Saved By The Bell! The Founder Institute Comes To Awesome DC

by Elias Shams
I have been following the initiatives by an interesting organization called The Founder Institute since their program was first announced in March of last year.  They recently opened an office in DC and have executed the perfect program for entrepreneurs or those of you thinking of becoming one, but no idea where to start. I wish they were around in late 90’s when I had just launched my first internet company, Telezoo and in desperate need for guidance and contacts.

The West Coast based Founder Institute was founded by Adeo Ressi, the Founding Member of TheFunded.com, an online community of 12,000 CEOs to research, rate, and review funding sources worldwide. They have expanded to many more regions including our awesome Washington, DC. This spring, their mentorship program will be expanding to Singapore, Paris, Los Angeles, and Denver. They offer entrepreneurs, the students who have basic ideas for potential startups but have not yet founded a company, and very early stage startups an environment designed to help foster their growth and education. This is exactly what I needed back in 1999. The program is a semester-based startup camp. 198 founders applied to the program. 79 were accepted, and 66 graduated. 31 companies have been incorporated by these founders so far, and a handful have actually launched (including Skimble and Molo Rewards ).

They kicked off the semester last month with 36 founder participants. The program leads 12 company-building sessions one evening a week over four months guided by experienced entrepreneurs, allowing participants to continue working full time or to develop their companies during business hours. Program participants enjoy discounted services from Institute Partners, fundraising opportunities at fair market value, and a teamwork-oriented startup environment where equity is shared among all participants in the companies formed. DC session mentors include local executives such as:

. Roger Yee, a founder of ShadowLogic, Launchfuel and ApptNet;
. Matthew Mandell, founder and CEO of City Centric and DC Snacks,
. Marissa Levin, founder and CEO of Information Experts.
. Chris McGill, founder and CEO of Mixx.com (San Francisco),
. Joe Betts-LaCroix founder of OQO (San Francisco)
. Gabe Zichermann, co-founder and CEO of rmbrME (New York).

I am still curious how their program is different than the ones offered by our local universities. Anyone?

Time to become an entrepreneur NOW!

Now that these guys are around corner, those of you non entrepreneurs or having doubt to become one, I urge you to take advantage of their program and consider to become one fast – particularly if you are a student and just about to graduate. Here is why:

a) I don’t need to remind you that the current economy and job market is pretty bleak and will probably stay this way throughout 2010. I don’t mean to be pessimistic; in fact I am a very optimistic dude. But this is real. There is no job waiting for you once you graduate. Hope it gets better in 2011.

b) There has been a major shortage of entrepreneurs in our nation’s capital and in other parts of the country these past few years.

c) You are single, with little responsibility or financial burden, so you can afford to forgo a big paycheck for a little while.

Historically, when times are bad for the economy, it can be a great time to start a business. In fact, 16 of the 30 companies that make up the Dow industrial average were started during a recession or depression. These include Microsoft, Disney, McDonald’s, General Electric and Johnson & Johnson. In fact, from what I remember, Although, Google started during the glory days of late 90’s, but it really started kicking ass during the 2001 recession.

Therefore, a + b + c = Jack POT (Perfect Opportunity & Timing) to become an entrepreneur NOW! Take the risk and create jobs or something to become the leader in a new or dynamic space. You, the entrepreneurs are the vanguard of our economic and social changes. Think of a niche and try to sell your idea using all the awesome electronics resources available today on the Net. Rely on friends and a network of friends who can help you with the seed finance. A few years from now, you guys will be in a profession that is not even defined today. Did anyone know texting 10 years ago? Or Web searching 16 years ago? Also, let’s not forget that the financial resources our government has allocated for entrepreneurs. Look it up.

The Founders Institute / CEO Adeo Ressi

You can apply here for their program here.