new job, for instance, and you explain the situation and ask for your mentor’s point of view – he or she should give it to you, unvarnished.

Curiosity: This one may seem counter-intuitive – isn’t it the mentee’s responsibility to be curious about the mentor?  Yes. And…if the mentor i

sn’t curious about you: who you are, how you’re wired, what’s important to you, what you’ve done so far and how it’s working for you – it’s unlikely his or her advice will be very helpful.

Generosity of Spirit: This is essential.  A great mentor wants you to succeed, and he or she will actively support your success with words and action. The great mentor will never be envious or feel threatened by your growth; he or she will congratulate you on your triumphs and help you recover from your setbacks.

If this is who you are, please consider registering for our Mentors Pool (here) and we will get back to you.