First Growth Academy: Faster success for Swiss start-ups
NZZ Connect and PMF Factory are jointly launching the first Growth Academy. From over 50 applications, 13 start-ups were selected to complete a challenging and intensive program over the next 14 weeks. Leading entrepreneurs and lecturers with start-up experience will ensure a strong practical focus. Participants will work on their own start-ups and implement what they have learned directly in their company.
More than 50 applications for this first cohort confirm that the Growth Academy meets an unmet need and that young companies in Switzerland are eager to invest in their development. Product-Market Fit (PMF) is a key criterion for start-ups in the USA and the decisive factor for success. Product-market fit marks the point at which a start-up has an offering that is in high demand on the market. PMF is crucial to asserting oneself in a competitive market and developing a sustainably successful business model. PMF is important for both investors and founders as it forms the basis for sustainable growth and successful scaling. Investors in the US expect start-ups to have achieved PMF or be (demonstrably) on the way to it before they close major financing rounds.
Practice-oriented program for sustainable success
"The aim of the Growth Academy is to make start-ups more successful more quickly. This is the only way we can make venture capital attractive as an asset class for the more risk-averse European investors and finance start-ups in the long term," says Lukas Frösch, Head of the Growth Academy at NZZ. In an intensive 14-week program, participants receive the necessary tools and insights to develop their company sustainably, address the challenges and successfully establish it on the market. The Academy teaches methods and strategies to prepare the start-ups for the next growth step and make them investment-ready by making practice-oriented progress and learning from experienced entrepreneurs.
Diversity of the participating start-ups
The spectrum of participating start-ups is broad: from a company that converts real-time data into insurance solutions, to a company that measures the environmental impact of the food industry and improves its sustainability, to
to a company that uses medical 3D printing to produce customized orthoses and prostheses to improve patient mobility. "Ultimately, a strong product-market fit means everyone can sell more with less effort," adds Michael Sauter, senior lecturer at the Growth Academy and author of the book "Product-Market Fit - how to build a business that scales".
The second Growth Academy starts on January 10, 2025
The demand for support on the path to product-market fit is enormous. This is why interested companies can already apply for a second round of the Growth Academy. This will start on January 10, 2025, when 10-15 start-ups will once again be able to go through the Growth Academy program with experienced experts. Applications are accepted via this form.
Participants at the first Growth Academy (alphabetical order):
- Crossiety
- CrowdTransfer
- eeproperty
- FOOD2050 AG
- Konsento AG
- Leg&airy AG
- machine MD
- matriq AG
- PastaHR
- Riskwolf AG
- ai (Epic Automations)
- Trenda AG
- YLAH AG
Source: connect.nzz.ch
