Working for the past two years helping to manage the Microsoft startup programme BizSpark, I’ve definitely been stuck in meetings where I desperately wished the startup could have presented their businesses in a much better manner. Here are four quick tips I think will help founders who are looking to work closely with corporate incubators/accelerators/programmes in Singapore.
1. Clearly articulate what you do
I cannot emphasise how deadly important it is to give a concise introduction of what you do. It seems like a really basic premise, but so often I’ve had to search through jargon-filled websites and rambling speeches telling me that the startup is looking to “change the world”, “provide innovative solutions” or “be the disruptive transformation”. To what, exactly?
I find that the best introductions are often short and worded within a single sentence. I’ve also had a meeting where the founder couldn’t decide if he was a startup, incubator or accelerator – he said he was a “mix of all three”, and still couldn’t explain this strange definition after an hour of convoluted presenting. Although not completely implausible, this is still a bit of a red flag.
Tip: “We provide a [specific solution] to address [problem] to help [target audience]” is a great opening starter.
2. Provide a clear agenda
By all means, leverage what each corporate can offer you – but do respect people’s time. I can’t speak for all people who work with startups, but I suspect that most of us are a busy bunch. It’s all good to have a chat over a coffee, but there’s nothing worse than getting a clearly generic email from a founder (copied-and-pasted to a whole bunch of other people, I suspect) who wants to meet to “talk about the dynamic startup ecosystem in Singapore”.
If you’re expecting to be spoon-fed on how the community works, you’re probably really not that suitable to be a startup founder.
Tip: “We are looking for you to help [introduce us to a specific organisation/provide us with this specific resource/explore specific market access opportunities]” is a great agenda.
P.S. If you’re looking for free cloud hosting, BizSpark Plus offers you up to USD120,000 worth of Azure credit for a year. Ping me to find out more.
3. Understand how corporates work
Understandably, most people who work in startups do so precisely because they don’t want to deal with a large company and all of its often tedious bureaucratic processes. However, having a deep understanding of how your potential corporate partner functions can be extremely beneficial to further your business goals.
One of the most impressive startups I worked with opened our meeting with this direct question: “So if you don’t mind me asking, what are your KPIs?”. I was impressed because the founder knew how big organisations worked, and if he could align his agenda nicely with my personal targets, he had a much better chance of a successful partnership.
Doing your homework on what specific value the corporate can bring to your startup is also extremely helpful. I’ve had instances where I was asked to provide cash sponsorship for a children’s art competition. Not that there was anything particularly wrong with that, but it just felt a bit like spam, and nobody enjoys spam. Not even folk who work in MNCs – we’re human too.
Tip: Try asking what your corporate partner’s goals are to position yourself as a partner, not a dependant.
4. Be nice. Please?
We get it. Sometimes the lead time we ask for – often months in advance of a big event – seems unnecessarily long, or the questions we send over to prepare for certain campaigns may appear intrusive, or our head office has done something that you violently disagree with.
The thing about working in MNCs is that we have protocol and processes in place to keep things in check, what with being publicly-listed and scrutinised by various institutions. So, the person who manages startup initiatives is often in the unenviable sandwiched position of having to manage expectations of the two parties involved.
At the end of the day, it comes down to cultivating a business relationship. No one, startup or corporate, likes to feel like they are a means to an end. Being professional and pleasant will take you a surprisingly long way.
Tip: Be a polite human bean. We promise to return the favour. 🙂
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