“We want to be able to work with startups, but we can’t find the right startups, and even when we do, we don’t know how to continue the engagement.”
In the startup engagement program, the goal is to develop new products / services or increase the productivity and reduce structured costs via partnership with and/or investment in technology startups.
To facilitate these goals, the startup engagement program is designed to find and evaluate startups in line with the company’s innovation focus areas, and to create added value cooperation opportunities. The process of evaluating such potential investment opportunities and partnerships involves the following steps:
Innovation Focus Areas
In order to maximize the value created from external partnerships and investments, it is important to identify specific areas for growth.
In line with the company’s innovation growth strategy, specific innovation areas to identify the key needs of internal units are created with department managers over 2-3 meetings.
Startup Search & Evaluation
Within the definition of the innovation focus areas, a search is conducted for startups in Turkey and the neighboring region via online databases, startup accelerators and incubators, and investor networks. Following, initial meetings are conducted to determine the accuracy of the fit between the need and solutions offered.
After these meetings, a short list is created and each startup’s business model is analyzed, a value map is created, and their potential fit with the company is evaluated. Following, selected startups are brought together with the relevant departments to discuss the initial framework for a Proof-of-Concept (POC) trial. The deliverables from this phase are as follows:
- Long list of startups that fit the innovation focus areas
- Short list of potential startups with short explanations
- Preliminary analysis of 2-3 startups including business model and value map
- Suggestions for potential partnership models
Proof of Concept (POC)
When the decision to run a POC exercise is reached, the entire process managed and tracked through regular mentoring sessions together with both the startup and the relevant department.
Specific deadlines and performance metrics are determined for the POC exercise. The implementation of the POC plan, and required pivots as they arise, are supported via mentoring provided to both the startup and relevant department. The end of the POC process is marked by the following deliverables:
- Partnership Scope and Model
- Roadmap for Corporate Integration