Startup Weekend
Open to all, even if you do not have an idea bring your creativity and you passion to innovate.
This free weekend event, where anyone can develop and pitch a new startup idea*. It’s about understanding the problem, validating target customer, building a business model, and pitching, in a friendly and supportive team environment. All in just 36 hours.
Everyone is welcome, regardless of your discipline, interests or background. Whether you have an idea, are considering one, or simply want to engage in an exciting and vibrant atmosphere, this event is for you.
*note: Not all ideas will be used at this event, however, everyone one of the participants will have the opportunity to meet 1-on-1 with a mentor from The Mill and build out your individual go-to-market strategy. Everyone will have the opportunity to meet and work with all of the resource at The Mill and their resource partners.
Student Registration
Students from all areas of study are welcome.
Friday, May 30 – Saturday, May 31
Sign-up now.
Startup Weekend Student Application
Schedule
| Day 1 | Friday, May 30th |
| 9:00 AM | Breakfast, introduction, and run of show - In this section you will meet the local team, discuss expectations for the weekend. |
| 10:00 AM | Entrepreneurial Mindset / Problem-Solution Fit An "entrepreneurial mindset" refers to a set of attitudes, behaviors, and thought processes that drive individuals to Do you have what it take to identify opportunities, take calculated risks, innovate, and create value? We will discuss the set of attitudes, behaviors, and thought processes that drive individuals to launch and grow a business. |
| 11:00 AM | Idea’s chosen, problem understanding Individual team workshop to pick the idea you want to work on and start understanding the problem and identify key target market. Noon: Working Lunch QA |
| Noon | Working Lunch Q&A |
| 1:00 PM | Mentor introduction and Problem-Solution Fit (PSF). |
| 2:00 PM | Lean Canvas: Problem-Solution Hypotheses. Lean Canvas is designed for entrepreneurs and to validate their business ideas quickly, in a one-page format with a focus on key assumptions, The Lean Canvas aims to help founders avoid costly failures by focusing on customer needs and validating their solutions early. |
| 3:00 PM | Customer Discovery: Customer interview and peer review Customer discovery is the process of actively researching and understanding your target audience's needs, pain points, and desires to identify potential problems they face. In this session you will build a set of questions to support your PSF, and test them with other participants at the event. |
| 4:30 PM | Idea Pitch Presentation, overview prepare to put you ideas down in a PowerPoint presentation. In this session we will review the desired results of your idea pitch. |
| 5:00 PM | Pizza, Q&A, Networking |
| Day 2 | Saturday, May 31 |
| 9:00 AM | breakfast and networking |
| 9:30 AM | Pitch preparation. Work with existing example to build your 3 page pitch. |
| 10:30 AM | Introduction to Judges and Idea Pitch Competition. Each team will have 5-7 minutes to present their idea to the panel. Particular questions are: What is the problem you are solving, who is your target market, what is your solution and why does it matter. |
| Noon | Lunch and panel discussion awards. An entrepreneurial panel discussion covering the opportunities, challenges, and benefits of starting and running a business, sharing experiences, and offering tips and tools for building successful ventures. |
Mentors & Judges
Startup Weekend is made possible by volunteers from SLCC and the business community. If you want to volunteer to be a team mentor or panelist judge, submit this short application.
Mentor Time commitment:
Friday, 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Saturday, 9:00am – noon
We invite you to share your expertise by providing guidance and support to aspiring entrepreneurs. Startup Weekend can be challenging, and mentors play a crucial role in keeping participants motivated and focused on their goals. As experienced entrepreneurs or industry experts, you will offer valuable insights and suggestions to help teams develop a Problem-Solution Fit Hypothesis. This involves confirming that a problem genuinely exists, clearly identifying a target market, and validating that the proposed solution effectively addresses the problem.
We will provide you with templates, tools, and instructions.
Just bring your experience, motivation, encouragement, and knowledge to the table to help teams understand market trends, identify opportunities, and develop effective strategies.
Idea Pitch Judge Time Commitment:
Saturday, 10:30 Idea Pitch Competition
Noon: Panel discussion and awards.
As a pitch judge, you will evaluate the startup ideas presented by teams. Your role will involve providing constructive feedback and selecting the winners based on criteria such as identifying the problem, understanding the target market, and determining if the solution is viable. We will provide a scoring template and instructions for your evaluation.
Additionally, we ask that you participate in a panel discussion to share your expertise and experience as an entrepreneur or industry expert.
Mentor Application
