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Frequently Asked Questions

Questions? Doubts? Curiosities? Check out our FAQs!

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For anything else, feel free to contact us by clicking the button below

Key Questions

What are the minimum requisites for applying?

​Participants can be either aspiring/early stage entrepreneurs or recently founded ventures living and working in one of the program countries (Italy, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Colombia, India).

The main requirement is having a business idea that you would like to develop and implement. It can be either an early-stage idea you would like to transform into a real business (aspiring entrepreneurs) or a new venture that has been recently founded.

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How does the Application Process work?

Applications have to be sent on the local website of your Country, which you can access on the home page by clicking on the respective country flag. You will then be able to apply directly using the short form on the country webpage, by providing a valid email address.

You will then receive a link in your email box with an application survey to complete, followed by the request to send a short description of your business idea ("elevator pitch").

After the end of the call for applications, you will receive a phone call from one of our staff members who will ask you some questions about your business or idea.

After completing these steps, you will be fully eligible for the program.

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What topics will be addressed in the course?

IdeaBoosterLab is an idea validation course. This means that the course will cover the most important steps that innovators have to take when they want to develop a business idea and bring it to the market.

Several tools and techniques related to business planning and business experimentation will also be covered.

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Is this a general business course?

The programme will address some key business topics and teach you how to use some of the most useful business tools.

However, the main goal of the programme is to help you develop and evaluate one specific project or idea that has an innovative component.

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Who Can Apply?

How many people per company/startup can join the programme?

Each manager of the participating company or each member of the founding/entrepreneurial team is eligible to participate.

I do not have a team or a company, can I apply?

Yes, you can join the program as a solo entrepreneur.

The key requirement is that you already have an idea that you would like to transform into a real business.

Costs

Is it really free of charge?

Yes! The course is completely free of charge. There are no admission fees nor hidden costs.

As part of a broad research project, the only thing you will be asked to do is to actively participate and complete some interviews and questionnaires to help instructors improve your learning experience and understand your business developments.

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Who is funding the project?

This project is primarily funded by an European Research Council (ERC) Grant.

Additional funding come from research grants at the universities that participate in the project.

Training Program Details

Where is the training taking place?

The IdeaBoosterLab training will be offered in Italy (Milano), Netherlands (Rotterdam), United Kingdom (London), Colombia (Bogotà), India (Chennai).

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If you are interested, please check the local websites for more information (access them on the home page by clicking on the respective country flag).

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When is the training taking place? And how long is it?

Each country has different schedules but, in general, the training will start around February 2022.

 

The programme includes 6 training sessions, and it will last around three months.

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After the first 6 core sessions, participants will be invited to exclusive events focused on specific strategy and entrepreneurship topics.

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What about COVID-19? Will the training be held in presence?

The IdeaBoosterLab team is aiming to hold the training in presence, in compliance with the local countries' COVID-19 rules and norms.

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Please check the local webpages (found in the home page by clicking on the respective country flag) for additional information tailored to the country of interest.

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Is it compulsory to attend all sessions?

Participation to all sessions is strongly encouraged for making the most out of the programme. However, participants are allowed to skip 1 session out of the 6 core sessions. A higher number of absences will not allow the participant to continue with the programme. This will imply that it will not be possible to access course materials, receive the final certificate of participation as well as taking part in the invitation-only exclusive events.

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What is the class size?

To ensure a high-quality learning experience and allow you to participants will be divided into small classes of around 20 firms/entrepreneurs.

In this way each participant will have the opportunity to interact with everyone, learn from others’ experience and get individual feedback from the instructor.

Special events will be organized into larger groups, instead, to give attendees the opportunity to network more broadly

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Who will be my instructor?

All instructors have substantial expertise in business training and coaching, especially with start-ups and SMEs. Most of them have proven entrepreneurial or managerial experience and are seasoned mentors. All of them have a dynamic and interactive approach to teaching. All instructors come from the local country and have a large expertise in both academia and entrepreneurship.

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Who developed the training material?

The training material has been developed by a team of academics lead by Bocconi University (Milan), who are international experts in the field of management, entrepreneurship and strategy.

What is the structure of each session?

In each session, the instructor will deliver valuable tools that will support strategic and operational decision making in many areas, especially when it comes to strategic and innovative plans. The same tools can be used to start the development of a start-up.

Importantly, plenty of time in each session will be devoted to interactive discussions of small cases and the application of ideas to your business, following participant-centered learning methodology.

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Where is the practice in this course?

The course is designed to have a strong practical orientation. Between each of the six core sessions participants will be asked to apply the tools and knowledge learned in class to their own business or idea, and to present their results to the instructor and the other participants.

All the knowledge and tools you will learn during the sessions can be immediately applied outside the classroom, and we encourage participants to do so in order to get immediate feedback from both the instructor and their peers.

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Do I get any certificate for participation?

Yes! You will get an official certificate of participation if you attend at least 5 out of 6 core sessions. At the end of the exclusive events series, you will get a further certificate of attendance.

What are the "Monthly Events"?

At the end of the training period, we will organize a series of monthly events that include webinairs, workshops, in-person seminars and networkin dates to help you grow your business and your professional network.

We will cover topics of interest to entrepreneurs and managers, featuring international speakers from both academia and international firms.

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Data and Privacy

Will I be asked to share confidential information with other participants?

No. Each participant will decide autonomously on the extent to which they wish to participate in the class discussion and whether they want to keep a more active or passive role. Each participant will decide which information he/she wants to share with the class.

We encourage you NOT to share any confidential information with your peers, which is certainly something NOT required in order to participate and make the most out of the business programme.

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Why do I need to provide data?

We are asking you to provide data about your business and yourself for two main reasons.

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First, by having a better understanding of your business background, we will be able to better tailor the content of the programme to your specific needs and provide a better learning experience.

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Second, IdeaBoosterLab is made possible by a larger research project. This means that the academic partners will use this data (in aggregated and anonymized form only) to conduct some general research. The aim of the research is to understand how entrepreneurship and innovation training can help firms grow and achieve their business goals. By providing your consent to the use of these data, you will be helping the team improve this programme and support even more firms.

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We understand that filling in questionnaires or participating to interviews might be time consuming, but this information is essential to provide you with a free and high-quality programme, and we very much hope that the programme will be a good return for your time.

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How will my data be used?

All data collected in the context of this project will be used exclusively in anonymized and aggregate form, and solely for academic research purposes and in the public interest.

None of your data will be shared with other parties except the academic ones directly involved in the project and in the full research project.

Data will be encrypted and stored on our (restricted-access) IT infrastructure.

The academic institutions involved in this project adopt the highest research ethics standards for managing and protecting data, which is a core part of their regular activities. Their outstanding reputation in the research domain speaks for their commitment to ensure that data will only be used to gather general insights on the quality of the programme delivered for academic research purposes and in compliance with European GDPR regulations (one of the strictest data regulation frameworks worldwide) and for no other purpose.

We would be very happy to provide more detail on our research and the use of data, should you find it useful. You can also check the Privacy Policy posted on this website.

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ADDRESS

ICRIOS - Università Bocconi

Via Guglielmo Rontgen, 1

20136 Milano

ITALY

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©2021 IDEABOOSTERLAB
PROUDLY CREATED BY A.C. & D.J.

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