Venture Velocity Program

A cohort-based program to equip early-stage founders with essential skills, strategies, and insights crucial for positioning them for a highly successful venture capital fundraise.

Venture Velocity Program

A cohort-based program to equip early-stage founders with essential skills, strategies, and insights crucial for positioning them for a highly successful venture capital fundraise.

Equipping founders for a successful venture journey.

By combining rigorous curriculum, strategic mentorship, targeted networking opportunities, and a supportive community, our cohort members are set up for sustainable success and impactful growth in the competitive startup ecosystem.

The program is tailored for high-growth potential founders who have not yet raised institutional capital. Ideal participants are early-stage entrepreneurs seeking to scale their ventures and improve their chances of securing venture capital funding.

Velocity is an 8-week intensive learning program hosted at Union Hall. The curriculum explores venture capital, market targeting, sales, fundraising, team building, and investor readiness, all while building founder connections.

Participants in the program can expect to gain:

  • Enhanced pitch deck and fundraising strategies
  • Access to a network of investors and mentors
  • Sales strategy development
  • Exposure to venture-backed founders, customers, and professional services
  • Access vibrant coworking space at Union Hall
Participants have access to up to $250,000 in equity investment through Cintrifuse Capital, broken into two buckets. Following acceptance and successful completion of the program, startups will receive a $100,000 investment in exchange for 6% equity. Furthermore, cohort members will subsequently be eligible for an additional $150,000 investment, pending outside funding and alignment on terms.

Program Calendar

Venture Capital 101

What is venture and who is a good fit for investment? We’ll cover the full Velocity Program as well as Pitch Deck structure.

Get Your “House” in Order

Setting your company up correctly in the beginning from a legal, accounting and HR perspective will put you on the right path to avoid large expenses down the road.

Targeting Your Market

Understanding your customers’ needs, wants, and how to determine if they’ll buy your product.

The Science of Sales

Discover how you can leverage brain science to improve your sales pitch and odds of closing.

Strategy of Fundraising

Practice and planning will help you run an effective fundraising process, saving you time so that you can get back to growing your business.

Hypergrowth Teams

Hiring is a key ingredient that will have a major impact on the outcome of your company. Get it right the first time by building your team like a startup veteran.

Investor Readiness

Interface with investors to get direct feedback on your pitch, and catch up on the latest venture market conditions

The Final Chapter

We’ll have covered a lot in two months. Let’s celebrate your progress while making high value connections with specifically curated investors.

Ideal participants

01.

Stage of Business:
Applicants must be early-stage startups with high-growth potential. Ideal candidates are founders who have not yet raised institutional capital but are actively preparing for a venture capital fundraise.

02.

Scalability:

The startup should demonstrate a clear potential for scalability and market impact. This includes having a viable business model, a defined target market, and evidence of initial traction or customer interest.

03.

Commitment:

Founders must be fully committed to participating in the 8-week program in-person at Union hall, including attending all sessions, actively engaging with mentors and peers, and implementing feedback to refine their business strategies.

04.

Innovation and Differentiation:

The startup should offer a unique solution or product that addresses a significant market need or problem. Applicants should be able to clearly articulate what sets their venture apart from competitors.

Get to know our most recent cohort

Founder: Nicole Armstrong

Ellequate drives transformative improvements in employee experience and organizational health with a data-driven platform and rigorous third-party certification for workplace equity, helping small and midsize employers attract and retain talent.

Founder: Sharod Holmes

holm.site is the future of websites, a new way for modern entrepreneurs and creative professionals to establish their online presence through a mobile-first website building platform.

Founder: Kam Seabrook

Obai processes insurance claims after catastrophic storms with an innovative approach that leverages cutting-edge technology.

Founders: Dr. Glenn Platt, Dr. Russ Hammer

Lyceum AI is an in-class AI Teaching Assistant built by teachers for teachers. It engages students personally with teacher-informed insights and helps teachers effectively and efficiently manage their class time.

Founders: Chris Lee, Huzefa Dossaji, Jon Taylor

Airtrek Robotics makes airport ramp operations safer using autonomous robots. They are focused on advancing the future of airport ramp operations through continuous innovation, making them safer and more efficient.

Upcoming program application deadlines & dates.

Upcoming Cohort

Summer 2024 Venture Velocity Cohort

8-week cohort program for early-stage founders looking to prepare for their first successful venture capital raise.

Application deadline: June 20, 2024
Program Duration: July 16 – September 6, 2024
Available spots: 5

Applications closed

Frequently asked questions

The Venture Velocity Program is an 8-week cohort-based venture scaling initiative designed to equip early-stage founders with the essential skills, strategies, and insights necessary for a successful venture capital fundraise. Participants receive intensive support in areas such as pitch deck refinement, sales and fundraising strategy, and connections to investors and mentors.

The program is tailored for high-growth potential founders who have not yet raised institutional capital. Ideal participants are early-stage entrepreneurs seeking to scale their ventures and improve their chances of securing venture capital funding.

Participants in the program can expect to gain:

  • Enhanced pitch deck and fundraising strategies
  • Access to a network of investors and mentors
  • Sales strategy development
  • Exposure to venture-backed founders, customers, and professional services

The program provides specialized support in refining pitch decks and developing effective fundraising strategies. It also facilitates introductions to potential investors and mentors who can offer guidance and feedback. Additionally, participants benefit from networking opportunities and the possibility of securing investment through Cintrifuse Capital’s extensive network.

Beyond the core program components, participants have access to various resources, including:

  • Union Hall’s coworking and office space
  • Financial modeling assistance
  • Vendor discounts
  • Access to market and venture data resources such as Pitchbook and CB Insights

These resources help participants optimize their operations and accelerate their growth.

A core component of the VVP is relationship development with your cohort members. We believe in the power of peer support and the benefits of building/learning together. As a result, all VVP activities are in-person at Union Hall.
There’s no shortcut to building a startup, and the same is true for effectively fundraising. While this intensive 8-week program will push you and require your focus, we recognize you have a company to run as well. We require that you fully dedicate Tuesdays to the program curriculum (9am – 5pm), along with a few hours of pre-work each week. The remainder of your time should be spent working on your business, including Thursdays which will be spent coworking with your cohort members at Union Hall (no curriculum)
The $250k will be split into two investments:
  1. Following successful completion of the Velocity Program, you will receive a $100k investment in exchange for 6% equity in your company on a post-money SAFE.
  2. Cohort participants are subsequently eligible for an additional $150k investment. Eligibility depends upon the founder raising an equal or higher amount from external investor(s) on amenable investment terms. 

Yes, participants are required to be in Cincinnati.

Cintrifuse will run the Venture Velocity Program multiple times per year. This highly selective program will target 5 companies per cohort.

Non-acceptance does not bar a founder from applying to a future cohort. In fact, we encourage you to continue to work on your idea and show us your progress for a future cohort.

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Innovation Services Inquiry

We help our Strategic Corporate Partners enhance their performance by using Startups as tools for Open Innovation. Strategic Venture and Connect Services leverage the tremendous network of our Syndicate Fund of Funds and its portfolio of cutting-edge Startups to enhance the innovation capacity of our Corporate Partners through collaboration and an external influx of knowledge and innovation.

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