Startup Springboard is a program organized by Perkins Coie LLP that aims to help create and facilitate long-term relationships and open doors for entrepreneurs and investors in Texas. We are building an emerging company ecosystem that will deliver relevant content and networking opportunities for founders of early-stage companies by collaborating with local leaders in the emerging growth community in Austin and Dallas.
From first-time founders to seasoned entrepreneurs, our main objective is to encourage connections and manifest opportunities across our network of serial entrepreneurs; investors and board members; mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisors; established enterprises looking to foster the startup ecosystem; and legal, accounting, banking, employee benefits, and insurance service providers.
Program Objectives
- Collaborate with local leaders in the emerging company ecosystem to deliver relevant content based on collective experience.
- Invite founders of early-stage companies into the ecosystem so they can build a network of advisors.
- Organize cohorts to foster peer-level relationships with other founders (sessions in person and hybrid).
- Provided at no cost (and no equity) to qualifying companies.
- Build an ecosystem to open doors for entrepreneurs and investors.
Topic Areas
Tailored to high-energy startups, from seed to later stage, our programming will cover a wide variety of topics such as:
- Co-founder selection and relationship structuring.
- Product development, product-market fit, and intellectual property (IP) protection.
- Startup hiring, compensation, and benefits, including engaging a remote or international workforce.
- Equity compensation, tax pitfalls, and cap table management.
- Financial forecasting, building a pitch deck, and learning from “no.”
- Board dynamics and responsibilities.
- Growth through strategic partnerships and acquisitions.
- Bootstrapping and nondilutive debt financing.
Cohort Profile
Each round of Startup Springboard will be tailored for the corresponding cohort of companies. For our first cohort in 2023, we selected a total of 17 high-energy companies in Austin and Dallas and provided them with eight complimentary sessions developed by serial entrepreneurs, investors, service providers, and seasoned M&A advisors. Future cohorts could be similar or could be organized as one-day intensive sessions. This could include cohorts grouped by development stage, by industry, or by other common characteristics. Grouping companies by cohort allows us to foster peer-level relationships with other founders.
Cohort Selection Criteria
- Eligible companies must have an established business plan, even if they are early in implementation.
- Seed-stage, post-seed, and later-stage companies will find programming most relevant.
- Ideally, companies will be in high-growth areas that require significant ($5M+) in external financing for expansion.
Our Team |
Contact Us [email protected] |
|||||
|
||||||
Jill Louis |
Andy Smetana |
Troy Foster |
Valeska Pederson Hintz |
|||
Dan Austin |
Michael Glenn |
Wendy Moore |
Ann Marie Painter |
|||
Logan Payne |
Paul Ford |
Ebony Morris |
Kaina Pengilly |
|||
Andy Shawber |
|
|