Good practice:

Business acceleration program Evolut 4.0

The knowledge and experience gained through the acceleration program help accelerate business growth.
The program consists of a methodology developed by combining worldwide recognized and widely used business value, customer profile refinement, development strategy, sales activation and other business process enhancement tools.
Before selection – each team has to apply for the program by filling a digital registration form and then all applied teams are invited to present their idea by doing a 3min pitch in front of the 4-5 people commission.
The practical training cycle consists of 8 face-to-face meetings per two months. Startup teams analyze various aspects of business development, including a minimum viable product (MVP) proposition and financial strategy. Every team has a mentor. Some mentors work with several teams.
At the end of the training cycle, members of startup teams define their customer profile, the market in which they will operate and their main competitors. Teams also prepare Pitch Desk presentations and future steps to attract investments: venture capital, business angel funds, or other financing instruments. Promising teams already entering the market are accompanied by innovation experts working with both major Lithuanian businesses and university researchers taking the first steps in inventions commercialization.

18K per year
3-4 members of for organization, 5-7 trainers, 4-5 mentors. Total: 12-16 staff members.

Evolut 4.0 - the best business solution for entrepreneurship and new product development by International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation.
The success can be attributed: Combining group and individual support services. Free of charge (so far). Possible international networking opportunities, soft-landing services. Consists of purely practical workshops and seminars, each team gets an individual support.
2018: 2 training sessions, 20 start-up teams have participated.

The setting-up and market entry of new innovative enterprises is based on their abilities to realise and manage their product life-cycle and successful preparation for accessing the funding. Business acceleration program Evolut 4.0 is a good example of intensified programme (2 months) designed for early stage start-ups to develop an innovative product, increase sales and prepare for investment phase.
By transferring this measure, other countries can support companies to develop an innovative product, increase sales and prepare for investment phase and thus accelerate further business growth.