Member Article

Teesside University teams with Searchcamp for Global Entrepreneurship Week

Moves to create a more vibrant start-up culture in the Tees Valley are taking another step forward at Teesside University as part of this year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week.

The week will see the University teaming up with Teesside-based accelerator Searchcamp to offer an innovative ‘lean start-up’ programme with world-class speakers between 15 and 24 November.

‘Take a Step Forward’ is the theme for Global Entrepreneurship Week, and the University’s events are aimed at new and aspiring entrepreneurs who are ready to move to the next stage in developing their business plans.

Searchcamp was founded as a partnership between the University and local investors, offering new companies up to £15,000 of seed capital and intensive mentoring over a three-month period while living and working on the University campus.

Lean start-up thinking and methods form the core principles of Searchcamp and are the central theme for Global Entrepreneurship Week on campus.

Bobby Paterson, Searchcamp Programme Director, said the programme is part of a continued effort to create an energised start-up economy and community on Teesside, akin to places like Boulder, Colorado.

He said: “It’s fantastic to connect and work alongside highly talented and energised people to look at ways of solving real world problems and working together to find commercial solutions.

“A collaborative economy helps to create a much more sustainable start-up environment.”

Activity begins on Friday 15 November with Evolv Weekend Middlesbrough; an immersive structured learning experience for start-up companies.

Throughout the weekend, business teams will receive intensive coaching and mentoring with leading entrepreneurs from the UK and Europe, in a similar manner to the full Searchcamp programme.

Prizes on offer for the best businesses include investment and a place on the next Searchcamp accelerator programme.

The week that follows sees new businesses, academic staff and researchers taking part in tailored workshops featuring high-profile experts in entrepreneurship.

Students who are interested in setting up their own business have their own one-day event, with sessions on start-up and customer development – all based on lean start-up principles. They will hear direct from the businesses that have graduated from Searchcamp and are now winning investment in their companies.

Bobby added: “The mantra at Teesside University is all about employability and they are committed to entrepreneurship as a very real career path. There is a pipeline of quality from the Fellowships programme at DigitalCity Innovation through to the incubator units at the Victoria Building and then through to Digital City Business. Searchcamp fits perfectly into that pipeline

“We’re delighted to have the opportunity to work with the University to make Global Entrepreneurship Week a real stand-out experience for ambitious entrepreneurs. We hope that it will enable many new start-ups to look at ways of increasing profitability and making their business more sustainable.

“I’d strongly recommend that students look up and come to our conference. It’s going to be a top event with some great speakers and the learning will be real and useable.”

This project is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

The ERDF Competitiveness Programme 2007-2013 is bringing over £300m into the North East to support innovation, enterprise and business support across the region.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Teesside University .