Angel Challenge Program Manager
I facilitated this three month dual-sided accelerator program in Norway, helping startups become investment-ready , while simultaneously guiding the angel investor cohorts through the startup evaluation and due diligence process.
Angel Challenge
Part of Startup Norway, Angel Challenge is an investor-focused accelerator program, that helps educate aspiring angel investors while also helping startups become investment-ready. It is based in Oslo, but has operations across several cities in Norway.
What They Needed
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Startup Norway was seeking a new Program Manager for their Angel Challenge program. This role would require someone to help develop and facilitate an accelerator program to both startups and angel investors, as part of their unique investor-focused program.
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Through a 3-month program, the Program Manager would lead the startups through a program to become investment-ready, while simultaneously educating aspiring angel investors on the startup evaluation and due diligence process. As Program Manager, I helped to make the fits between investment-ready startups in the program, as interested angel investors.
How We Collaborated
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As Program Manager, I delivered the programs for the Oslo and Trondheim programs, simultaneously. This involved on-site workshops for startups and angel investors, respectively. In coordination with our team, we would develop the program content for each week, and my role was to educate and facilitate to the batch of startups and investors. This ultimately culminated in investments made into some investment-ready startups in the program, and the creation of new angel investors in Norway.
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Both the Oslo and Trondheim programs resulted in investments made into investment-ready startups, and a larger group of sophisticated investors in the Norwegian ecosystem. I helped in developing the content throughout the entirety of the program, including all necessary presentations and documentation that I would deliver, and I led the workshops and events for the program’s execution.
The Results
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There were startups from both programs that successfully raised capital from angel investors. The startups that were too early, gained the important knowledge to how to become investment-ready, of which several startups benefitted from fundraising in the future. On the investor side, new angel investors were educated and became active investors, and in some cases formed syndicates.
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The startups received real world, hands-on feedback and support for their ventures. This resulted in more successful startups, and a stronger startup ecosystem on the whole, in Norway. Additionally, these startups were supported by a growing number of angel investors, providing the invaluable capital that early-stage startups need to get off the ground and grow.
Eirik Lilland Nerdal | Fmr. Head of Investor Programs @ Startup Norway
